I want to publicly thank several student senators who reached across party lines Tuesday night to help pass the Student Alliance’s resolution calling for a grand jury investigation into the shooting of UF graduate student Kofi Adu-Brempong. The Unite Party’s leadership repeatedly tried to make amendments to the bill that would have watered it down to the point of meaninglessness, even over objections from numerous members of the public who came out to support the resolution.
Fortunately, a number of Unite Party senators recognized the injustice of allowing this tragedy to be swept under the rug, and they made the almost unprecedented move of voting with the Student Alliance minority against these amendments. Thanks to them, the resolution passed with almost all of its original wording. The list of these senators is too long to include here, but I strongly encourage those who are interested to go to the third floor of the Reitz Union and ask to see the voting records.
Standing up against the leadership of one’s own party takes a lot of guts, especially when the party has a history of using strong-arm tactics to silence internal dissent. I applaud these individuals for taking a stand for what’s right even in the face of harsh retribution, and I hope the Unite Party’s leadership will respect their right to vote with their consciences.
In Student Government, letting politics get in the way of representing students is almost a way of life. Perhaps this is a sign that those who would perpetuate that tradition are, at long last, about to be shown the door.
