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
Monday
February 7,2000
Volume 101, Issue 91
Emerald
To beer or not to beer?
W:
”e all know beer does
n’t grow on trees, but
that doesn’t mean it
shouldn’t be culti
vated in a campus garden. The
ASUO Student Senate recently
voted to remove from considera
tion a measure that would have al
lowed a beer garden to operate on
campus, but there should be a
campus beer garden on the ballot
for some important reasons.
Laying aside the extremist views
of both the ale-guzzling few who
feed on the fermented drink like
others breathe air and those who be
lieve college stu dents should be dri
er than a forsaken desert, the debate
about a beer garden on campus is a
valid discussion.
On the one hand, there is an un
derstandable sentiment that a venue
dedicated to beer on campus would
send a message to students that the
University community takes lightly
the responsibility and effects of alco
hol consumption. Also, opponents
may argue, the majority of traditional
students couldn’t even use the beer
garden as they are underage, and,
therefore, the use of student inciden
tal fees would only benefit a small
group on campus. The proposed fees
would have been about $9.98 per stu
dent per term for a total of $500,000 per
year for two years.
Those are reasonable concerns,
though the worries behind them can
be diminished and dismissed to some
degree.
First, until recently, Clancy
Thurber’s Pub served beer on campus
until it closed because of financial
problems. So the message that beer is
acceptable on campus is already es
tablished. And the fact that the Uni
versity would be involved in oversee
ing the sale of the alcohol would
assure a high standard of enforcing serv
ing laws, preventing underage purchas
es within the campus community.
Second, the argument that the majori
ty of students would be unable to use
the facilities
would be accurate,
though misleading in its im
plications. Working under the as
sumption that most traditional stu
dents will be at least 21 years old by
the time they are seniors means that
all students will eventually have ac
cess to the garden’s refreshing
springs. The likelihood is high that
most University students would ben
efit more directly from a beer garden
than most of the other student groups
and facilities that are currently fund
ed by incidental fees.
There are also practical political
reasons to get the beer garden on a bal
lot for students to examine. By plac
ing such a widely popular issue on a
ballot, the results would most likely
be that more students would get in
volved and educated about their stu
dent government
and actually make a choice
about their campus, and most people
would agree that broader participation
would definitely be a positive thing.
As it stands now, there is a good
chance that the beer garden issue will
be forgotten for a considerable period
of time. In the past, the issue has been
raised and postponed, only to be set
aside again, according to Student Sen
ate President Jessica Timpany. That
would be a shame if it were to happen
this time. The decision not to consid
er the ballot stems from the belief of
many senators that there were too
many questions that needed to be an
swered before the ballot should go to
the voters.
This issue could be turned into a
political and campus morale success
if the students had their chance to
vote on it. Then they could have the
final decision over whether this envi
ronmentally friendly campus wishes
to add one more student-friendly gar
den to its beautiful campus.
This editorial represents the view of the
Emerald editorial board. Responses may be
sent to ode@oregon.uoregon.edu.
Letters to the editor
Racism the real issue
It was a shock to open yesterday’s
Emerald (ODE Feb. 1). After front
page headlines of "Black history takes
center stage" and "Diversity still con
cern," the second page suggests what
a person of color's experience will ac
tually be, via the cartoon of a kid
staked over a fire while savages — Na
tive American? African? — dance
round in loincloths. No wonder "di
versity" remains a concern.
Such off handedness confirms that
racism is systemic here, where the talk
is of "diversity" and "learning to get
along." This babble refuses to recognize
racism and its benefits for (white) peo
ple's basic to our political and econom
ic power. Eugene and Oregon proclaim
virtuous innocence. My wife and I
spent last weekend with a Trinidadi
an-Canadian here to lecture. Her off
campus inn was a joy of racist insults:
small incidents individually, grossly
offensive together. A trip to the Flo
rence beach to be chased and sprayed
with sand by young louts on dune bug
gies and stopped by the police for mak
ing a U-tum in a cul-de-sac was icing
on this confection of delight.
