THE BEHREND BEACON
The Hurricane captures all that is
path and delights audiences all the same
by Kelly Walsh
staff writer
- Here comes the story of 'The
Hurricane.' The man the authori
ties came to blame, for something
he ain't never done." Bob Dylan
had it right on the money with his
famous song also entitled The Hur-
rlcallC
The Hurricane was Rubin Carter
(Denzel Washington), a 1966
middleweight boxing contender
sentenced for a triple murder he
didn't commit. Carter spent more
than twenty years of his life in
prison knowing that he was pay
ing another man's debt.
"If you are black, might as well
not show up on the street unless
you NA'afllla draw the heat.'' One
late, misty night in 1966, there was
a robbery and triple murder which
was thought to be a hate crime.
The only thing that was known
about the murderers was that they
were black and drove a white car
with "butterfly lights'' in the hack.
Uncomplicated them: members of the
Gathering Field strip their music for Behrend
by Leanne Acklin
staff writer
As fans crowded Bruno's in
search of decent music, Bill Deasy
and Dave Brown of the Gathering
Field seemed happily obliged to of
fer a naked display . . . of music,
that is.
Dcasv and Brown returned to
Behrend on January 21 after a three
month absence to perform acousti
cally Sl)me of their Eaves, includ
ing crowd pleasers "Rhapsody in
Blue," "Complicated Me," and
"Lost in America."
A contradiction to the Gathering
Dear Jane,
I am interested in a girl that has a
boyfriend. Should I tell her that I
like her or keep it to myself?
Going Crazy
Dear Going Crazy,
Sometimes it is hard to tell from
the outside if the relationship is mar
riage material or in great peril. That
in mind, it is always worth trying.
If she happens to be madly in love,
then it won't matter (since you
won't have a chance anyway).
Flow well do you know this girl?
If you barely know her, you could
also pretend you didn't know about
her boyfriend. "Forget" she told
you. Or ask her out for hot choco
late. If she is at all interested, she
will probably take you up on the hot
chocolate. That is, as long as she
knows it doesn't commit her to any
thing more. Once you have your
foot in the door . . . . .
- _
If you know her as a friend it is
much harder. Whatever you do,
don't tell friends to tell her. In fact,
don't tell them at all. It makes you
look like a wuss (and it is ye hi .h-
When two cops pulled over Hurri
cane, 29, and John Artis, 21, they were
held for questioning. Lt. DeSimone
paid of two witnesses and lessened
their charges to bribe them into testi
fying against Carter, even though one
of the men shot said that Carter wasn't
the man. .. . Wounded man looks
up through his one dying eye, why'd
you bring him in here? Boy, that ain't
the guy."
"There's the story of The Hurricane
won't be over till they clear his name."
A Canadian boy, Lesera Martin
(Vicellous (VI) Reon Shannon), read
Carter's autobiography and couldn't
let the case rest. He convinced the
three adults he lived with to take in
terest, and the four moved to New
Jersey, refusing to leave until Carter
was free. Carter's case had been heard
in a New Jersey court two separate
times before, but this time it was taken
to federal court. Finally, after 20 years
had passed them by, Carter and Artis
were free.
" . . . Couldn't help to make you
feel ashamed to live in a land where
Field's usually uplifting music com
bined with hopelessly realistic lyrics,
Deasy and Brown performed "Saint
Jude." "This is one of the darkest little
stories I've ever written," Deasy com
mented. That statement was curiously
reflected in both the lyrics and the
music itself, which worked itself up
in a lengthy guitar interlude only to
suddenly stop and briefly leave us all
in silence, desperate for them to be
gin again. It was a refreshing paral
lel to the tone of the lyrics.
Deasy and Brown engaged in a sim
plified version of "Storytellers," giv
ing a brief explanation or comment
before each song and interacting
Met
and
laae,
school). Catch her in a normal situa
tion, like if you are both watching
movies with a bunch of friends. When
you are alone for even a moment, com
pliment her. (Note: Don't just blurt out
that you like her) "Why are you so
beautiful?" (try not to make it that
hokey). If you have never shown your
feelings for her before, she'll be
shocked. Shocked is good. And then
the ball's in her court. Be on the watch
for signals. Is she waving a white (ok,
I give in: I like you) flag, or the red
(go away) flag? Usually these are easy
to spot if you pay attention. So, go for
it, and good luck!
