Oregon daily emerald., April 13, 1973, Image 1

Oregon daily _ _
emerald
An Independent Student Newspaper
Friday, April 13, 1973
Vo. 74, No. 14*.$
In letter to Clark
Ethnic studies react
to restructuring
The recent administrative decision to abolish the supportive
service programs at the University prompted the Ethnic Studies
committee Thursday to begin drafting a letter to President Robert
Clark requesting immediate re-evaluation of the decision.
Graciela Batista, an instructor in the Romance T^ngnaga
department and currently involved in teaching Chicane students who
are in supportive service programs, spoke to the committee on how
she sees the decision as hurting the minority students.
When the programs were initiated in 1968 they were designed to
give the minority students easy access to the faculty and ad
ministration so that they could express problems or difficulties they
were having within the University structure. “Now they are being
By LAURA BRENNER
Of the Emerald
pushed farther back down the ladder,’’ said Batista, The students
may go only to their director and he must go through three other levels
before the problem finally reaches the president. The students may
have no contact at all with the upper levels of administration. “This
frustrates the group objectives. It keeps students away from contact
with the faculty,’’ commented Batista.
The fact was brought up that these programs are interested in
academic achievement and are strongly backed by the student unions
which are more politically oriented. If the supportive services
programs are eliminated then an important area of minority in
volvement in the university may be cut out; that of academics.
The reorganization proposals would include initiating cultural and
skill centers rather than the service programs. This decision for
reorganization was not discussed with any of the student groups in
volved. "This is typical of the high-handed administration at this
university,” said Edwin Bingham of the history department. He
asked about the possibility that the reorganization was done so that the
University could have a better chance for federal funds, however,
commented one of th^ student members of the committee, “HEW said
it would fund the supportive service programs if some of the duplicity
was eliminated. All they had to do was cut out duplications. But the
University is using the reason of federal funds to pass their new
program. Besides the state is now funding the program anyway.”
“There was no academic case made for reorganization,” said Ted
Matthes of the Math department. Three Indian groups informed the
administration that this structure the administration proposes is not
the type the Indians will stay under, “but,” commented Agnes Picotte,
ex-officio for George Mills, “it doesn’t make any difference to
anybody.”
“If one of the first lessons of ethnic studies is to teach Whites to be
sensitive to minority problems and if the first move is to crush the
minorities then the lesson wasn’t very well learned,” stated Batista.
The Ethnic Studies Committee decided to send a letter to the
president concerning their disapproval of the new decision and their
beliefs that second thoughts should be given to making the decision a
reality.
Photo by Steve Twedt
The Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, a nationally known modern dance group, currently in
residency in Eugene School District 4J, will make a brief free public appearance in down
town Eugene at noon on Thursday. The Company is in the District teaching, demonstrating,
and performing, sponsored by a special grant from the National Endowment for the Arts
and the Oregon Arts Commission. To conclude their visit here, the Company has scheduled
a public concert at South Eugene High School for Saturday at 8 p.m. Tickets are $2 for adults
and $1 for students and will be available at the door or may be purchased at any Eugene
school.
Horton, Burks and Allen
featured on ‘Circus’
A large part of the law en
forcement force of Lane County
was represented on KZEL-FM’s
“American Circus” Wednesday
evening. The show, hosted by
Grattan Kerans, featured Lane
County District Attorney Pat
Horton, Sheriff David Burks and
Eugene Police Chief Dale Allen.
Chief Allen said that “in the
past 20 years there have been
tremendous changes” in the
police scene of Eugene. While he
would classify most changes as
improvements, he cited the
“alarming increase in the crime
rate in this area” as a
discouraging factor.
The subject of issuing citations
for marijuana offenders got
considerable attention during the
one hour discussion. Horton said
that “seven or eight” citations
have been issued “in the past few
days.” He defended the concept
of issuing citations for marijuana
by pointing out that the change
represents a “fairer” way of
doing things.
“It’s fairer than locking
someone up for a weekend
because he’s a student and has no
money for bail,” Horton said.
Allen said that his police
department is now in the process
of moving towards “prevention of
crime” as a means of improving
conditions in Eugene. He also
emphasized the new gains made
in the juvenile area and up
grading of police personnel.
Horton clarified a charge made
against him that he had made a
campaign promise to get rid of
the Lane County Inter-agency
Narcotics Team (LINT). During
the campaign, Horton said, he
had called for the “drastic
overhaul” of LINT and that the
use of citations and the new
concentration on big dealers and
hard narcotics is in the spirit of
his statement.
On the question of female
participation in Lane County’s
law agencies, each of the show’s
guests discussed their particular
contributions to equality. The
sheriff’s office has female clerks,
the district attorney’s office has a
woman deputy D.A., and the
EPD has recently allowed three
female police officers on the
force.
In response to a question from
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Shield law signed
i
SALEM (UPI) — Gov. Ton McCall, a former newsman, has :•
signed an unqualified shield law protecting Oregon reporters :•
from being forced to reveal confidential sources of information. 5
The law, which takes effect 90 days after adjournment of the :•
Legislature, protects newsmen from court orders and other s
governmental bodies seeking confidential information.
“This is not a shield for reporters,” the Republican
governor said Wednesday. “It is a shield for the public’s right to jj
know.
“I never thought I would have to advance and sign a bill
authorizing freedom of the press,” McCall added. “I’ve always jj
believed freedom of the press was assured by the United States :j
and Oregon Constitutions.
“However, the U.S. Supreme Court has said — temporarily, jj
I think — that the United States Constitution does not say what it i
clearly says.” jj