A rift has been growing between the UI community and the rest of Iowa City. The reasons behind this schism include misconceptions some Iowa City residents have of students and apathy many students have toward the town. This gulf doesn’t bring the greater Iowa City community together, which precludes community leaders from solving some of the city’s gravest problems.
Students running for City Council seats could finally help bridge the gap between students and the community. Both UI and non-UI community members should consider supporting them, and UI students should stay informed and active in the race.
Students get a bad rap in this town. All one needs to do is look at Daily Iowan online comments to see how some Iowa City residents feel about them. These comments paint the picture of students as drunken degenerates rolling through town like the Tasmanian devil and wreaking havoc on the local population — only to leave once they receive their degrees. Students from the Chicago area have unfairly become the symbol for the bacchanal misconception.
The UI community is as large as it is diverse. It is one of the largest communities in Iowa City, yet it suffers from lack of representation. Student apathy is to blame. They have notoriously bad turnouts in elections, allowing individuals who insufficiently represent student interests to sit in government. And the UI community is fooling itself if it believes local issues do not affect the community. The City Council makes decisions that affect everybody. It can designate parking rates downtown, raise or lower property taxes — which affect rental rates — and can buy up student housing off-campus
Because the council holds such power, it is important for students to have adequate representation.
We implore every student to stay informed and vote in the upcoming primary, weighing substantive policy differences and the representation a potential student councilor could bring.
All three student candidates believe the City Council needs a fresh and younger perspective. All three have lived the student life and know what it’s like to be a student in these interesting times. The UI community is an essential part of the greater Iowa City community and needs adequate representation. That won’t happen if students don’t show enough interest.
Motivated students can have an immense influence on elections. When the city contemplated changing the bar age from 19 to 21 two years ago, scores of students turned out, and voters roundly rejected the ordinance by more than 2,000 votes. On-campus satellite voting totaled 1,853, according to the Johnson County Auditor’s office.
In order for students’ interests to be represented on the City Council, a similar turnout is needed.
