Editor in chief: Laura Cadiz
Editorial Editors: Bret Jacobson, Laura Lucas
Newsroom: (541)346-5511
Room 300, Erb Memorial Union
P.O. Box 3159, Eugene, OR 97403
E-mail: ode@oregon.uoregon.edu
Thursday
January 13,2000
Volume 101, Issue 75
Erfierakl
A sign
of the times
Bryan Dixon Emerald
TT~ mW" ablas Espanol? Par
• M_m lez-vous Frangais?
K t Parli Italiano?
JL JL Ever wanted to
learn a second language? Any
one who has ever wanted to do so at
the University has had numerous op
tions and could easily enroll in any of
the countless classes offered, which
range from Spanish to Swedish to He
brew. But while any of these classic
tongues of the world is accepted as
the foreign language requirement
some may need to graduate, one lan
guage remains to be recognized as a
valid one to fulfill the requirement.
This form of communication doesn’t
involve any oral speaking, but it’s def
initely a way to say something.
Someqne finally formally raised the
question of why it’s missing from the
list of languages that can be used to
fulfill the foreign language require
ment: Currently, the ASUO plans to
present a proposal to the University
Senate to include American Sign Lan
guage as a foreign language option.
Great idea. In fact, you have to won
der why such a plan hasn’t been put
into effect already. How is it that a
class with the word language in its ti
tle doesn’t deserve to be seen as just
that — a language? Seems like a mat
ter of logic to me.
Sign language, the third most wide
ly used language in the country, is the
only American visual language that
exists. Why should it be considered of
any less value than any other lan
guage just because it has a different la
bel? Aside from the fact that sign has
its own complex syntax, grammar and
vocabulary different from the English
language, the deaf community has its
owm culture and history that is just as
rich and valid as any other.
One of the apparent reasons sign
hasn’t been accepted on an equal level
with other languages has been the
lack of recognition of that cultural his
tory and literature.
“Culture is difficult to define. It is
not in this instance referring to
clothes, food, etc.,” said Johanna Lar
son-Muhr, the University adjunct pro
fessor of American Sign Language.
“But [the deaf] have a different per
spective and world view that in
essence, along with different grammar
and vocabulary indicates that there’s
a cultural difference.”
When outsiders step into a foreign
world, they must not only know the
language but must understand the
culture also to best communicate with
the other group. Every culture has its
own values and sensitivities that
strangers must learn in order to avoid
actions that could be found offensive
or rude, although such actions may
appear meaningless to them. Isn’t this
part of what learning another lan
guage is all about?
For example, one thing to respect in
the deaf community is to never sign
“excuse me” when passing two peo
ple in the middle of a conversation.
It’s considered an impolite interrup
tion in contrast to other cultures that
see it as a polite manner. Keeping eye
contact at all times when talking to a
deaf person is also very important in
the culture. Just as one who takes
Spanish will know how to interact ap
propriately with people in Spain, one
who takes sign language will know
the dos and dont's of communicating
with the deaf.
Besides such aspects, ASL’s culture
also includes literature that many
may not realize exists. There’s film,
poetry and plays written in and for
ASL. It’s been proven and researched
by linguists as having all the elements
of a language — still the University
hasn’t accepted it.
“There’s a lot of misinformation
and ignorance about ASL,” Larson
Muhr said. “But it is and has been rec
ognized as a language and as having
no relation to English by so many im
portant institutions, and I think the
University should also give recogni
tion where recognition is due.”
Not recognizing ASL degrades a sig
nificant population’s language, which
goes against everything for which the
University stands. The University has
always emphasized the importance of
diversity and learning of other cul
tures, so here’s a perfect opportunity
to follow its goal. More than 90 other
universities and colleges count ASL
as a foreign language. The University
should take this as a sign to give the
language the recognition it’s entitled
to.
Beata Mostafavi is a columnist for the Emer
ald. Her views do not necessarily represent
those of the paper. She can be reached via e
mail at bmostafa@gladstone.uoregon.edu.
