Editorial Opinion The annual practice of submitting dormitory contracts has become in famous among legends of University life. Two years ago, a dorm contract system which offered dormitory residents guaranteed reassignment to their rooms, coupled with downtown apartments that became grossly overpriced or just plain gross, resulted in students submitting 1,200 more contracts than space available. Last year, students camped out in sleeping bags in dormitory quads for up to 30 hours because a dorm contract system under which the first students to subMit contracts were the first to receive space created a panic among prospective dormitory residents. • This year, housing officials are plan ning a new strategy. They have proposed a lottery system, in which computer cards would be. fed into a computer and students would receive dorm space based solely on the luck of the draw. Students who would rather control their own destiny, even if that . means living out of a sleeping bag for a day and a half, might be disturbed about having a We're staying on the right side of the law It's just not that easy being a student and staying on the right side of the law in this town. Excuse my paranoia, but last year when the town council failed to pass a human rights ordinance (acknowledging different liberal lifestyles) but passed another law restricting the number of unrelated people living together in a house, it was a bad omen. What's even worse is the slinging of slanderous stateMents by the local purveyors of justice. The first time it happened was this past summer. The local magistrate said he was tired of having students coming before him and lying. His assumption was, I thought, a prejudicial statement that did not speak Well of my chances on a random day in court. It was last week though when I realized just how tilted the scales of justice really are. That was when I read the statements of a retiring county judge who saidtbat during his years, of service, he had been" pestered ‘by students •who kept, coming, into small, claims court., "Students are always coming into court, - always appealing. They're just never satisfied," Judge Campbell complained. So after observing the discriminatory nature of the law it should be un- 60's spirit gone It seems that the "in" topic of editorial retrospective this week is a "this is your life" view of the tumultuous sixties. It seems that every fifth and sixth grader in 1969 had his eyes opened to the circus-like atmosphere of demonstrations. But asking such questions as "Where have the '6os gone?" does nothing to try to rekindle that spirit. Maybe Mr. Konski should have asked "What ever happened to the Vietnam War?" or "Where have all the racial hostilities 'gone?" or "What ever happened to the poli military state that existed then?" If Mr. Konski would like to reminisce about the vigor and organization of protests back then, maybe he should consider their source. The American people have experienced much in this decade. The vigor that desired to bring about change died in the face of that change. After losing the Vietnam War; obtaining rights and privileges for the black man; discovering the extent of political treachery in our govern ment; and bringing the power of the youth to the focus of American consciousness; the marches, clashes and protests came slowly and spirally down to sporadic outbreaks by fringe factions. The organizations and vigor Mr. Konski speaks of were the result of intelligent social structures of socio-political groups attempting to break the hold of democratic principles of government. Mr. Konski's assumption about the activists of the '6os knowing what was wrong with the country is moot. If all the support that Mr. Dorm reassignment would add human element to lottery plan derstandable why I took to staying in my house and hiding most of my household activities. I believed that if I wasn't observed breaking any laws or or dinances, and if I didn't have to deal with any merchants or landlords who would take advantage of me, then I wouldn't have to go to court and confront a blind justice. My roommates agreed to this cautious approach. But there was some difficulty with our plan. We had moved into a neighborhood which might be called 'residential' there weren't -too Many' students.:, So we quickly summed up the . situation. The neighbors to the right of our house seemed to drink a lot. They had a still set up in their back yard, so we figured they were above the caliber High stakes computer decide whether they'll remain in the dorms or have to hunt in the apartment safari next spring. But after a barrage of complaints from parents, students, state representatives, Board of Trustees members and Old Main administrators, housing officials have resigned themselves to the fact that with a limited amount of dorm space, some students simply can't be ac commodated. But realizing realism doesn't mean ignoring humanism. And initially, it appears that housing officials aren't skirting this important fact. Although their working lottery plan fails to address reassignment whereby students could receive their same dorm room and dormitory floors and houses could stick together Director of Residential Life M. Lee Uperaft said he realizes the value of dorm floor unity. He surmised that after a lottery doled out dorm space, a priority system could be re-established so that students who live in the dormitories this year can return to their samerooms next fall. One of the most controversial points of rii ~,A,,A) Illustration by bobble Me Letters to the Editor Konski claims would rush to promote the noble causes of the '7os, why