Recently, I have sensed a growing sentiment on campus that detests corporate America and its potential presence on the Hopkins campus. The change of security companies has met with intense concerns over Hopkins outsourcing our security. We have heard protestations against the Mattin Center courtyard being renamed after M&T Bank, as well as outcry against selecting a Barnes and Noble to be placed in the newly built Charles Commons. Furthermore, Hopkins groups have frequently stood up against corporatism, the most recent example being the Student Labor Action Committee's screening of "Wal-Mart: the High Cost of Low Price."
I understand that for many professors and students at our beloved liberal arts University, the purpose of college is to inform others that creating a large and successful business is the most wretched thing in America, up there with holding strong religious convictions. However, after a group decided to attack my beloved Wal-Mart, I knew I needed to stand up for downtrodden corporate America.
Corporatism is good for Hopkins. If we could gain a new, modern building by simply choosing to name it the M&T whatever, I'd be all for it. The free money and resources we would gain would be incredibly beneficial to the campus, and I sincerely doubt that their presence will cause any more or less of an incentive to utilize these corporations' services. I think students create accounts at M&T bank because of its convenience and prevalence of their ATMs in the area, not because of a sudden subliminal urge to deposit money there after walking through the M&T Bank Courtyard.
Likewise, the presence of a new private security firm, Allied Barton, is the free market at its best. We were unsatisfied with our security conditions, so we hired an efficient and useful firm to improve them at low cost.
Let's look at our history, too. Few students know that our University's founder had the "hots" for his cousin; it's been said we could have actually been named West Virginia University. However, what everyone does know is that Johns Hopkins was a big businessman who owned a corporation called Hopkins & Brothers and invested heavily in the B&O railroad (Monopoly, anyone?). Without big business, this University wouldn't even exist.
Other students have told me an increased corporate presence around campus might hurt small businesses in the Charles Village area. However, the presence of a store like Barnes and Noble will invigorate the community and may draw in even more business than before.
Furthermore, corporate food vendors could help improve competition and quality among local food outlets. I could imagine other corporate bigwigs securing spots along St. Paul Street like Chipotle, Baja Fresh or Taco Bell. Besides a possible slight increase in student flatulence levels, their presence would help improve the overall quality of food in Charles Village.
In any case, I doubt most businesses would be displaced as the presence of these corporate giants would do more with regard to increasing the choice on campus for the student consumer. Students might get worried that their beloved "Third World Caf8e" might one day disappear in the face of a Starbucks or Seattle's Best, but they should have few worries. Even though I can't believe places like "Third World" exist, with menu items like organic tofu burgers their main staple, there are still enough dreadlocked undergrads here at Hopkins who will pay $15 for a dessert that has the same gastrointestinal effects as Ipecac.
What does this all mean? We should all embrace the corporatism that has entered the door of campus. I firmly believe the Hopkins leadership will have enough sensible discretion to maintain our history and prevent corporations from putting on a public face at Homewood. Furthermore, the area will still have its share of "quaint" little shops as long as there is a demand for them. The success of all business stems from its appeal to the consumer, and the presence of these new larger corporations will do a greater service in opening up the campus to many more options that students truly desire.
--Kane Kim is a junior economics major from Englewood Cliffs, N.J.
