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
April 10,2000
Volume 101, Issue 127
Emerald
I
Once again campus is abuzz
with protest in front of
Johnson Hall. While last
year it was diversity, this
year is about the University joining
the Worker Rights Consortium. The
funny thing is both sides agree on the
issue, but while students demand
immediate action, University Presi
dent Dave Frohnmayer is taking a
reasonable and measured approach
to licensing responsibility.
The basic point of this entire dis
cussion, that the University should
band with others in the nation to join
the WRC, is agreed upon by all sides.
Students overwhelmingly passed a
ballot measure in the recent ASUO
elections in support of membership,
which the Emerald supported vigor
ously. And Frohnmayer has been
saying all along that he would be
moving in that direction.
The basic point of contention, the
reason students have been blaring
out disgust for the University admin
istration on the steps of its building,
is that the process is not moving fast
enough. The Human Rights Alliance
set a March 31 date for University
compliance that came and went
without administration action. Thus
in front of Johnson Hall there stand
the tents, megaphones, drum circles
and protesters —14 who were arrest
ed for civil disobedience Tuesday,
Wednesday and Thursday.
Frohnmayer’s approach may be
slow, but it is definitely a wise way to
go. The expiration date for the major
ity of licensing contracts with the
University is June 30. That makes it
unnecessary to rush at this point.
And while the desire for immediacy
may make some anxious for rapid re
sults, the administration knows the
results of these policies made today
will either haunt or benefit them
years from now when current stu
dent protesters are years gone and
into new avenues of their lives.
We sincerely appreciate the ability
for all students and citizens to have
their voices heard through public
gatherings. In this case it’s a protest,
and we certainly wouldn’t ask that
their voices be diminished in any
fashion. For it’s often protesters who
keep the rights of free speech alive
and well for the rest of us. But in this
case, the protesters continue fighting
a battle they’ve al
ready won.
Protesting stu
dents should consid
er, however, that the
University has long been
on me rignt patn to Decom
ing responsible in its licens
ing contracts. Last June,
Frohnmayer informed licens
ee companies that the
school would be moving in
the direction of the WRC
goals. Later he set up
the Licensing Code of
Conduct Committee,
which has just finished
its assigned tasks and ad
vised, as expected, that
Frohnmayer should join
the WRC. And Frohnmayer
wants to continue the process
through the University Sen
ate, which is reasonable. By fol
lowing a long process involving as
many campus groups as possible,
the end result of Frohnmayer’s ef
forts should be the most responsi
ble and long-lasting.
Frohnmayer has everything to
gain from a successful worker
rights policy and should be trusted
to follow through on the effort. If
Frohnmayer claims, as he has
done repeatedly, that the Uni
versity will adopt licensing
guidelines, there is no rea
son for students to be
lieve otherwise at
this point. Presi
dent Frohnmayer
has never shown
himself to be un
trustworthy
or one to go
back on his
word.
The end
result will
hopefully be a
practical, honorable
TATArlror
Giovanni Salimena Emerald
which students can be
proud. Students have a right to take
credit for their role in bringing about
these positive changes. Through
hard work, serious discussion and a
sincere compassion for the plight of
faraway workers the University soon
will be a more responsible organiza
tion in its licensing practices.
But it should nonetheless be recog
nized that serious matters such as
joining the WRC should be examined
carefully through a responsible and
pensive process. Even though stu
dents have every right to speak their
minds, in this instance Frohnmayer’s
method of making sure the final deci
sion is widely accepted and passed
through all the proper channels is re
sponsible and should be commend
ed.
This editorial represents the view of the
Emerald editorial board. Responses may be
sent to ode@oregon.uoregon.edu
Letters to the editor
Sports coverage insufficient
Mirjam Swanson’s “K.O. Kobe
proves his point” in yesterdays Emer
ald (ODE, April 6) made me sick.
Who is this Mirjam Swanson? Where
is she from? Why in God’s name is
she covering sports? If Mirjam is into
liposuction or oxygen bars or other
things from Los Angeles, I’d be inter
ested in hearing it, but when it comes
to basketball, remember that it’s the
OREGON Daily Emerald. If I had a
subscription, I would cancel it, and I
would encourage any and all Blazer
fans to cancel their subscriptions un
til this Mirjam Swanson woman is re
leased from her duties as columnist
or graduates, whichever comes first.
Mirjam, to say the things that you
said in your column, well, that was
hate speech. Here at the University of
Oregon, we don’t tolerate that sort of
thing.
Jacob Johnson
sociology
Illegal action deserves citation
What a sad, sad time it is for ac
tivists and protesters around the
country. Back in the 1960s, you could
get arrested simply for protesting. But
as our five fellow University stu
dents, including ASUO President
elect Jay Breslow, have shown us, you
have to actually break the law to get
arrested these days.
I wonder what those five honestly
expected to happen as they sat in
Johnson Hall after it closed for the
evening. If they thought that the po
lice would allow them to stay there,
they’re either naive or stupid, neither
of which makes me feel any better. If
they knew and expected to be cited,
however, then they deserve whatever
penalty goes along with second de
gree trespassing. I would expect noth
ing less for myself should I ever occu
py a building illegally. A lot of people
here seem to think that if you have a
really good reason for being there, it
all of a sudden ceases to be a trespass
ing violation and becomes a major in
justice.
I normally couldn’t care less about
a minor trespassing violation except
that I, like them, would like very
much to see this University join the
WRC. These five kids who sat illegal
ly in a building were asked repeated
ly to leave by police and eventually
had to be removed by force. They
weren’t carried off to prison. They’ll
most likely pay a small fine and will
certainly be able to go on with their
lives as usual.
Jackson Ross
student
Thumbs
To an original
activist
Besides making a
scheduled keynote
speakingengage
mentalongwith
actorEdward
James 01 mos at
the Dr. Edwin Cole
man Speaker Se
ries Wednesday,
co-founder of the
Black Panther Par
ty Bobby Seale
took time to speak
to the activists
protesting outside
Johnson Hall. He
warned them to
look into the facts
of any given situa
tion and not to as
sume too much.
To an easier
puppy package
The Greenhill Hu
mane Society, in
an effort to make
it more affordable
to adopt a pet, has
reduced the price
of adopting a stray
to $25 on the con
dition the animal
be spayed or
neutered.
Toa smoking
weapon
According to state
news service Xin
hua News Agency,
a careless smoker
caused a hotel fire
that ended up
killing 13 people
Thursday, The fire
destroyed the
tenth floor of the
Meilihua Hotel in
the city of Dezhou,
about 200 miles
southeast of Bei
jing
To blazing the
wrong trail
The Portland Trail
blazers, favorite
NBA team to most
Oregonians, have
lost five out of
their last ten , The
squad was picked
as one of the best
in the league this
year but has fal
tered lately as the
playoffs near.