I get it. I get how it sounds when the elitist Ivy League university sitting atop the bankruptcy-bound, poverty-stricken city below will not give what the mayor considers to be a sufficient amount of money to keep the city alive. However, while this tale sounds vaguely like the beginning of a Dr. Seuss book about fairness, equality and caring about your neighbors, the story from most students' perspectives would be quite different.
It can pretty safely be assumed that any money Brown receives from current students, their families and alums is expected to advance the education of us students. Yes, Brown as a private institution has a responsibility to pay a fair share of its revenue to the city that houses it, but Brown already does so at a previously agreed-upon value.
Of course it is reasonable to ask Brown to contribute some of its money to the city, given that its property is almost completely tax-exempt, but we are giving quite enough, if you ask me. As a percentage of its endowment and annual budget, Brown gives far more money to Providence than Yale does to New Haven. With this in mind, given that tuition for next year is already increasing by 3.5 percent, I will not stand for more increases. Asking for more from Brown translates to asking for more from the students, who I think most people can agree are not the appropriate resource to tap when facing a financial crisis.
It's not our families' job to fund Providence. We have a responsibility to our federal, state and local government, and to Brown, but we have no such responsibility to Providence beyond what Brown has already agreed to pay. It is regressive and counterproductive to call upon the resources of local universities to fund a city before calling upon its own wealthy citizens.
To Mayor Angel Taveras, I would like to say that Brown's tax-exempt status is surely much appreciated and reflects the city's recognition of Brown as a wonderful addition to the Providence community, but it is slimy and unfair to use it is a bargaining chip to try to make the Brown community feel guilty. The poverty rate in Providence is terrible, and a bankrupt city certainly won't help that, but this is not the problem of students from across the country, many of whom face their own financial struggles paying for college. The students are not responsible for this.
