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About The Grantonian (Portland, Ore.) 19??-???? | View Entire Issue (Aug. 12, 1968)
4 THE GRANTONIAN April 12, 1968 -violence, peace tri Many fine tributes have been paid to the late Dr. Martin Luther King. Pledges of money, closing of schools, a special day commemorating him, memorial services and peace marches in his honor have been held a ' ■» spontanéous Memorial assembly introduced by the Executive :ounci> occurred. Dr. King, non-violence leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Council, and his ideas have produced a deep impact on the people of this country. His death has made an even greater one. If the late Dr. King meant so much to so many, why have so many let his idea of peaceful demonstrations die with him? Agreed his assassination was a violent, barbaric act and it was ironic that this peace advocate should die in such a violent manner. Nevertheless, his death should not be used as a front for more violence and death. The killings and destruction in our cities across the country are inexcusable, as are some of the violent demonstrations being exhibited even in our schools. The best tribute of all to be paid to Dr. King is to continue his policy of non-violence. The Negro has a definite right to seek equal rights, if it is his feeling that they are not available to him now. But this should mean peace ful demonstrations (marches and sit-ins are fine as long as they are non destructive and non-violent). To this date Grant high school has done an excellent job of handling things peacefully; however, it must be noted that minor incidents have occurred. The creation of a means for dialogue, the sitting down and talk ing about it, hearing what both sides have to say is the first step in creat ing a peaceful solution to any problem. I Peaceful, non-violent demonstrations pay tribute to Dr. King. The cur- , rent lootings, killings, destruction of city areas, and fighting destroy all that he lived for. Easter celebration meaningful for all; rabbits, lilies, eggs become symbolic Conìmuniti^ deriverò fitter ultimatum A threat has been issued — the threat of a closed- campus during lunch.'The litter problem has become so intolerable to members of the com munity. that they have started a peti tion to make the campus closed dur ing the lunch hour. Our problem with litter has fol lowed the same pattern as most disci plinary measures. It starts out as gen tle reminders and turns into out-and- out threats. The Grantonian has published ar ticles and editorials on litter almost Keys, buttons talk in students' essays How would you like to be a steering wheel, a table or a book? What gnpes would you have if you were a piece of silverware instead of a person? These were questions that had to be answered by Gerald Merryman’s senior English classes recently. As an exercise in writing a humorous essay, Mr. Merryman wrote down the names of various objects on cards. After passing the cards out, he instructed the students to write an essay expressing thè gripes of the object, or a “day in the life” journal or a letter from the object to another object just like it, or from the object to a human being. “I was a key complaining about crowd ed keychains, sweaty hands, and general disrespect from key owners,” commented Roger Pierson, class member. “Days in the Life of a Button” was the subject of Steph Daly’s essay. “I com posed my essay in journal form, relating my activities from the day I was pur chased, and ending with mÿ so-called death, when I popped off of a tight fit ting cocktail dress at a party,” comment ed Steph. “It was a really weird assignment,” commented Bonnie Brown. “But to do it, you really had to be imaginative and creative. Writing from the viewpoint of à book was a real challenge.” e (grantonian published bi-weekly Fall semester and weekly Spring semester by the advanced journalism class of Ulysses S. Grant high school, room 203, 2,245 N.E. 36th Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97212. Phone 288-5975. Printed by Modern Typesetting company with a circulation of 3000. Sec ond class postage paid at Portland, Ore. Subscription cost $2.00 per year. Vol. 72, No. 9 — April 12, 1968 Editor ................. .Jan Kelley Staff Members .... June Ammon, Bonnie Brown, Steph Daly, Julie Ferry, Mar lene Feves, Cecile O’Rourke, Kathy Walton Advertising Manager ........ Lisa Rose Circulation Manager .... Kathy Walton Assistants .Gerald Holmes, Diane Sweet Photographers.............. Sterling Bennett, Raylene Erickson, Helen Wall Adviser........... ?. Willard Mohn since the paper first caihe out but to no avail. Clean-up campaigns, service squad, added garbage cans, everything has been done to make cleaning up after one’s self easier, yet the mess re mains. One teacher’s solution was to have the janitors not clean up at all. “Let them have to eat and walk in their own mess and they’ll soon learn where the garbage can is,” he. com mented. Another educator suggested that the answer may be in assigned seats in the cafeteria with every person re sponsible for his area. None of the present “No, no chil dren” methods seem to have worked, so now. as a last resort the