Primary Day for the District of Columbia is only a few days away, and all over campus you can just feel the excitement and anticipation on campus. Banners and signs dot every open space, and students are holding rallies in Red Square to support their candidate of choice.
Of course, none of that is actually true. The primary race for mayor (which, in a city that voted ninety percent for Kerry functions the same as the general election) has been met by Georgetown with resounding indifference. The number of students who are registered to vote in the District borders on the nonexistent. Most students could not name a candidate, or even feign interest, even if their life depended on it.
Maybe students should take a second look at the politics of the city around them. Students’ lives, or at least the quality of it, just might depend on this race.
The issue that has the most bearing on student life and one of the key issues in this year’s campaign is crime. The mayor has the prerogative to choose a police chief and set the agenda for crime prevention, Ed Solomon, head of the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission, said.
“Remember a crime emergency has been declared in the city, and even though percentages are down, the perception is still there,” he said.
Other key issues in this year’s mayoral race, such as affordable housing and improving the quality of local schools, might seem a far cry from the interests of the average student. While few students are planning on buying a house in the District in the near future, the many who stay in the area over the summer or after graduation would find it a blessing to see high prices controlled. Likewise, improvements in city schools would be a boon for those Hoyas involved in the many outreach programs such as D.C. Schools.
The city government affects student’s lives more than they often realize. “Several years ago, the City Council voted to eliminate vehicle reciprocity for Georgetown and GW students,” Linda Greenan, the university’s Director of External Relations, said. As a result, students must change vehicle registration to D.C. to park on city streets.
“This gave rise to Georgetown students registering to vote in order to more fully participate in city government, including running for seats on the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission,” she said.
On a campus where so many students are heavily plugged into the politics of the nation, it’s astounding that so few care about the government that directly impacts our daily lives. Just because you can’t vote here doesn’t mean City Hall ceases to have an impact on where you can park your car, how many police are looking out for you, or the quality of the water and food you consume.
“These are things we may not think about, but they’re something we take for granted,” Solomon said. “Students are going to be here for four years, they might as well learn about their city politics.”
