Commentary
Gerorg B. Wasson
Pow Wow was a success-failure
George B. Wasson is an assistant dean of
students working with the Office of Student
Services. He is a Coos Coquille Native
American.
The Pow Wow, sponsored by the
University of Oregon Native American
students, has come and gone (Friday and
Saturday nights at Mac Court). It was both
a success and a failure.
Indians arrived from all parts of
Oregon and some from neighboring states.
The turnout was low, yet participation was
high among all those people inside Mac
Court. Both nights there were times when
hardly anyone was sitting down watching;
the floor was sometimes filled with both
Indians and non-Indians, many trying a
round dance for their first time. That’s
what a Pow Wow is all about—
brotherhood, friendship, participation,
and “religious” tradition. There were
dance competitions for both young people
and adults (Competition is not a
traditional Indian concept, but one which
has crept into the cultures from over
powering white influence.) Some visitors
came to me, expressing concern that
things were not starting “on time.”
When people are ready
In the “Indian” way of thinking—the
time to start is when people are ready.
Seven o’clock, as stated on posters, was
the time when people should head to
MfcArthur Court to start setting up, to see
who else was there, for drummers and
singers to gather, warm up, to put on
regalia and help each other. It was not a
show or program as most “Whites” would
naturally expect. One could expect no
more outline of events for a Pow Wow than
could be expected to find a menu for a
family reunion, pot-luck dinner.
Several special dances were per
formed spontaneously; a group of young
girls did a “Butterfly dance,” while ac
companied by three older women drum
ming and singing. Later in the evening the
same three women took “walking canes”
out on the floor with them and presented
an “old ladies dance,” filled with humor
and cantankerous antics. Others per
formed Peace-pipe ceremonies, hoop
dances, and a blanket wearing demon
stration. One of the great treats of both
nights was the Tolowa group from Smith
River, California. Their songs, dances,
and “costume” are very traditional and
represent an authentically “primitive”
coastal culture.
The essential nature of the Pow Wow is
a great contrast to the gatherings, events
and activities of the several nights just
prior to it in downtown Eugene and around
campus. Unfortunately, those other events
were instigated in the name of Peace, yet
the overall and final result is tragically the
opposite. Several townspeople spoke to me
at Mac Court and expressed their ap
prehension about coming out for anything
on the University of Oregon campus. They
knew of many other Eugeneans with
greater fears than their own. Likewise,
some Indians said they were very hesitant
a’>out coming to Eugene because of the
• riots.” Since most Indians view Whites as
a basically violent culture anyway, this
past week has provided a definite reaf
firmation of their views.
White influence
A 72-year-old man, Edward Edmo,
pointed out that even some of the
traditional dances have taken on the
violent name of “war dance,” due to White
influence. He said, originally, “war
dances” had other names like “Bird
dance,” in which the movements
represent the rituals of birds such as
Prairie Chickens, or grouse, and the
feathered adornments came from the
same inspirations. Most Indians have long
ago forgotten the true meaning of these
dances, which was mainly to give them
strength and wisdom, courage and self
respect. It was only natural that they
should perform these dances and rituals,
upon being forced into war against the
white invaders. What they were lacking in
military striking power, they were
desperate to make up in spiritual strength.
The Whites looked upon these rituals as
solely intended to build aggression or work
up a frenzied courage to kill and called
them "war dances.”
A telephone conversation with officials
at the Chemawa Indian School, informed
us that their students would not be allowed
to come to Eugene, ‘because of the
violence and riots here,’ and therefore
would not participate. Officials at the
Oregon State Correctional Institution had
planned to bring down members of their
Indian group, but changed their plans for
the same reason.
The lpss is not for Indians alone (the
several hundred dollar deficit can be made
up), but for everyone who stayed away,
due to fear and apprehension, thereby
losing the experience of “oneness" and the
true brotherhood.
My personal congratulations go to the
members of the University of Oregon
Native American Student Union, and
thanks to all others who helped in the true
Indian tradition of “making the most out of
what you have.”
Chopin D. Clark
Committee looks at new code
Chapin D. Clark is on the law school
faculty and is chairman of the Student
Conduct Committee.
Persons who read the April 28
Emerald item, “Proposed code allows
students to prosecute faculty members,”
probably either threw the paper down in
disgust or yelled “Right on.” Un
fortunately, the report invited that sort of
polarization. I am writing in an attempt to
clarify what the Student Conduct Com
mittee is considering.
First, two specific points about the
news item: (1)1 must respectfully refuse
the Emerald’s generous vesting of power
in me to “initiate sanctional procedures”
against my faculty colleagues, (2) I do
agree that it would be difficult to persuade
the Faculty Senate to give students the
authority to judge the “affairs” (your
quote) of the faculty. Aside from the point
that the Senate does not have legislative
power, I am sure that the Senate would
feel that those faculty members lucky
enough to have “affairs” should be judged
by higher authority.
