THE BEHREND BEACON ANUARY 28 2000 PAGE
WORLD NEWS
Election 2000:
turned off by politics
by Lori Lessner
Knight-Ridder Tribune
January 19, 2000
WASHINGTON A generation af
ter 18-year-olds won the right to
vote, young people don't find poli
tics particularly germane to their
lives. They say they don't bother
casting a ballot because voting has
little to do with the way public policy
decisions are made, and that politi
cians don't listen to their concerns
anyway.
Although they've written off poli
tics, their civic-minded spirit is very
much alive. Three-fourths per
formed some sort of volunteer work
in the past two years far more than
the 15 percent who voted in the 1998
election.
That double-edged message, the
result of two separate polls that ex
plored what motivates young people
leading up to the 2000 Presidential
election, suggests that young adults
prefer to give back to their commu
nities by performing public service
rather than by wading into partisan
politics.
More of them have taught, fed the
hungry, and cleaned up the environ
ment than have volunteered on a po
litical campaign or seriously consid
ered running for office.
But experts who track voter par
ticipation are concerned about young
people's reluctance to vote.
Only 32 percent of 18- to 24-year
olds voted in the 1996 Presidential
election, while 67 percent of those
65 and older voted, U.S. Census data
shows. What's worse, experts say,
High court considers free speech rights
of abortion protesters at clinics
by Jan Crawford Greenburg
Chicago Tribune
January 20, 2000
WASHINGTON In a case pitting
the free speech rights of abortion pro
testers against a patient's right to
seek medical care, the Supreme
Court grappled Wednesday, January
19, with a state law that limits the
protesters' ability to talk to people
entering clinics.
Several justices suggested that the
Colorado law was too broad and vio
lated the protesters' free speech
rights under the Ist Amendment. The
law prohibits so-called "sidewalk
counselors" from getting within eight
feet of people entering medical clin
ics, and it applies within 100 feet of
clinic entrances.
"It seems to me to be whimsical
and imprecise and inconsistent with
our precedents," Justice Anthony
Kennedy said of the law, noting it
could broadly apply to everyone who
entered a high-rise office building
that contained a doctor's office.
But other justices noted that the
law didn't stop the protesters from
speaking. Even from eight feet away,
a person can carry on a conversation
in a normal tone, they said.
"What speech is it difficult for any
one to make when they're eight feet
away?" Justice Stephen Breyer asked
a lawyer for the protesters. "What is
it that I can't tell her?"
Emphasizing that eight feet isn't
300 flight attendants to sue tobacco makers over second-hand smoke
by Jay Weaver
Knight-Ridder Tribune
January 20, 2000
Three hundred flight attendants
who say they never smoked ciga
rettes plan to file 300 individual
lawsuits in Miami on Thursday,
January 27, against U.S. tobacco
makers. These flight attendants
claim that their respiratory illnesses
were caused by second-hand smoke
aboard jetliners.
They are seeking millions of dol
lars in damages.
Thousands of other lawsuits are
expected to be filed by September
the deadline under a class-action
settlement reached between the air
line attendants and Big Tobacco in
Miami-Dade Circuit Court in 1997.
As part of that agreement, flight at-
"I have grown old
waiting for young
people to start
voting."
-Ken Bode,
Dean of Medill
News Service,
Northwestern
University
is that young people seem unlikely
to pick up the voting habit as they get
In the Presidential election of 1972,
the first one in which 18-year•-olds
had the vote, 49.6 of 18- to 24-year
olds voted, a percentage that has
steadily declined ever since.
Mel Henning, a University of Kan
sas senior, said she has seen her peers
become increasingly committed to
volunteering in the four years she has
lived on campus. She is part of that
trend. She's helped build homes for
Habitat for Humanity and is active in
a program that matches children with
Big Brothers and Big Sisters on cam
pus.
"Sometimes we get tired of every
one thinking our generation is just a
bunch of lazy, non-motivated people,
so we volunteer for ourselves and to
show the older generation that not all
of us are doing crazy stuff all the
time," said Henning, a Wichita stu
dent majoring in elementary educa
tion.
that far, Breyer twice noted he could
easily "talk to Justice Kennedy" from
that distance. Kennedy sits two
chairs away from Breyer on the
bench.