then, didn't the' political revolution that the activists desired come about? Because it could not draw upon all the factions prevalent at the time. The sensibilities of the American people could not accept nor tolerate the changes projected. "Where have the '6os gone?" They have disappeared into the apathy and dissimilation of the individual that has been spawned in the '7os and may surely grow in the 'Bos. Perhaps the band Ten Years After said it best: "I'd love to change the world, but I don't know what to do, so I'll leave it up to you." W. Kipp Anderson llth-advertising Oct. 2 Is rock a sin? of "townie" that would turn us in to a merciless court system for infractions of the law. On the opposite side was just a patch of woods as far as we could see. So there appeared no obvious signs of local residents who might take offense at a student living nearby. Just to be on the safe side, my roommate Fred, who is in ROTC; in sisted in suiting up in his commando gear at night to patrol the southern frontier until we knew for sure what we were up against. Tee clogged drain at the foot of the sunken driveway provided us with a nifty moat to keep away bill collectors and other trespassers during the day. It was too good to last. Last week there was a knock on the door. A woman identified herself as the census taker. Debra, one of our other roommates, suddenly became suspicious. She reminded Fred and I that only last week the,State College School Board census taker came - by, Fred, , suggested that maybe this was a relative of President . Carter, since 'the. N.Y. Times -had just reported that the president was providing over 200,000 patronage jobs to census takers to assure himself a strong political base for the calling elections. We all conferred on our side of the unopen door. If it was a relative of President Carter we certainly weren't taking any chances. So we decided to "keep our own space" as the saying goes. So I op6ned the door a crack to confront the situation. "No one lives here," I told the woman on the steps who was, perched on her toes trying to get a look over my shoulder. "Oh, I thought someone must . . ~" she started to query. "No, no one lives here and probably no one ever will because of an ordinance in town that says more than three unrelated people can't live together in a house," I told her. "The - economy being what it is, families just can't afford these places anymore." The woman seemed a bit perplexed as she flipped a page on her clipboard. "I only need to know two things. Is this a two family house or a one . . ~" she In Monday's issue of The Daily Collegian, there was an article on page 6 involving a discussion with Jed Smock entitled "Rock and roll instrument of Satan." This is a vast generalization. There are many rock songs which do not supply any immoral lyrics. The Beatles them selves stated that the songs Smock mention edwere not drug re lated. Also, students the lottery plan is that athletes, sororities, interest houses, and the smaller Winter Course and acadeMic exchange programs will be exempt from the lottery and automatically be allocated 1,550 dormitory spaces. Although some dormitory residents who would get bumped out in next win ter's arbitrary draw would argue no group should receive special preference, shattering sororities and interest houses that have cemented traditions and friendships over the years for the sake of the system seems absurd and con tradictory to the dorm unity arguments. The Association of Residence Hall Students, which is in the process of sorting out its preferences, dormitory residents and other interested parties should provide much-needed student perspective to smooth out housing's admitted bugs in the lottery's current rough draft form. If .students wait until next winter to comtemplate next year's housing situation, they may learn another rude lesson about University history that it often repeats itself. listen to the music for the music and not just the lyrics. HoweVer, I can see Smock's point 'and thus can offer an alternative. There are many Christian rock groups around that preach the Good News. For harder rock fans, I can recommend DeGarmo & Key, Fireworks, Larry Norman or Benny Hester. These groups definitely are not satanic. In fact, the song "Rock Band" on Firework's second album includes the lyrics "Satan doesn't have a hold on this rock-n-roll band." For the mellower fans, there is Amy Grant, 2nd Chapter of Acts, and of course Keith Green. Keith Green is a master of the piano, and really conveys the Good News. If it's country you enjoy, there's the Imperials; if it's jazz, there's Sweet Comfort Band. There are scores of other . Christian rock singers Randy Stonehill, Chuck Girard, Noel Paul Stookey, Honeytree, B.J. ,Thomas, Barry McGuire which are not Satan's messengers. I have only recently become acquainted with Christian rock. For anyone who -has trouble overlooking the secular rock song's lyrics, or even those who can, one can alWays try some Christian rock. The rock is a spiritual tool in which these singers can "Preach my gospel to every creature," and it should not be con demned. I still listen to Foreigner, Styx, and Jethro TUB, but now I make room on my shelf for Keith Green. inquired. I tried to become even more con vincing when I realized that maybe we could all avoid paying the occupational tax the town hits us for every year. "I am the caretaker of this block. The entire street is abandoned," I said. "The tuition hike and the clamping down on parties by the local police had a lot to do with it." By this time the census lady was noticibly nervous and appeared fidgety