Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 1983)
opinion_ Fact-finders start on ROTC issue University Pres. Paul Olum has at long last appointed and empaneled a fact-finding committee to study the ROTC/sexual orientation question. The Emerald must confess to a certain impatience in this matter. That impatience was not born of disrespect for Olum, but was impatience toward resolving what may prove to be a discriminatory wrong committed against a minority group on this campus. This wrong may not be in strict violation of the University's equal opportunity guidelines. However, it probably violates the University's affirmative action guidelines. Olum was anxious to ensure the committee did not take a political posture or make policy pronouncements. In his letter to the six committee appointees Olum emphasized they deal with "simple, factual questions." We echo Olum's concerns, structuring the committee's role as fact-finders is important to establishing whether or not the ROTC program violates University rules against discrimination or affirmative action. The issue is not black and white, as much information as possible is necessary for an acceptable resolution. The issue of possible ROTC discrimination is definitely emo tional in many quarters. We, like other interested groups, strongly object to any discriminatory practices being allowed to take place overtly or covertly at this University. We heartily approve of Olum's six appointments. He was wise to retain ASUO Pres. Mary Hotchkiss' choice of law student Alan Contreras and Sherri Schultz, ASUO executive assistant, for an original committee. The appointment of John Lallas, ex ecutive dean, Shirley Menaker, graduate school associate dean, Richard Steers, management professor and James O'Fallon, law professor and chair of the fact-finding committee, certify the group will more than adequately serve its function. Don't expect a quick solution to question of ROTC discrimination. Olum has asked the committee to release its fin dings by the end of 1984. Then the appropriate governing bodies will evaluate the committee's findings and take necessary ac tion. The wheels of bureaucracy are slow — if indeed they do have wheels at all. Law school chooses the right policy It's odd,, but apt that while the fact-finding committee study ing ROTC discrimination is now sitting, the University Law School has adopted a resolution for that school's placement center to follow the University's equal opportunity policy. University Pres. Paul Olum has concluded that the place ment centers of individual schools do not have to adhere to the equal opportunity policy as long as they do not violate the law. This reading of the equal opportunity policy was prompted by recent protests of specific recruiters who have a history of discriminatory hiring. Ironically, it was FBI recruiters at the law school who inspired the protest. The equal opportunity policy states the University "affirms the right of all individuals to equal opportunity in education and employment, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, handicap, national origin, marital status, or any other extraneous considerations not directly and substantively related to effective performance, including sexual orientation." The equal opportunity policy and the University's affir mative action guidelines are two separate, distinct yet similar policies — and therein lies problems for the University. As the occasion dictates, either policy has been evoked. Consequently, there are cracks in the University's strong front against discrimination. We commend the law school's placement center for choos ing the more inclusive of the two non-discriminatory policies. And we urged that other placement centers in the University community follow suit. But, eventually, the University will have to address its two oolicies and either choose one or combine the two. Oregon daily . _ emerald The Oregon Cady emerald i* publnhed Monday through fry day r«<ept during rum week and vacation*, by the Oregon Daily Emerald Publishing Co . at the University of Oregon, iugene. O*. 17401 The Imerald operate* independently ol the University with office* on the third floor of the frb Memorial Union and i* a member of the Associated Pres* Stew* and editorial Display Advert rung and fcrsmets UMrltll USIMI MM-4V4I UMUI HH1II (ditor Managing l ditor Nevys I ditor AlUMini Newt t ditor fditortel Par* (diloi fhoto l ditor Sport t t ditor Sidrlirto I ditor I ntrrtatnment (ditor Accident Intertamment t ditor Night I ditor At*«uW MMon Higher (dur Alton Orjurtnirnti And Sihoulc Student (aivernment featurec Pol lilt i Community Getter aI UaM Advertising Manager < let tdied Adeeming Prodot lion Manager ( olttruHer Debbie Howlett Sandy (obntlone frank Shaw BrrndA Ihornlon Cort trrnrld Dave Kao Doug levy lohn Heaty Angeie Allen Morgen Kim Carlton C ort Ferneld Doug Nath Melista Marlin |im Moore loan Hetman Brooke Dare! I Mu hel*- Matatta Darlene Core Sally Ot,ar Victoria Koch lean Ownbey A mother's plea for the future I am writing to you in the desperate hope that you may be able to help — by printing my letter — to let your readers know just how desperate I and so many other mothers