Heavy Meddling: OSA in and around the ASUO
I have to hand it to ‘em. This year, the Ol’ Dirty Emerald has truly lived up to the name we’ve given them. They’ve been getting dirty. And I mean real filthy. There was this, and now there’s this—heavy ODE assailment on the Oregon Students Association’s (OSA) involvement in the ASUO.
Well this time around they’ve got a gaggle of former ASUO members who have come out of the woodwork to accuse the OSA of giving hush-hush endorsements to ASUO executive candidates. These prize candidates, coincidentally, usually end up winning the elections. Apparently this has been going on for years.
In a fucking stretch of a comparison, the former ASUO gaggle has romantically dubbed this process “Fight Club.” Look, if we’re going to compare this shady bullshit to a David Fincher film, it had better be to Se7en. Why? Because the thought of all of this makes me want to chop off Gwenyth Paltrow’s head and wrap it in a package.
WHATS IN THE FUCKING BOX??!!?!!!
According to Sam Dotters-Katz, the OSA, or an outside organization, picks out “a student leader as their preferred ASUO presidential candidate well before elections, and aids that individual with campaign trainings, resources and potentially other forms of assistance.”
Yeah yeah alright. My favorite testimony though, comes from former ASUO Senator/Fight Club Member Sara Hamilton:
“When I was an intern and was selected to run on a slate that outside organizations supported, I was asked to meet in the basement of a bank on a Saturday morning,” Hamilton said. “I have no idea what organizations they were affiliated with. They told us that outside volunteers would be brought to campus during the weeks of the campaign to help us out.”
Okay that’s kinda Fight Club. But I wish she elaborated on how she made her way into the basement of a bank. I also wish she had elaborated on how banks have basements and how they’re available for student advocacy organizations to hold secret meetings in.
Anyway, in the ODE there was another nice anecdote from another member of the former ASUO gaggle about an overheard conversation in an elevator. She said she heard a United States Student Association (USSA, parent of OSA) coordinator from an Arizona campus apologize to an ASUO presidential candidate for the organization not choosing her. That sorry ASUO presidential candidate in the elevator lost the election that year.
Ultimately, the OSA is accused of this ASUO election/ASUO executive meddling to ensure they are funded the upcoming year.
After that though, the ODE article’s thesis dilutes itself like usual. There are contrary statements from other OSA-loyal gaggle members that try to assure that the OSA remains strictly non-partisan during elections.
So I’m taking this Logic & Inquiry class. And before we get into any conclusions, I want to practice my reasoning by laying out the factual OSA premises for you.
1. The Oregon Student Association (OSA) is an outside organization, a statewide advocacy and organizing non-profit that:
- a.Lobbies in “student interests”
- b. Organizes “student campaigns” on college campuses
- c. Supplies students with “materials, field packets, formal publications” in order to campaign
- d. Provides student “training & leadership development”
2. An OSA representative teaches the ASUO internship class
3. The OSA is funded by the I-Fee.
These, in addition to the former ASUO/Fight Club gaggle testimonies, clearly suggest corrupt OSA influence and involvement in the ASUO. But emphasis should be added to “suggest.”
Are the effects of the OSA’s influence and involvement actually measurable, accountable?
No.
Is anything going to come of this?
No.
Why is this important then?
Well, the ODE has been hard at work with a compelling series of articles about an almost certainly inappropriate relationship between the ASUO and the OSA. It’s important because this is really promising student journalism. Great job, Emily.
Really? That’s it?
Yes. Welcome to the ASUO. The slimy, unaccountable, unchanging thicket of politically driven students (and non-students! <3 OSA, OSPIRG, etc.) that use student I-Fee money to pay the salaries and pursue the far-flung interests of lobbyists not affiliated with the UO. All we can do is talk shit on the OC blog. So start talkin’
Let’s take a moment to reflect on the fact that this story is finally out there. Every student government reporter since D’Andrea has wanted this story, and here it is, in print. Enormous props to Schiola.
The OC has been trying to break this story for years. Myself included. Big ups to Schiola for finally getting in there.
Also, bros, the OC blog and back issues have a shit ton of information about the ASUO. That’s the Commentator’s value: the institutional knowledge about the ASUO. I’d suggest that everyone read back issues, read the blog, get to know these names because OSA/OSPIRG/the evil ones bank on the fact that people graduate and forget.
The OC never forgets. THAT is its value.
Fight Club was real. It was the brainchild of Ashley Rees, who I’m sure got it from a larger organization. But it’s hard to really capture the full extent of it since a lot of it was really subtle and undocumented. The OSAers used to “groom” incoming students, ESPECIALLY INTERNS, by puffing up their egos and making offers that seem appealing to new students. “I think you have a lot of promise, I might be able to get you in at that DC trip….” Intern: “[subtly kissing ass]” OSA/ASUO staffer: “Just do this and this…” It was a long process where they always dangled stuff before you. Then they would pick you for slates and say, “I might be able to get you help from this famous campaign person….” It was building reciprocity. They were very effective, especially preying on young people. It was never explicit that they asked for anything in return. But usually at that point, you felt so much goodwill and so did your slate peers, that going against them was very tough. People who did end up going against them would just get totally shit on. Nothing like peer pressure to make someone conform. Another part of their strategy was to race-bait. I kid you not. They actually purpose antagonized multicultural groups. Ashley Rees once told me, “That will guarantee lots of volunteers for us come April.” It’s very silly to have an outside group like that on campus. But until students get the courage to kick them out, nothing will change. So basically, nothing will change.
Fight Club was real. It was the brainchild of Ashley Rees IMHO, who I’m sure got it from a larger organization. But it’s hard to really capture the full extent of it since a lot of it was really subtle and undocumented. The OSAers used to “groom” incoming students, ESPECIALLY INTERNS, by puffing up their egos and making offers that seem appealing to new students. “I think you have a lot of promise, I might be able to get you in at that DC trip….” Intern: “[subtly kissing ass]” OSA/ASUO staffer: “Just do this and this…” It was a long process where they always dangled stuff before you. Then they would pick you for slates and say, “I might be able to get you help from this famous campaign person….” It was building reciprocity. They were very effective, especially preying on young people. It was never explicit that they asked for anything in return. But usually at that point, you felt so much goodwill and so did your slate peers, that going against them was very tough. People who did end up going against them would just get totally shit on. Nothing like peer pressure to make someone conform. Another part of their strategy was to race-bait. I kid you not. They actually purpose antagonized multicultural groups. Ashley Rees once told me, “That will guarantee lots of volunteers for us come April.” It’s very silly to have an outside group like that on campus. But until students get the courage to kick them out, nothing will change. So basically, nothing will change. PS BIG PROPS TO EMILY SCHIOLA.
What Lyzi said. OC Archive has the ASUO compendium I could only dream of the ODE having. People with names like CJ Ciaramella and Drew Cattermole (and oh, yeah, Lyzi Diamond and Rockne Roll) did some badass work cataloguing the recent history of the ASUO.
Fizzlet you shouldn’t forget Niedermeyer. He loved to talk about Fight Club/OSA.