EDITORIAL
IFC action justified;
court has last word
The Incidental Fee Committee, notorious for its lack of
focus and direction this year, took a bold step toward
returning credibility to the group when it ousted Chair
man Steve Masat Friday.
Masat, the only mumlxir who would have returned next
year, has been a disruptive influence on the IFC alloca
tion process and student government bs a whole Mis
attempt to expand his power to micro manage the EMU
is directly responsible for the administration's decision
to remove the EMU's budget from IFC control.
The EMU's budget is S2.2 million, about one-third of
student incidental fees. Hopefully, the administration
will consider the IFC’s removal of Masat a sign that the
committee t an onc.« again Ire trusted with the EMU's bud
get
Evidence of Masat's disruptive influence on student
government was made glaringly evident at Monday's IFC
miM'dng. which began with Masat and Student Insurftrnt
oditor-turned-Masat-attack-dog Jason Moore deriding IFC
members with personal abaci* and innocuous cries of
injustice.
Jackie Gibson of the Mediation Program tried her best
to maintain a sense of order at the raucous affair, but was
hopelessly ineffective between two sides that refused
to compromise. In fact, it took Officer Otis Scarborough
of tho University Office of Public Safety to clear the room,
including ejecting Masat.
If Masat were interested in swing justice, he would take
his complaint to the ASUQ Constitution Court. Howev
er. justice is not tho issue here — rather, power and one
person's self-serving agenda are the driving forces at work.
If Masat truly believed the committee's decision was ille
gal. he wouldn't be so frightened to have the issue ulti
mately decided by tho Constitution Court.
The confused tag-team of Masat and Moore attempt
ed several imaginative interpretations of IFC rules, the
ASUO Constitution and Robert's Rtilos of Order to jus
tify tho ever-changing foundation for their claims of injus
tice.
Waving Robert's Rules like a flag. Moore attempted to
toll the IFC that tho book of suggested parliamentary pro
cedure superseded the committee’s own rules. Then he
and Masat attempted to get the IFC to declare tho Con
stitution Court's lifting of Friday's injunction prohibit
ing tho ouster of Masat to bo illegal.
Near the end of Monday's meeting. Moore presented
the IFC with two memos from the registrar's office stat
ing constitution court members and third-year law' stu
dents Paul Loving and William Portello are not current
ly enrolled. No kidding. Law school ended more than a
week ago. No law students are currently enrolled.
Moore intended to suggest the two court members did
not havo the authority to lift Friday's injunction, issued
by Justice Michaei O'Leary. However, the ASUO Con
stitution states a court member's term expires upon leav
ing or graduation from the University. Thus, tho question
is not whether they are enrolled. It's did they graduate
and what is their current status with tho University?
I.aw school grades are not official until June 1. Also, if
the justices owe the University any money, does the Uni
versity consider them "gone"? Anyone who has dealt
with Oregon Hall's collections department knows the
answer to that one.
But regardless of any action taken by Moore. Masat. the
IFC or the current Constitution Court, the final decision
will bo left to next year's court. In the moantimo, Masat
should accept his current fate until a new court can be
appointed and rule on the issue.
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NO
COMMENTARY
Definitions absent from debate
By Eric Ward Brian Hoop
and Jonah Booksiem
hn movement at the Uni
versity for a revised rat e.
J_ grander, ami non-European
requirement has lieen derailed
Lost amid the squalor of divi
sive debate on the subject of the
new requirement lias been a
vision of our long term goals
The intention of the supporters
of the proposed revision was to
implement fundamental curric
ular change designed to incor
porate the complex realities of
race and ethnic: relations in the
United States
Hope that our academic com
munity could come together on
this important issue vanished in
a flurry of i ritic isms on the cost
of the requirement, a debate on
anti-Semitism and the political
nature of the proposed require
ments.
Absent from this discussion
about racism and anti-Semitism
were concrete definitions What
is the nature of racism ' What is
race' What is anti-Semitism'
What do we mean when we say
something is multicultural?
Progressives, people of color
and Jews themselves have diffi
culty answering these questions.
We as a university community
must reexamine the process by
which our goal can be achieved
We have come to the conclu
sion that we need a requirement
that focuses on systems of
oppression in the United States
on the basis of perceived biolog
ical differences, bow and why
these peoples face oppression
and how that oppression is
secured by political, cultural and
economic systems.
A buffet style multicultural
framework — where studunts
study another culture, gender or
people in on effort to create a tol
erant society — does not fon.e us
to confront racism and anti-Semi
tism.
