Week in Review

Monday, April 9, 2001

The Crimson Clamps

A recent article in the Harvard Crimson's weekly magazine Fifteen Minutes has incited the anger of the school's Asian community and the weakness of the paper's editorial board.

Justin 'Juice' Fong's 'The Invasion' accused Asian Harvard students of self-segregation and the perpertuation of 'hurtful stereotypes,' according to the Chronicle of Higher Education. Fong, himself an Asian-American, also wrote that Harvard's Asian women are 'sex fiends' and it's Asian men 'flaccid.'

Fong maintains he was aiming for humor and gentle prodding; for its part, the Crimson editorial board 'regrets this piece was not edited more judiciously' and believes that the offending phrases 'should have been cut.'

Fong considers the piece to be along the lines of an op-ed, not to be held to the standards of a news article. 'My piece was in no way journalistic,' he told the Chronicle. 'It was a piece of mind.... It did not include facts and reporting.'

Just Eat

Catastrophe was narrowly averted at Wellesley College on April 2nd. Members of Sisters Leading Action for Multiculturalism (SLAM) had pledged to go on a hunger strike that would have begun at 9 A.M. on Wednesday, April 4, if the college did not provide more full-time cultural advisors to the Wellesley community.

SLAM is a coalition advocating for the addition of cultural advisors to assist the Asian/Asian American and Latina communities. The previous advisors for those communities have resigned within the past two years. The college has had trouble attracting qualified applicants because the position is only part-time and includes no benefits. The advisors would aid students in all aspects of college life and represent the interests of the two groups on various committees

One senior at Wellesley contended that the college gives off a false impression of diversity, claiming that the actual number of minority students on campus has fallen. She also said that the college does not have the resources needed to fund the full-time advisory positions demanded.

The hunger strike was called off when Dean Walker-Johnson offered the two full-time positions to the students late in the afternoon on April 2nd.

(Nearly) Free Trade

The United States lumber industry is currently locked in a big trade dispute with its northern counterpart in Canada. The U.S. industry says Canada has an unfair trading edge and wants to impose import duties of up to 78 percent.

'All we ask for is fairness,' W.J. 'Rusty' Wood, chairman of the Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports said. 'From day one, Canada has circumvented the agreement.'

Canadian officials disagree. Citing the North American Free Trade Agreement that eliminated trade barriers between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, they believe that the U.S. would be wrong to add special rules for the lumber industry.

'The government will stand by its industry,' Pierre Pettigrew, Canadian International Trade Minister, said.

The U.S. lumber industry contacted the Commerce Department the day after a 5-year contract governing lumber trade expired. They claim the Canadian government subsidizes their lumber industry by only charging 'stumpage' fees that are far below the cost U.S. companies pay in their bidding wars for the right to cut down trees, giving the Canadian companies an unfair advantage.

The countries are planning talks about this matter at a trade conference in Buenos Aires with 32 other countries for talks to create a Western Hemisphere free trade area.

There Goes the Neighborhood I

Rowdy parties have the neighborhoods adjacent to the University of Kentucky in an uproar. After being aggravated by loud music and the delinquent actions of drunken students, the angry neighbors may see an end to their problems.

In 1998, the University of Kentucky banned alcohol in fraternity houses. In response to the university's actions, students moved their parties into the neighborhoods surrounding the campus. Immediately, the residents of these neighborhoods began to complain about numerous problems that the college students caused in their areas.

However, an ordinance will soon come to vote that could change the social situation for the students of the University of Kentucky. The ordinance would allow the police to target certain zones where the residents have complained about rowdy university students. The police would then be able to issue a formal warning to the rowdy house. After receiving this warning, the house would be forbidden to have parties for a year. If the house committed a second infraction, then the police could bust the party, issue fines and arrest people.

Councilman George Brown is opposed to the ordinance. He reminds people that Lexington is a college town. With a college, a town receives students and the problems that they bring with them. If the ordinance passes, then Councilman Brown believes that the number of students at the University of Kentucky would decrease. Along with Councilman Brown, some younger residents of the neighborhoods are also opposed to the bill. They like the vigor that the students bring to the neighborhood. One resident commented, 'You know what you're getting into when you move into a student neighborhood...'

On the other hand, a Councilman Dick DeCamp feels that the ordinance should be passed. Councilman DeCamp lives in a neighborhood near the University of Kentucky. DeCamp said, 'Unless we move quickly, we're going to lose more and more of our good neighborhoods that surround the university...'

Redman to Shovel College's Sidewalks?

Dean Redman met with the '04 Class Council on March 5th, in what degraded into a typical class council meeting: ridiculous self-promoting questions, pointless banter, and even a list of who had their hand raised (to expedite questions in a judicious manner, while simultaneously saving arm strength. Brilliant.).

After an obscenely long string of questions from the attendees about rooming situations for next year, Redman was forced to field questions about a more substantial issue: the upcoming dorm lockdown. His response was to become sullen and vitriolic, attacking students in long diatribes, attempting to blame them for all the woes and crime of the world. 'I'm not gonna stand in front of parents and tell them that their daughter was just raped, or their son just murdered, all because I wasn't willing to take a few seconds out of my day to unlock a door. Do you want to do that?' Aside from admitting that students had been

purposefully left out of the decision-making process, he fessed up to the price tag on the new system—a cool 4 million dollars, which has obviously been burning a hole in the College's pockets lately. Redman also briefly pointed out the legal ramifications of a lawsuit against the school, and that the money involved could 'bankrupt' Dartmouth. Of course he quickly moved on and tried to conjure the change in policy into a moral argument.

Isn't it nice to know that the insurance companies have been writing school policies lately? Fireplaces, keg jumps, and now door locks. Maybe every room should be padded and have the windows, toilets, and sinks removed.

After all, there are a multitude of potential lawsuits to consider hand in hand with campus life. Like all that snow on the ground; some freshman could trip and fall and bankrupt the College.

There Goes the Neighborhood II

Yet another school joins Dartmouth in its quest to end Greek life as we know it. In an announcement paralleling Dartmouth's own Student Life Initiative, Santa Clara University announced that it is phasing out its fraternities and sororities following a five month study by a committee of faculty, staff, and students.

Although the committee had recommended merely changing the system, university officials decided to completely eliminate Greek life in order to focus on programs that will benefit a greater number of students. University support for Greek life will end by June 2003.

'It's not just a question about behavior or risk. It's a question of what role does this experience fit in the full life of a college experience,' said Jeanne Rosenberger, Dean of Student Life.

Some students at Santa Clara feel that the change will help Santa Clara's image and reputation.

Complained one female student, "The partying gets out of hand. I know that the
school is known for being a party school.'

Toilet Talk

Spotted in the Residential Education Student Staff Manual: Programming Ideas:

- Show & Tell

- Discuss a Controversial Topic

- Roommate Game (?)

- 'Call people out' (??)

- Form a committee

- Toilet Talk (???)

- Human Scavenger Hunt

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