In anticipation of my graduation from the BYU Law School, I have noted one regret of my seven years in Provo. After the city council meeting on Tuesday night, that regret has become even more severe. My regret is that I did not become more involved in the local political affairs of the community where I have resided. Because I, and thousands of students like me, have failed to become active voters and participators in the affairs of Provo, council members, like the four who voted to further restrict housing for single residents of Provo, continue to sit on the Provo City Council today. If I could leave my fellow students with one admonition it would be to become involved and not allow this kind of inconsideration for students to persist.
The agenda of these four members of the city council – to ensure that students are effectively housed in “student ghettos” isolated from the rest of the city and community – became quite clear on Tuesday night. Although supporters of the ordinance argue that this type of legislation is not intended with any malice toward students, one need only look at the message they are effectively sending: That students and single persons do not contribute to the vitality of neighborhoods and are instead a menace that must be restricted.
I urge students not to allow this type of discrimination to persist. Become voters in Provo. Take other political action. If the city council wants to send a message that students do not contribute to Provo, then I urge all of us to show just how much we contribute by spending our dollars in neighboring communities. It is time for students to exercise the powerful political voice that we should have in this community.
LESLIE STREET
Pensacola, Fla.
