The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, February 16, 1998, Page 2, Image 2
Kurt Johnson will speak
about great Olympic terms
such as "mogul" and "luge'
Page 2
IM
Serving the Caroitne
, EDITOF
Adam Snydc
Amy Shannor
Kurt Johnson, Asi
Survey si
relations
Will it ever be
possible for every- HSHmL
one to get along, or The Pah)
at least for every- c<
one to stand each , .
other? changei
According to a .
new survey by The
State, if there is a To help W
possibility, then it effort i
might take some , .
time. The Palmet- 10
to Project survey is people J
on race relations in
South Carolina and
was last taken in 1995.
It showed little improvement ii
race relations. Thirty-seven percen
surveyed thought relations had im
proved in the last decade. That wa
up 6 percent since the last survey
in 1995.
But opinions on other issues con
cerning jobs and financial opportu
nities remained stagnant.
Forty-four percent of white peo
pie agreed that non-whites had jusi
as good a chance to get a job as ?
white person, while 43 percent o:
blacks disagreed with that state
ment.
The survey also showed that s
majority of black people feel white
children have a better opportunitj
for financial success, while only 20
percent of white people agreed.
Skater sli
receive a
On Saturday
night in Nagano,
American figure Figure sk
skater Todd El- Eldred?
dredge performed .. . ?
poorly idlest his
chance for an per/or,
Olympic gold medal.
HKfelL
Eldredge was He Still di
considered by
judges as favorite- r jf,
to win a medal, but CIS an Otyft
he executed a weak
program and ended
up falling during a triple axel.
Eldredge was ranked third aft..
mi
LCI LUC SI1U1 L piUglOUlS UU 1UUI5day
and had a definite possibility of
being a medal winner. But he finished
fourth overall after Saturday's
free skate event.
After completing his four and a
half minute free skate, Eldredge
hung his head in disappointment
with a mixture of shame and frustration
written on his face.
Despite his hellish episode on
the ice, Eldredge cannot let this experience
affect his future hopes of
winning a medal. He should not
be ashamed as much as he should
now feel even more ravenous for the
gold.
Americans should not fault Eldredge
for losing an Olympic medal
m tut?
~ Serving the Carolina C
The Gamecock is the student newspaper of The linker
Friday durirg the fad and sprrg semesters and five times due
periods. Opinions expressed in The Gamecock are those of the
The Board of Student Publications and Communications is th
is the newspaper's parent organization.
Th? Qamacock
Adam Snyder Editor in Chief Rosalind Hi
Amy Shannon Viewpoints Editor
Sma Ladenheim Jo,,n*e
Care Pedatt News Editors Carrie McC
Jennifer Stanley Features Editor Kristin Free
Achkn Hunt Nathan Bro
Bryan Jehnotoa Sports Editors g0m
Susan Meyers Phcto Editor Toff Q ,H^a
Brian RMi Online Editor
Chris Dbron Copy Desk Chief Connie Karl
Stud wit Media
Julie Baker Sherry F. H,
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? Jim Green
Dion Parsons Director of
Student Media Mlchole Dm
Loo PMppa Advertising Manager ^ Codlnt
?
1
J
iamecock
a Community since 1908
JAL BOARD
:r, Editor in Chief
i, Viewpoints Editor
distant Viewpoints Editor
hows race
stagnant
This could be imMMMyHHI
proved. Augustus
letto Project Rodgers, aUSC soihows
little cial work professor,
r said it best: If we
n relations. WOuld have the same
rrrrr^^^M commitment to reLuLiiJHH
solving racial matters
ith this, more as we do to scientific
is needed advancement, I bet
r , lieve there is hope for
itforth by us?
'? general. This is so true. All
we need to do as a society
is put forth a little
effort. Surely, things are better
i than years past, but hopefully, it
t will be a lot better in years to come.
The first step is to get people to
3 stop thinking in such narrow
1 ways and get rid of bigoted thought.