Jane
Dear Dick,
My girlfriend always beats me up. I
know it is wrong to hit a girl and I prob
ably never would. But, sometimes she
hits me so hard that it makes me cry. I
can't talk to anyone about this. What
should I do?
Battered
Dear Battered,
There is no good reason to stay in
an abusive relationshi ~ whether ou
FEATURES
justice is a game." It took four people
from Canada to free Carter. They
moved to New Jersey, spent an esti
mated $400,000 dollars (a small price
to pay when buying freedom), and re
arranged their lives all for a man they
read about in a book. Their kindness
and dedication resulted in letting two
men salvage the rest of their lives. Not
many people can say they have ever
done something so meaningful, or
sacrificed so much.
The loyalty and morality ofArtis is
also shocking. He was put in jail and
sacrificed more of his life than he had
lived, all because he would not tell a
lie. If he had said Carter committed
the crime he would have lived his life
outside the 10-foot cell. This is a
story of what happens when you truly
believe in something . . . when you
do not give up because you are walk
ing uphill.
The Hurricane is not a shocking
movie in terms of plot. It is shocking
in terms of loyalty and strength. Look
what can happen when people truly
believe in something, and do some
thing about it.
heavily with the crowd. The pair did
covers of Matthew Sweet and Bob
Dylan, and Deasy promoted his
newly released solo album between
songs.
As with all decent acoustic shows,
the opportunity to hear songs at their
infant and most true form was both
relaxing and captivating. Even at
their roots, these songs were enough
to get the audience swaying to the
music. The response to the tunes was
authentically appreciative and the
night was definitely enjoyable.
Thank you Bill and Dave, and good
luck with your newborns!
are a woman or a man. Before you
should even consider hitting your
girlfriend (even in self defense), con
sider getting yourself as far away
from her as possible. If you can't talk
to friends about it, there are a lot of
toll free hotlines like 1-800-799-
SAFE that can talk to you about your
options. "Husband battering" (or
abuse of men by women) is more
common than most people think.
Check out this website for more info:
www. vix.com/pub/men/battery/
battery.htm/.
(Also, as a side note, when you write
to "Dick and Jane," you are only
writing to Jane. The name is a joke
get it? Dick and Jane?)
Jane
If you have questions about your
relationship or sex (and who
doesn't??) write to Jane at
dickandjane@wild-mail.com, or
put your letters/questions in the
Beacon mailbox marked "Dear
Jane". All correspondences are
confidential. As many letters will
be answered as . ossible.
FEBRUARY 4, 2000
in its
' .)
Aries (March 21-April 19). Never allow
the mean professor to eat you up.
Taurus (April 20-May 20). Break on
through to the other side, or just think 70s
Gemini ( May 21-June 21). Pay attention
to Le.t
R
0
S
Cancer (June 22-July 22). Wearing black
this week is fine. It's dreary outside
anyway
Leo (July 23-Aug. 22). Enjoy the scenery
of Erie this week: black and white.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Write inspiring
messages in the ice in the million dollar
staircase.
Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). Fight the powers
that he.
Scorpio (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Melons,
they're not just for breakfast anymore
(nudge, nudge, wink, wink)
c
0
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Travel to
Cleveland and check out the shows at the
Odeon
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). See if you
have what it takes to come up with a final
answer.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb 18). Stand strong
and watch what you are standing in.
P
E
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20). Deep thought-rfti
Vio N N
the moon signifies a changing world and
bedtime buddy. 41141)
by
Bongo the three legged
monkey
Denzel Washington portrays Robin
"Hurricane" Carter, a boxer wrong
fully accused of a crime. Vicellous
(VI) Reon Shannon plays a young
man inspired by Smith's book who
forms a bond with the famous boxer.
Shannon's character's name is
Lesera Martin, a young man who
has not yet seen the light of
oppportunity. Shannon has ap
peared on Touched by an Angel,
NYPD Blue, and many other shows.
Washington won a Golden globe for
his performance in this film. Check
out the website at www.the
hurricane, corn.
P
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