▼ EDITORIAL
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:
Steven Asbury
MANAGING EDITOR:
Thom Schoenbom
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Jennifer Schmitt
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Ashley Bach & Brian Diamond
editorials, letters, commentary and perspective
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Finding a home
i—. for
Footnotes
■ OUR OPINION:
Without a clear
mission
statement for the
EMU, other
groups will face
the same fight for
space as
Footnotes
For anyone who ever slept through
an early morning class, this is im
portant. Footnotes’ lease in the
EMU is up for renewal, and the fu
ture of the student service is in jeopardy.
The problem isn’t about student demand
for Footnotes — it’s about space. With the
number of student groups continuing to
grow and space for these groups continuing
to shrink. Footnotes’ 700-square-foot office
is being eyed by many as the solution to the
student group space crunch.
That’s bad news for Footnotes and stu
dents who rely on Footnotes as an academ
ic aid. If Footnotes is denied a lease renew
al, as many on the EMU Board of Directors
are suggesting might happen, the much ap
preciated student service may find itself
homeless.
In response to Footnotes’ dilemma,
House members of the board unanimously
voted to recommend that Footnotes be
guaranteed an alternative spot in the EMU
if its current lease is not renewed.
We hope the board follows through with
the House’s suggestion. While 700 square
feet may be too much for Footnotes, espe
cially when some student groups have no
space at all, it is critical that Footnotes re
mains in the EMU.
Footnotes is an invaluable service for stu
dents and it isn’t funded by student fees. A
service that provides student benefits at
such a low cost deserves a spot in the stu
dent union.
Forcing Footnotes out of its current space
without first finding an alternative location
would put a serious strain on the future suc
cess of Footnotes. Because the EMU pro
vides a low-rent location, Footnotes has
been able to keep costs low. But if it is
forced out of the EMU, low prices will be a
luxury of the past for Footnotes subscribers.
The current problems Footnotes is deal
ing with are due primarily to bad luck.
Footnotes’ lease just happened to run out at
a time when space was particularly tight.
The same debate could have been repeated
with any other student service that found
themselves in Footnotes’ shoes.
The problem isn’t with the different ser
vices in the EMU; it’s with the EMU itself.
Is it a place for student groups, academic
services (like Footnotes), food or entertain
ment? Because the board has no clear focus
on whom it will serve, there will always be
questions of who gets space and who does
n’t.
fOOTNOTSS
COM
CHRIS HUTCHINSONyEmeraW
Instead of deciding on a
case-by-case basis who
gets priority for space, the
board should finally write
up a mission statement de
claring the EMU’s priori
ties. This would finally
solve the question of who
gets space.
For instance, while the
space of student groups may
be more important than the
space of Footnotes, isn’t Foot
notes more valuable than, say,
the arcade? Because there is no
clear mission statement of
whom the EMU should serve,
questions like these inevitably
become major debates.
Too many students rely on
Footnotes to risk losing it be
cause of a lease disagreement.
The first step is for the
board to find a place for ,
Footnotes in the EMU L
that provides adequate ^
space for the service to re
main active.
Then, the board should prevent future
problems by drafting a mission statement
that makes it clear what the EMU is for and
whom it will serve. If this is done, the Uni
versity won’t have to go through the same
struggle the next time Footnotes’ lease is
up.
This editorial represents the opinion of
the Emerald editorial board.
LETTERS
Urban destruction
As as ex-Chicagoan, I thought I’d seen the
best the world could show in the way of
corruption and scandal. But the story be
hind the rapid destruction of the Willamette
River scenic corridor opened my eyes to the
impressive betrayal of public trust in this
city of not-so-big shoulders.
Those who have seen what the city, Uni
versity and private industry are doing to the
lovely natural parkland at the Autzen foot
bridge must admire the audacity of the
riverfront “research park” project. What
will replace the quiet swimming holes,
playing fields and woodland trails where
we take our out-of-town guests to hear them
sigh with envy at the views available on a
casual bicycle ride? A restaurant, of course,
and sprawling buildings connected by a
snarl of roads and parking lots.
And how is this being financed? Believe
it or not, urban renewal money solicited
from the federal government is supplement
ing this desecration. While we see the li
brary hours cut and some of our park cen
ters about to close, tax money is being
siphoned off to help pay for the “improve
ment” of this area.
The river frontage in its natural state has
more value to present and future genera
tions than the grandest money-making
scheme our local mobsters can devise. Be
watching for a ballot measure on this issue.
Meanwhile, for relief, picture with me a
chain gang of profiteers with pickaxes, sent
up the river to demolish the concrete
they’ve poured over our local beauty.
Teresa Mueller
Eugene
Fatal oversight
While entirely supportive of the Emerald
providing useful safe-sex information about
condoms (Feb. 10, ODE), I was shocked to
see the absence of male-to-male and female
to-female transmission rates for common
STDs, particularly HIV. This is no small
oversight. Men who have sex with men
must know how to avoid HIV infection. In
this time of the AIDS epidemic, no article
on National Condom Week can afford to for
get that gay men and sex between men ex
ist.
James Warhol
Programmer
University Computing
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READER VOICES
Should
Footnotes be
allowed to stay
in the EMU?
“Keep them [in the
EMU]. Iftheygeta
smaller space,
they'll have less
people working
there and the quali
ty of the footnotes
will be lower."
Phil Platt
Junior
International Studies
‘I don't care if they
have to move. I’ve
never used Foot
notes and I never
will"
Melanie Supnet
Junior
Psychology
“I hardly think
[Footnotes has]
enough resources
as it is. So to mini
mize it more, it
would not make it a
very productive
place at all."
Elizabeth McNeil
Junior
Sociology
“[Footnotes is] one
of the groups that
has a direct applic
ability to the stu
dent body, so I
think they deserve
as much space as
they can get."
Brai Talley
Junior
Psychology