Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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THE GAMECOCK ♦ Wednesday, October 24, 2001 IN OUR OPINION USC <answers ’ nothing at all It looks like we might have to wait a while to get a full accounting of the university’s side of the racial bias lawsuit. The case probably won’t go to trial until next year, and it looks like it might take that long to drag the USC administration out of hiding and get a full accounting of what happened to 26 black maintenance workers who say they were passed over for pay and promotion because of their race. There are some attempts at denying the workers’ claims in the university’s response to the lawsuit. In Some of the arguments the university uses are lame attempts to duck real responsibility for what happened. fact, the university uses “Denied” over and over • without really elaborating. In other words, “They’re lying; trust us.” That might be a reasonable proposition, if the university had ever given anyone any reason to do anything but doubt them. When President Palms is campaigning tor more state funding or a possible bid for the Senate, you can’t pry him off the State House steps; when allegations of racial discrimination on the university’s part surface, he appears to be more than willing to shun the spotlight. The rest of the arguments the university uses are lame attempts to u$e a variety of legal shields to duck real responsibility for what happened. One of the shortcomings of our judicial system is that what’s right doesn’t always happen; sometimes, hypertechnical legalities can allow even the worst offenders to get off scot-free. But that shouldn’t be how USC handles these accusations. A university’s main mission is to find truth and to teach its students how to be more tolerant. To do what the university has done — hide behind shields created to block frivolous lawsuits while its reputation as a major player in the New South is endangered by an important lawsuit — is weak. It is contrary to the ambitions this university has for its prestige and its accomplishments. The legal system might very well give the administration the victory it hopes for. But it will be a hollow victory if the university has to sell out everything it stands for in order to win. GAMECOCK CORRECTIONS In a correction in Monday’s paper, the name of a movie was misspelled. The name is Hedwig and the Angry Inch. If you see an error in today’s paper, we want to know. Write us at gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com. ABOUT THE GAMECOCK Martha Wright Editor in Chief Mary Hartney University Editor Glnny Thornton Asst. Univ. Editor Victoria Bennett The Mix Editor Justin Bajan Asst. The Mix Editor Chris Foy Sports Editor Preston Baines Asst. Sports Editor Elizabeth Swartz Online Editor Aaron Hark Photo Editor Andrew Rogers Asst. Photo Editor Greg Hambrick City Editor Alicia Balentlne Asst. City Editor Brandon Larrabee Viewpoints Editor Rene Moffatt Political Cartoonist/ illustrator Candl Hauglum Graphic Artist Page Designers Mackenzie Clements, Crystal Dukes, Katie Smith, David Stagg Copy Editors Crystal Boyles, Jason Harmon. Jill Martin, Carolyn Rowe TO PLACE AN AD The Gamecock 1400 Greene Street Columbia, S.C. 29208 Advertising: 777-3888 Classified: 777-1184 Fax: 777-6482 STUDENT MEDIA Erik Collins Faculty Adviser Ellen Parsons Director of Student Media Susan King Creative Director Carolyn Griffin Business Manager » Sarah Scarborough Advertising Manager Sherry F. Holmes Classified Manager Creative Services Todd Hooks, Jennie Moore, Martin Salisbury, Beju Shah, Advertising Staff Betsy Baugh, Caryn Barowsky, Denise Levereaux, Jackie Rice, Stacey Todd Gamecock Community Affairs Karen Yip CONTACT INFORMATION Offices on third floor of the Russell House. Editor in Chief: gamecockeditor@hotmail.com University Desk: gamecockudesk@hotmail.com City Desk: gamecockcitydesk@hotmail.com Viewpoints: gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com The Mix: gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com Sports: gamecocksports@hotmail.com Online: www.dailygamecock.com Newsroom: 777-7726 The Gamecock is the student newspaper of the University of South Carolina and is published Monday, Wednesday and Friday during the fall and spring semesters and nine times during the summer with the exception of university holidays and exam periods. Opinions expressed in The Gamecock are those of the editors or author and not those of the University of South Carolina. The Board of Student Publications and Communications is the publisher of The Gamecock. The Department of Student Media is the newspaper's parent organization. The Gamecock is supported in part by student activities fees. One free copy per reader. Additional copies may be purchased for one dollar each from the Department of Student Media. COLLEGE PRESS EXCHANGE Red alert for USC’s black men MICHAEL GOODWIN GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM It’s past time