You leave your dorm and are walking on campus headed to Main Hall. Just a wide-eyed freshman who is loving your first year away from home. You cross Church Street and crest around Anderson feeling great. It is an amazing day to be alive. You can’t wait to get to your favorite class of the day and ace that test! In the distance you see what looks like might be a mob standing next to Main Hall. You hear faint yelling in the distance but you can’t make out what they are saying. Finally You get closer and closer and start to hear the words of hatred. “Hey, you, you’re going to hell for wearing that hat! You, the gay guy, you know you’re going to hell. Over there, your definitely too ugly to get into heaven. So is your girlfriend.” Just then, you see this man look at you and yell. “Hey! Girl wearing those HOE-GA pants! You’re going to hell. You probably have a yeast infection form those pants!” You just stop and break into tears. How could someone say such hateful things with ease? You run home and miss your test that you studied so hard for. You now get anxious at the thought of stepping foot in the academic quad. This situation is a reality for students every single semester. West Chester University, usually a place of beauty and acceptance, but not today. Rather, this day West Chester University is a place of hatred and rejection. This day is a day where Mathew 24 is here on campus.
Student Government Actions
However, you are not alone in this fight. A group of wonderful human beings, led by your very own Student Government Association, were on the front lines fighting Mathew 24 until the bitter end. I got a chance to sit down with Ryan Long, SGA President, to talk about the counter rally and what us as Communication Studies Majors can do to help in the future.Ryan expressed that to combat Mathew 24, we must know their motive. Ryan said “I do not see them as people spreading their values, but rather people looking to entice negative reactions from the crowd and profit from the objectification of our students. Once we know that, we can work to keep them away from our campus.”When it comes to speakers on campus, because we are a public university, the university and Public Safety have their hands tied in many regards. They cannot legally kick them off campus, so that leaves that in our hands. “If we can strip them from their audience, the performance will end” Ryan said. The tool SGA uses when combating these problems has been named “WCU Stands” and it is ready to be utilized anytime the values of West Chester University and its community are not represented. Furthermore, Student Government Association has a plan in place for when Mathew 24, or any other being, actively works against the ideals of our student body and community.
How can Communication Student Help?
As a communication studies student, you have access to an amazing set of skills and platforms to utilize those skills. Ryan said the best thing we can do is help them with word of mouth. Ryan explained “Communication studies students can help by spreading the word on Mathew 24’s true motives and what WCU Stands does to help.” We can take to our campus media outlets and get the word out for SGA. We can help them extend their voice. Take to the presses, the radio waves, the television outlets and get spread the word. Spread the values of WCU stands by showing people they are “Accepted, valued, and appreciated.”“Student government Association is here to assure everyone is well represented. We exist to be the voice for every student at the university. We take that mission very seriously. Student Government will remain intentional and devoted in sharing the values of our student body and campus community.” Student Government Association is clear and forward with their plans moving forward but they could use our help! Take advantage of your resources and promote the values we believe in here at West Chester University. Stand with SGA as they take a stand against evil here on our campus and in our community.
