While members of Students for Change were celebrating their election win on April 28th, Student Association Vice President-elect Marco Sin was sitting at his kitchen table, reflecting on the outcome.
Informed of the results via social media, Sin recalled, “I saw a post, through a friend’s Snapchat, of the election results, and all I could think was: these guys don’t deserve it.”
Less than two weeks later, Sin released his letter of resignation, leaving the organization and his position as SA Vice President. “It is with deep regret that I am resigning from my position as Vice President—a decision I did not make lightly.” Sin wrote. “Unfortunately, due to insurmountable differences with the e-board made evident within the past few weeks, I no longer feel that I can serve the community to the best of my abilities,” he stated.
When asked why he resigned, Sin confessed, “SFC is stressful, and trying to balance everything became difficult. It didn’t feel family-like anymore, and that’s what I didn’t like. When I tried to take charge, I felt my ideas were undermined. There wasn’t much trust.”
“They [the SA Executive Board] believed I was too negative, too selective with my friend groups, and didn’t have work ethics,” Sin added.
Sin also revealed he was asked to resign from his position. “Part of me didn’t want to. I thought, ‘I deserve this.’ I put in my time, I wanted this, I saw myself doing it in the future.” Sin did not elaborate on the circumstances surrounding the e-board’s decision to ask him to leave.
When asked why Student Association did not go through the impeachment process, Sin admitted he did not have the full story, “I don’t know why they didn’t want to do it. They said it’s a whole process that involved a lot of paperwork. They asked me to just resign.”
Reflecting on the decision, Sin believes he was taken advantage of. “I felt used. I’m known on campus, I know a lot of people on different levels. I branch out to people. I like to stay humble, I don’t need people to know me, but I feel because of how known and how social I am, he [Singh] needed me to be on the same page as him so he could use my connections. There comes a question—is it worth it? If I’m treated like this now, is it worth it? Will I be appreciated in the future? I left because [remaining as VP] wasn’t worth being in all that stress.”
The decision to walk away was difficult for Sin to make, as student life at Queens College helped shape the person he is today.
Sin began at QC in the Fall of 2014, and he described his younger self as being “awkward, fresh out of high school, unconfident, and lacking social skills.” To grow as an individual, Sin sought out the QC Alliance of Latin American Students, and said he is now grateful to the club.
“I had a great time in ALAS, and I owe and dedicate them a lot of my respect, they have really helped me grow up,” Sin said. “I used to be emotional and had a lot of breakdowns…And there are no words I can say that show how much I appreciate my time with them.”
After getting to know all the SU basement had to offer, Sin decided to take his involvement a step further, joining the QC Student Association during his junior year and serving as vice chair of the campus affairs committee, a committee designed to bridge the gap between SA and clubs on campus.
After the chair of CAC graduated, Sin took on the position during Spring 2017. When asked about his experience with CAC, Sin said he had a lot of passion for the work. “CAC is my baby. You can ask anyone from the organization how much work I put into my committee, and how I did my job professionally.”
Sin added that the dedication that clubs have to the campus inspired his passion. “You see all these clubs, MSA, GSA, ALAS, CSA, BSU, being open, meeting new people, and expanding. That’s why I’m so passionate about students meeting students and clubs being on campus, because it’s such a great feeling to know these opportunities are here.”
Sin said, “Students take these chances, and that’s what makes college fun. You may meet the friends you’ll have eight years out of college, and you can say you met them because you went to this club. They help you find yourself and grow as an individual. That’s why I’m passionate about it. I’m glad to help be a person that gives you the opportunity to do that.”
When asked why Sin decided to run for vice president, he stated his desire to inspire change was his motivation.
“I love seeing students grow up. It’s such a good feeling to see someone grow through college and say they’re proud of the person they have become.”
Sin said, “It’s a great feeling to have a sense to know this is my home, this is something I want to come back to. It’s nice to see people care about you when you come to school, and it’s nice to see your work be reciprocated and appreciated.”
Sin revealed he was hesitant returning to QC after leaving the organization.
“I felt like people wouldn’t look at me the same way. How does it look? Someone you voted for because you believed in their vision, because you trusted them, left. It makes me feel bad to know these people voted and saw me leave.”
Sin also admitted “There’s a guilt on me that I can’t get over, because they voted for me. They knew what I wanted to do, could do. There’s a guilt I wake up with and ask, was this the right decision?”
Sin was surprised when many students and faculty commended his decision. “People come up to me and say they respect [my decision], and it gives me a good feeling—it makes me happy. The decision was hard for me to make, I had to do it and they knew it. I’m glad they still respect me.”
Nevertheless, Sin believes he no longer inspires change, “I don’t think I can. People have to change, if they want to change. It doesn’t help if you say you want to bring change, but don’t actually do it. If you want people to believe in what you say—you have to do it.”
Sin addressed any allegations the organization may have towards him, stating,
“Believe what you want to believe. I can’t let it get to me, it’s unnecessary stress. If I become someone no one wants to speak to, that’s fine. I don’t want attention, it’s not something I seek out. I like being honest. I cared a lot. There’s a reason I get mad or heated…I dedicated so much of my time. I thought it was something I really would have loved.”
When asked who Marco Sin is now, Sin responded, “Happy. I’m very happy. My life is really well put together, I’m surrounded by great friends, I’m family oriented. I know myself, and I know my history, I have some regrets, while they are always in the back of my head, lessons to conduct my future. I have dreams.”
He adds, “Marco Sin is and will always be another student at QC. And that is what I want to be. I’m just another person. I don’t think I’m better, or lesser, I may not believe in what you believe, you may not believe in what I believe. You’re an individual, I can’t change you, you can’t change me. I’m just me.”
“If I knew what it was like before elections week, I wouldn’t have asked them [students] to vote. I’m not bashing SFC. I believe the pure, innocent, people there that joined thinking they brought change, and had the opportunity to do so deserved it, because they put in the work. However, the current e-board did not.”
[Editors Note: As of the publication of this article, The Knight News has failed to establish the grounds under which Sin would have been impeached.]