Classes that study the contri
bution of African-Americans or
other oppressed peoples are fine
for a new and improved Ethnic
Studies department. But we can
study African-American history
and still be racists. We can study
Jewish cultural symbols and still
be anti-Semites The liberal posi
tion — opening yourself to other
cultures — is not even a first step
to understanding racism.
Because of our failure to rec
ognize that multiculturalism does
not address racism oranti-Semi
Usrn. those who wished to flee
the arena of discourse were able
to force a wedge between Jews,
white progressives and |>eop!e of
color
Racism and anti-Semitism are
different than multiculturalism
Racism involves having the pow
er to carry out systematic dis
criminatory practices through
major institutions of society and
by individuals tiased on skin col
or.
Anti -Semitism, like racism, has
long been ignored and denied by
most segments in American soci
ety By anti-Semitism, we mean,
"the systematic discrimination
against, denigration, or oppres
sion of Jews. Judaism and the cul
tural. intellectual and religious
heritage of the Jewish people"
(I^mter 1902). Like racism, anti
Sumitisin can lie subtle or overt
In the United States, anti-Semi
tism has historically taken the
form of Christians referring to
Jews as “Christ Killers." institu
tionally denying college and uni
versity access to Jewish people,
blaming all Jews for the policies
of the slate of Israel, believing that
Jews have some monolithic pow
er to control society, and most
pertinently, continually placing
Jewish people in the middle of
struggles of power fietween those
who have real power and those
who do not.
This pattern of anti-Semitism
tainted the last University
Assembly debate on the proposed
revisions to the Race and Gender
requirement at the University.
When faculty rightfully raised the
concern that anti-Semitism was
not being properly addressed,
this handed the mainly white fac
ulty another convenient reason
to avoid complex dialogue on
racism in the United States. The
net result : we once again scape
goated the Jewish people
Whether by conscious intent
or naivete, the issue of anti-Semi
tism was an effective barrier to
establishing a serious commit
ment to racial and ethnic dis
course at the University.
This does not mean the ques
tion o.er anti-Semitism is not
legitimate — but some who
raised and supported the subject
did so only to keep the Univer
sity in the academic dark ages
dodging issues of racism and eth
nic oppression.
We all need to educate our
selves. We continue to limit
debate on racism and anti-Semi
tism around the issue of who is
able anil who is unable to assim
ilate. voluntarily or involuntari
ly. into the dominant white cul
ture. Instead ive must criticize
that system which forces people
to abandon their ethnic cultures.
Within the redefinition of our
goals — to create a more tolerant
society — must be a clarification
of the terms we use to describe
our identity groups Jews are a
people, not a race. African-Amer
icans are a people, not a race.
Peoples share common histo
ries. language, cultural similari
ties, ties to ancestral lands and
sacred myths. By defining Jews.
Blacks, Chicanos, Indians,
Asians, and Arab-Americans as
peoples, we embrace a group in
their entirety and refuse to use
purely superficial, biologically
false models.
The call for a revision of the
race, gender, and non-European
requirement was only one seg
ment ot a multifaceted approach
to implementing comprehensive
change. No one supporting this
effort over assumed changes to
the requirement would be a
solve-ull solution to each stu
dent's indifference to racial and
ethnic conflict in the United
States The requirement is only
one step in a wide range of insti
tutional change needed to com
mit ourselves to combating sys
tematic racist oppression in the
United Slates.
Included in the original goals
were 1) a fully funded Ethnic
Studios department with ten
tenured faculty members; 2)
increased recruitment and reten
tion efforts for hiring of faculty
of color and faculty in Judaic
Studies; 3) scholarship and sup
port programs for graduate stu
dents of color; and 4) an Inter
disciplinary Curriculum
Development Institute to collab
orate faculty expertise on new
and existing ethnic studies cur
riculum.
Both the struggles for an inclu
sive curriculum and a require
ment that specifically addresses
racism and anti-Semitism are
essential. People of color, Jews,
and white progressives must
refuse to lie drawn into the ideo
logical battle with faculty who
are afraid to move into the 2tst
Century, clinging to the old laws
of racial discourse where
"minorities" enter at the back
door of the house and Jews are
convenient scapegoats when
things get too hot in the kitchen.
Brian Hoop is a member of the
Student Senate Eric Ward is a
founding member of Communi
ties Agonist Hate loriah Book
stein is a member of the fewish
Student Union.