The following article represents my own opinion and does not represent the opinions of any organization I may be a member of.
I must preface this by saying that I am currently a senator of the Undergraduate Student Government and have served in the Senate since the beginning of this school year. I do not write this as a personal attack on anyone, rather I write this to disprove incorrect and unsubstantiated claims made by former President Janrey Javier and Vice President Jaely Pereira. Additionally, as the Opinions Editor of The Mass Media, I did help the President and Vice President make edits to their article, however, I remained impartial and edited their article to ensure clarity.
The University of Massachusetts Boston Undergraduate Student Government is the student-led governing body that represents the interests of the Undergraduate Student Body. Next school year, we will have 21 Senators representing the student body. Among the senators, three are elected within internal elections to chair three different committees within USG. Additionally, there are three additional positions, voted by the student body, including Vice President, President, and Student Trustee. USG is a transparent organization that, in my opinion, is one the easiest organizations to join on campus. Although USG is really easy to join, with Senators almost always able to join with no barrier to entry such as contested elections, it is sad to see the outgoing administration claim that USG is some kind of bubble.
According to Merriam Webster, a bubble is defined as, “an enclosed or isolated sphere of experience or activity in which the like-minded members of a homogeneous community support and reinforce their shared opinions.” (1) This term is generally used in a political context, to describe a “conservative bubble” or a “liberal bubble,” however, it can be used for a company or organization. In the context used by the outgoing president and vice president of USG, they claim, without evidence, that the Undergraduate Student Government is a bubble. While their election to lead USG nearly entirely undermines their entire perspective, it is important to unpack exactly the claim they made and understand exactly their view on the matter.
In the opening paragraphs of the article, the president and vice president claim the following: The “’USG Bubble’ is a term recognized by certain students on campus, especially those who are involved as student leaders across campus or part of clubs, centers, organizations, and even recognized by some folks within USG.” (2) I find the claim made here to be problematic and incorrect. USG is truly one of the easiest organizations to join on campus, as elections are widely publicized and students across the university are encouraged to run. Certainly, from the outside looking in, any organization can seem like a “bubble,” however that is the nature of organizations: People congregating based on mutual interests and hobbies. You wouldn’t call the video game club a “bubble” because they happen to stick to themselves. In the same way, people within organizations tend to have similar interests and a certain friend group. Integrating with USG is extremely easy, and after a year of being a senator, I was elected to chair of the budget and finance committee. And, although I joined USG knowing very few people, and despite an online-only mode of meeting, I quickly made many friends.
Despite what the former President and Vice President may have you believe, USG is not a bubble and their election as people from outside the organization proves exactly my point. USG is welcoming and although it may seem cliquey from the outside looking in, upon joining USG you will find the most motivated students who want what is best for the student body. And although we thank the President and Vice President for their year of service, it is unfortunate to see them leave USG by writing an article in the school newspaper bashing the very organization they served. Moving forward, I can assure students, from incoming freshmen to the seniors of UMass Boston, USG welcomes you, we have no reservations and continuously work to ensure UMass Boston is a better place for students of all races, ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientation, and sexual identity.