Several student groups hold meet-and-greet to recruit like-minded
Progressive groups shifted the figurative gear into “forward” by having a small meet-and-greet session with students at the Honors College Residence Hall Sunday evening.
The Pastafarians at USC; the Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Straight Alliance; the Roosevelt Institute; the College Democrats; and the Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance all had their representatives briefly speak about their roles and purposes on campus, with the hopes of gaining recruits.
Pastafarian president and third-year Russian student Kelley Freeman said that each group was allotted five to 10 minutes to discuss what they do and how people can get involved.
“We’re trying to present a united progressive movement at USC,” said Freeman, who had been setting up the liberal rendezvous since June. “We’re trying to move forward.”
Dustin Tucker, the Pastafarian’s membership director, said that by “moving forward” the groups mean advancing progressive thoughts.
“It’s moving away from the old hatred and old prejudices and toward new ideas,” the second-year anthropology student said.
After the Pastafarians presented their satirical beliefs in divine pirates and the Flying Spaghetti Monster, they talked about their community service events, fundraisers and protests.
Then the BGLSA had a brief presentation by Pastafarian member Dara Harris, due to the fact that Zac Baker, vice president of Safe Zone, left to go to church.
“I think it’s great to have a support group for anything going on in your life,” said Harris, a second-year biology student.
The Roosevelt Institute came prepared with a professional demonstration of its youth-concentrated progressive views.
After showing an optimistic video of the world in 2040, the institute’s Equal Justice Policy Director Jared Marr said that we should change our state and make it a “forward one.”
“We seek to empower your solutions to make them real,” the third-year political science student said. “We work toward progressive change. Our big thing is to fix problems.”
The College Democrats presented the main issues they focus on, such as civil rights, higher education and open government. They said that one of their biggest goals this year will be helping President Barack Obama getting re-elected in 2012.
“We really think Obama will put forth a policy we can agree on,” said College Democrats President Victoria Black, a fourth-year political science and English student.
Finally, the Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance (FMLA) talked about how it advocates for equal social, political and economic rights for women.
“We’re definitely trying to move forward with women’s rights,” said Secretary Kim Howard, a fourth-year psychology student. “There’s definitely a taboo against the word ‘feminism’ ... We’re not man-hating lesbians. We actually have men in our group. We just want equal rights for everyone.”
The groups certainly made an impression on those who attended. At the end, Veronika Bethea, a first-year international business and Spanish student, said she sees herself joining the FMLA or the Roosevelt Institute.
“They addressed issues on an international level that we need to deal with,” Bethea said.
Fourth-year history and political science student Alex Gibson said he thought each group was very informative.
“They gave me an idea of the USC clubs that are on the left side of the political spectrum,” Gibson said.