Students express little interest in Constitution

     In celebration of the Constitution’s 220th birthday, GCSU students put the first amendment to the test with a free speech event last Thursday night in the A&S Auditorium.
     The GCSU American Democracy Project teamed up with College Republicans, Young Democrats and the Government & Sociology Department to recognize Constitution Week, which featured lectures by U.S. District Judge William S. Duffey Jr., and syndicated talk radio show host Herman Cain, as well as a dialogue of free speech on GCSU campus.
     Dr. Janet Clark, associate professor of Rhetoric and Greg Kaufmann, director of the Coverdell Institute and the American Democracy Project welcomed the crowd of 100 students to join in on the grand finale of Constitution week called “Give Us Something to Talk About: Free Speech at GCSU,” an informal student-based conversation on how to improve discussion and debate around campus.
     “Freedom of speech is the very life blood of democracy,” Clark said, as students ruffled through the extra credit sign-in sheet circulating around the crowd.
     After introducing the event, Clark explained the event was meant as an arena for students to speak their minds, and, if anyone wished to leave at anytime, they could do so.
     Almost immediately, 90 percent of the crowd packed up and walked out.
     As the finale of Constitution week, the free speech conversation offered students the chance to voice their opinions, share ideas and perspectives and appreciate the benefits granted by the first amendment, yet the majority of students chose apathy over action.
     “[Constitution Week] tried to show students that issues do affect them,” said Justin Mays, student coordinator of the American Democracy Project. “We have a voice, but, for politicians to pay attention, we need to stand up and speak out.”
     Of the 30 remaining students who spoke out instead of walking out, the free speech dialogue split into three brainstorming groups, with each group hashing out ideas to help combat student apathy on campus.
     As ideas fluttered around the A&S Auditorium, key issues surfaced such as a need for a centralized location for free speech on campus, new mediums for students to speak their minds, and the revival of a GCSU debate team.
     Students also supported the continuation of ADP’s “Give Us Something To Talk About” message board, where students could write down their opinion on which issues should be debated.
     “The message board really struck a vein—people used it, talked about it and want it to stay around,” said Kaufman.
Along with a proposed message board, another way students hope to promote more debate on campus is by stirring up some drama.
      Mays and Jason White, chairman of College Republicans,  have plans to host a mock presidential debate where students represent each presidential candidates in an issue-specific debate.
     “We can insight action by bringing controversy to campus to get people talking,” White said. “To reduce apathy on campus, we have to help students get involved.”
     Involvement and awareness is key when it comes to student political apathy.
     “People wonder around with no opinion and until someone challenges them to think, they won’t,” Mary Ford, a junior computer science major, said.
     Tom Andris, junior political science major, believes most students political beliefs stem from their families.
     “I think (many students) rely on mom and dad’s opinion, not their own,” said. “(Most students) are just not in tune with the real world.”
     Even amid many students affinity towards apathy, the fate of free speech on campus still looks bright.
     “(The Free Speech Dialogue) laid the foundation of things to come,” Clark said. “We now have very concrete ideas in terms of how and where to stimulate free speech on campus.”

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Sep 28 2007. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry