Make That Voice Heard!

By J. Lawrence Scholer | Sunday, March 23, 2003

Back in the Eighties, calls for divestment from "immoral" companies and countries were dealt with swiftly and severely. Students wanted to divest from South Africa, so they built shanties and dwelled in them. Other students, opposing the unsightly heaps of plywood on the Green, rented a truck, procured some sledgehammers, and destroyed the shanties. If only student activism could once again return to its glory days?

Well, apartheid is outlawed, Mandela is out of prison and badmouthing this country, but evil companies still exist. And, guess what, Dartmouth's money is invested in them. While evil abounds in the corporate world, the example that quickly comes to mind is big tobacco. Tobacco companies are evil because they kill people, even children. Tobacco companies are really insidious, using cuddly advertising campaigns that render the kids helpless to resist that smooth taste of blended tobaccos. Fast food conglomerates are also evil because of all the fat children in this country. True, fast food is slimy, greasy, and dripping with beef-flavored tallow, but companies manage to lure the nascent fatties with offers of toys. Kids like toys, so they eat fast food and become obese, often grossly so. Of course, the Student Assembly has not thought through many of the consequences and vagaries of divestment. For instance, Philip Morris (sorry, Altria) owns the company that makes delicious Kraft Singles and Cheese 'n Macaroni, products that children also enjoy. R.J. Reynolds owns Nabisco, which produces healthy shredded wheat, among other foodstuffs.

Fortunately, the Dartmouth Student Assembly is on the case and has gained approval for starting a Student Committee on Investor Responsibility. This committee would assure the moral soundness of Dartmouth's investment. I'm thankful there's an irrelevant student group ready to answer every tough moral dilemma I encounter. Where were they when I was deciding what to wear this morning? The changes won't be too drastic, at first, but they will speak for all of Dartmouth. "We are not going to change all of our investments, but it is making a statement of our beliefs," said Julia Hildreth, Assembly vice-president, to the Daily Dartmouth. I hear the returns rolling in.

I find this display heartening; if only there were more examples of student activism here at Dartmouth. There are. For some time, the Student Assembly has pondered passing a resolution proclaiming an anti-war stance regarding Iraq. Student government at Cornell passed such a resolution, as I'm sure you have already heard. If Dartmouth joins in, the effects could be world-shaking, but Assembly leaders are too humble. Assembly president Janos Marton recently admitted that the passage of such a resolution would have no effect on Washington's plans. Still, he said, it would be a good measure for student activism.

With all this activism in the Upper Valley air, it is no surprise that James Wright and his buddies in Parkhurst have joined the fray. Wright has remained silent on these student issues, although I'm sure he would give his rumbling approval, but he has felt it necessary to let the U.S. Supreme Court know his feelings about affirmative action at Michigan. Dartmouth, with seven other schools, filed an amicus brief in support of the University of Michigan. This filing is at best symbolic. it's not as if five of nine Supreme Court Justices will be so swayed by this brief that they will switch teams. Nor is it surprising; since when has paying lip service to diversity at Dartmouth become popular? Still, it's activism at its best.

Of all times for Dartmouth students and administrators to weigh in on issues of national and international importance, circumstances have made such actions propitious. Dartmouth is thriving. Out athletic teams are fully-funded and confident about their futures. Students are safe in high-security dormitories. Free student publications are distributed without penalty to the door of every student. Faculty have the utmost confidence in their administration, and departments are overcrowded with top-notch professors. Students are smarter than ever before, and they are learning so very much. And, best of all, students are really feeling good about themselves. With all the visions of social justice dancing in our heads, we would have to be idiots to feel otherwise.

Make That Voice Heard!

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