Added Justice Sandra Day
O'Connor: "You
certainly can con
vey anything you
want to convey
orally at eight
feet . . . speak in
normal conversa
tional tone and be
heard fully."
But Jay
Sekulow, an at-
torney represent
ing the protesters,
said the law af
fects the kind of
speech protesters
can engage in
They can't talk confidentially to pa
tients, and they cannot share leaflets
or Bible passages unless the person
consents, he said.
What's more, he said, it could ap
ply to reporters seeking to interview
people outside clinics or, even, to
people in front of hospitals who sim
ply are passing out discount coupons
for pizza.
"The Colorado statute at issue here
converts protected speech into a
crime," Sekulow told the court.
Specifically, the law prohibits
people from approaching others on
sidewalks or in public areas near clin-
tendants won the right to sue the to
bacco industry on an individual ba
sis.
Among the alleged victims is
Cindy Williams, 45, of West Palm
Beach, Fla., who worked as a flight
attendant for U.S. Air from 1973 to
1998. She is now out on disability.
Williams said she was cooped up
in commercial jetliners daily and
forced to inhale passenger cigarette
smoke for years until smoking was
banned by the airline in 1989.
"I cough more than a hundred
times a day," said Williams, a
mother of two who is married to the
chairman of the Port of Palm Beach
County. "I see a pulmonary special
ist and ENT every month, and they
fear I have inflamed bronchial tubes.
They [the tubes] are highly irritated,
and that causes me to cough.
Young Americans
Although she said she can see why
some people don't think voting mat
ters much, she made sure to vote for
the president in 1996. She has paid
less attention to local elections.
She expects to continue volunteer
ing and perhaps find work in a non
profit group after graduation.
Like Henning, a significant major
ity of young adults polled by the
Mellman Group for the Panetta In
stitute expect to spend part of their
careers working for non-profits or
performing some kind of public ser
vice. But only a quarter voiced an
interest in pursuing careers in poli
tics to express their civic
mindedness.
College students under age 31
were asked about their career paths
and other topics that tie into the pub
lic arena as part of the poll.
President Clinton's former chief
of-staff, Leon Panetta, started the in
stitute to encourage public service.
His poll results mirror those released
Tuesday, January 18, by Campaign
Media Group for Northwestern
University's Medill News Service,
which trains graduate students in po
litical journalism. The Medill poll
surveyed people ages 18 to 24.
Ellen Shearer, co-director of the
Medill News Service, said the find
ings are encouraging because they
show young people are not cynical
about government; they're just get
ting involved in their own way and
steering clear of more traditional
paths.
"They're saying, 'lf we're being
ignored by the politicians, we'll ig
nore you right back and go volun
ics to pass out handbills or leaflets
or engage in "oral protest, education
or counseling" unless the targeted
individual consents. The prohibition
covers an area within 100 feet of the
entrance to a health-care facility.
"What speech is it
difficult for any
one to make when
they're eight feet
away?"
-Justice Stephen
Breyer,
U.S. Supreme Court
ordered the
Colorado Su
preme Court to rethink the issue in
light of its 1997 ruling that some of
a judge's restrictions on New York
protesters were unconstitutional.
After restudying the issue, the
state court concluded last year that
the Colorado law was different and
could survive constitutional chal
lenge. It said the legislature fairly
accommodated the two fundamen
tal rights at issue, because the law
did not prohibit a type of speech and
was narrowly drawn to address the
government's important interest in
ensuring people get medical care.
What's more, it noted that the law
"I have that wheezing feeling in
my chest, and I've never smoked a
cigarette in my life," added Will
iams. "I look fit, I just don't feel
fit."
The flight attendants once
thought to face impossible odds
against the industry may have
an advantage in their individual
suits. The burden of proof rests
with the cigarette makers to show
jurors that something other than
second-hand smoke caused the res
piratory sicknesses.
The suits are being filed at a criti
cal time for the tobacco industry,
which is fighting countless lawsuits
by sick smokers and paying billion
dollar settlements to states across
the nation.
In Miami-Dade Circuit Court, at
torneys for a class of 500,000 sick
teer somewhere,'" Shearer said.
"Right now, they f young people]
don't think there is a reason for them
to vote."
Educators and politicians have la
mented low voter turnout among
young people for years. As Ken
Bode, Medill's dean, put it Tuesday,
Jan. 18: "I have grown old waiting
for young people to start voting and
paying attention to politics."
To engage more young adults in
politics, graduate students in the
Medill News Service will cover this
year's Presidential campaign from
the point of view of their peers. Their
stories will reach 500 college news
papers and dozens of daily newspa
pers and TV stations across the coun
try.
The students also will try to attract
young readers by reporting on youth
issues for MTV. Both groups will
share information on their Web sites.
There is also talk of organizing a
Presidential debate in which college
journalists would lead the discussion,
steering each candidate toward is
sues that concern them.
Others hope young people will re
alize politics and voting are relevant
to their lives as they become more
involved in volunteerism.
"We can't count on volunteering
by itself, but as young people vol
unteer they will see that federal hous
ing policy has an impact on services
available to the homeless and that en
vironmental policy has something to
do with beach clean-ups," said Mark
Mel!man, president of the Mellman
Group, which commissioned one of
the polls.
didn't foreclose all methods of com-
munication
A critical difference, it noted, was
that the Colorado law did not require
protesters to move back in order to
maintain the eight-foot buffer if pa
tients came nearer. The New York
restrictions, on the other hand, re
quired protesters to maintain a 15-
foot buffer and back away as the per
son approached.
Several justices focused on that
difference, suggesting that the law
wasn't so troublesome because a pro
tester could pass leaflets or informa
tion to people as they walked by.
T h e
battle over the
law has been
raging since
1993, shortly af
ter the state leg
islature passed
it. Several pro
testers immedi
ately challenged
it, but they lost
in the Colorado
courts. How
ever, the U.S.
There was a humorous moment
when Justice Antonin Scalia took is
sue with the suggestion that prohib
iting protesters from coming closer
than eight feet wouldn't affect the
nature of their protest.
Supreme Court
"I rarely stand 8 feet away," Scalia
said of his conversations.
"Yes, but everyone you communi
cate with is a willing listener,"
Michael McLachlan, the Colorado
solicitor general who argued in sup
port of the law, told Scalia.
The courtroom erupted in laugh
ter as did Scalia, who is known
for his aggressive questioning in ar
guments.
But O'Connor got the last line
and the biggest laugh as she
swiftly corrected McLachlan:
"Don't be too sure."
by July
Florida smokers are arguing their
landmark case against Big Tobacco
a trial that could cripple the in
dustry with astronomical compen
satory and punitive damages.
Jurors already found that tobacco
makers such as Philip Morris and
R.J. Reynolds deceived the public
about the addictive nature and
deadly effects of smoking ciga
rettes.
The husband-and-wife legal team
heading that case, Stanley and Su
san Rosenblatt, are the same attor
neys who won the original class-ac
tion settlement for flight attendants
in 1997, which was upheld by a
Florida appellate court last year.
Under that 1997 agreement, the to
bacco companies agreed to pay
$3OO million to a new research
foundation to find a cure for respi-
A decision in the case is expected
Senior kicked out of school
for "threatening"artwork
by Alex Branch
Knight-Ridder Tribune
January 19, 2000
LEON, Kan. Sarah Boman says
she was aiming for conceptual art:
art that emphasizes an idea, rather
than an object. So she admits her
drawing representing the delusions
of an "obsessive, compulsive, para
noid" madman might have gone a
Sarah Boman, a 17-year-old senior at Bluestem High School,
created this piece of artwork that school officials consider a. threat
Bowman was suspended for the rest of the school year.
little against the grain.
But when the 17-year-old senior
at Bluestem High School tacked it
up on a school door last week, she
was expecting artistic criticism from
classmates and teachers. Instead,
she found herself suspended for the
rest of the school year.
Classmates and neighbors are cir
culating petitions for her reinstate
ment so that she can graduate with
her class this spring. And an art gal
lery has invited her to exhibit so
people can make up their own minds
whether the art is threatening, said
the gallery owner.