community has delivered an ultimatum, “Either clean up or stay in your own build ing, your own grounds.” In the face of this threat perhaps the answer is to be found. Students must use the garbage cans now and stop littering and gathering on other people’s property or they will no longer have a chance to be near this property during lunch. The question is whether we, the student body, care enough about our freedoms, to-take on a little responsi bility—the responsibility of picking up after ourselves. QCdOOP by Cecile O’Rourke Rabbits, lilies and colored eggs—these are what Easter is made of. Although of special significance to those of the Chris tian faiths, Easter is a holiday that can be celebrated by others too. Easter commemorates the coming of spring. The name “Easter” comes from Scandinavian “Ostra” and the Teutonic “Ostern” who were both goddesses signifying the coming of spring. Symbolic of nature in our customs to day, the Easter egg has become an im portant part of the Easter celebration. Ageing seems slow to youth; anticipation of future great ens by Cecile O’Rourke Ageing is a slow process to teenagers, but a far too fast one for their elders. Perhaps the reason it seems slower to younger people is because they anxiously anticipate the things they can do as thy grow older. At fifteen the first really tangible opportunity is available. A fifteen-year- old may obtain his driver’s instruction permit. A sixteen-year-old can get his driver’s license and also may work through obtaining his worker’s permit. When a person is eighteen in Oregon, he may purchase and carry cigarettes. His curfew is extended to 2:00 a.m. He can get into the “adult only” movies. A girl is of legal age at eighteen and may get married without the consent of her parents. A boy must register for the draft. Twenty-one is the magical age for many young adults. At this age a per son may vote and purchase and carry liquor legally. A twenty-one year old male is of legal age and may get married without the consent of his parents. After the age of twenty-one the pace slows down and the ageing process speeds up (so it seems). At twenty-five a person may be a member of the House of Representa tives. At thirty he is eligible for the Senate. The US Presidential and Vice-presidential positions are open to persons thirty- five or over. When a person reaches his sixties, he may retire and receive social security and medicare benefits. All right, so the ageing process gives citizens certain rights they haven’t had before, but these rights ensue more responsibility too. A driver’s permit or license is putting a weapon in the driver’s hands. He must accept responsibility. Likewise the freedom to smoke and drink is putting responsibility in a person’s hands, because he is responsible not only for the deci sion to do these things, but also for any reactions that occur because of his decision. Wanting to be older is all fine and dandy, if a person accepts the responsibility that goes along with it. Perhaps this is why the ageing process is so painfully slow to teenagers (who know mainly of the rewards and little of the responsibility) and all too fast for the adults (who have begun to accept responsibility more readily). All elemental matter is oval-shaped; the egg pays tribute to life’s outgrowth. As a symbol of new life, the idea of the Easter egg came to us from Egypt and Persia. An old legend says that the eggs are laid by the Easter rabbit on Easter eve. Symbolizing fertility to the Europeans, the Easter rabbit is very closely associ ated with the moon in the Orient. The Japanese draw the rabbit across the moon’s disc and the Chinese represent the moon as a rabbit pounding rice in a mortar. Our belief is that on Easter Sun day a rabbit, after sleeping all win ter, lays brightly colored eggs in the green grass. The practice of search ing for eggs hidden by the rabbit is an old German custom. The cross on Easter is a symbol of the many different creeds and reminds the Christian of the religious meaning of the holiday. Why do people dress up on Easter Sunday? The act of people wearing new clothes on Easter is supposed io reflect the hew coat of greenery that the earth wears at this time. In addition there was a superstition that one had to wear an article of clothing never worn before to insure good fortune for the rest of the year. The traditional Easter parade observed especially in this country goes back sev eral centuries to the time when Constan tine commanded his council to dress in very elegant robes to observe the day honoring Christ’s resurrection. In America the Easter parade also demonstrates the shedding of heavy win ter clothes and the donning of fresh, new spring outfits. The Easter parade in New York City is world famous and many people enjoy watching it, because several celebrities take part in the ceremony. Because it was a common belief that on Easter morning the sun danced in honor of the resurrection, sunrise serv ices have played a definite role in-our celebration. Long ago the people got up early to watch the stupendous feat; now they get up to attend church. As symbols of purity and light, white lilies often deck churches around Easter time.
