While Cornell's Student Assembly unanimously passed an anti-war resolution last week, Dartmouth's own Student Assembly could only take a similar political stance if the resolution spoke for the majority of the student body, according to Student Body President Janos Marton '04.
Cornell's assembly decided to ratify the resolution against a possible war in Iraq after the Anti-War Coalition, a campus organization over 200 members strong, brought the proposal to the assembly.
The assembly engaged in active discussion over the idea at a meeting at which "there was standing room only," Cornell Assembly President Noah Doyle said.
Cornell's resolution followed the lead of 54 cities and 13 universities that have recently passed similar anti-war statements. In October, Ithaca, where Cornell is located, became the second city to ratify such a resolution.
So far, the majority of student response has been positive, Doyle said. A Cornell Daily Sun editorial lauded "the student group's willingness and ability to participate in active and intense political discussion."
Doyle emphasized that the resolution emerged more from the sentiments of the student body than assembly concerns. He said that it represents "what can we can do as college students to make a stance."
"The resolution is the start of a grassroots movement, not necessarily for the SA., but for Cornell."
If Dartmouth's own Assembly does choose to take such an explicitly political position, "we really want to make sure that we're speaking for the majority of the student campus, and we can't really say that right now," Marton said.
Although not participating as an Assembly official, Marton himself has been politically active; he was a commencement speaker at the Why War? teach-ins last Friday.
Next week, Why War? is organizing a trip to New York to join the anti-war protest with a march in Manhattan; Cornell's Anti-War Coalition will also be joining the movement. The march in Manhattan will be the culminating event of a New York statewide "Week Against War.".
There is a push to get all the Ivy League institutions to follow Harvard and Cornell's lead; Ivy League assembly presidents have a meeting in three weeks, and Marton said that "the issue will probably come up."
As Cornell's Doyle said, "we weren't the first university to pass this resolution, and I'm sure we won't be the last. I only encourage my fellow presidents at other Ivy Leagues to take up this issue, if there are organizations on campus that want to present it."
