Ryan Golden sat inside the Bojangles’ Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina and looked around, astonished. It was 2008, and the Coliseum was packed as then-Sen. Barack Obama led one of his rallies during his presidential campaign.

Obama discussed income inequality, health care and how people shouldn’t be treated differently because of face-value differences. Give voices to minorities, don’t bury them. Promote change, don’t stall with the status quo.

It’s a similar tactic Golden, a sophomore, said he brings to his campaign for Student Association president 11 years later. Golden and his running mate Kailee Vick seek to bring about change through activism.

Some priorities — a Department of Public Safety review, limiting textbook costs and increasing queer representation — are the same issues that others look to reform. But it’s their method of creating change, not settling for forums and seeking more action from students, that he said separates them from opponents.

“We want to be the actor, and that means you can’t just sit there and listen,” Golden said. “You need to voice (student) concerns, you need to take what you hear to advocate that to the university.”

Since the Obama rally, Golden has worked with the Democratic Party. As a junior in high school, he interned with then-Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts, and after that internship finished he became a research assistant for Roberts.

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His love of politics came from his grandmother, he said, who told him that a way to make it in the political arena is by helping others. Golden made an effort to be in SA before he even started at SU. He knew he wanted to be an SA representative, so Golden emailed the director of the Board of Elections the summer before his freshman year. He sent his petition to the Board, went before SA’s Assembly, and was informed later that he was the only unanimously elected candidate.

This year, Golden is a resident adviser in Flint Hall, where residents on his floor helped him and Vick go door-to-door and gather signatures. When DPS sent emails on the night of Feb. 9 informing the campus that three students were assaulted along Ackerman Avenue, Golden sat in his room, worried. He knew that some of his residents had gone to that area.

Soon after the assault, it became clear that it was three students of color who were assaulted and people began circulating petitions online criticizing how the Syracuse Police Department and DPS handled the resulting investigation. Several students at a Feb. 18 forum called on SU to conduct a review of DPS — which is now one of Golden and Vick’s main campaign goals.

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“We share the dreams of a more inclusive campus,” said Quincy Nolan, Golden and Vick’s campaign manager. “That includes queer students, students of color, international students — there are a lot of oversights that are affecting those communities immensely.”

Golden and Vick don’t have a campaign website. They felt it was easier to reach the student body through Facebook and Instagram accounts. Two weeks ago, when Pusha T, a rapper known to have used homophobic slurs, was announced as a part of “Cuse Can! It Starts With Us,” Golden and Vick wrote a Facebook post condemning the event.

They said they don’t want minority voices to be overlooked, and know that the first way that happens is through activism.

As Golden sat that night inside Bojangles’ Coliseum, he thought about Obama’s speech. Obama talked about bringing more people to the table. Every cultural group and minority group wanted a say, and Obama campaigned to make that a priority, Golden said. More than a decade later, Golden said he wants to elevate the voices of students from marginalized communities at SU.

“We want to take it in more of an activist direction, where we’re willing to protest things that we think are wrong,” Golden said. “We’re willing to call out the university, we’re willing to condemn the actions of the university.”

Published on April 2, 2019 at 11:54 pm

Contact Andrew: arcrane@syr.edu | @CraneAndrew