Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

_Vol. 93, No. 78~\)(/^?cLtieScl March 29, 2000_ I ina Community since 1Q08 I USCPD receives reaccredrtation by Patrick Rathbun Assistant News Editor The USC Police Department has been reac credited after months of planning and assess ment. The reaccreditation process went smoothly, | Director of Law Enforcement and Safety Ernie El lis said. “[The USCPD] went through the whole process without a hitch," he said. “I was very thrilled with the way the entire process went.” USCPD Deputy Director of Support Ser vices Chris Wuchenich agreed. “[The process] went even better than I had hoped,” he said. Ellis said the accreditation might not be un lerstood by the general public, but that other law jnforcement agencies “appreciate the accom plishment.” • A team of assessors from the Commission on \ccreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc. visited the USCPD in January to examine its com pliance with 355 standards, Ellis said. The asses »rs then reported back to aboard of commissioners tnd recommended that the USCPD be reaccred ted. The final decision was made Saturday at a pommittee meeting in Las Vegas. The agency will remain accredited for three r,ears. The USCPD went through much preparation, ncluding filing and documentation procedures, in prder to have information in place for the asses >ors, Ellis said in a statement earlier this year. The assessors examined the department’s proce dures, equipment and facilities, and examined the quality of such items as patrol cars, evidence storage and office space, Ellis said. Ellis said the assessors also sought the opin ion of the USC community and received positive responses from students and administrators. “The assessors were extremely impressed,” El lis said Ellis said the USCPD went through the com mission’s review process without any major questioning. Ellis said the only two questions the commis sion asked were about the department’s physical facility. The questions concerned the USCPD’s telecommunications area security and its power generation. Both of the questioned areas have been corrected, Ellis said. He said the department isn’t lacking in any ma jor areas. “We are not lacking in any significant way,” Ellis said. “There was not a single question of a sub stantive nature. Wfe have clearly demonstrated com pliance with all of the standards.” Wuchenich said the accreditation was the sec ond the USCPD has received and that this reac creditation carried more weight, “1 do believe [the second accreditation] was more significant,” he said. “Typically, in a univer sity environment, reaccreditation is a significant achievement. [The reaccreditation] is very reas suring.” Wuchenich said the first accreditation is based on what the agency says it will do, and the sec ond accreditation shows that the agency has fol lowed through with its words. Ellis said the USCPD’s professionalism and ex pertise separate it from other agencies. “I don’t think there are any [agencies] that are more professional [than the USCPD],” he said. “Wfe have a broad base of expertise to meet almost any challenge.” Wuchenich said he agreed with Ellis’ assess ment. “[The reaccreditation] demonstrates our lev el of professionalism,” he said. “1 feel a great deal of pride in the division. We are a highly dedicated department.” Wuchenich also said the amount of training the USCPD SEE PAGE 2 Let’s get ready to rumble i-1 r--^* - - .mm j Amy Goulding Photo Editor Religion freshman Matt Brodie, right, knocks his opponent, music education freshman Matt Schrelber, off the jousting platform on Tuesday. Jousting was just one of the events on the Russell House Patio sponsored by Sports Blustrated as part of Campusfest Army school under fire for actions of some graduates by Christine Taturn College Press Exchange Chcaqo—About 2,000 college students nationwide have pledged to fast for the first two weeks of April to raise aware ness for what they say are human-rights violations in Latin America caused, at least in part, by the United States. Proteste is want the U.S. Army School of Americas, based in Fort Benning, Ga., closed. Dubbed the “School of Assassins” by Latin Americans, the SOA has trained more than 60,000 Latin Ameri can troops in commando tactics, military intelligence and psychological operations. Among the institution’s strongest backers are the U.S. Department of Defense, the Department of State and the Drug En forcement Administration—all of which say the school is an important tool that helps the United States shape foreign pol icy, promote democracy and fight drug trafficking in Latin America. Protesters, who include veterans, religious leaders and several members of Congress, insist that the school has been responsible for human-rights abuses and massacres in several countries, including Argentina, El Salvador, Chile and Colom bia. They’re also quick to name some of the school’s notorious graduates, who in clude Panamanian dictator Manuel Nor iega, Juan Velasco Alvarado of Pern and Hugo Banzer Suarez of Bolivia. Army officials acknowledge that some of the school’s graduates have been linked to human-rights violations, but also note that less than 1 percent of its 60,000 stu dents have ever been associated with such atrocities. “Graduates who have committed hu man-rights abuses are individually re sponsible for their actions,” the school’s Web site states. “There has never been a link established between training received at the school and