‘Dead Men Don’t Rape’ sign hinders cooperation, support Guest Commentary Joe iiiiii I attended the "Take Back the Night" rally Thursday night and was really into it. The speeches were great and were honestly inspiring. I was really happy to see that men's role in pre venting sexual assault was a big part of the event. I am a male stu dent here on campus and am a • strong supporter of women's rights. I am strongly against any sort of violence against women and am sickened by the thought that a lot of men in the world don't feel the same. I was really into the rally until I saw a young woman with a sign that read, "Dead Men Don't Rape." I tried to relate to her, but the more I tried to see it from her point of view, the less I was able to. The sign really pissed me off! I felt it was completely inappropriate for any sort of rally, and especially for one where people are trying to work together for a common goal. What really upsets me is that she was not ashamed of her sign, even after two of the speakers really reached out to the male population for support. This sign apparently had only one goal: to blame all men and make all men look like rapists. I am not a rapist. I would never do that. I know a lot of men who, like myself, would never even contem plate bringing any sort of violence against anyone, especially a woman. The creator of this sign was not even attempting to help anyone. Perhaps she was angry, but attacks generalizing all men are not cool. You can't fight oppression with oppression. I wouldn’t expect to find such ignorance at a rally on a college campus, and I hope that before anyone brings a sign like this again, they think twice. There are a lot of men in this world who support the rights of women and will stand up and fight for them. That sign made me feel extremely uncomfortable and angry, and I hope we can all learn that in order to work together and make a change, we need to make everyone feel comfortable and welcome. Joe Bosnar is a junior architecture major. Full-time University arborist could be defining ‘hazards’ too harshly Guest Commentary Robert Schofield —... Fully one-quarter (eight of 32) of the large trees lining the stretch of 13th Avenue between the EMU and the University Bookstore have been cut down in the last five years (see the “University of Oregon Atlas of Trees,” 1996). The reason for the alarming increase in cutting is that the University hired a full-time ar borist five years ago. The over whelming majority of these trees have been removed as hazards. The arborists and the grounds su pervisor have argued to me that the increased hazard removal rate is due to increased scrutiny and recognition of hazards made possi ble by a full-time arborist. I would argue in addition that the burden of public safety has, understand ably, made the arborist overly con servative. Whatever the reasons for the alarming rate of tree removal, I hope that the University commu nity becomes vocal in its support for options to removal. These op tions often exist, though they may be costly or, to some, unsightly. For example, the Italian Stone Pine in front of the Volcanology build ing is scheduled for removal this week. I have been told by the ar borist that this tree could be made safe, for the moment, with cables and topping, but that this would leave it an unsightly “bush” in de clining health. I agree that the tree would look battle-scarred, but con sidering the removal rate (all neighboring older trees have been removed and two other large trees on 13th Avenue may soon be re moved), I think we should attempt to prolong the life of every impor tant tree. Besides, the Italian Stone Pine often looks asymmetrical and struggling in its natural setting. In addition, this tree was donated un der the Century Tree program and is the only remaining Pinus pinea, according to the 1996 Tree Atlas, on a campus famous for its diversi ty of trees. I encourage others to watch for removal notification signs on trees and to express to the groundskeep ers (they can be reached at timk ing@oregon.uoregon.edu) their support for options to removal — in the case of this tree and in the many cases to come. Though we strongly disagree on the value of prolonging the life of the Italian Stone Pine, I am pleased with the efforts of the grounds crew to modify architectural plans, which often cause unseen damage, so that fewer trees will become hazards in the future. Robert Schofield is a senior research asso ciate in the physics department. Letters continued from page 2 doesn’t even intend, then what is his voice saying? It seems everyone has now been robbed of at least trust, and for men — always questioning every action that they make — even best intentions. When I stare into a woman’s eyes (speaking only from a heterosexual perspec tive), I hope to get helplessly lost. In this world, it’s so hard to look at her body and only admire and tell her that “she is nothing less than beautiful” because society doesn’t. But if I can do this, then how do I? Women can and should be em powered to have their voice heard, but then is there room for a male, or a true masculine voice to raise and protest the garbage he is also fed at work, school, the store, etc.? There isn’t a how-to book for this. So even in my mind, when I want to show my affection and appreciation to anyone in her femininity and sexuality, how can I raise a little sign that says, “I’m not oppressing you right now”? I still don’t think it changes what goes through her mind, either way. Michael Beach graduate student exercise science/women’s studies Don't make 'coon' simply mean "a black person" English is a colorful language. When we haven’t seen someone in a long time, we might say it’s been donkey’s years, or a coon’s age, or that he’s getting long in the tooth. All that is meant is the passage of time. We might also use “coon” as a racial epithet or “ass” as a charac ter epithet, and we might joke about lawyers simply because the law they practice has teeth. Here is not meant the passage of time per se, though we use similar terms. Of course, a coon or a donkey can be just animals and teeth a part of anatomy. English is such a con fusing language. If our senior citizens have not been objecting to colorful expres sions denoting age, that is their choice, which other minorities should respect rather than appro priate such expressions into their own taboo lists. A donkey is light gray and a rac coon marked by a characteristic black mask. To let the longevity of the one animal but not the other denote the passage of time is to judge an animal by the color of its fur. In Martin Luther King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” he com plained of “when your first name becomes ‘nigger’ and your middle name becomes ‘boy’ (however old you are) and your last name be comes ‘John,’ and when your wife and mother are never given the re spected title ‘Mrs.’” If we make every use of “coon” an ipso facto reference to black people, we’ve made that their name. Earl Gosnell Eugene n campus life with the Oregon dai now available on the world wide we • rr.v.. www.dailyemerald.com 6 I All Ways Travel • Hurry Sale Ends Mav 24th • 'Baltimore - $1*98.00* ,Orlando - $198.00* i Chicago - $198.00* New Orleans - $198.00* L *Urs. not included, restrictions itiav apply |_S> uhjeci to change without not ice. Eur ail Passes issued On-Site!! E-m ail: awt(a Iuv2travel.com 1200 High St.^y | |338-4199,^p