Six is the number of new student organizations that were accepted by the Student Association at its recent meeting. One is the number of new organizations that was rejected by the SA at that meeting.

An Oct. 11 article in the Northern Star named the rejected organization as CRAVE, a Christian organization affiliated with Christ Community Church. The organization was rejected by the senate in a tie vote, which was translated into a vote of no. SA Senator Andrew Becerra gave the only reason for the rejection in the article, in a quote: “We want students at NIU to have choices, but they can’t do it with 50 of the same kinds of organizations butting heads.”

So students can’t make choices if they have too many? What kind of logic is this? The more choices one has, the better – especially with religion. Religion is an uncomfortable thing for some people, so it is important for people to have many choices so they can find a place where they feel comfortable and supported. There are also not 50 of the same organizations; the SA Web site shows there are perhaps 13 different organizations that can be compared to CRAVE’s offerings. Also under SA organizations are more than 40 fraternities and sororities, most of which have very similar mission statements. And whom would CRAVE butt heads with? CRAVE’s leadership has friendly connections with quite a few of the Christian organizations recognized by the SA.

Another one of Mr. Becerra’s quotes was that he “hopes this vote sets a precedent.” This implies that, hopefully, Christian organizations will think twice before trying to gain the recognition of NIU and its ambassadors, the SA Senate. This statement also implies the SA has some sort of vendetta against Christian organizations on campus. The real question is: Is the SA trying to limit the spiritual freedom of NIU’s students?

CRAVE is distinct from the other Christian organizations recognized by the SA in a number of ways. CRAVE meets off-campus at Christ Community’s new DeKalb campus, less than 10 minutes from NIU. Most of the Christian organizations at NIU meet on campus in one of the buildings, and many students want to escape from the monotony of campus after being there all week. CRAVE is fully funded by Christ Community. In other words, CRAVE doesn’t want to drain any money or resources from NIU whatsoever. Christ Community is blessed to have great resources with funds, staff and volunteers who use their administrative and creative talents to make this organization first class.

The truth is, CRAVE does not need the recognition of NIU but desires and values the respect and collaboration of the university. CRAVE can be an asset to the university by encouraging spiritual growth on campus and can be an asset in the area of community service fulfillment. CRAVE’s complete mission statement can be found at www.cravewhat.com.CRAVE wants only to be recognized by NIU as an organization to help fulfill it. There is no legitimate reason why CRAVE was rejected while the others were accepted. At this time, CRAVE is planning on appealing the decision of the SA, because of the lack of reasons to reject it. When CRAVE is accepted, it will be an asset to the students of NIU that come to its events. And with God’s will, it will be.

Sam Thomas

Senior, communication studies