Social Space for All

The Undergraduate Council has come up with an innovative, bold proposal, and, ironically, it may fail because it is the UC that has come up with it. This week the student governing body will vote on whether to initiate a capital campaign to raise $600,000 to put toward a down payment on 45 Mt. Auburn Street—the Democracy Center building, currently owned by the Foundation for Civic Leadership. Supporters of the undertaking provide a vision that this building could become a vibrant communal social space (read: party space) for the Harvard student body.

As of now, it is uncertain how the UC will undertake the massive fundraising effort needed to purchase the building or how they will negotiate the legalities of hosting open parties. Nevertheless, the prospect of a social space for the whole student body is extremely alluring. By providing a venue for any club or organization to have a decent party, it would open up social opportunities for the fair number of students who are currently underserved by the going options. For this reason, the UC should go forward with plans to buy 45 Mount Auburn Street.

As any student, alum, or college guidebook will tell you, the Harvard social scene is dismal compared to other universities. Although part of this is because students generally prioritize partying less, another reason is that many organizations that want to hold big functions just don’t have the space. These groups, which serve as valuable networks during the day, are handicapped from exercising their full social potential by their impotency at night. Students are not lacking in initiative, as evidenced by the popularity of the Cambridge Adult Learning Center as a venue for club events at the beginning of this year—that is, before the Cambridge License Commission caught on. If the UC owned 45 Mt. Auburn Street, every organization would have an equal, easy, and affordable opportunity to hold events. At a capacity of around 200, operating about 24 weekends over two terms, this building could serve a diverse range of student groups throughout the year.

Additionally, the mere presence of such a student government-owned communal space would be an equalizing factor on the social scene. It would place the onus on having a fun Saturday night on individual students. Right now, it is far too easy to sit back and complain that final clubs have taken over the social scene, with their large dancing spaces and ample room for coats. Having a student- administered building would put a degree of social autonomy into the hands of any single undergraduate and might lessen the victimized tone of the social opportunities-discussion.

Admittedly, as wonderful as this idea is, doubts about the UC’s ability to execute it are valid. Raising $600,000 over the summer to put a down payment on 45 Mt. Auburn will be extraordinarily difficult. The UC is not famed for its efficiency or organizational prowess, and it would really have to step up its game to make this project a success. Nevertheless, we are the last who should underestimate the capacity of our peers and the Harvard network. Moreover, centrally situated Cambridge real estate does not come on the market every year, and this opportunity is too favorable to let slip by with a characteristic “It’s the UC” eye roll. This weekend, hundreds of prefrosh will descend on campus, and, when they broach the subject of our graveyard social reputation, we can at least tell them that we’re making an honest effort to improve.


Anita J Joseph ’12, a Crimson editorial writer, lives in Wigglesworth Hall.