Descending the steps of Baker-Berry Library, I am always struck by the minefield below. Student representatives of activist campus organizations such as China Care Club, GlobeMed, North Korea Project and MEDLIFE occupy table after table in Novack Cafe, hounding passersby for money in exchange for overly priced baked goods. Driven more often by craving than charity, the victims of the tip-for-treats gimmick blindly donate to the organizations in question. DASH sheets filled and donations secured, the student representatives sit smugly and continue hawking without once reflecting on or communicating the mission of their organization.
Where do those dollars go? The unsuspecting donor frequently does not think to ask, nor, quite frankly, does he or she care. The clock is ticking, textbooks await and DASH is a sunk cost what's an extra three or four dollars in the grand scheme of things? Therein lies the problem of campus activism.
As a community, we bicker incessantly about the lack of activism on campus the sheer, observable apathy of Dartmouth students and the prioritization of social obligations over all else. We are so quick to point fingers at those on the outside, the students who have failed to join an activist club or champion a cause. They are deemed lazy, selfish, out of touch, "fratty" or ignorant. But it seems to me that we are having the wrong conversation. Perhaps the students on the inside are to blame.
Commonly characterized as bleeding heart martyrs, the members of activist organizations the insiders are anything but. While there are always a few exceptions, by and large most members are not as devoted to their cause as they like to think and flaunt. The internal dysfunction of campus membership results in activist organizations' failure to market effectively and expand to outsiders.
In general, weekly meetings are dreaded like x-hours and are poorly attended. Events are full if and only if members have dragged their friends, fraternity brothers, sorority sisters, teammates or floormates along. A rift exists between the executives and staff members, and in some cases, among the staff members themselves. Disillusioned members loathe any discussion of money. Mindlessly drafted campus blitzes never see the light of day in most inboxes. Staffers at fundraising campaigns, like the bake sales in Novack, have no shared conception of their organization's purpose and consequently cannot communicate an inkling of a purpose to potential donors. Though I can only speak from my personal observations and leadership of certain activist organizations, these generalizations appear to hold true throughout the Dartmouth community.
In many organizations, there is no coherent strategy for campus outreach, let alone for community building within the membership. Despite ostensibly shared passions and interests, if members do not view each other as friends and fellow change agents, how can they expect to forge a strong network and appeal to the Dartmouth community at-large? They can't and they don't. And when they consistently fail, they scorn the outsiders.
It would serve club leaders and members well to reflect and ask themselves what makes them tick. What is their cause? What is their purpose? What is their elevator pitch? Why are they doing what they do? Did these members simply join the organization to pad their resumes, or does the genuine lifeblood of activism spiritedly pulse through their veins?
Club leaders and members should also give outsiders more credit. The discipline and dedication of athletes, dancers, musicians, artists, writers, mentors, debaters, researchers, staff assistants and members of other activities should never be dismissed. The time commitment and intensity of involvement in these activities, in addition to rigorous academic schedules, far supersede those of activist organizations. Not only do these outsiders simply not have time or room on their plates to pick up a few extra clubs, but these clubs give outsiders no reason to.
Activist organizations must foster a unified community within their realms as a first step in recruiting new members. A lively, cohesive group of insiders with a shared purpose will do a better job of enticing, impressing and tugging at the heartstrings of outsiders. Perhaps revamped activist organizations with strong, widely understood missions will make martyrdom as, if not more, attractive than ruling Dartmouth's social kingdom.