as she flipped more pages on her clip board. But she continued to beg the question. Believing that perhaps I had • still not convinced her, I decided to change my tactics and give a different reply when she asked yet again what the status of our house was. "Well, yes, it used to be a single family house," I responded, "But now there are tunnels underneath and they run into the streets where the catacombs are. The number of student refugees - down there could he. into the thousands. They are a merry band of pickpockets just like • Charles -Dickens' characters of old, seedy London." "It's a shame,". I told her, "but the economy, the tuition increases and the attempts to keep students from saving money on living atcomodations have led the students to a life of crime. They used to be law-abiding citizens," When the census lady took off up Allen Street, we thought we had successfully given her the slip; but shortly after we were served with summonses. While we anticipated our day in court we wondered to ourselves if it was the woman catching sight of Fred in his full military regalia that prompted the in dictment. We were charged with planning guerrilla activities. So I am paranoid again. Unless we are proven innocent the charge could carry a stiff penalty. The judge has already an nounced that he will make examples of us. He has no sympathy, he said, for students who don't respect the in stitutions of his government. Michael Whitehouse is a graduate student in journalism and a columnist for The Daily Collegian. Mike Conner Ist-mathematics Oct. , 8 fe t4e y, et.low! %TS war THE END OF THE "riLLTI• t 4 COME IM-leN YOU Get' ►HoME! '~ Not front page The interview with Jed Smock, Monday, Oct. 8, represents journalistic irresponsibility. Smock is a basket case. He is as newsworthy as the juggling club; an amusing diversion. To give Smock the same space' as President Oswald and Joe Pa terno is bad judgment. Jed Smock thrives on attention. He makes flippant statements like, "All girls in the dorms are whores." He called a friend of mine a whore because she disagreed with him. He made anti- Catholic statements, which are immature and callous. They go beyond the bounds of hyperbole. He tries to gain much-needed self-importance by making an absurdloterpretation of the Bible and • defending it in the name of God. It's fun to banter with jokers like Smock, but it's not front page news. Next, you will be in- 'OK, WI4O 'URNS*" OM Tsl mow .. • The nostalgia game: Don't fool yourself When people pine for Edwardian England, or the antebellum South, or the '2os, or the days of King Arthur, or 14th century Florence, you can at least understand their nostalgia. Whatever was wrong with those periods, whatever social bombi lay waiting to explode, there was also something very desirable about them something naively colorful, hedonistic and lovely. But I am at a loss to explain why people miss the '6os. Whenever somebody starts talking fondly about the days of riots in Wat, violence at the Chicago convention, a war overseas, overt hostility everywhere, etc., I get a creeping feeling that he's somehow looking back but not seeing. No one will admit to missing the riots, but in a way that's exactly what the '6os fans are doing. Like adolescents who can only see the black and white of issues, they want the riots back to stir them out of complacency. They will not speak except to scream. It's not that there are no issues to "speak" about today. But the fuel crisis or the plight of the Boat People doesn't affect us directly the way issues like the draft used to. Fur thermore, issues seem more complex today: In 1969, if you were against the war, you could simply advocate getting our troops out of Indochina. But where are the easy answers for the energy crisis or inflation? Everybody has to share the blame for them, and there just ain't no work for those who want to be saints. The yearning for a time when everybody was having his con sciousness raised is, of course, ad mirable. But political awareness has become (and perhaps always was) just a role one slips into. Nostalgia is an adult's form of playing dress-up. It doesn't take Freud to figure out that somebody who needs riots and protests to show a little concern for his fellow man is not totally sincere in his convictions. But nostalgia, because it allows us to soothe our consciences, is not just a harmless game. As long as we can tell ourselves we would act dif ferently, if we had been born 10 years earlier, we feel all right. As long, as the old counterculture heroes and heroines the Jane Fondas, the Rennie Da vises and the Bob Dylans allow themselves to be welcomed back into the media like tame old sheepdogs, we do not feel too guilty. As long as movies like "Hair," which made the '6os into a kind of Emerald City, can come out, we can cry about the opportunities we missed for activism, and wait for things to get really bad before we will attempt to change them. Distance has allowed us to tame our memories of the period. We hold '6os parties, or try to recreate Woodstock; or march up to Seabrook to participate in demonstrations that solve little but at least can make us feel like neo-revoluntionaries. We can pat ourselves on the backs, feeling certain we're activists at heart, and keep waiting for something to believe in again. Jim Zarroli is a 12th-term journalism major and staff writer for The Daily Collegian. terviewing the grand turtle of the local Ku Kiwi Klan. Also, I urge the Christian community not, to support these self-styled evangelists. Right now, many frauds are preying on the conditioned emotions of many Christians. :Collegian