Attention Buffalo State students: despite popular beliefs, the world owes you nothing.

I make this statement due to my observations around campus.  I have noticed a rise in students not saying “please” or “thank you,” students disrespecting professors and an all-around lack of respect.

At first, I was in shock. The lack of respect on campus hit me like a ton of bricks, or rather a door to the face, when the person before me failed to hold a door to the Union. This painful encounter opened my eyes to the respect problem at Buffalo State.

A few hours later, I was sitting in one of my classes when I heard a weird noise, almost like a muffled lion roar. When I turned around, I found the cause of the noise– a girl sleeping in class, and she wasn’t the only one! As I looked around the room, I saw many other students sleeping or on their phones.

The worst part was they weren’t even trying to hide it from the professor. These students had a total disregard for what he was saying. One student walked out of class mid-lecture, and when confronted by the professor, kept walking! This type of behavior is unacceptable.

Professors have earned and deserve respect. It makes it hard to learn when students don’t respect their teachers. A classroom is a place to learn– not to sleep, not to text and not to talk to your friends.  People are paying money to be in this room and to listen to what is being taught. At the very least, students should respect that, but unfortunately they do not.
Faculty members are not the only people on campus that are being disrespected. Hard-working janitors, maintenance workers, food servers and retail workers get the brunt end of disrespect. Students, instead of saying “please” and “thank you,” to the workers, simply roll their eyes and act like they were hired specifically to serve them.

These people are just doing their job like anyone else, they are working hard to better their lives, and they deserve respect just like anyone else.

I strive to have a mutual respect for everyone I meet. Meaning that I treat people the way I want to be treated.  It’s time that you ask yourself an important question:

“Am I treating people the way I want to be treated?”

This simple question helps dramatically, as it puts your actions in perspective and allows you to evaluate the meaning of each interaction. Once you start respecting people, you will discover how rewarding it is, and how nice people are to you.

Respect could be the difference between you getting an A or a B in a class, or whether a worker makes your meal well or simply goes through the motions. You get out of the world what you put in.

In the words of Aretha Franklin, “All I’m askin’ (Ooh), is for a little respect.”

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