Approximately six students attended the event.

“We want to get at the root cause of the lackluster activism here on campus,” Kowalski said. “There are liberal and conservative students, but we think the division is even and not as lopsided as the media or outsiders, if you will, are portraying.”

Conservative students are in the minority at MSU, according to past research. From 2007 to 2008, research specialist at the Office for Survey Research Nat Ehrlich surveyed 1,000 MSU undergraduate, graduate and professional students. Ehrlich found 16 percent of students said they identified themselves as Republicans, while 35 percent said they identified themselves as Democrats. The remaining 39 percent of students said they were independent or did not identify with a specific political party.

In a survey conducted of Michigan adults within the past month by MSU’s State of the State Survey , 36.1 percent called themselves conservative, while 22 percent called themselves liberal. Forty-one percent of adults surveyed did not specify themselves as liberal or conservative, and some refused to answer at all.

Joe Duffy, social relations and policy senior and president of the MSU College Democrats, said the large percentage of MSU students who identify with the Democratic party, compared to the percentage of liberal Michigan adults, can be attributed to the ideals of liberal or progressive movements.

“I think progressive values are more representative of students — commitment to civil rights and now commitment with rights for same-sex couples applying for social justice. And the focus on education (are) all of the central platforms for the Democratic party,” Duffy said.

Kowalski said lack of student interest in conservative activism amongst the conservative students stems from an increased apathy and passive attitude regarding conservative issues.

Matt Needham, political theory and constitutional democracy sophomore, is of the Michigan State College Libertarians and a speaker on the panel at the event, said the best way to encourage students to become politically active is to reach out to students on an individual basis. Needham said the war of ideas on campus is more important for students to address than the war of politics.

Needham said students feel that they do not have a voice on campus due to war-mongering politicians, and students need to realize that if they get involved, they can change political policy.

“You’ll never get 100 percent agreement on political issues,” Needham said. “But one-on-one interaction is the best way to reach out to students and increase (their) awareness (on the laws that affect them).”