Open forum or open fire? Levin draws heat

BY ZANDER DRYER

REBECCA ROSENTHAL/YH President Richard Levin's, GRD '74, open forum on Tues., Apr. 3, was marked by pointed questions from a number of student groups.

But Sudler Hall was packed to capacity. For the duration of the one-hour meeting, students confronted Levin about contentious issues such as Yale's financial aid package, environmental policy, and stance on employee unionization.

REBECCA ROSENTHAL/YH

As speaker after speaker grilled the president, members of the audience repeatedly rose to their feet to show they shared their fellow students' concerns. After students continued to stand and then sit back down, a somewhat bemused Levin finally thanked them "for being yo-yos." In a response that was illustrative of the forum's tone, students hissed back. 

REBECCA ROSENTHAL/YH

The unified student presence at Tuesday's event was the result of careful planning by a loose coalition of student groups. Christine Millerick, MC '04, a student involved in the coalition, explained that members agreed ahead of time to stand "every time someone agreed with what someone was asking or if they agreed that students need to have their voice heard." Although many students stood at the forum, it is unclear which organizations comprise the coalition—or who organized the coalition in the first place.

Most students refused to speak about the coalition on the record, saying they did not want a single student to emerge as a leader. One student anonymously expressed her fear that students who emerged as leaders might lose their financial aid and find themselves forced out of Yale.  

Despite the failure of any spokesperson to express the coalition's goals, discussions with individual students made clear that the group's official goal is increased student power over Yale's decisions.

"Every time we've organized around a particular issue, the Administration has basically ignored us. We never actually have a full say," explained Julianna Bentes, SM '04, director of the Black Student Alliance at Yale's (BSAY) political action committee and a member of the coalition. "Important decisions are largely a function of the Corporation, and students can't even lobby—let alone speak—at its meetings."

The Yale Corporation is comprised of 16 officers, all of whom hold Yale degrees. The governor and lieutenant governor of Connecticut hold ex-officio positions, and Levin presides over meetings, which are not open to the public. Members of the coalition privately referred to the Corporation's sessions as "smoky, backroom" affairs. Some students anonymously demanded full access to Corporation meetings and even a seat on the Corporation's board. Such dramatic changes would be impossible without the Connecticut state legislature's approving an amendment to Yale's 1716 charter.

Another coalition member who did not wish to be identified expressed concern that students only appear to possess power. "The YCC holds interviews and nominates candidates for the standing committees that govern University policy," she said. "But in the end, the YCC only has the power to recommend students. Dean [Richard] Brodhead [BR '68, GRD '72] has the ultimate power of approval."

In response to the students' repeated demands for direct power, Levin pointed out that no committee possesses sole decision-making powers.

Despite the coalition's demands for more power, its real concern seems to be its own liberal agenda. When a student asked Levin about a nominal reduction in the cost of student health coverage as a gesture to those students who oppose abortion, less than a dozen members of the coalition stood in support.  

Throughout the meeting, members of the coalition seemed to demonstrate a greater concern for creating new positions than making use of those channels already available to students. When one student suggested midway through the meeting a committee with student representation that could dictate environmental policy for the entire campus, Levin was quick to point out that students can already influence environmental policy through existing committees. Furthermore, he stressed that no committee possesses the kind of unilateral power that the questioner appeared to desire.

YCC Vice President Leah Zimmerman, TD '02, who was instrumental in the creation of the open forums, agreed with Levin's assessment, arguing that students who desire a role in the University's decision-making process should simply take advantage of existing committees. In a guest opinion column in the Yale Daily News, Zimmerman voiced frustration with "Yalies who pledge allegiance to the student voice flag without first becoming educated about the current options" ["Standing Committees Amplify Student Voice," YDN 2/26/01].

She continued, "Standing committees are largely ignored, but they are a significant and legitimate form of institutionalized voice for undergraduates." Directly addressing Yale students, she added, "Your efforts and passions are invaluable, but before you march on Beinecke Plaza or spend hours of your time hashing out ideas on how to influence University decisions and policies, stop by the Dean's Office—the standing committee applications are there waiting for you."

Perhaps the adversarial tone of the students caused Levin to adopt a defensive tack himself. When pressed by Abby Levine, BK '02, about Yale's mental health resources, Levin responded, "Would you like to manage the entire budget?"

In another tense moment, Jacob Remes, SY '02, who identified himself with SAS, confronted Levin with specific details about KukDong, a factory in Puebla, Mexico. Remes used this example to question Yale's failure to switch from the Free Labor Association (FLA) to the Worker's Rights Consortium (WRC), a common harping point for SAS in the past.

Levin was prepared for this, explaining that the FLA had handled the situation before WRC representatives even arrived on the scene. He proceeded to question the dubious manufacturing origin of Remes' own clothing.

After the meeting, Levin downplayed the evening's confrontational tone. "The whole point of having a forum is for students to address genuine issues," he said. When asked what he took away from the meeting, Levin stated, "It's always hard to generalize; it's obvious that the students present were those with very active concerns, and are highly passionate about their issues. I don't think most students simply came to listen; they came with real concerns."

But at the same time, many of the students who attended the meeting with causes to air ultimately left without a sense of resolution. Some students were overheard complaining afterward that Levin had merely "dodged all the questions."

Levin countered, however, "I tried to take the students' questions at face value and tried to give a direct response to each of them." 

Justin Chen contributed to this article.

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