subsequent human rights abuses by graduates.” Protesters aren't so sure about that— and say it’s no coincidence that some of Latin America’s most aggressive and mur derous leaders have been trained at the school. The idea behind the upcoming fast, they say, is to demonstrate how nonvio lent measures can bring about social change. School of the Americas Watch, a watch dog group bent on closing down the school, is spearheading the effort. Group leaders are encouraging protesters to lobby legis lators during a planned meeting on Capitol Hill on April 3. “I have a lot of friends from Latin America, and I’ve heard their stories — torture, family members being killed,” David Aurisano, a Spring Hill College se Army School sa page 2 . Clinton wades into flag battle by Anne Gearan The Associated Press Washmgton—With a visit to a historically black South Car olina college, President Clinton is wading into the debate over display of the Confederate flag, which could become an is sue in November’s election. The symbolism will be potent and the political undertones strong today as Clinton appears at a $500-per-person fund raiser honoring Rep. Jim Clybum, D-S.C., chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. Along with many others in South Carolina, Clybum wants the flag removed from atop the South Carolina Statehouse. Clybum said he wanted the event, held at Allen Univer sity, to make a statement, even though more money could have been raised at a laiger, more lavish location. There will be seat i|jr for about 1,000 people. ' "I want to make a statement about that flag every chance I get,” Clybum said recently. By his presence at the school, founded in 1870 by the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Clinton will ally him self with the movement to remove the flag as a symbol of racism, said Bmce Ransom, a political science professor at Clemson University. “You’vegot the president in South Carolina, he’s at a pre dominantly black college, talking about the flag, and he’s there with Clybum,” Ransom said. “As far as symbolism, there’s a bundle all together there.” Supporters say the flag, which has flown atop the State house since 1962, honors those who died in the Civil War. Op ponents say it is a symbol of slavery and racism. The National Association for the Advancement of Col ored People is leading a tourism boycott of South Carolina un til the flag is removal This week, the NAACP offered some support for a com promise proposed by state legislators on both sides of the flag issue. The plan would remove the flag from the Statehouse dome but erect other Civil War-era flags on the Capitol grounds. “The president will talk about the flag and he will talk more broadly about tolerance,” White House spokesman Jake Siewert said Tuesday. Clinton will likely expand on rhetoric he used this month at a commemoration of the civil rights march in Selma, Ala. “As long as the waving symbol of one American’s pride is the shameful symbol of another American’s pain, we have another bridge to cross,” Clinton said at Selma. And in a state likely to vote Republican in the fall, Clin ton will point to the political controversy over the flag in this year’s pivotal South Carolina GOP primary. Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Geoige Bush demurred on the question of whether the flag belongs at the Statehouse, calling it a local issue. Bush’s former GOP challenger, Arizona Sen. John McCain, also refused to take a position. On the Democratic side, Vice President A1 Gore and then challenger Bill Bradley both recommended that the flag be re CUNTON SEE PAGE 3 Breakfast celebrates 'spiritual expression ' by Amanda Silva Staff Writer A prayer breakfast Thursday will honor the variety of religious traditions found on campus. “In this Interfaith Prayer Breakfast, we gather together in mu tual respect to share a spiritual expression of a purpose that extends beyond our individual lives - the search for truth and an understanding of our places in the world,” USC President John Palms said. It will be held from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. in the Russell House Ballroom. The breakfast, which the Interfaith Committee will be host to, is an effort to increase awareness of all the religious traditions rep resented on campus, according to Tom Wall of the Carolina Chap lains Association. “There is a laige number of students who don’t realize the num ber of traditions represented on campus,” Wall said. According to Wall, attending a prayer breakfast and hearing the power and vitality of other faiths is a moving experience. To hear these other traditions validates religion and makes it come alive in a predominantly Judeo-Christian society, he said. “It’s part of the living experience,” Wall said. The breakfast will feature student speakers and musicians who represent various faiths within the campus community. “The voices you will hear represent some, but by no means all of the religious traditions we value in our university family,” said Carl Evans, associate professor and Interfaith Prayer Breakfast Com mittee member. Prayer see page 2 iTW*! Weather Inside Datebook Online Poll Today 65 52 Thursday 69 53 Encore! takes on Oscar Encore! Wednesday • Student Senate, 5 p.m. • GAMMA t Thursday • NAACP, 6:30 p.m. •SALA, 7:30p.m. • National Society of Col legiate Scholars, 7 p.m., RH 3rd-floor lounge i Should universities regulate students’ Internet surfing? *&/ Vole ai www.gamecock.sc.cdu. Results will be published Friday.