In response to Thursday’s letter written by Senator Austin Quick, we wanted to take this opportunity to respond to some things we have a problem with.

In his letter, Quick writes “…[All student organizations] deserve to be heard by their student leaders and shall be given the same respect as anyone else.” With [Students for Sensible Drug Policy], we believe this is not the case.

Senator Quick, you say that we should all be given equal respect. Yet you proposed the reclassification of SSDP before the Student Association Senate had a chance to finish debating the definition, and called a vote. If you truly believed that we deserve the same respect as everyone else, why call a vote of this magnitude so hastily? Why didn’t we get a chance to argue our side? It seems to us this is not equal respect.

Regarding the new political definition being put into law, why didn’t the senate let the student body, as well as the heads of all student organizations that would be affected, know about this? This new definition affects far more than just Students for Sensible Drug Policy, and would force a large number of organizations to reclassify themselves, and would also cause these organizations to lose their SA funding.

So, if you knew about this issue, wouldn’t you want to have a chance to argue your side? The executive board of the SA denied SSDP and the student body that right, and hastily slipped the political definition past everyone, giving the senators five minutes to read through a seven-page document and not notifying the senators of the new political definition, according to Senator Mike Theodore.

If Senator Quick, as well as other members of the senate truly believed that all student organizations deserve a voice and respect, then what is the explanation of the senate’s actions? You make the decision.

Jeremy Hartmann Orbach

Founder and President

NIU chapter of Students for Sensible Drug Policy

Erik Haslinger

Publicity Chair

NIU chapter of Students for Sensible Drug Policy