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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 27, 1996)
They’d rather starve than eat with sinners ■ OUR OPINION San Lake City hale overpowers love and democracy Sodomy la an act. Homosexuality is not Governmental policy is not controlled by any reli gious organisation The Sail Lake City School Hoard doesn't care. Mormon dogma and hate spilled into the hallways of Utah's public schools last week, when the capital city's school board opted to ban all non-academtc dubs rather than let gay and les bian students form a dub of their own. The Ski Club. Students Against Dnmk Driving and possibly even athletics will all disappear because feder al law prohibits public schools from refusing cer tain student groups but allowing others, Thus, the "adults" had to open the door for a gay/les bian dub or get rid of all clubs They chose the Utter. The slate I legislature is trying to find a way to ban the gay club and keep the others. They think they may have found a loophole Sodomy is against the Uw in Utah, and the i-egisUturw can prohibit any group that promotes an illegal activity Aside from the sickening fact that any group of people Is so disgusted by homosex ualily that it would sacrifice its children's education to keep reality in the closet, the decision against the gay club is so illogical and mis guided that it must be ruled unconstitutional Public schools are designed to meet ih« needs of all students, not just the majority They are not to l* controlled by the religious beliefs of any group, hence the term "public" rather than "private" school. Conservative* claim that allowing gay group* in pub lic institutions constitute* condoning homosexuality This is not the case, f reedom of religion require* Protestants to make room for Catholics and Mus lima. Clearly ihi* doe* not mean that any of these groups condone* the beliefs of the other. In fact, two of those faith* think the other* will not be joining them in heaven. Why then, is this "logic" applied to gay group*? lust because homosexual! ty is morally offensive to the majority doe* not mean that Kv and lesbian people can excluded from school* for which they pay taxes In addition, the idea that gay students can be prevent ed from forming a club because sodomy l* illegal is ludicrous. First, not all gay men practice sodomy. Two. it‘* impossible for lesbians to practice sodomy And three, homosexuality is not an act. It is an integral part of the person, Gay men and tea mans who never have sex do not become straight, Utah can have a sodomy law if it wants to, but it has nothing to do with allowing a gay and lesbian dub. Rather than acknowledge the diversity that exist* even within the most oppressive environments. Sait lake City has chosen to punish all students, pit them against one another and keep them wallowing in ignorance instead of allow ing a few brave gay and les bian teenagers a room of their own. And that’s the real abomi nation. |gpHS§DEZl£a6ZSSiS5gES9£^£3BiSEBRfflK19HffiBBHH&!HBlSBR[BaBBflHHIffiSBQKS9RRa&Ba^nBmaHS^BI^B£8SaSBHKfl I "kuwoK | R«*n _ Awomtn „ ftinUbQHTO r... Claims dismissed The effectiveness of the Office of Public Safety system tm tarn pus recently cant* up in a discus siun group of Women's Studies 101 As tee began sharing our own personal espenences and fears that many women have because of violence against women, we rttalued many in our group had similar stories of OPS incompetence Incidents ranged from domestic violence to a dangerous intruder near the dorms. Women called OPS for help in these situations, and in each case the seriousness or validity of their claim* was dismissed. In tight of the recent attach* that have been happening on and around campus, we feel it is necessary to demand that students and OPS take our claims seriously. A member in our group recently witnessed a situation tn which a male student lucked his keys in his tar This mm emergent v received the atten lion of two OPS officers Each of our claim* should have been treeled in the same manner W# demand that in the future. OPS treat our reports as genuinely serious situation* CWk* Lehmann and Headier Thiel and seven 00-aigners Help the homeless A* concerned student* who work cm issue* that effect u» elt. OSPIRG's Hunger end HamelMones* ProjKl invitee you to join us tn our efforts to help others by organizing the 12th annuel National Hunger Cleanup, the largest single day commu nity service event in the country Thu year** Hunger Cleanup will he April 13 We have already started planning for this day. hut we still need your help You can get involved by Joining our Cleanup Coalition This Coalition helps plan the event, forms work teams, raises money and decides which local organizations will receive the funds Every April, the Hunger Cleanup is a national work s-thon that bridges the gap between the community and students concerned with hunger and homeless issues The cleanup also raises funds for program* and increases volunteer net works We are communicating with several student groups and other organizations within the com munity to form a great coalition that can make a real difference in our community and the world. We would be happy to talk to other student/com in unity group* about the Cleanup Please give u* at least a two-day notice if you want us to speak at one of your meetings Volunteer* can get involved by finding spon sor* who will hec k you financially lor your work at local hunger and/or homeles* shelters and organization*, fuodhank* or low-income housing facilities The Coalition will have its first meeting today at 3 p m. in the OSFtRC office. To get involved. please attend our meeting* or call Cassandra at 346*4377. Thank you, we hope to hear from you soon Cassandra Coogan Coalition Coordinator Could It be Satan? On Feb. 20, the Ad Club received it* second straight decrease from the ASIIO Programs Finance Committee, The committee based its decision on a lack of student involvement in the club's major event. The committee saw a problem with "funding a competition," and funding a club that was “selec tive." The committee also saw that if a club can fund 70 percent of their activities through fundraising, they could do more. To be perfectly honest. 1 would like to tee how many other dub* could fund 70 percent of its own cost* The committee saw a point to fund conference* and learning centers which give students knowl edge they can bring back to the University The c ommittee apparently doesn't feel the same about the knowledge and experience students can gain at competitions. Obviously, committee members have not been involved in competitions; other wise, they would realize that competitions are a moans of gaining national recognition for echievement — and also a way to attract new stu dents to the University in w# meeting, in# < ufnmtttee went into In# •lotwn# process without having alt the evidence When offered new information from an Ad Club member, the committee ignored it This resulted in an undemocratic and hostile environment The committee proved itself to be mediocre in that they failed to produce records from previous year's spending referendum*. The committee demonstrated its bureaucratic tendency by failing to alleviate the financial bur den for a small group, increasing fundraising efforts for the same and choosing not to reward the club for past achievements. I would like to warn all students that one-fifth of your incidental fee dollar* go to tickets for sporting events I regularly attend basketball and football games, but these are competitive events that not all students can go to. Finance Committee meetings? Don't bofher showing up The meetings are purely an orches tration for the Emrrald and student body to hid# the political agendas of the committee member* Students should be suspicious of any commit tee that choose* to fund only selective groups {such as the greek society), but leave* other groups wearing Mtlkbone underwear in a dog eel dog world If* nice that much of what 1 read is not theo ry. but reality reaffirmed by the Finance Commit tee Joseph Made Political Science
