In America, we don’t just let one person run the country. Oh, no, no, no. We have a whole Congress full of elected idiots to aid in the decision-making process, and to be sure the decisions the president makes are the correct ones (well, theoretically at least). That’s because this country was founded on democratic principles.

And since it has lasted for 230 years, we can assume this system is working. So why not give it a try somewhere around campus — somewhere like, say, oh, we don’t know … the Binghamton University Art Gallery, maybe?

In light of all the recent controversy surrounding the exhibit of Hector Acebes’ photography of Africans (many of them nude) currently showing, we got to thinking that maybe a few changes in the way the museum is run might be a good idea.

That, and all the students calling for it.

As it stands now, the director and curator of the museum, Lynn Gamwell, has the sole responsibility of picking the exhibits. And don’t get us wrong, we’re not saying she does a poor job — but other universities run their museums with a board of faculty, community members and students choosing the exhibits and how they’re promoted, and it seems to be working out pretty well for them.

Part of the criticism the museum has encountered over the Acebes exhibit was of the curator’s failure to consult with any members of the Africana studies department — and when you think about it, that probably wouldn’t have been a bad idea. Consultation with that department could have led to students learning the lessons of the exhibit in an organized way, as a part of their course curricula. The original curators did something similar at Spelman College where the exhibit started, and it was embraced campus-wide.

Not to mention that involving faculty and more of the campus community could make for stronger exhibitions. There would have been less criticism of the current showing had it integrated more of an educational component and more community interaction, from gallery tours to discussion groups. A diverse board of directors, or even just an additional position like an “educational curator,” who would be in charge of integrating the University’s core mission — teaching students — with the gallery’s own artistic goals, would add to both the educational value of an exhibit and to the campus culture.

The museum has the potential to be an extremely valuable cultural and educational tool for students, and we think increasing student and faculty involvement with the museum and the exhibits it shows would only increase that value. After all, it is the campus art museum, and it is here for the campus community — so why shouldn’t we be able to choose what we would like to see there?

And please, don’t get us wrong: we’re not criticizing the Acebes exhibit or the current director of the museum or going back on our support of freedom of expression. We still think no one should be able to close the exhibit, no matter how many or few people were ultimately responsible for bringing it to BU.

But in the future, changing the system by which the museum is run to a more inclusive one, in which students and faculty are at least somewhat involved, could probably prevent the problems that have arisen around the exhibit and make it a more enriching experience for the entire campus.