Tuesday, Oct. 9, 1979—Page 2 Pete Barnes Marjie Schlessinger Editor Business Manager BOARD OF EDITORS: Managing Editor, Harry Glenn; Editorial Editor, Andy • Ratner; Assistant Editorial Editor, Maryann Hakowski; News Editors; Bruce Becker, Lynn Osgood; Copy Editors, Vicki Fong, Sue Ferrell, Paula Froke, Lynne Johnson, Jim Mc; Canney, Dave Van Horn; Photo Editor, Chip Connelly; f" , Assistant Photo Editors, Dave Kraft, Sherrie Weiner; Sports'Editor, Jon Saraceno, Assistant Sports Editor; Denise Bachman, Tom , ,Verducci; Arts Editor, Diana Younken; Assistant Arts Editor, P.J. Platt.; Features Editor, Amy Endlich; Graphics Editor, Della Hoke; The Weekly Collegian Editor, Allen Reeder; Assistant Weekly Collegian Editor, Betsy Long; Office Manager, Jackie Clifford. • COMPLAINTS: News and editorial complaints shciul . - be presented to the editor. Business and advertising complaints should be presented to the business manager. If the complaint is not satisfactorily resolved, grievances may be filed with the Accuracy and Fair Play Committee of Collegian Inc. Information on filing grievances is available from Gerry Lyhn Hamilton, executive secretary, Collegian Inc Timothy Daily 12th-chemistry . Oct. 8-'11; © 1979 Collegian Inc. The problem Penn State is not unique in its racial situation. Many minority groups experience the effects of racism through the media, through fellow students, and through the most destructive form of all, ) institutional racism. In searching for a solution to. Penn State's racism problem, one must begin with the administration, many minority leaders believe. The special needs and con siderations • of minority groups should have.priority in improving race , relations, they feel: Since. ignorance and a lack of awareness are key issues in often unintentional slurs No right religion When speaking of racism on campus, one form comes to mind which is not only widespread, but is condoned and viewed as humorous. This is the Christian practice of proselytization. Most people do not recognize proselytizing as racism 'beenit either does not affect them or because they have 'been biought up believing it to be right. To me, and many others at whom it is aimed, this is much more insulting than unmindful acts of bigotry in The Daily Collegian. Christianization is directed right at my beliefs. Religion is a very personal thing. Yet it is very hard to keep ope's religious beliefs from affecting negatively how one acts toward other people. Growing up as a Jew is in some ways 4 10 much harder than most other minorities. No one understands how disturbing simply singing Christmas Carols in elementary school can be. This is why the government has gone to great lengths to try to keep religion out of public life. Campus Crusaders, Bro Cope, Jed Smock and Josh Mc- Dowell, you must learn to respect other peoples' religion, just as we respect yours. I believe just as strongly in my religious Iteliefs and therefore do not believe I need to be "saved." There is no such thing as the "right" religion. • Racism is racism Racism is a significant and serious problem at Penn State as it is at all times and in all places. There isn't another setting that comes to mind in which there is such a concentration of different people in such close contact with each other. In this respect, the university setting is a unique situation, therefore, *the presence of these groups should be more carefully respected. The administration of the school sets the tone by which the entire school, faculty and students will operate. If the ad ministration doesn't take a hard line stand against racism in it's university community, then the remaining segments of this community will function accordingly remember, in tentional or unintentional, racism is racism. l i r Many of the non-white students coming to Penn State are not only embarking on a unique academic experience but they are also coming into a different racial environment; without the administration taking the lead in making the adjustment a smooth process other areas of the community wouldn't be expected to be sensitive to the needs and feelings of the non white community. The Collegian shouldn't have to insult a *articular group in order for that group to become more visible to the white community. In this university setting there are certain situations that affect most of the student body, in a limiiar manner , that is, dealing with classes, assignments`, exams, ' etc. But there are other areas of sensitivity and of equal, if not greater, im portance that should be of great concern to the entire corn 'munity, that is being aware of the many racial groups on this against minorities, perhaps a lesson in sensitivity is the answer. Though many slurs found in the press and in speech are not meant to degrade or harm minorities, lack of sensitivity serves to perpetuate the stereotypes that many groups are fighting to eliminate. Solutions for Penn State's race problems are fan from simple. We can monitor the media and urge ad ministrator§ to act ,on problems facing minorities, but '"tii'"b6gifi l `sblVing '"the racism problem, we must all increase our sensitivity to the differences between us. Aaron T. Gould 4th-computer science Oct. 8 Op-ed Letters capus. When racism is directed at one of these groups, it's being directed at them all; racist attitudes against one group because they're not white carries over to all non-white groups remember, intentional or unintentional, direct or indirect, racism is racism. Institutional racism Institutional racism is when a group or race promotes race as a primary determinant of human traits and