that we became more involved in campus activities. Red Alert! Red Alert! Calling all black males! I begin this article with a fair amount of anxiety, and the anxiety I possess is common because I carry it daily. I do not wish to spend any more-effort than the next sentence to address my reasoning for writing this piece. I unapologetically care about the “state of the black male.” With that out of the way, let’s dance! I’m relatively new to the university, but I’m quite displeased with what I’m seeing here. In the Emerging Leaders program,.out of 50 freshmen students, only one is a black male. One! In the University Ambassadors, out of about 60+ students, only two are black males. Two! That is pathetic! The reason more black males are not in these organizations is not because Bull Conner, George Wallace and the. Alabama National Guard are standing outside the meetings refusing to allow them in. Neither is it because a poll tax is required to enter. I believe it’s either apathy or ignorance, pick your poison! Black males, we need to become more engaged on our campus. Before I go any further, I must say that this article is not for the belittling or berating of the black male, but this is a challenge! Many African American students claim the reason they attend a • predominately white school is because it best resembles the real world, but if we come to these universities and only become leaders in our groups and in our clubs, we have defeated the purpose of attending these schools. Black males, you possess a rich insight and a perspective that is often foreign to other students, but the tragedy is you do not share it. We as black males love to perfect our “game.” The word “game” can embody a myriad of things, such as a PlayStation game, a basketball game or even the game in which we pursue female interest. Imagine if we begin to carve out time to perfect our skill at the “game” of life. What if we focused more on perfecting our presentation skills “game”? What about perfecting our networking “game,” or simply perfecting our leadership “game”? Sept. 11,2001, is a date that will live forever in American history, but Sept. 11,1963, is a date that will forever live in USC history. On that date in 1963, USC desegregated when three African-American students were the first black students since 1877 to attend the university. Of those three, two were black males. As we reflect on our values, priorities and beliefs, I believe it is important to reflect on the individuals who toiled and strove before us and realize that just a few generations ago, we may not have had the opportunities that we are so quick to squander now. Black males, the campus needs your voice and your intellect, not only in class but also in extracurricular settings. My philosophy is not only to expose problems, but to also help correct them. I offer a couple of suggestions to address this concern. I challenge each of you to: 1. Start speaking to one another - it’s so simple, but I cannot count the amount of times brothers don’t even acknowledge one another on campus. 2. Join BOND (Brothers of Nubian Decent) - ‘Nuff said ♦ GOODWIN, SEE PAGE 7 IN YOUR OPINION Columnists an embarrasment Whether students like to admit it, everyone reads The Gamecock, and I am no exception. For the most part, our student newspaper does a good job. I have no problem with its content. I realize freedom of speech is something that The Gamecock feels strongly about, as it should. However, with a few exceptions, the columnists are an embarrassment to the newspaper. I don’t know how else to articulate my point. Most columns show a complete lack of effort and creativity. As upper class students, I find it hard to believe that your vocabulary is so limited. Every writer should display professionalism. Columnists should remember that they are writing for a newspaper, not talking with a buddy at the bar. Phrases, including “piss me off,” “go to hell,” and “that sucks,” show either an extremely limited vocabulary or zero creativity. I hope those responsible realize that they are embarrassing themselves, The Gamecock, and the university in general with their poor writing and laziness. Do you think The New York Times or the Wall Street Journal would print one of your columns? By no means am I comparing The Gamecock to either of these papers, but I hope that any columnist would strive for excellence, including those writing for a student newspaper. So, the next time you write a column, please put some effort and creativity into it. Your paper takes enough criticism as it is, and the student body, The Gamecock, and the university all deserve better. IAN MEROPOL FOURTH-YEAR STUDENT, COLLEGE OF JOURNALISM AND MASS COMMUNICATIONS Students’ interests should come first This little diatribe is directed at the Monday, Oct. 22 article entitled “Concerned Students Attend SDIC Forum,” in special regards to a statement made by Professor Geoff Alpert. In the article Professor Alpert makes the statement