Dear Editor,
I would like to respond to the letter to the editor about BYU students’ potential for political power in our community.
The most recent mayoral election in Provo was won by less than 500 votes. That is less people than there are in your American Heritage class!
The disagreement over the South Campus Area Master Plan (SCAMP) is a symptom of the problem we have here at the BYU of political apathy.
The Provo City Council and mayor do not need to take into account students’ needs. Why? Because we don’t encourage and/or force them to do so. They can vote on and pass legislation that makes students seem like second-class citizens in our community because we don’t vote.
And if we don’t vote, they don’t need to listen to us. This is not to say that our city government is necessarily anti-BYU students, but the point is that they don’t need to be. SCAMP is a program that will directly impact the lives and freedoms of thousands of students and we have no say in it. This because we don’t choose to make it important to politicians.
If BYU students chose to vote, even at 50 percent, we would absolutely dominate Provo City politics. Mayors would be elected or rejected because they make policies that appreciate the role of students in the Provo City and economy. City Council members would include BYU students and people friendly to students.
Instead, we ignore this untapped power and leave decisions like SCAMP, which should involve student input, to the city counselors and mayor who have no reason to take us seriously. Power to the students!
Mat Whoolery
Mendon, Cache County
