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Task force should educate against racism
What do the Post Office and Kinney Shoe stores have in common?
30,000 black loafers.
What do you call a bunch of black people buried up to their necks?
Afro-turf.
Funny stuff, huh? Did it feel good to laugh? Jokes of this ilk are on the
upswing not only nationwide, but at this University. Laughing at a ‘joke"
such as this — telling such a “joke" — (even writing it here) is a racist act. And
Pres. Paul Olum, by instituting a racial harassment task force, is taking active
measures against the resurgence of racism here the University.
Odd, isn’t it? These are the '80s — the latter half of the twentieth century,
and the supposed concern for human rights hasn't even dented the hard
edge of race hatred. Ignorance, in this age of omnipotent technology, begats
but more and more human ignorance. If it weren’t so frightening it would be
amazing to consider that racism in all its vile manifestations is still prevalent.
The University's task force was set up to investigate incidents of racial
harassment, to serve as an avenue for redress, and to promote an awareness
of the problem of racism. At present the office of Affirmitive Action is the only
course a student can take if subject to racial harassment. The office is in a
reactive posture — the task force is intended to deal with the problem of
racism before the problem becomes acute
It is generally felt by those on the task force, and in the administration,
that the possiblity exists the problem of racial harassment might smoulder
and eventually flare-up
What has prompted the administration to take this step? Apparently,
there has been an increase in the number and vehemence of racial incidents
Olum, at his May 11 press conference, cited incidents of harassment,
“ranging from graffiti and racist remarks to ‘somebody feeling pushed'
On the surface that doesn’t seem enough specific justification for a
letters
Major impact
Students, sometimes frustrated by the
lack of impact they may feel they have on
life around them have a chance to make
a major impact this Saturday.
It can happen by marching — with
faculty, staff and townspeople — to Alton
Baker Park for a demonstration in sup
port of the nuclear freeze All of us now
have a chance to say “No” to the
doomsday trend toward nuclear disaster
orchestrated by some heads of state
A freeze, when it is achieved, must be
only the first step — to be followed by the
“thaw" that always comes after winter:
the thawing of existing nuclear
armaments
George Beres
Asst, professor
Caretakers
We must not despair in the face of the
madness that is' the deadly game
between superpowers — played with our
lives — called the nuclear arms race As
caretakers of the planet and guardians of
future generations, we can no longer
ignore the spectre of the final holocaust
We must oppose the decline of our
economy spurred by the irresponsible
increases of defense spending involved
in the arms race The movement for a
bilateral nuclear weapons freeze is an
opportunity for our awakening to the
danger posed by 50,000 nuclear
weapons worldwide and the allocation of
nearly half the U.S. federal budget for
military expenditures. The freeze
movement is a broad-based, grassroots
campaign growing rapidly in communi
ties across the country which makes
clear people's choice for sanity and
survival. We are not merely learning how
to say “No" to the nuclear arms race, we
are also beginning to realize that, as
individuals — in cooperation with others
who care — we can make a difference
We will not only stop the arms race and
focus on meeting human needs, but
there is great potential, if ail of us work
together, to create a new, more just,
more humane society
Your chance to express support for
the freeze takes place on Saturday, May
15 in Eugene s Alton Baker Park. The
Eugene chapter of Citizen Action for
Lasting Security (CALS) is organizing a
Rally For A Nuclear Weapons Freeze
with help from Students For A
Nuclear-Free Future At 11 a m., short
mini-rallies will be held at five locations
throughout the Eugene/Springfield area
(including the EMU Courtyard on cam
pus). Following these rallies, people will
walk from their neighborhood gathering
points to Alton Baker Park for the main
rally which begins at 1 p.m For more
information call Eugene CALS:
343-8548, or drop by the office at 454
Willamette
John L. Jordan
E. 15th, Eugene
Nuclear freeze
What can mere University student do
to stop nuclear war?
The Nuclear Freeze Proposal, calling
for a US-USSR halt to testing, produc
tion. and deployment of nuclear
weapons, was unheard of two years ago
when small towns in New England, en
couraged by grassroots citizens groups,
began passing resolutions calling for a
nuclear weapons freeze What hope
could a little town like Deerfield, Mass.,
have of affecting government policy? Yet
today the “freeze” is a national
movement documented in Time and
Newsweek It is a Senate joint resolution
sponsored by over 150 Congresspeople
full-fledged task force. Yet, an administration official cites the ‘jokes", the
graffiti in the lavatories, and acts of a racist nature — all of which are
occurring with a greater frequency. The most alarming aspect of this is the
statement that racist remarks have been directed at members of the faculty.
Oregon is a queer state While progressive in much of its legislation, this
state is still a bastion for elements of the Ku Klux Klan Racism persists in
Oregon — which is something Oregonians should realize with shame To
fight this racism Gov Vic Atiyeh wrote into law a bill making racial
harassment a punishable offense. An Albany, Oregon, couple were recently
convicted under this law. They wrote “KKK" and racial slurs on the walls of
an apartment shared by two blacks
A racist attitude, much like morality, is almost impossible to legislate
The Emerald recognizes this, and hopes the task force perceives its
objective not entirely as a disciplinary body The most important direction the
task force could take is to define the areas of racial harassment and educate
the University community. Almost five percent of the University’s minority
student population is black, hispanic, Asian, and American Indian. The task
force, by promoting an awareness of the problem, will serve the five percent
— and the 95 percent — best
HYPCTTHERMAL
HEY BABY/ WHETHER YOU'RE
OUT WINNING MARATHONS OR
SUFFERING FROM
*CONVULSIONS, BE SURE TO
PRINK YOUR MILK. YOU CAN
EVEN TAKE IT INTRAVE
NOUSLY^ IF YOU LIKE !
It has made even traditional hawks
question Reagan s plan to spend $1 5
trillion on defense for the next five years,
at the expense of social programs
People, by joining together, can make
a difference In Eugene, hundreds of
people have joined together to plan the
May 15 Eugene Rally for a Nuclear
Weapons Freeze We invite every
student on this campus and every res
ident of the Eugene/Springfield area to
join together with us on May 15 in Alton
Baker Park, to support a bilateral nuclear
weapons freeze
The gathering place for University and
east Eugene residents will be the EMU
Courtyard at 11 am on May 15 Aaron
Novick, head of the University Biology
department, and Commissioner Jerry
Rust will address nuclear issues Local
poets and musicians will also be fea
tured At 11:45 we will walk to the main
rally, joining the residents of north, south
and west Eugene, and Springfield, in
Alton Baker Park The main rally will
begin at 1 p m
Please join us Nuclear war is every
one's concern For more information
please contact Students for a Nuclear
Free Future in the EMU Survival Center
of Eugene Citizen Action for Lasting
Security
Sherrie Schulti
Freshman, computer science
staff
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