Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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BY MARSHALL SWANSON George Zarvos loaned back on the front stoop of his four-room duplex and petted his seven-month old German Shepard. "There's alot of discrimination. Statistically there's more discrim ination than there is against blacks, 'Puerto Ricans, Mexicans. More to. than against any nationality ahd against any other handicaps. Mich more so than against deaf people and the retarded. It's true! "Simply because-and relate it to yourself-if you meet a retarded person you won't be so uptight about It. When people meet me they just picture darkness, I guess, and they're completely flabergast ed by It because to them it's the most horrible thing that could hap pen to them.. Zarvos, blind since age seven when glaucoma took his sight from one eye and an errant softball blinded him in the other, came to USC from Bergenfield, N.J., in the fall of 1970 and completed his sophomore year before dropping out in the spring of 1972. He said he may return to classes In Sep tember although he doesn't "feel like" schopi any more. l He talked about his blindness and his lifestyle for almost three hours as he sat on the front step of his rented duplex. College A Reinforcer He said he dropped out of school after completing a straight A semester because he felt he was "going in circles." He complained that his lifestyle had become too secure and life wasn't posing any challenges. "They reinforce you in college," he said. "I felt I wasn't growing as fast as I'd like to. I couldn't force myself into new situations." Zarvos said it seemed there were no pressures except for gra des, and that college was an unreal world. "Everyone was stereotyped. By moving away, I knew I'd meet people who had other concerns," he 'said. Upon leaving school, Zprvos headed for Florida, where he per formed a series of odd jobs. After five months he decided to move on to Texas with a friend. From there, he returned to Columbia. Easy To Open Gamecock Charge Account *100 Blind Former I Since returning to Columbia, his primary concern has been to come up with a job he feels he Is capable of and at the same time offers some challenges. So far he's been bitterly disappointed. Work Hard To Fin "People reject you for -work right off," he said. "I've got a job now but only because I was per sistent and stuck it out. I had to get a lawyer I got so angry. There was a two- to three-month fight but I had a principle to establish. 'The fact Is that a blind person can work, make it to work on time and so forth. "I want to challenge my intel ligence. I would like to have the privilege of evsn a shitty job when I wanted one. It's the fault of people's ignorance about blind people that I can't get hired. "I haven't given up all hope of a career job I want. I can only think of practicalities now. It's dif ficult to say what an ideal job would be. I have to harrass people to get them to let me work. "I've given thought to what I'd like to do with my life partly be cause of blindness and partly be cause of character. There are fields I'm interested in that I feel I won't enjoy being in because of the has sles I'll be put through. It's almost like saying I feel like I'm not going to be given a fair shake which is a pitiable thing to feel for yourself. You shouldn't feel something.like that. "When I graduate I'm going to be sitting around a little bit longer than most people trying to get a job in the field I'm going to be In. I'll have to decide to either get into a field I want to do and not care about the consequences or decide to get Into a field where a job is almost guaranteed to a blind person. I haven't made that deci sion yet." After talking with Zarvos it be came apparent he isn't happy un less he has a challenge and an ob stacle he can work to overcome. JSC Student 1 Likes To Travel "I like to go to an area and know people," he said. "I like to mingle. Some say there's. no dif ference between people in differ ent parts of the country. I don't think so. I like the people (in Co lumbia) more so than any other place I've been. There are some drawbacks but that goes in every thing." Then Zarvos, an Inveterate trav eller who likes to "move around, turned to his mode of transports tion. "When people just picture dai completely flal 'Well, I've been hitch-hikinj about two years now," he said "I've liked It more than I do now It can be pretty humiliating, stand Ing there begging for a ride. 'I can remember some desper. ate situations when I needed a ride. Sometimes I'm lucky and sometimes I'm not. I'm probably just like anyone else (when il comes to hitch-hiking). 'The frequency of rides ar average around town," he added "When there are alot of studenti around I have good luck, whez not, the luck Isn't so good." Directions Easy Zarvos is at home on Colum bia's city streets the way mosi sighted people are. At times h( had amazed friends by announc ing the name of a street cornel while he is driving In a car. G0 RS & LAUNDR ells Of Trav l "When I'm on city streets I walk with my ears. My cane is really only an Identification. for I nie. If I'm at a traffic -light and cars are coming I can hear them. If I caft feel sidewalks and curbs and when walking alog the side of the road, I trail the grass. "I can visualize In my mind maps of the areas I cover," he. continued. "I gained knowledge of street names In a gradual way. I ask In a subtle way and Incor porate the information Into my head. When I hear a street name, I don't forget It. I feel familiarized. with an area anywhere I go," he added, "I don't think there's any where I can go now that I couldn't get back from on my own." meet me, they rkness, they're :>bergasted." Despite the obvious dangers of hitch-hiking, compounded by his blindness, Zarvos takes a stoic view of getting Into a car he 'can't even see. He figures his chances of running Into trouble are the same as those of anyone else and admits to having been in some tight spots himself. "The worst experience happen ed when I was with a girl late one Friday night in Florida. We got a ride from three drunks who be came interested in the girl. They stopped at a rough bar and one of them decided he wanted to fight me to get the girl. I ended up by pulling the girl out of the car and walking down the roadside for about half an hour." CAMPUS CI ;COLLEGIATE A4 DRAFT BEER - 4:00 P.M. UINT FROSTY MUGI "oLDIES Bur BRING aOU C "cuALLANGE FORUG PLEASECAR lo Special Program Wanted Zarvos came to USC for a var lety of reasons. He said he was looking for a new geographical rea, he liked the South, and he 0 wanted to attend a big school. Me said the idea of a city environment appealed to him. at the time he ap plied but that now the lustre of urban living has worn off. "Another reason I came to USC was that I didn't want to come to a school that offered special pro prams for blind students. 'Bind people have been channelled too much. Directioned. .1 don't like that. It leads to a predictable life style and makes me feel chaifed down." According to Zaivos, he espe cially wanted a school where most of the students and professors hadn't been exposed to blind stu dents before. He wanted to create his own situation and feels now that he was successful. "When I came to school I didn't know where my elasses were. Some might think that 14 terrifying. I didn't consider. it a problem * though, . One has to know where the bdilding is that your classes are being held in and what room the class is in. It com" from ask Ing and I don't mind asking. I'm not afraid to ask questions. Books Hard To Get When he first came to USC Zarvos said he faced such pro blems as having to learn the loca tion of new stores but added that he considered that an enjoyable task. (See ZARVOS on eage six) UB,SOUTH * IN ST. LTMOSPHERE aUSIC-"PIZZA IL CLOSING . -4se - 4-4s GOODIES" ' THE SO's-6's . WN ALBUM. BALL THE BEST" ALS" r PROPER I.D. ( EW weKI~