Students Pick Up Campaign Activities

As Sen. Edward M. Kennedy '54-'56 debated opponent W. Mitt Romney this Tuesday in Boston's Faneuil Hall, Harvard students were involved in a different kind of fight outside the building.

Undergraduate campaigners from both sides were mobilizing for their candidates, and it got a little ugly.

"Mitt's full of shit!" yelled a Kennedy supporter.

Republicans responded with: "Go, Mitt go!"

"Home!" suggested Democrats.

Both sides wielded colorful signs, jostling each other to crowd nearer the TV cameras.

One Republican woman was even asked to leave after a small scuffle developed near the door to the hall, where the candidates were expected to enter.

As Democrats tried to break through a knot of Romney backers blocking access to the door, the wom- an whacked the Kennedy ralliers' signs with her own, trying to protect her spot.

Welcome to the world of Massachusetts politics, college style.

While Harvard's campus is largely perceived as politically apathetic, a few students on either side live for the campaign. And with Election Day approaching, the clashes--particularly in the contest between Romney and Kennedy--are becoming more frequent.

Tough Campaigners

Students do everything from picketing to chauffeuring for their candidates. Several even have impressive titles to show for their time.

As a result of his work with the Kennedy campaign last year, Derek T. Ho '96 now serves as the chief campus campaign coordinator for the Senator's re-election bid.

"I'm in charge of visibility in and around Harvard Square, with phone banking in the Square, and with getting student volunteers out to major campaign events," Ho says.

David B. Greenberg '94, Harvard coordinator for the Romney campaign, spends his time organizing rallies and mobilizing students.

"I've never been involved in a campaign before," he says. "I thought I'd like political experience, I knew a campaign would be fun, and I knew I was conservative, so I thought I'd join."

The number of Harvard undergraduates actively involved in the Massachusetts races this fall is small. The total for Democrats and Republicans combined is about 40.

But Harvard students' efforts are important for the campaigns, says Aaron C. Yeater, the college outreach coordinator for the Roosevelt campaign.

"The roles of the volunteers are varied, from internships to campaign work," he says. "In the campaign itself, they do everything from the grunt work of making phone calls, stuffing letters and posting signs to doing issue preparation and other substantial work."

The relatively small number of students involved in the campaigns has not kept excitement out of the campus contest, however.

The clashes after Tuesday's debate were typical of some college students' actions in this year's races, which seem to be heating up at Harvard.

On October 12, a Romney rally outside University Hall was counter-protested by three sign-bearing Democrats. At exactly the same time, National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL) members rallied for Kennedy at Lehman Hall.

And as soon as tempers had cooled after Tuesday's debate, open warfare erupted again at a Romney rally yesterday in the Square.

Picketers for both Kennedy and Romney had taken up positions side by side on Mass. Ave across from the Coop and were trying to attract pedestrians, waving signs and offering pamphlets and stickers.

A man walked up to the then peacefully coexisting groups and asked, "Who should I vote for if I'm a bigot?"

"Romney!" the Democrats replied immediately.

But Mitt Romney had at least one vocal defender in the crowd: his 23-year-old son Matthew S. Romney.

In a tone of forced calm, Matthew Romney called for specific evidence of the candidate's alleged racism. The Democrats brought up Mitt Romney's welfare proposals in return, and a lengthy debate followed.

After that interchange, both groups began to send delegations across the street, diffusing the tension and lowering direct competition for the attention of passers-by.

Students Don't Care

But even while the faithful campaigners are battling it out in the trenches, much of Harvard is paying little attention to the local contests, activists say.

One reason may be Harvard's geographical diversity.

"It's a problem that so many people vote in their home state," says Jeff M. Hauser '95, a member of the Harvard-Radcliffe College Democrats. "The races people care about the most may not be the ones they can work in."

College Democrat A.J. Figlioni '96 points to a much more basic reason for inaction.

"It takes a special kind of person to stand outside for November elections," he says. "It gets pretty cold."

Some Democrats theorize that the traditional liberal homogeneity of Harvard causes the lack of political interest among students.

"It seems like a lot of the reason the campus seems so apathetic is because a lot of it is default liberal," says Brian D. Galle '94-'95. "People don't get excited about anything unless they're a minority."

Shifting Politics?

Republicans, however, aren't quite ready to believe that the College is truly "default liberal."

Several say they see an underground conservative movement, particularly among the present first-year class.

"I feel that there's a lot of closet Republicanism we can tap into," says Harvard-Radcliffe Republican Club member Heather A. Clayton '98. "I'm disappointed with the attitude that everyone is liberal so there's no debate. It seems awfully closed-minded."

Bradford P. Campbell '95, president of the Republican Club, says that there has been a surge of interest in the club from the classes of 1997 and 1998. Many of the Harvard students rallying for Romney are first-years.

"President Clinton has been doing a great job of recruiting for us," he says. "We always have a large number of interested freshmen at the beginning of the year, but these last couple of years we've had an extremely high rate of interest."

But the Democrats still hold an organizational advantage over the Republicans as far as broad-based participation goes, Clayton says.

"The Republican effort is centered around the two conservative newspapers while the Democrats have a more active club," she says. "I would like to see a more active Republican club so that more people can get involved."

