Four girls in bikinis are horsing around in the pool. Cut to the same girls in bikinis jumping on a trampoline. There’s a guy in a grey suit smoking a cigar in front of them, but we all know that’s not what we’re focusing on.
This sounds like a beer commercial, right?
Wrong: It’s actually a candidate video for Luke Dzierzanowski, who is running for The College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts representative.
While I must commend Dzierzanowski for being the only memorable candidate, as I can’t even recall the other candidates’ names, the video makes him memorable for all the wrong reasons as a degrading, attention-grabbing gimmick.
As it is now, San Diego State already suffers from a negative party school image. Whether we like it or not, it’s an image that characterizes all Aztecs as binge-drinking sexual deviants. Despite our great academics and notable status as one of the top business schools, both the school and its students are haunted by this reputation.
[quote]Dzierzanowski’s video supports this negative perception of us. By putting girls in bikinis and objectifying them to endorse his candidacy, he paints us as students who support a misogynistic use of females.[/quote]
It would be one thing for a hard-partying student to make a video with girls in bikinis in it, but for a student who is representing PSFA, it’s highly questionable, obviously unprofessional and, dare I say, absurd.
Candidates for any office are students who put themselves out there to become leaders. Essentially, we should view these students as the future leaders of the world. They are also the public face of the students. Every democratic nation is only as good as its leader. The leader chosen reflects the character of its citizens.
Do we really want this candidate to represent SDSU? Do we want the public to think we chose someone who would sexually objectify these girls?
When we reveal our diplomas to potential employers or mentors, we must realize that with a diploma comes a reputation. That reputation is derived from our actions and accomplishments as students and also who we chose to represent us. A large amount of that comes from the face of our school: our leaders.
I cannot assume that Dzierzanowski is not serious about this election, but I can’t assume if he’s serious about it either. Unlike other candidates, his candidate statement is 75 percent shorter.
[quote]It’s a short parody of an Old Spice commercial: “Hello students. Look at your leaders, now back to me. Now back to your leaders, now back at me. Sadly, they aren’t me. Vote for a winner. Vote for me.”[/quote]
It’s a total of 30 words, with no mention of his qualifications or his mission as a representative. It also disrespects the current leaders in the Associated Students system by forcing a comparison of current leaders and stating superiority over them. It’s an added blow to the reputation of PSFA, as he can’t even be professional or creative in his candidacy video or statement.
I’m not saying that Dzierzanowski is a misogynist or an unprofessional person. Actually, he seems friendly and likable. What I’m trying to say is that it’s hard to take his leadership abilities seriously if he’s going to approach the elections through degrading attention-grabbing gimmicks. The reputation of PSFA students and SDSU is at stake.
It might seem overdramatic, but all it takes for a reputation to be tarnished is one mistake made by one person. If that person happens to be a leader in A.S., it badly reflects on all of us collectively because we chose him to represent us.
Photo is screenshot from Youtube.
