With Women’s History Month in full swing, we’d hope to see some signs of how far we’ve come in recognizing women for their achievements — or at the very least, for things other than their most recent indiscretions.
That said, a closer look at Binghamton University leaves us perplexed. We’re pleased to see there are 20 candidates — eight more than last year, even after two dropped out — who are running for executive board positions in the Student Association. The number of candidates who are seemingly emerging from the woodwork without the typical SA background is a sign of improved diversity and concern on this campus.
But we’re flabbergasted by the absence of even a single female candidate. In a school that has a 50-50 split for male and female attendance, it seems incredibly unrepresentative that the entirety of next year’s Student Association e-board should be male.
Why, then, is the “boys’ club” making a comeback? As some responses suggest (See Page 1), it may simply just be that this wasn’t the year for it. Just the same, it’s difficult to see how this could have come about. While we don’t think that the male candidates specifically went out of their way to scare off any potential female candidates, we’re left wondering what could explain this turn of events. There are certainly women that take part in the SA, and we doubt they lack ambition. Some say it is more difficult for women to prove themselves; others say that women have other responsibilities and priorities to deal with. No matter the reason, we find it disheartening and we’re disappointed that no woman chose to run for any of the positions.
With the recent focus on women and leadership (See “Conference to teach women to take charge,” Feb. 17), one would hope to see the same proactive attitude on display within the University community. Heck, we even have President Lois DeFleur to look to as a prime example of a woman in a leadership position.
It’s hard to take equal rights seriously when we say one thing and do another. The leadership conference for younger girls is a great start. Nevertheless, it’s wholly ineffective if we neglect to foster that same attitude toward women our own age. If we want campus to accurately reflect all of its students, we need to make efforts to promote diversity of all sorts in the SA.