Other Republicans concede that although anti-incumbent fever may be helping their effort, they will never dominate the campus.

The current support for Romney here comes to a great extent from people who are tired of Kennedy, Greenberg says.

"Harvard is, has been, and always will be a liberal campus," he says.CrimsonJohn C. MitchellStudents rally during the senatorial debate at Faneuil Hall Tuesday

Welcome to the world of Massachusetts politics, college style.

While Harvard's campus is largely perceived as politically apathetic, a few students on either side live for the campaign. And with Election Day approaching, the clashes--particularly in the contest between Romney and Kennedy--are becoming more frequent.

Tough Campaigners

Students do everything from picketing to chauffeuring for their candidates. Several even have impressive titles to show for their time.

As a result of his work with the Kennedy campaign last year, Derek T. Ho '96 now serves as the chief campus campaign coordinator for the Senator's re-election bid.

"I'm in charge of visibility in and around Harvard Square, with phone banking in the Square, and with getting student volunteers out to major campaign events," Ho says.

David B. Greenberg '94, Harvard coordinator for the Romney campaign, spends his time organizing rallies and mobilizing students.

"I've never been involved in a campaign before," he says. "I thought I'd like political experience, I knew a campaign would be fun, and I knew I was conservative, so I thought I'd join."

The number of Harvard undergraduates actively involved in the Massachusetts races this fall is small. The total for Democrats and Republicans combined is about 40.

But Harvard students' efforts are important for the campaigns, says Aaron C. Yeater, the college outreach coordinator for the Roosevelt campaign.

"The roles of the volunteers are varied, from internships to campaign work," he says. "In the campaign itself, they do everything from the grunt work of making phone calls, stuffing letters and posting signs to doing issue preparation and other substantial work."

The relatively small number of students involved in the campaigns has not kept excitement out of the campus contest, however.

The clashes after Tuesday's debate were typical of some college students' actions in this year's races, which seem to be heating up at Harvard.

On October 12, a Romney rally outside University Hall was counter-protested by three sign-bearing Democrats. At exactly the same time, National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL) members rallied for Kennedy at Lehman Hall.

And as soon as tempers had cooled after Tuesday's debate, open warfare erupted again at a Romney rally yesterday in the Square.

Picketers for both Kennedy and Romney had taken up positions side by side on Mass. Ave across from the Coop and were trying to attract pedestrians, waving signs and offering pamphlets and stickers.

A man walked up to the then peacefully coexisting groups and asked, "Who should I vote for if I'm a bigot?"

"Romney!" the Democrats replied immediately.

But Mitt Romney had at least one vocal defender in the crowd: his 23-year-old son Matthew S. Romney.

In a tone of forced calm, Matthew Romney called for specific evidence of the candidate's alleged racism. The Democrats brought up Mitt Romney's welfare proposals in return, and a lengthy debate followed.

After that interchange, both groups began to send delegations across the street, diffusing the tension and lowering direct competition for the attention of passers-by.

Students Don't Care

But even while the faithful campaigners are battling it out in the trenches, much of Harvard is paying little attention to the local contests, activists say.

One reason may be Harvard's geographical diversity.

"It's a problem that so many people vote in their home state," says Jeff M. Hauser '95, a member of the Harvard-Radcliffe College Democrats. "The races people care about the most may not be the ones they can work in."

College Democrat A.J. Figlioni '96 points to a much more basic reason for inaction.

"It takes a special kind of person to stand outside for November elections," he says. "It gets pretty cold."

Some Democrats theorize that the traditional liberal homogeneity of Harvard causes the lack of political interest among students.

"It seems like a lot of the reason the campus seems so apathetic is because a lot of it is default liberal," says Brian D. Galle '94-'95. "People don't get excited about anything unless they're a minority."

Shifting Politics?

Republicans, however, aren't quite ready to believe that the College is truly "default liberal."

Several say they see an underground conservative movement, particularly among the present first-year class.

"I feel that there's a lot of closet Republicanism we can tap into," says Harvard-Radcliffe Republican Club member Heather A. Clayton '98. "I'm disappointed with the attitude that everyone is liberal so there's no debate. It seems awfully closed-minded."

Bradford P. Campbell '95, president of the Republican Club, says that there has been a surge of interest in the club from the classes of 1997 and 1998. Many of the Harvard students rallying for Romney are first-years.

"President Clinton has been doing a great job of recruiting for us," he says. "We always have a large number of interested freshmen at the beginning of the year, but these last couple of years we've had an extremely high rate of interest."

But the Democrats still hold an organizational advantage over the Republicans as far as broad-based participation goes, Clayton says.

"The Republican effort is centered around the two conservative newspapers while the Democrats have a more active club," she says. "I would like to see a more active Republican club so that more people can get involved."

Other Republicans concede that although anti-incumbent fever may be helping their effort, they will never dominate the campus.

The current support for Romney here comes to a great extent from people who are tired of Kennedy, Greenberg says.

"Harvard is, has been, and always will be a liberal campus," he says.CrimsonJohn C. MitchellStudents rally during the senatorial debate at Faneuil Hall Tuesday