capacities establishing them as superior to other groups or races. It is my belief there is a serious problem at Penn State and minorities receive bad press. There is a large vocabulary ranging from genteel to vulgar, expressing racial difference and derogation. These language patterns constitute powerful directives of the ways members of the majority group think about and communicate concerning American Indians and other ethnic/minority group members. To negate traits, values, or capacities of a race is a negation of that culture or group. Therefore, an attack on a. culture's values is symbolically an attack on the whole culture. Recently, almost daily, there have been examples of racism in the Collegian. They may not be malicious or purposeful but they are made at the 'expense of the American Indian. References such as self-righteous cigar store Indian, Indian dancing and six little Indians have been used. The solution and options: to sensitize the Collegian staff to institutionalized racism, eliminate references to ethnic or minorities when describing situations or individuals, and/or to establish a list of members of ethnic/minorities that could be consulted to check for racial slurs. Religious discrimination Although conditions of discrimination 'exist at Penn State, their presence is most likely the result of a lack of awareness rather than a lack of concern. The University would probably remedy the situation were they aware of a problem. Last year , the administration took a stance against anti black advertisifig in The Daily Collegian. If a group was passing out anti-semitic literature, I'm sure the University would put a stop to it.' .‘ However, conditions of religious discrimination do exist. Frequently, final exams are given on Saturday, but Sunday exams are not regularly scheduled. This requires Jewish students to file for a conflict exam, but automatically allows Native Americans: A Editor's Note Larry Gorospe is a member of the Chippewa tribe, and is a doctoral candidate at the University. By LARRY GOROSPE Native American Program Native American Day was Sept. 21. So what? you say. Well, to the first Americans it means something. It This article was not meant to be a quick course on brings a memory of treaties made and promises Indian culture or its values, but rather to bring an broken. awareness of the Indian presence in this country. Many people would say that it happened a long time Reuben Snake, A Winnebago, has said it simply in his ago and "I can not be held responsible for actions of my writing, "Being Indian Is": predecessors." What they do not realize is that the Being Indian is .. . Fighting with the U.S. Army to same actions are being repeated today. Which brihgs us save your country from the evils of communism and to a point. against the U.S. Army on your reservation to keep the It is ironic when Americans know more about foreign Corps of Engineers from stealing all of your land. affairs and distant peoples than about American In- Being Indian is .. . Never giving up the struggle for dians. As recently as a year ago, there were 13 pieces of survival. legislation in Congress that were designed to take away Being Indian is .. . Not rioting in the streets, but rights guaranteed in treaties. Rights such as hunting, occupying godforsaken places like Alcatraz, Mt. fishing;.and.water• , use , were threatened. Beyond this; :Rushmore,.the New York-Canadian Bridge, etc. the i'government still. taking' , land that I was .'1';• Being Indian is •. . Hdving heard . your grandparents; beifeVolently' returned to, the ' Ihdians in the ' form' of phreriti,'an'd yourself say '"When we get our land claims reSerVations. This - land'ir being acquired for'ther "bes t" pay thent'" 4 theif guddenly you 'are hearing your interests of the United States" for energy resource children use the phrase also. purposes. • Being Indian is . . . Hard. Besides the negative aspects of what is happening to Being Indian is .. . Great. Native Americans today, the positive things that Being Indian is .. . Beautiful. Americans could learn from the Indian culture are Being Indian is . . Forever. Larry Gorospe Doctoral Candidate Native American Program Oct. 5 A micro-view of society By Charles P. Kennedy for the Black Caucus Racism has always been a problem in America, let alone Penn State. This institution, rather the people, cannot escape this ugly reality. To think that Happy Valley is devoid of racism is naivete in its undiluted form. Can one be racist without ever coming in contact with other races of people? Yes. Most people here, if not actually seeing people from a different race, have all their 'engrained' biases, prejudices and stereotypes on cue. Admittedly, for the individuals who have not succumbed to the mitigating influences of racism from their sacred en vironments, you stand to be commended. But; before you rise to get your 'pat on the back,' you are implicated in the nefarious scheme by the color of your skin, the accent in your speech, and the way you dance. If you eat chicken and have any rhythm you are affected. If you square dance you are covered by blanket insults. The most destructive form of racism is institutional. From within the system, effects of racism can be directed against the targeted people. Remerhber why Plessy challenged Furgeson and the Topeka, Kansas Board of Education? Remember why Rosa Parks did not surrender her seat on a bus in Alabama? Wonder why Soloinon Mulungo was hanged in South Africa last March? Why were the Jews exterminated in Germany during World War H, the Japanese herded to concentration campus in the United States? