Pissed about CAS Senator Caitlin Boehne’s involvement in the Kimmel occupation and the WSN op-ed that appeared under her name on Tuesday, two student senators argue the case for her removal from the NYU Student Senate. Caitlin called her WSN statement (linked above) “a watered down misrepresentation” and offered us the “not-so-PC version.” We have yet to receive it but will post below if it ever arrives. [UPDATE: Caitlin's uncensored statement is below.] In the meantime, Student Senators Dana Schmidt and 
Zachary Adorno talk about the myriad ways in which Boehne’s disappointed them. A few choice bits below, full text after the jump.

-”Although CAS Senator Caitlin Boehne believes that the “sole function is to act as a democratic façade for an authoritarian administration,” the fact remains that the Senate prevents such an “authoritarian administration” from making unrepresented decisions.

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-On the Coke Ban: “Debating the legitimacy of the final vote is condescending, to say the least.
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-”If you feel that you are not being accurately represented, encourage your student leaders to resign from an institution for which they have little respect.

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The following is the statement provided by Student Senators Dana Schmidt and 
Zachary Adorno

To say the Senate is “powerless” is to say the voices and opinions of NYU are meaningless.  It is imperative that the accusations made against this governing body be corrected.

The power derived from students, faculty, and administrators is that of persuasion.  While indeed any resolutions made in Senate are “recommendations” to the board of trustees, they are extremely influential in shaping University life.  President Sexton has consistently honored the Senate’s judgment over the past years.  Although CAS Senator Caitlin Boehne believes that the “sole function is to act as a democratic façade for an authoritarian administration,” the fact remains that the Senate prevents such an “authoritarian administration” from making unrepresented decisions.

Student Senators are elected to represent their constituents.  This tradition began in the 1960s in order to incorporate student participation.  We are fortunate to attend a private university that encourages such a public forum.  While some may believe that our roles end at “voting,” most Senators understand that a main component is listening.  We are not “talked at;” rather, we are obligated to bring back vital University information to our schools and engage our constituents in discussion.  It is sad to think that Senators would not gauge the opinions of the people they supposedly represent.

Most work (i.e. the drafting of resolutions like the Coca-Cola ban, movements to divest from companies supporting genocide, fair labor agreements) is done in Senate committees and councils.  This is the appropriate place to “improve our university,” not locked in a cafeteria.  When these resolutions are voted upon, the democratically elected officials are well-educated on the issue. Furthermore, Arthur Tannenbaum apologized and corrected his misstatement regarding the Coke ban. Debating the legitimacy of the final vote is condescending, to say the least.

Student governments are comprised of dedicated individuals that appreciate the appropriate channels of change in this university.  If you’d like to see what “democracy looks like,” please attend your school’s next general assembly meeting where you are more than welcome to voice your opinions on any issue.  If you feel that you are not being accurately represented, encourage your student leaders to resign from an institution for which they have little respect.

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The following is the unedited text of Caitlin Boehne’s editorial

Debunking the Senate

My active participation in Take Back NYU! and its recent occupation of Kimmel have spurred a series of questions regarding my position as CAS Senator and whether I deserve to keep my seat.

Not a Conflict of Interest

I ran for this position (or, rather, my friend Claire ran for me while I was in Ghana) with the very clear intention of furthering Take Back NYU!’s goals. If, displeased CAS student, you disagreed so strongly with TBNYU! and my priorities, you should have cast your vote for the other guy.

If you are one of the few people who have contacted me with concerns about CAS, or if you have witnessed how I conduct myself in Senate and Student Council meetings, you will be able to vouch that, in those arenas, I am a CAS representative first, TBNYU! member second. When it comes to my involvement in TBNYU!, I act on behalf of myself, not CAS. I should not have to forfeit my right to freely participate in an organization because I am a Senator, especially an organization whose goals focus on student empowerment— a goal that your student representatives should share as well.

Don’t Glorify the Senate

Mid-occupation, a reporter asked if I would be allowed to remain on the Senate once this was finished. My instantaneous, honest response was, “I don’t care.” I’m sure many of you are reading this and are, rightly, livid. So am I.

It is irrelevant who represents you in a powerless body. The University Senate is an institution whose sole function is to act as a democratic façade for an authoritarian administration. The Senate’s resolutions are non-binding, delivered as recommendations to the Board of Trustees. The Senators themselves are conduits of opinions—we collect them and offer them up to the powers that be, hoping that someone takes notice. We do not deserve to be called a Senate. Note that this is not an attack on the Senators themselves— I do believe we all care deeply about NYU and show it with the time and effort we put in to our posts—it is an attack on the folks who formed this decision-making structure.

It is easy to assume that thoughtful debate, weighty decision-making, and a dialogue between students, faculty and administrators occur within the Senate’s hallowed walls. Au contraire. After we have gotten situated with our coffee and fancy desserts, the meeting is called to order and President Sexton will launch into a lengthy report about what has been on his plate since last month’s meeting. He mentions new initiatives and updates us on current projects, while interjecting some Yankee shout-outs. We then listen to special reports—i.e. powerpoint presentations from the president of Polytech, the Sustainability Task Force and the like. The Senate Council and Committee reports ensue (if there is a resolution to vote on, it would happen here, though I’ve only seen three votes take place in two years) and the meeting comes to a close after a few minutes of Q-and-A with President Sexton. We spend 2 hours a month, max (in December it was just 40 minutes), sitting silently in Kimmel 914 getting talked at, instead of having discussions amongst ourselves on how to improve our university.

Lemme Get This Straight- You Dig Democracy But Want to Overturn the Senate’s Vote on Coke?

Yeah, sorry, it’s really easy to misunderstand that one and peg me as a whiny brat who didn’t get her way. Our demands called for an assessment of the Senate’s Coke vote, not a reinstatement of one. There are a couple things about the Senate’s vote that don’t sit well with me. The first were the egregious misstatements made by the Public Affairs Committee Chair, Arthur Tannenbaum. I don’t want to rehash them all here, but suffice it to say that he was called out after lying at the Senate’s forum, apologized, and continued to make the same misstatements inside the Senate meeting. The second is the fact that, were it up to the votes of the Student Senators themselves, the Coke ban would still be in place. Those who voted to lift the ban were predominantly faculty and administrators and those who voted to keep it were predominantly students. It’s unacceptable that students were outvoted on their own issue. But, you say, a vote’s a vote. True, but I think some serious questioning should be done about why students comprise only a quarter of the University Senate, farce though it is.

Hypocrisy? Nope. Strategy.

If it’s so useless, why did I run for Senate in the first place? I figured I’d have the same, slim odds of making change within the system as I would have by using more direct, unsanctioned methods and that I should use every avenue possible to create the change I’d like to see at NYU. At this point, I’ve realized that having a productive discussion with the stubborn NYU administration about changing the University in any meaningful way is impossible, using any means.

Moving Forward

I have fought well on CAS’ behalf and am committed to continuing to do so. I was open about my membership in TBNYU! prior to this occupation and was still able to listen respectfully to my constituents and carry their concerns to the Senate. Nothing has changed, except now I’m a little bit more familiar with Kimmel’s Marketplace.

I will neither resign nor fight to retain my position as Senator, and you shouldn’t waste your time fighting to have me removed. It just doesn’t matter. The question isn’t about me and if I’m doing right by my constituents, it’s about the University as a whole, and how to transform the Senate into a body where it DOES matter who represents you.

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