Letter to the Editor - UMKC's false democracy

By: Alex Gamble

Posted: 9/29/08

(Full disclosure: I live at the Oak Place apartments in a 4 bedroom apartment, which is cheaper than Oak Street.)

We live in a society that, now more than ever in this election season, prides itself on democracy.

Democracy is a wonderful ideology, the idea that everyone's voice will be heard. But I wonder who democracy is really for - the people making the decisions or the people voting for the ones making the decisions.

Recently, I realized that democracy, at least here at UMKC, exists for the former.

The new Student Union, a project with a monstrous $38.3 million budget plan, will break ground on Oct. 3. I am from Texas, a land where big, multi-million dollar churches sprout up all the time, so to me this was nothing new.

When I first heard of the new project last year, my initial reaction was support, but that was before I got to know Kansas City more in depth.

I took an English class last year with Professor Dan Mahala. In the class, he taught us that, like everything else in this world, architecture is always saying something. He taught us how to read the layout of Kansas City, and since then I noticed a few things about UMKC.

UMKC prides itself on being in the heart of the city, yet for the past few years, UMKC has been moving closer and closer to the plaza. Oak Street Residence Hall opened in 2004, and, on Aug. 1, the Oak Place Apartments opened. In addition to this, construction has already begun on what will be Oak West, the newest addition to the Oak family, which will be sandwiched between Oak Place and the Russell Stover's headquarters.

The Oak Place Apartments cost about $55 million to build. More than $100 million is being invested in the new UMKC developments. Yet on the Troost side of UMKC, med students go to class in an old Hardee's restaurant, boarded up and painted gray to look semi-official.

Something is wrong here. Why would UMKC invest so much money on the Plaza side of the campus, yet neglect the Troost side? How can UMKC do this and claim to be an urban campus? If anyone has ever seen the Troost side of campus, it looks increasingly like (quite literally) UMKC has turned its back on one part of the city for the opportunity to draw more students (meaning it makes more money) by facing the nicer side of Kansas City.

We have long known the University of Missouri System (UM) to be one of the greediest in the United States (employees have to pay for parking, UM calculates parking tickets into their budget, etc.), but this is a new low that has nuances of racism if we delve deep enough.

Just because UM President Gary Forsee (the former CEO of Sprint) is a wealthy man doesn't mean we have to make UMKC look like his side of town.

UMKC knows what all politicians operating within a democratic society know: in order to gain support for their agenda, they have to do at least two things. First, those in power have to present their ideas in a way that makes everyday people feel like their voice is heard. Second, they have to promise that any financial repercussions will not affect the everyday people who voted for the powerful people's agenda.

As we all know, going green is pretty hot right now. Environmentally friendly notebooks, backpacks, cars, food, etc., are making a lot of money because now, more than ever, the American public is becoming aware that environment isn't just a word.

So, as to the first requirement, I wonder, would UMKC have decided to make the new Student Union "green" if being environmentally friendly wasn't as popular as it is? Or, can we admit that UMKC decided to make the new Student Union as green as possible in order to gain support for their agenda (moving closer to the Plaza)?

As for the second part, how many of us would still have voted for the new Student Union if we knew we were going to pay for it? Almost everyone that voted for the Student Union will graduate by the time the $17 per credit-hour increase begins in the fall of 2011.

Town hall meetings are supposedly a cornerstone of democratic societies, a place where those making decisions are held accountable by the public. Increasingly, town hall meetings have shown to be little more than a morale booster for the public, something to pacify us into thinking we are making a difference so we will go along unquestioningly to big decisions.

Many might find it interesting that the town hall meetings for the Student Union weren't held until this past July, months after UMKC decided to build it. Why would UMKC wait until after the plans were concrete to allow the public to voice their opinions on the matter? To me, these town hall meetings sound more like, 'Sure, you can come and tell us how you feel, but we are still going to do whatever the hell we want,' rather than democracy.

This is the democracy America represents: a world where the rich get to do whatever they want, as long as the American public at least feels involved. I object, and for these reasons I do not support the new Student Union.

Alex C. Gamble

Sophomore, Education