Racism is never idle. Your ugly car
toon shows the tip of an iceberg that
white people here must break up. It's
“our” problem. Token Native Ameri
cans, Chicanos, African- and Asian
Americans are not here to teach us
about a problem we make them con
front daily. Why do so-called "diver
sity interns" not think to contact
MEChA? Why do you not learn from
your own page 8, recounting John
Rocker's suspension for offensive
racist remarks?
Timothy J. Reiss
professor, comparative literature
Everyone should be offended
Given the front-page stories on
black history and diversity (ODE, Feb.
1) I was appalled by the overt and ar
rogant racism provided by the page
two “cartoon” — with images of ...
what? African savages? Native Ameri
can savages?
I am sure that all the University ad
ministrators who have been talking
lately — to me and other faculty of
color — about how they are committed
to “diversity” are as shocked as I am.
I fully expect you will be flooded
with protesting letters — as well as
with letters purporting to “explain”
that it was “just a cartoon” or that it
was not meant to depict people of col
or. Perhaps we shall be told that it is
not racism but only a mildly “insensi
tive” gesture by a staff who did not re
alize what they were doing by por
traying such stupid, ignorant and ugly
racial stereotypes.
Of course EVERYONE’S feelings
should be offended. French students
and labor union activists responded
quickly to efforts by the French right
wing to label their 1968 revolution a
“German Jewish effort” because one
of the leaders had a parent who was a
German Jew. The day following the
appearance of signs reading “Send the
Jews to Auschwitz,” the entire city of
Paris awoke to new signs reading:
“We are ALL German Jews.” Such
collective opposition to racism
would, at this moment, be a very sig
nificant gesture.
I do hope that the newspaper in
tends to take some immediate action to
prohibit such activities in the future.
Patricia Penn Hiiden
professor, history
director, Ethnic Studies Program
Forget beer garden
It has come to my attention that the
ASUO Student Senate has turned
down a proposal letter for a new beer
garden in the EMU. I, for one, am
grateful there is some common sense
in our student government. With a
price tag of $1 million, I question
whether this project makes any finan
cial sense at all. There are several
drinking establishments off campus
nearby. Taylor’s and Rennie’s Land
ing are both within a very short walk
off campus. This project is nothing
more than typical “pork-barrel”
spending and a huge waste of student
incidental fee money. Senate Presi
dent Jessica Timpany is “worried”
this measure will soon be forgotten. 1
urge her and our other senate mem
bers to forget this gross waste of our
incidental fee money. This beer gar
den makes no sense to me when it
seems the Programs Finance Commit
tee won’t fund student child care bet
ter. I should hope there are a few fis
cally responsible people in ASUO.
So, please, no beer garden in the
EMU. It’s nothing more than a big
waste of our incidental fee money.
Kayla-Ann Emmons
business and communication studies
LETTERS POLICY
The Oregon Daily Emerald will attempt
to print all letters containing comments
on topics of interest to the University
community. Letters must be limited to
250 words. The Emerald reserves the
right to edit any letter for length, clari
ty', grammar, style and libel. Letters
may be dropped off at EMU Suite 300.
Thumbs
Ughtingtheway
to safety
Last Wednesday
and Thursday stu
dents began a se
ries of walks, spon
sored by theASUO
and accompanied
by representatives
from University of
fices of Public Safe
ty, Student Life
and Facilities Ser
vices. The walks
will work to identi
fy unsafe and
poorly lit areas on
campus.
To a lot more hats
in the political ring
Almost 30 people
added their names
to the list of candi
dates in the upcom
ing ASUO elections
after a filing dead
line extension. Now
there will be a
healthier crop of
those vying for the
presidential and
vice presidential
ticket and the Stu
dent Senate seats.
To tuning out
the deaf
Eight hearing-im
paired Oregonians
were forced to file
a federal dass-ac
tion lawsuit in an
attempt to force
theaters to use
dosed-caption de
vices that would al
low the deaf to en
joy movies like the
rest of us.
To handling more
than pans
An overaggressive
panhandler de
manded beer
money from two
shoppers, an el
derly woman and
a male shopper,
outsideoftheAl
bertson’son
Coburg Road. After
the two refused,
James Douglas
Ray, 37, reportedly
pulled a knife and
threatened the
man.The transient
was charged with
first-degree rob
bery for the inci
dent last Monday.