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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 27, 1996)
Tee’d Off Blame it on feminism or cranky copyright laws — either way, a little lighthearted tamper ing with the good name of William and Mary almost caused the school to lose its shirts. Since the late 1960s, T-shirts bearing the name “Mary and William” and the slogan “Never underestimate the power of a woman” have added a touch of satire to the 303-year-old institu tion, where even sidewalk bricks are considered pieces of history. In December, the shirt was brought to the attention of the school s lawyers, who said it was copyright infringement because of the unauthorized renaming and use of the official seal. The campus bookstore pulled the shirts from shelves for several weeks but resumed sales when the college pursued a copyright of the reversed name and slogan. “ 1 he shirts have been around for the better part of 20 years, and peo ple always enjoyed them,” says Mr. T meets Ms. T. X Marks the House WHATEVER HAPPENED TO EBONY AND IVORY? Living in perfect harmony? Not at Con necticut’s Wesleyan U. Wesleyan relocated nine stu dents last spring after dorm resi dents protested the placement of non-black students in a black hous ing facility. Just hours after the students requested to live in the Malcolm X House, residents posted flyers saying their house was at risk. Residents say the students — four Asian, three Latino and two white — had little connection to the African-American studies pro gram and picked the house in order to live in singles. Administrators say the nine spots remained unfilled at the beginning of the housing lot tery, leaving them no choice but to fill the rooms with non-black stu dents who had requested singles. Ashraf Rushdy, professor of African-American studies and Eng lish, says residents felt the presence of non-black students would dimin ish the house’s role as a safe haven Stewart Carnage, vice president for public affairs. “[The controversy] became a bigger deal than it really was. We had to protect the copy right laws.” After the new copyright was attained, the shirts resurfaced in local shops as well. “The shirts sell well enough to warrant continu ing to keep them,” says Sam Wal lace, a local store owner who sells the shirts. Perhaps the most ardent sup porters of the pro-queen camp are the students who have kept the shirr in constant demand since its cre ation. Mina Kerr, a ’77 graduate, has had her shirt since 1973. “It was something funny and different,” Kerr says. “William and Mary isn’t just old-fashioned, straight-laced stuff. It’s a modern university." Once in danger of going the way of the powdered wig and the three cornered hat, the T-shirts are safe from becoming an out-of-produc tion collector’s item. “The shirts are on the shelves,” Carnage says. “We don’t want to suggest that the college Cannot make fun of itself in the best way.” King William probably didn’t think twice before putting Iris name first, hut as the saying goes, behind every great man there’s an even bet ter woman. By Samantha Levine, College of William and Mary, I/a./ Photos by Logan Wal lace, College of William and Mary After a week of negotiations between students and Wesleyan president Douglas J. Bennet, univer sity officials agreed to place the nine students in other dorms and assigned black students to the house. Administrators have yet to resolve whether non-black students can live in the house because they can’t find the house’s original char ter. Current residents say they will work with the university to write a new charter this fall. By Seth Stern, Cornell U. /Photo by Brenda Chapman, Wesleyan U., Conn. ror black students on campus. “The Malcolm X House gives us a place where we don’t think about race. We can be ourselves,” says Angie Mont gomery, a junior and the house res idence adviser. “Our house was going to be taken away from us.” “A place where we don’t think about race." Bookin’ it. Text Trade M ore than 300 national univer sities have made the switch. And we’re not talking about coffee. Cam puses are opting for a change from the traditional campus-run bookstore to the Barnes and Noble Col lege Bookstore. Many universities no longer want the financial responsibility of a bookstore, says Stan Frank, market ing manager of Barnes and Noble College Bookstores Inc. He adds that the majority of college-run bookstores don’t make any money. Barnes and Noble pays the school whether the bookstore makes money or not, so schools don’t have to wor ry about finances. In fact, Frank says, Barnes and Noble is able to pay schools with profitable stores even more money than they make when the university is holding the reins. “For the schools, it’s a win-win situation- There are no negatives involved; only positives,” Frank says. Those “positives,” according to Frank, include maintaining better quality and service, keeping prices constant and increasing merchandise. “It’s easier [with a Barnes and Noble bookstore] to get what 1 need and get out quickly and avoid all the confusion,” says Pennsylvania State U. junior Geoff Mosher. However, some students aren’t buying the hype of a commercially owned campus bookstore. Danial Sord, a Columbia U. sophomore, says there are snags in ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■I A Modest Proposal Franc Del Fosse wanted to get his girlfriend's attention when he proposed to her. He ended up getting a little more attention than he bargained for. Del Fosse painted “Alison, will you marry me?! Franc” on the concrete “A” embedded in Arizona State U.’s Tempe Butte in the wee hours of the morning last spring. This unique way to pop the question caught the eye of his girl friend, Alison Wright, a psychology senior at Arizona. It also caught the eye of local police and members of the ASU Alumni Association. “I thought everyone would see it and it would be a good way to let her know I was proud to ask her,” says Del Fosse, a junior. “I was surprised when it got so much publicity. I wasn’t ready for it.” The publicity included a police investigation. Del Fosse faced a possi ble $1,000 fine, four months in jail and two years probation. The “A," which adorns the side of a butte, has long been a target of vandals, especially those who attend rival schools. Arlene Chin, university traditions and student programs coordinator, says the “A” is painted a couple of times a year for school functions, but it receives more than half a dozen unoffi cial paint jobs. Fortunately, the police and the alumni association realized the good intentions surrounding the case, so the lovebirds weren’t caged for their Aug. 23 wedding. “[The police] were really cool about it,” Del Fosse says. “They were happy for us but made it clear it was vandal ism.” But don’t get any wise ideas, says Toby Dyas, a Tempe police spokesper son. Future vandals will be prosecuted. “It isn’t a billboard to be used by everyone.” Tim Baxter, Arizona State U. the system. “Generally, it’s a nice store, and people are friendly, but they have trouble staying organized with inventory.” Now, if only Wolfgang Puck could do something about the dorm food. Story and photo by Marty Lerman, Ohio State U. Barbie Hall of Fame Palo Alto, Calif. — Some say it's the biggest collection of plastic outside of LA. Evelyn Burkhalter owns 16,000 bombshells and accessories. Museum of Business Cards Erdenheim, Pa. — Ken Erdman collected 156,000 of the most orig inal cards — ranging from leather creations to holograms — for display. Stark’s Museum of Vacuum Cleaners Portland, Ore. — The “shining beacon in a sea of misinformation about vacuums” reveals everything about hundreds of the dirt sucking machines.
