Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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ADVW--I2HfOI The vanishin Police America, where are you now ...Once there was a great nation, or was it a notion. Anyway, there was this place where people were never supposed to worry about anything. The thing that they had the least to worry about was supposed to be freedom, home of the brave, land of the free, etc. Well, long about some time that no one is really sure of, this great nation, or was it a notion, ceased to exist. No one knew where it went, or why it went, but it became more Comrm By Jerry ( and more apparent, that it had indeed vanished. Now as anyone who ever studied biology readily knows, species rarely die out all together. Some of the breed invariably hang around for years to come. Last night, roughly thirty of us got to get a good look at the vanishing America. We also got a horrifying look at the creature which he evolved, or regressed to, 'the great American Pig. Some thirty people, myself in cluded, were rounded up from the nether regions of who knows where, and jailed. The group included a 28 year old real-estate man who asked a policeman for directions, three medics who had permission from the National Guard to help injured 'people, and a brother of a House of Representatives member from up state. To add flavor, all of us claimed, to have been nowhere near the vatguely defined boundries of the campus. Green Street was a terrifying place. When our paddy wagon pulled up to the central penal bus, the police gathered around, clubs raised, waiting for any of the confussed "criminals" to "make a move boy"'. Explaining the cir ZS PA g breed, -can b cumstances was futile, no one listens to a man who has no power to make him listen. The hour and a half we sat on the bus, caged -like -animals, was a very revealing time. The officers surrounding the bus were alter nately interested in golf scores and beating ass, anybody's ass. A boy was put aboard the bus, bleeding profusely from a head wound. When the driver of the vehicle radioed for a car to take the youth to a doctor, he panicked. Crying :01 n ry aabres and pleading, the youth begged us, not to let them (the city police) take him. My group was informed that we were going to the county jail, and we too panicked. Visions of everything from Cool Hand Luke to water torture flashed through our heads. My earlier observations of city police indiscriminately beating people, raiding off-campus bars and provoking response from peaceful onlookers became real again, and we were afraid. The real-estate man professed disbelief, the medics were passively cynical, and one long haired boy asked the represen tative's brother how it felt to be a nigger. He had no reply. When the bus cam~e to a halt, it was circled by club equipped men who made me wish I had never heard of a moustach, much less have one. The head man was an old sargeant named Clayton who looked like he was right out of the Dodge commercials. Dour faced, club in hand, he eyed us. My worst fears were confirmed, and for the first time since childhood I felt uncontrolable fear. As we were being processed, it became apparent that the officers were not pigs, but men. We had stumblerd upon nea of the last ..our By PA'r 'NEL. and KIi'AN-11 P1111.11,1PS Staff Writers A chorus, f Wusual sounds floated into he ;Indows of the womens residepte halls last evening. Normal noises such as cars on Blossom Street and infants crying in the University Terrace area were at variance with the restless stirrings carried 'on the breeze from the HoneycQmbs. Women students responded in various ways to the changes in atmosphere; some by leaving the campus in search of serenity and normalcy and others trying to talk out their feelings and anxieties and still others. buy attei1pting to follow regular schedules and patterns of behavior. Hall counselors were in evidence as they follow the lead of con cerned house mothers and an nounced their willingness to talk with any resident who sought advice or a sounding board for opinions shortly after nine p.m. When women students were in formed that interpietation of the curfew for them meant that they must remain on their respective floors. the counselors brought 0 good holdouts of the vanishing breed of men wearin uniforms. The men at the Richland County Law Enforcement Center were courteous, coriside+aQand, above all, professional. They never ap peared panicked, or personal, no matter what their eelings. We were treated fairly, and as citizens who possessed rights. The cell we were all occupying became stuffy, and the sargeant left our door open so we could be more comfortable. There were no taunts, no provocations, no petty fools taking out their prejudices in the name. of law. In short, they were men, officers of the law, not pigs. All the people got phone calls, even at the obvious inconvienience of the sparce night staff. When I finally got up my bail, and was released,, I told officer Clayton that he and his men were really good people. I thanked him for being, what police used to be, men, not pigs. Obviously, there are many types of people under the banner of of ficers of the law. Some of them are good people, sonpwhat mislead, but good. Others are fools. These people are the pigs, they enjoy cracking skulls, they enjoy the power the badge gives, that they as men are incapable of commanding. They are the pigs, the ones who hassel, the ones_who hate, the fools. Unfortunately, the streets are filled with the fools these day.'ITey masquerade in the guise of men when they are really pigs. How does one tell? It is not eae, there are no clear cut distinctions, in the dark of riot, its impossible to tell until be eleabs yohst asks you If he canhe. We on the bus could clearly see the difference. jYou in the street have a harder, time. The man behind the badge may be a pig, but' one of the vanishing breed, he may have only your $totection in mind, he may rh a man. ids floa around portions of soft drinks and potato chips. In spite of these efforts to maintain usual dorm activities the difference was there for all to see. It was not impossible to study, although few made the attempt; it was not impossible to sleep, though many were not able to rest. An edge of worry and a taste of fear were added to the en A man ano ' Radicals' to quell vi A group of about 15 students met with representatives of the laculty. the governor's staff, and University President Thomas F. Jones yesterday in the Baptist Student Union from 2:30 p.m. until the Maxey-Gregg rally ended in efforts to avoid another night of violence. At various :imes Dr. D.B. Marshall. Dr. WtA. Rtempel. Dr. William Caldwell and James A. Kuhiman from the faculty, ad ministrative assistant Phil Grose trom McNair's office and Jones conflerred with the group. The students were recognized by the administration to have been leaders before the Thursd~ay disturbances. The students. many of whom had been arrested Tuesday night off campus and charged with violating the curlew imposed on USC spoke at length with the faculty members on possible ways to avoid in creasing tension and to facilitate removal of the troops. The concensus of the students was that dismissal of school and clearina of the campus even temporarily was the safest alternative. The faculty members preseat were split on the issue but were told the s'tudent's dp'missal would not be~ considered by Mc Nair. At tempting to hold violence to a minimum by asking for removal of C'olumbia City nnlicemanm from Lt l vironment and many women students felt with these new elements it was impossible for them to function as they nomally would in the pre-examination period. As one stildent explaned last night. the imposed proximity of wary concerned measts Provi0led "a pooling of mndad, WtioM, hostiltie and frStrato s.' his friend meet. glence campus. faculty staying in the dorms with residents and preventing gatherings of students on the campus was agreed on as the most workable attempt. Three faculty members presented the findings of the meeting to faculty in the same building who met with Jones at 4 p.m. .lones read a prepared statement to the students which stated school would remain in session and demands would be discussed as the campus quieted down. Garose relayed McNair's concern and attempted to answer questions trom the group. It was pointed out to the faculty and to the governor's represeni Iative that the original leaders were no longer in control and that they h ga"structed students to be peace.- Mht before and violence had tii,-ished.. Many of them had related how they were off campus last night, bevond the curfew area but they were harassed by police, beaten and arrested. They claimed that the st udents who had been arrested were degraded, forced to have their hair shaven off and cut. T'hey noted that Columbia police had forcedl a violent confrontation by driving students to the streets and then indiscriminately beating students even when they were assisting injured and trying to re enter their buildings.