that, “Whether we are a college or a separate department really is not an important issues for us as social scientists. We need a chair who is a criminologist that can help these young faculty achieve the highest level available to them.” This statement has a few inherent problems: one, it is important to the students of the college if we are a college or department; and two, we should be concerned with the students not just the jbbs of those faculty members that can be fathered. Why? Because the students are the ones that make a college or a department, without us what would a university, college, or a department be? I find that these statements show a disrespect to the students of the College of Criminal Justice. The statement sounds as if it is saying that the personal interests of the professors are coming before the interests of the student body of the college. We as a college are already facing hard times from the pending review of the SDIC committee, I personally feel that with this looming over our heads we have no room for personal agendas or the flagrant disregard of the interests of the students. As a student of the College of Criminal Justice I am forced to a^k myself if Professor Alpert might have made a misspeak, and/or if not does any other professors share the same views. RONNIE WALKER THIRD-YEAR STUDENT, COLLEGE OK CRIMINAL JUSTICE Submission Policy Letters to the editor or guest columns are welcome from the Carolina community. Letters should be 250-300 words. Guest columns should be about 600 words. Both must include name, phone number, professional title or year and major, if a student. Deliver handwritten submissions to Russell House room 333, or send e-mail to gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com. The Gamecock reserves the right to edit for libel, style and space. Anonymous letters will not be published. Photos are required for guest columnists and can be provided by the submitter. Call 777-7726 for more information. Women haven’t cornea long way PHIL WATSON WATSONPHIL@YAHOO.COM Feminists give girls the right to have bologna thrown on their asses. The boys down at the feed and seed store tell me it’s been a heck of a few decades for women’s rights. I guess it has been. But then one of my friends tells me about some contest at Momentum he saw where girls had to seductively eat a banana from a guy’s crotch area for the opportunity to get a prize. They even had another contest where guys threw bologna on girls’ butts, and if the bologna stuck, they got a prize. Evidently the girls were loving it. Nothing is classier than eating a banana out of some drunken guy’s crotch, and then taking off your pants so he can throw slices of processed meat on your ass in front of your esteemed peers. You’ve come a long way, baby! I bet the feminists of the ’60s and ’70s would like to hit these girls upside the head with their rolling pins. The whole point of the feminist movement, as Sir Mix a-Lot explained it to me, was to get men to stop looking at women as sexual objects and more as equals. It’s hard to look at someone as an equal when they’re bent over with their pants off in front of a hundred people, letting you throw slimy bologna on their ass. Gotta love college in the '00s! Nothing says “I am woman, hear me roar,” like eating a banana that some sweaty 30-year-old drunk is holding between his legs in front of a bar filled with onlookers. I bet the feminists of the ’60s would he furious if they saw that contest. But I hear the homy guys movement of the ’90s is quite happy about the progress they’ve made. Another thing I don’t get is the Mardi Gras beads. I’ve never been to Mardi Gras, but I hear it’s a good time if you bring beads. I see all these girls proudly displaying their beads but I don’t get the point: “I got drunk and showed a bunch of guys my boobs.” Nice. I don’t have any beads on me, but I do have a shoelace. I could take it out of my shoe and tie the ends together. Does that count? Of course girls will say no to that, because I ask them at the grocery store and my shoelaces aren’t as artsy as beads they hand out at Mardi Gras that look like marijuana leaves. Ana now aoout tnese uins Gone Wild videos? Good looking girls, but are some cheap beads worth losing your dignity over by being featured on a commercial that airs every two minutes on Comedy Central? I feel kind of bad for those girls. When they were flashing some stranger with a camera in New Orleans, they probably had no idea they were going to be seen 60 times a day by millions of detestable Comedy Central viewers. It’s kind of ironic how when a girl shows her private parts she gets rewarded with beads, but when a guy shows his he gets rewarded by a night in jail. It’s one of many double standards I bet the feminists never expected. Yes, in my expert opinion the feminist landscape has changed over recent years. But I’m not complaining. Phil Watson is a fourth-year student in the College of Journalism and Mass Communications.