“The Multicultural Student Coalition is an alliance of students deeply committed to social justice and the principles of unity, integrity, responsibility and respect. … MCSC’s institutionalized working structure provides a healthy environment for students and the campus community to work together, learn about and from each other, and take an active role in enriching [the] Madison community.”

This, my fellow Madison students, is a mission statement provided verbatim by the Multicultural Student Coalition on page six of their denied waiver requesting upward of $1.27 million in segregated student fees. In response to the submission of this mandatory waiver, MCSC claimed the form was rife with “white privilege,” “Eurocentrism” and finally, that the Student Services Finance Committee was “dripping with the audacity of self-given and unearned power.”

I have no affiliation with the Multicultural Student Coalition, the SSFC or ASM in general. I may not represent these campus groups or in general a “marginalized” background, but I have ears. I have eyes. And as an individual who pays segregated fees, I most certainly have a voice. What I’ve seen and heard throughout these past few days has made me question the authenticity of the MCSC’s mission statement. Unity? Integrity? Responsibility? Respect? Not according to my dictionary.

First and foremost, I want to shy away from ideological frustrations of race and instead project my frustrations in simple mathematical and administrative terms. According to ASM’s website, the funds the MCSC are requesting fall under a section of allocated fees known as the General Student Services Fund, which comprises 18 percent of total revenue from segregated fees (around $23 million). This means the GSSF has somewhere in the ballpark of $4,140,000 to dole out to programs like Sex Out Loud, GUTS, Vets for Vets, the Working Class Student Union, Adventure Learning Programs and of course, the Multicultural Student Coalition.

To reiterate, MCSC requested $1,270,488.20 from the GSSF, or approximately 30.68 percent of the fund’s total available endowment. This equates to a 480 percent increase from their 2010-2011 budget ($264,346). Some of these requests include $22,350 for printing and photocopying, $75,000 for rent (because they claim their SAC office is filled with racists and gawkers), $5,100 for advertising and $488,653.20 for staff salaries.

Now I’m no accountant, but MCSC’s request seems far from comparable to that of other student organizations requesting funds. Furthermore, when asked to prioritize their budget (in case the GSSF was not able to accommodate their request in full), the MCSC refused and called the mandate “atrocious.” Why? Because doing so “looks like us ranking which students deserve services paid for by their own segregated fees.” Frankly speaking, it appears that MCSC has already made that choice for us. By requesting over 30 percent of all available GSSF funds, their organization has effectively undermined equally indispensable programs like tutoring, sexual health and awareness and services for student veterans. In the process, they have criticized our student government, which is equally dedicated to serving the students of this campus, of racism and bigotry for following protocol and having MCSC submit a waiver for an unprecedented budgetary request that toes the line of absurdity. As “marginalized” students they wish to be treated equally, and yet when it comes to financial and administrative procedures meant to establish uniformity, they expect ASM to adhere to their agenda or risk being castigated publicly. This is not an issue of skin color. It is an issue of selfish entitlements. So much for unity, integrity, responsibility and respect.

Brett Bernsteen ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in United States history and Spanish.

MCSC – SSFC Spending Waiver-1