Beata
Mostafavi
Calling all
brides and
grooms
Planning a spring
or summer wed
ding? The Emerald -
is seeking out Uni
versity students,
faculty or staff to
offer anecdotes
and information
about the process,
with stories to run
in a Jan. 25 bridal
supplement.
Please call the
Emerald office,
346-5511, and
leave a message—
with phone num
ber and best time
to reach you—for
supplementeditor
jack Clifford.
Editorial round-up
Americans uncomfortable
with the concept of evil
By Mary C. Curtis
Knight-Ridder Newspapers
So the tapes from Columbine
have been released, and every
one knows what the killers want
ed, what they were thinking,
whom they wanted to punish
and impress. And you know
what? We still can’t make sense
of it.
The killers hated everyone,
just for being. They wanted fame.
They quoted Shakespeare and
planned — carefully and
painstakingly. They wanted to
kill.
Some people have reacted
with disgust at the police and the
press for even releasing their evil
thoughts and shallow desires.
While I agree that the parents of
the victims should have been the
first to see the tapes, I am glad the
tapes were made public. Maybe
now people will stop making the
victims somehow complicit in
their own murders.
Remember right after
Columbine? Everyone immedi
ately tried to explain: How could
this happen, and most especial
ly, why?
It seems to be the first question
people ask when something un
explainable happens.
When it came out that the two
boys hated jocks, some had an a
ha moment. “They hated jocks;
they were picked on by jocks;
they were driven to it.” In finding
a reason, reason itself was dis
carded.
In reality, students described
the killers as more bullies than
bullied. One of these “loners”
took a date to the prom. These
“jock haters” carried on their
killing spree in the cafeteria and
library, not the gym or weight
room.
And the victims themselves
were really the ones working
against the odds. They included
an undersized, sickly boy who
fought back to become an athlete,
a once-lost soul who found re
demption, a shy child who
joined debate for confidence — a
baker’s dozen of talented, loving
and loved individuals. What did
they do to deserve their fate?
Nothing, absolutely nothing.
Hollywood rebels reinvigo
rating movie industry
By Philip Wuntch
Knight Ridder Newspapers
Welcome to the era of cynical
cinema. We applaud its pres
ence, even while pondering how
long it will last.
Skepticism is the birthright of
artists, whether of screen, stage
or printed page. And in the 20th
century’s final year, the force
born of discontent energized
American film for the first time
in 30 years. “American Beauty,”
“Magnolia,” “Cradle Will Rock,”
“The Insider” and “The Hurri
cane” reflect the sense of right
eous indignation that fueled
some of the best American
movies of the past.
The last great golden age of
American cinema occurred dur
ing the late ’60s and early ’70s,
when national unrest reached a
stormy peak unmatched since
Civil War days. Political turmoil
nurtures creative fury, but Bill
Clinton’s Zippergate never regis
tered a government fallout simi
lar to Richard Nixon's Watergate.
Political disillusionment may be
a factor in the current resurgence
but only a minor one.
Disillusionment with formula
is a more immediate cause for
this winter of discontent, it’s a
reasonably safe assumption that
even the most prosaic filmmaker
dreams of startling both audi
ences and critics. Yet much of
the past two decades’ film mak
ing was keyed to special-effects
formulas. Either we were advised
to love our alien brethren or kill
those drippy creatures from outer
space. We were encouraged to ei
ther understand terrorists or de
stroy them. And if older teens,
we were told to hurry up and get
laid.
Doubts, skepticism, cynicism,
rebellion. By whatever label,
these traits have fostered any
era’s most supreme artistic
achievements. They’re with us
again, and let’s appreciate them
while they last. In the shaky Hol
lywood union of artistry and
commerce, a rebellious filmmak
er may soon be treated like an
unwanted child.
But there’s always hope. After
hearing that his film received six
Golden Globe nominations,
“American Beauty” director Sam
Mendes told the Los Angeles
Times that he hoped to prove
that “a story is the only special
effect that will never go out of
fashion.”
Long live rebellion.
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