Faculty members are subject to the
disciplinary provisions of Section L-3of the
Administrative Code adopted by the State
Board of Higher Education last Sep
tember. Under these provisions, if the
Bob Gabriel is a junior in journalism at the
University.
People say the University of Oregon
got a black eye last week. They’re wrong.
It got its head busted.
Glorious leader Eachus claimed there
were communications problems. I’d agree
if I didn’t know he. Freed and others had
been using bullhorns earlier in the day. I
wonder what happened to them Thursday
night.
Thursday’s trashing was done by a
hate-mob. It started out (before Freed,
Eachus. etc., did their disappearing act) to
be an anti-war protest group, but it
changed somewhere along the way.
And when all the action was over, the
entire campus had taken a beating. Heads
got busted, cops got cut up. windows got
trashed and a lot of the wrong people were
arrested
It could have been prevented
Fachus claimed the crowd was upset
institutional executive determines that
there is probable cause to impose a sanc
tion more severe than reprimand upon an
academic staff member, he shall authorize
the preparation of formal charges in ac
cordance with institutional procedure.
There is room, therefore, to consider on
this campus both the adoption of local
procedures to supplement the Ad
ministrative Code and the adoption of
standards and procedures under which an
academic staff member might receive a
formal reprimand for adequate cause
without invoking the heavy machinery of
the Administrative Code. The State Board
has encouraged each institution to un
dertake this consideration. The Student
Conduct Committee is doing this within the
limited context of a “Community Code”
proposal.
Not a new idea
“Community Code” is a short hand
way of expressing the idea of a faculty
adopted code which extends not only to
students but in a limited way to faculty. It
is not a new idea. It was proposed several
years ago in a report to the faculty by the
ad hoc Committee to Evaluate the Student
Conduct Code. In some ways, it reflects
rather traditional notions of shared
responsibility for governance of an
educational institution and the members
thereof. The recent Carnegie Commission
report on a Model Bill of Rights and
Responsibilities for all constituents of a
university community has given added
impetus on several campuses to con
sideration of this approach.
Translating this idea into a concrete
proposal for debate and decision is not an
easy task, as several conduct committees
have discovered. Although the symmetry
of a university code which applies to
faculty and students alike is superficially
appealing, it must be remembered that
faculty and students perform different
roles. In addition, faculty members have
contracutal obligations and professional
responsibilities which students do not
share. Definitions of misconduct or
“cause” for disciplinary sanctions cannot
be identical for both groups.
Sanctions cannot be uniformly defined
for both groups because of the different
relationship which students and faculty
have to the institution. Nor are the con
sequences of those sanctions which are
identical on the surface necessarily the
same. A reprimand imposed on a student
by a student court is soon forgotten, but a
Bob Gabriel
A black eye or
a busted head?
by early use of tear and pepper gas. It’s a
lousy excuse and he knows it, but that isn’t
the point The point is mobs get a vicarious
buzz out of harassing cops. To Thursday’s
mob, breaking windows was just another
kind of harassment A cheap thrill they
could run away from quickly, leaving
someone else to take the blame
It’s stupid, but there isn’t much you
can do about stupidity—except maybe
take the place of cops . .
Several campuses across the country
have formed student groups who ac
company protest marchers and keep
trashing to a minimum. They stand in
front of windows, take the place of cops in
confrontations and generally prevent the
ugliness that arises when idiots try to win
their hero-buttons.
In order to keep things cool the rest of
this year on campus, I’d like to help form a
group like that on this campus
Its only purpose would be to avoid
formal reprimand imposed on a faculty
member may place a life-time career in
jeopardy.
Administrative code
Faculty members are already subject
to the detailed provisions of the Ad
ministrative Code to which any in
stitutional code must relate. This
relationship is not easy to define. Further,
the important concept of faculty en
titlement to peer judgment in cases of
alleged professional failures or defaults is
put in question by a community code
approach.
Fundamentally, what are we trying to
accomplish? If we are seeking better
channels on the campus for the redress of
routine grievances against individual
faculty members, is the disciplinary
model the most appropriate model to
follow in establishing procedures and
achieving corrective responses? What are
the alternatives?
These and other issues are receiving
careful attention by the Conduct Com
mittee. It remains to be seen whether the
Committee can offer a “proposed code”
this term
Chapin I). Clark
Chairman, Student Conduct Comm.
trashings and '-onfrontations with police.
Members would be deaf mute concerning
participant identities. Their only weapon
would be passive bodies They would in
sure the peacefulness of “peaceful"
demonstrations—something the radical
leadership seems unable to do.
I also am a radical. I’ve written,
spoken, demonstrated, made phone calls,
collected signitures, etc., till I’m wrung
out. But I’ve learned a couple of things
about how to protest effectively. Believe
me, busting up a city needlessly doesn’t
get it.
Demonstrations are important They
win friends. When they get ugly, they lose
their purpose. If we want demonstrations
to continue being useful, we’re going to
have to keep them that way.
If you think we need such a student
group, call me at 746-5409 or write the
Emerald. I’m tired of having people label
me an idiot when I identify myself as an
Oregon student