Campus Link kiosk
decision postponed
The decision on whether to
implement the Campus Link
kiosk was postponed at the
EMU Board meeting Wednes
day until its next meeting on
May 10 because information
is still being compiled. The is
sue might not be decided un
til the next school year. Next
year’s board would be given
the background research
provided by this year’s com
mittee — consisting of Stu
dent Senate President and
EMU Board member Jessica
Timpany and EMU Board
members Bryan Myss, Scott
Rich and Campbell Kid.
Student Senate
approves funding
In its Wednesday night
meeting, the Student Senate
approved $3,549 to four stu
dent groups.
The ASUO Executive re
ceived $1,500 to recover
costs for diversity speaker
Tim Wise, the Women’s Cen
ter received $900 to pay for
the upcoming feminist
speaker Jean Kilbourne, the
Coalition Against Environ
mental Racism received
$999 for this weekend’s con
ference, and the Survival
Center received $150 to re
cover Earth Day speaker
costs.
Census-takers make
visits starting today
CHANTILLY, Va. (AP) — If
you live in one of the 42 mil
lion households that haven’t
mailed back census forms
yet, you can expect someone
to be knocking on your front
doorsoon.
Today, the Census Bureau
begins its 10-week operation
of sending out some 440,000
census-takers to visit those
homes and gather informa
tion considered vital to get
ting an accurate snapshot of
the country’s population.
Oregon Daily m *w
Emerald
Thursday
April 27,2000
Volume 101, Issue 140
—Q—D_L-ii e_w e h
www.dailyemerald.com
University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon
An independent newspaper
..
I Wherenext*
com offers:
Weekly previews* career
events and commentary
Destination Guide, fea
turns hotels, hoste^ .;
dubs, shopping and
sights • 'kf' ^
Membership
includes:
WherenextCard: offe
discounts at various i
jf|ifonaf businesses \
My Guide Feature: allows
member to gather infor
mation from the site and
place into a personalized
guidebook
Travel Talk: lets members
post comments and com
municate with other
Wherene9rt.com members
Bryan Dixon Emerald
Developed in part by University alumni, Wherenext.com provides
travel tips and resources to young adults
By Emily Gust
Oregon Daily Emerald
A group of nine recent college grad
uates are rewriting the way people trav
el.
Wherenext.com, the brainchild of
five of the six University graduates on
staff, was launched just more than* a
month ago and is one of the newest
ways for young travelers to look at the
world. An on-line travel guide that ri
vals traditional printed resources, it
provides up-to-date information target
ed at college students and young pro
fessionals.
“It’s a resource that I think a lot of
people have been looking for for a
while,” said Wherenext.com’s editor in
chief and University graduate Kaarin
Knudson.
One of the Web site’s nine full-time
staff members is University alumnus
Gregg Bleakney, now the company’s
president. To make the organization
run, representatives have been placed
in selected cities in Europe, and hun
dreds of freelancers are utilized to con
tribute to the site. “It’s a total planning
network,” said Jeremy French, an ac
count coordinator with Wave Rock
Communications, the group that is
overseeing the management of
Wherenext.com.
In other words, the site offers every
thing from feature articles on intriguing
locations to offering discounts at vari
Tum to Web site, page 6A
Students do
Nike audits
■The firm that monitors conditions in Nike’s
factories has University students conduct the
audits, and the results are positive
By Adam Jude
Oregon Daily Emerald
Nike has been the target of re
cent campus protesters alleging
the company does not meet ac
ceptable labor standards. A few
University students even go as
far as saying that Nike CEO Phil
Knight’s decision to halt future
donations to the school is proof
that there are Nike sweatshops.
The company, however, is try
ing to portray a different picture.
University senior Louis Capo
bianco, one of 16 students se
lected from across the country
to monitor international facto
ries that produce collegiate ap
parel, described his experience
in Mexico as very positive.
“It was definitely a worthwhile
experience,” said Capobianco, a
political science major.
Through an application and
interview process last Decem
ber, Capobianco was selected to
represent the University and the
United States as an investigator
of labor standards in Mexican
factories. A total of 32 factories
in North America, Latin Ameri
ca and Asia were audited by
university students who filed a
report for Nike.
The merits of this program are
extremely valuable, said Dusty
Kidd, Nike’s director of labor
practices.
“The students told us we can
definitely improve and we’re do
ing that right away,” Kidd said.
While many people have
knowledge about workers’ con
ditions in Nike factories, Capo
bianco said most have a nega
tive perspective. Based on what
he experienced in two Mexican
factories, however, Capobianco
said that the labor violations
were minimal.
“I hope that (the report) in
forms a lot of people about both
sides of the issue,” Capobianco
said. “I feel that people know a
lot about the negatives. We want
Turn to Nike, page 4A
[The stu
dents] have
taught us a
great deal.
We take
their obser
vations and
recommen
dations very
seriously
and commit
to report
back in
three
months
what we
and the fac
tories have
accom
plished.
Dusty Kidd
Nike director
of labor
practices
Chancellor's remarks offend employees
■A Native American man has begun the formal grievance process,
but union officials say there’s little chance of success
By Ben Romano
Oregon Daily Emerald
Comments reportedly made by Ore
gon University System Chancellor
Joseph Cox at a meeting with Universi
ty classified employees Tuesday have
“totally devastated” a Native American
man and prompted him to pursue a
grievance against Cox.
Jon Clark, a painter for facilities servic
es and an enrolled member of the Okla
homa tribe of Comanche Indians, said
Cox compared himself to Ward Bond, an
actor who played the leader of a wagon
train in a television series about pioneers
traveling across the west.
“Ward Bond kills Indians during the
| series,” Clark said.
Clark said Cox’s comments about a
need to “circle wagons” had obvious
racist connotations for him.
He said the comments represented a
Hollywood stereotypical view of Na
tive Americans that was very offensive.
“I’m totally devastated,” Clark said. “I
can’t tell you how much that hurt me.”
Cox’s office responded to the issue
late on Wednesday with only a brief
comment, because a formal grievance
hasn’t been filed.
“There was no offense intended in
any of the chancellor’s remarks,” said
Philip Bransford, OUS spokesman.
“The chancellor has long stood for in
clusion and diversity for all people of
all racial and ethnic backgrounds. ”
Oregon Public Employees Union
stewards, who are familiar with the
process of filing a discrimination griev
ance, were skeptical about Clark’s
chances of success after an early review
of the case.
Randy Collins, a power plant opera
tor and the OPEU steward who talked
with Clark, said the grievance was
probably not actionable as a violation
of the OPEU contract.
Because Cox is not Clark’s supervisor,
nor is he in his direct chain of command,
Clark may not have any recourse.
At the meeting, about 75 people gath
ered in the EMU Ballroom Tuesday
morning listened to updates and asked
questions of University officials in
cluding University President Dave
Frohnmayer. Cox does not regularly at
Tum to Remarks, page 6A
I’mto
taly devas
tated. I can't
tell you how
much that
hurt me.
Jon Clark
University
employee 44
---