Principal Dale Harper said school
officials were immediately con
cerned when they read the poster,
which was placed on a classroom
door and was unsigned. In the cen
ter of the drawing is the word
"please" written in big, red letters.
Sentences spiral out from the
middle to show the madman's spin
ning, paranoid thoughts, Sarah said.
"Please, tell me who killed my
dog," it reads. "I miss him very
much." Later it reads: "I'll kill you
all! You all killed my dog because
you all hated him."
Sarah sees her punishment as a
gross overreaction to what was in
tended to be thought-provoking art.
"It was entirely fictional," Sarah
said. "It was just a different kind of
art I wanted to try. It was supposed
to be a look into the head of a mad
man. I never expected this."
Harper, when asked if he thought
the artwork constituted a threat,
said, "I think the words speak for
themselves." He then said he
wouldn't get into specifics of the
incident because it was under ap
peal.
A three-person school district sus
pension committee heard Sarah's
case and found that the artwork con
stituted a "threat of violence"
against the school and warranted a
suspension for the rest of the school
year.
ratory illnesses suffered from sec
ond-hand smoke.
A spokeswoman for R.J.
Reynolds said, as policy, the to
bacco company would not comment
on the expected lawsuits because
the suits have not been filed yet. But
the spokeswoman, Jan Smith, said:
"We would vigorously defend our
selves in court." The Rosenblatts,
who face a court gag order in their
current tobacco trial, picked six
Miami law firms to represent the
flight attendants. Each of the six
law firms will file 50 suits for the
300 flight attendants.
Miami attorney Steven Hunter be
lieves the attendants have strong
cases because of victories in the pre
vious flight attendants' class case.
"Once you establish that the sec
ond-hand smoke is causing their
Sarah and her parents, Jerry and
Julie Boman, have filed an appeal
to the Bluestem school board, which
can overturn the panel's decision or
reduce the punishment.
Jerry Boman said he understood
the school's concern but argued that
school officials were taking this too
far.
"My daughter has never even had
detention," he said. "My wife and
I aren't even really big fans of this
piece. But we're intelligent enough
to know that it is art, not a threat
against anybody."
The Acme Gallery wants the pub
lic to be able to judge the quality of
Sarah's art. To that end, the gallery
and artists' conclave will stage an
exhibition later this month of sev
eral works by the aspiring artist.
"Individually, the members have
various and sundry reasons" for in
viting Sarah, said Mark Dwyer, an
Acme artist. "Some feel she needs
support from other artists; others
hate the notion of censorship at any
level, and feel we should do a show
for anyone being censored. Others
are unimpressed with the whole deal
and will go about their work as they
usually do, and will ignore having
this minor celebrity in the show."
Among those hoping that the ex
hibition will be a show of support
for Boman is David Murano, a cu
rator for the Wichita Center for the
Arts and an Acme artist. "I wanted
to offer the space to her," Murano
said, ". . . so people can see what
she does and that she's not some
raving lunatic."
Since her suspension, Sarah has
taken her portfolio to an assistant
professor of art at Wichita State
University. She has a letter from
the professor saying the "madman"
piece indeed falls into the classifi
cation of conceptual art.
She said she is surprised that she
hasn't been able to work something
out with school officials. Just re
cently they selected her to represent
the student body in interviewing po
tential candidates for a teaching
opening.
"If they just would have told me
not to do it, I never would have put
anything up again," she said. "I can
understand their concern, but they
know me, and they know who I am.
I would never hurt anyone." Bud
Norman of The Eagle contributed
to this report.
diseases, you're almost home,"
Hunter said, adding that each atten
dant will be able to show how ciga
rette smoke affected their health,
medical costs, livelihood and
lifestyle.
"It has to be terrifying to have a
disease that affects your ability to
breathe," Hunter said. "More than
half are still working, but all of them
have seen their lives go downhill.
You can't put a dollar amount on
damages yet because each flight at
tendant has a different case."
Williams, of West Palm Beach,
said she doubts she will ever be able
to return to work. "I'm fearful about
the future, because as I get older I'm
not going to have the ability to with
stand what I withstand every day,"
said Williams. "I'm hoping for a
miracle cure."