But when such thoughts were a com
mon and accepted ideology only 35
- years ago, that might take a little
fimo
1/liMC.
It's not like we all have to like
t each other, but respect is what is
i needed. People need to learn to ref
spect other people's lives, what they
believe, what they do and how they
do certain things,
i When a majority of people try
i and start doing this, race relations
' will drastically and quickly start
I changing. It just takes a little effort
to make things between the races a
little mere cosy.
lould still
ccolades
TTjrmmm] ^or our country- He
UdUflHH may have let the
aterTodd American people
rlnum Kit# Kn lnf kirn.
VCll-X? Ci UUbUg 1VV 111111
self down more. Those
8 y- P blaming Eldredge for
YMMlce. skating badly should
take a closer look at
JlUU^BI themselves. How
2serves our many of them can
competing even claim to know
*11? how to ice skate let
VplC athlete. aione d0 triple axels?
All the athletes
competing in the
Olympics deserve to be applauded.
They earned the right to represent
their native country by practicing
every day and devoting their
lives to a single sport.
In short, they are the best of the
best. To compete on that level with
such tremendous pressure placed
upon them is a feat which demands
being commended.
Maybe Eldredge did cost the
United Statres a medal. But he still
warrants the respect of our country
for making it to the Olympics and
giving his best to honor the U.S. in
the figure skatinv cnmnet.it.inn
No one can be critical of Eldredge.
Everybody has a bad day
now and then.
smecodt RBI
Community since 1908
srty of South Carolina and is published Monday, Wechesday and
ig the simmer with the exception eg miversity holidays and exam
editors or author and not those of The University of South Carolina
e publisher of The Gamecock. The Department of Student Media
All numbers area code 803
TIm Gamecock
may Public Relations
Coordinator Editor 777-3914
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ulhxugh Asst. News Editor We"po"'fs 777 7726
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ekhoff Copy Editors
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i
View
The Gamec<
RAD tea
Right now, I'm sitting in one of
those blue and wooden chairs F
in the third floor lobby of the tl
Russell House, listening to an inane E
conversation while I try to write. The u
participants, a young man and woman, s:
are dis- d
cussing the w
hh| joys of fake T
IDs and rig- p
K arettes, and a
JSKm the peril of si
mmm having al- S
jM one's dorm fc
when one is e:
under 21.
W MCCORMICK ve ^?onn J!
Columnist | has been y
going on for I
at least half an hour, with no end in vi
sight. I keeD hoDine that, one of them rv
will say something bordering on the
interesting so I can be assured that st
college is doing these people some good. I
It just isn't happening. Fortunately, m
there are folks who come to college for tc
something more. w
This past week, a diverse array of ul
campus organizations sponsored an
occasion for intellectual stimulation in Hi
the form of Religious Awareness Days, fa
which included films, discussions and th
midday prayers in several religious W
traditions. b(
w
Race not
kelly LEE
Guest Columnist
pi
As I was sitting in my SOCY 355 re
class on minority group rela- m
tions, I had a revelation. This hi
one really struck me and enlightened
me. As Professor Mitzell was talking p?
about how our personal life experiences se
shape our attitudes and the way we m
live, I realized that South Carolina has til
changed me. It's made me more aware yc
of the racial prejudices that exist on jy
our campus.
As a native Floridian, raised by col- jn
or-blind parents, I never really con- ^
sidered my race an issue. At one of the
elementary schools I attended, I was
actually in the racial minority, and my
two best friends were African-Ameri- P4
cans. Needless to say, I never felt the et
need to attach a color to my person- 03
ality because no one else did. co
I guess if you look at me, you may
see a white girl, Pink Toes or what F1
have you, but that's not all that I am. p?
And as Professor Mitzell said, race will w<
always be a factor because, by our texf s 0f
definition, it's characterized by obvi- pr
ous physical differences. I suppose up- \y
on looking at me one can unmistak- pr
ably see that I'm a Caucasian female.
CO
Victim should not w,
be faulted for rape "E
To the editor: Vr
Regarding the front page headlines W1
of the Feb. 11, Gamecock about the ica
sexual assault, I am thoroughly upset
at the victim-blaming slant you took, jui
specifically Lawrence Pathel's com- he
ment, "males and females...[need] to
use communication, common sense and on
judgment." ^ for
OINTS
ock
iches cu
The first event was a discussion in
'reston, which attempted to answer
he question, "Spirituality in Higher
!ducation: Does It Have a Place?" Natrally,
we didn't come to any concluions
on such a lofty topic in one short
iscussion, but interesting questions
'ere raised. Among them, what is
ligher' about higher education? Is the
oint of higher education simply to get
inV* nr fn lilra mv Knrl/liaa in flio Pno
jvw vi uav mj vuuuico ill uic ivuosll
House, experiment with alcohol? o
hould the college experience re- tl
uire us to open our minds to new in- e
irmation and ideas that we might not p
ave to grapple with in our everyday d
ristence? p
Personally, I came to college for the
itellectual stimulation that events t<
ke Religious Awareness Days pro- S
ide, and I haven't been disappointed, is
just wish more students took ad- ti
antage of these extracurricular op- a
artunities. ol
The Muslim Midday Prayer, for in- c<
ance, gave me lots of food for thought, tl
know about as little as any religion e:
lajor can about Islam, so I was eager tl
i learn more about this religion to d
hich an entire fifth of the world's pop- n
iation belongs. fe
Like most people, I knew that Mus- ir
m women wear veils to cover their w
ces, and I had a vague assumption it
lat this was evidence of misogyny.
re assume head-to-toe coverings must s(
; worn to act as shackles of sorts, that y<
omen are being kept as possessions 01
part of 1
But those who know me, the soul
rapped in my skin, can see that my
gment (or lack thereof) is simply a
flection of light bouncing off the retiis
in the color categorizing eyes of
iunans around me.
One of my roommates, who hapjns
to be an African-American female,
iid something to me recently to reind
me of my color-blind Florida attude.
She said, "Kelly, when I look at 01
>u, I don't see a color. I just see Kel- ti
?
Perhaps if she just saw me walk- ef
g across campus, she'd think, "Oh, ai
lere's a white girl," but because she m
:tually knows me, she can see Kelly.
I won't deny the fact that I love the 0 *
irson I've become and the open-mind- c*
1 attitude I have. The fact that I
n live in this diverse world filled with w
ntroversy drives me every day.
In fact, my triangle of friends in ^
orida includes a Caucasian, a His- or
inic and an African American, and a
s're often mistaken for some version y?
the Spice Girls. Personally, we jj]
efer to call ourselves the Unity Crew,
e rejoice in our sameness and ap- I ]
eciate the differences. We've even ju
nsidered starting a sorority of our w
ill#]" a student. Hand writt
elude the author's tel
held for any circunst
In regards to communication, when foi
is the perpetrator supposed to say, isl
xcuse me, may I rape you now?"
In terms of common sense, the sur- qu
vor was the only one who used it is
len she reached out for help and med- p
J attention after the assault occurred. w<
And please, don't fault her for her ro
dgment for letting her date into
r room. ca
When (and if) you have gone out us
a date, is it not usually customary roi
the date to be invited in either be- T1
I
I
>
stoms <
"I came to college
stimulation that eve
Awareness Day
haven't been
ver whom men are so jealous that
ley hide them from rival males. Howver,
I found the explanation of this
ractice, given by the young men conucting
the prayer meeting, to be comelling
and eye opening.