are here in England, about the deployment of U.S. cruise missiles so close to our homes. letter from abroad ann toms We are not admirers of the Soviet Russian system, but neither do we believe we are in immi nent danger of attack from them — except in response to these new missiles. They will make us the world's most important target. In any nuclear ex change we cannot possibly survive. The overwhelm ing majority of British people do not want these foreign weapons on our soil. We have our own defense systems, our own destiny to follow. I love my two children dearly (David, 21, is a fine clarinet player and Mandy, 13, is doing so well with her cello). They both deserve a future, and I look for ward to grandchildren one day — yet all I can see ahead is the grim spectre of death for us all. This island is so beautiful, rich, fertile; my home is so dear to me — I, like all my friends, feel I am just not prepared to stay silent whilst this country is turn ed into a scenario ot despair, it must oe possiDie tor "civilized” peoples to live and let live side by side in peace _ we don't want the provocative cruise missiles — we don't require American interference — let us take our own risks — they cannot be greater than the risks which your weapons, controlled by your president, expose us to. Freedom is what America has always stood for — but now we are asking who's freedom? And freedom from what? What kind of freedom shall we have left when the power of life and death, the future of our country, our continent is under the thumb of so meone else's elected president. Are we to live our lives on our knees to a culture not quite like our own, in the day to day expectation that our history is draw ing to a close, that our children may be destined to be sacrificed to the American Dream — or its anti communist hysteria — or in "defense of U.S. overseas interests"? I am not anti-American, lots of my best memories are of time spent with American friends. There is so much to admire and enjoy which emanates from the far side of the Atlantic — but if the Reagan ad ministration persists with his ego-dominated, hawkish attitudes it won't be long before the gratfitti — Go Home Yanks — reappears on the ancient walls of Europe. Ann Toma lives on Weston Road, Totland, on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom. letters Errors Melissa Martin's article on foreign language enrollments (Nov. 21) contains several glaring errors. According to the Registrar's fourth-week printout, course enrollment for Chinese is 287, comparable to Russian, whose course enrollment is 258, and Italian (247), though less than Japanese, which is 356 (a signifi cant jump from its last-year figure of 285). To say that only "some 65 students are taking Chinese this year" is false, since first-year Chinese students alone exceed that number (77 registered at the beginning of the term). Additional students are taking second-, third-, and fourth-year Chinese literature courses and seminars. To attribute this misinformation to Prof. Gontrum, Head of the German Department, adds some comic relief to the seriousness of the error, since Stephen Kohl, (apanese instructor, is our depart ment head. But I do not believe that Kohl would have given out such misleading information. Misleading also is the chart ac companying the article, in which the course hours of one entire language program are juxtaposed with numbers of first-year students of another without speci fying which is which. The Emerald reporter's playing with enrollment figures does not alter the actual figures of our pro gram. Nevertheless, there is cause for concern about the Chinese program which has been short changed for many years. For in stance, whenever a faculty member goes on leave, he or she is invariably replaced with a part time person who is paid coolie wages. In her letter to the Oregonian (Nov. 20), Linda Walton, at PSU, boasts that 120 students are enrolled in (apanese this year. She attributes the success to the dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences and other members of the PSU ad ministration have taken firm steps in very difficult cir cumstances to show their commitment..." The same holds true for PSU's Chinese program, which has more than 120 students, according to Wendy Larson, new instructor of Chinese at PSU a PhD candidate in Chinese Literature from UC, Berkeley, she, by the way, was among the 12 candidates who ap plied at the University and were not even considered. The dean, according to Kohl, did not have the extra $6,000 to hire a full-time replacement for Lucia Yang, who is on sabbatical. When monetary values are plac ed above the value of human resources, then a language pro gram can be permanently damag ed. It is not unlikely that the East Asian program at PSU will have a "cutting edge" sharper than our own, if we allow budge»ary con siderations to interfere with hiring. Angela lung professor, Chinese Worn thin I'd like to complain. Professor LaRusso's 301 students are wear ing thin the linoleum of the library reading room. Where do you ex pect us to realize funds to repair the floor? A couple new copies of Aristotle and Quintilian would also be nice. lamieson Okk ie KMCM