The men pointed out that men have
) cover their bodies just like women,
horts are not worn, and the clothing
i kept loose to attract as little attenon
as possible to the shape of the body,
s a safe guard against the temptation
f sexual immorality. The point of such
iverings is explained in a brochure
le men gave us: "Modesty of dress
(eternalizes moderation of behavior...
le moral affirmation of the bounds of
ecency, honesty, self-respect, honor,
iade visible. The veil continues to ofsr
recognition and freedom to women
i many ways: It is a signal sent out
hich demands respect and receives
in return."
The Muslim prayer rituals themslves
were fascinating, as well. The
>ung men showed us how to cleanse
irselves in preparation for the prayers,
true pei
"I never felt the need
personality...I guess
may see a white girl,
you, but that
vn, encouraging females of all naonalities
and races to join.
And these days, we could all benit
from experiencing more cultural
id racial diversity in our lives, but
ost people on this campus have probily
been taught to stay with people
their own kind, and most people
loose to do so.
Sociologists have discovered that
e usually feel most comfortable
*ound people like us, people who look
ke us. But who's to say that the
frican American male across the room
the Native American female sitting
few rows behind you isn't more like
>u than that person who merely looks
te you?
I'm sure you'd be highly insulted if
merely categorized, classified and
dged you by the pigment in your skin
ithout any consideration of the feelwill
try to print all letters received. Letters should be 250300 ?
en tetters must be personally delivered by the author to The Ga
ephone number. The Gamecock reserves the right to edit all let I
ance.
re you leave or after the date is fintied?
The point here is that so many aclaintance
rapes occur because there
no reason not to trust the would-be
srp. If she didn't trust him, she
luldn't have let him come up to her
om.
It is so easy to fault her for this beuse
then we can separate her from
i. "If we never let anyone into our
oms, then we will never be violated."
laf s absurd. All victim-blaming does
"It was and is a way of airing
society's dirty laundry."
Carol Chichetto, chair of
Clothesline Project.
Monday, February 16, 1998
college press EXCHANGE
)f Islam
for the intellectual
:nts such as Religious
rs provide, and I
disappointed."
which must be made five times a
day. They allowed us to follow them
tVirnnnrVi fVio ontiro nravop oo tViav
Vlll VUgll HIV V11V11 V MJ VI J UO HIVJ
bowed, kneeled and stood with their
bodies, even their toes, pointing towards
Mecca.
I found their practices to be humbling.
When you make such elaborate
prayers five times a day, your religion
has to be an intimate part of you. I
found myself thinking that other religions
could learn a lot from Islam, in
that respect. If we were all reminded
of our faith throughout the day, it would
have to affect our actions more than it
does when we gather for prayer only
once a week.
For next week, I'd like you to tell
me how your religion affects you. Do
you think about your beliefs often during
the day? How does your religion
help you to make decisions? Are you a
different person now than you were
before you were converted or began to '
be active in your faith? Please share
your experiences by e-mailing me at
kawarth@vm.sc.edu.
*sonality
I to attach a color to my |
if you look at me, you
Pink Toes or what have
:'s not all I am."
ings, interests or ideas beneath the
surface. The fact is, many of us don't
even take the time to find out how different
or similar someone of another d
pigment really is. You may be surprised.
You may find you have absolutely
nothing in common, or you may find
the person is so much like you its frightening.
Think about being different and
actually be that way, if only for a few
minutes.
Go to a place where you wouldn't
normally go (like a place where you're
a racial minority), read something "in- tended"
for a target audience different
than vour own or sit bv someone who
doesn't look like you and actually converse
with them. Make an attempt to
see through the pigment for once, and
you might find something you like.
ords and must include full name, professKnat title or year and mqor if
mecock newsroom in Russell House room 333. Email letters must in
let for style, possible libel or space limitations. Names will not be withis
scare us from engaging in any activities
with the opposite sex by paint- ^
ing all males as rapists and all females
as victims.
If we should focus on anything here,
let it be on why such violence continues
to occur and then what should be
done about it today, here, for us and
by us.
Stacy Race
Chair of S.H.A.R.E. _
* 4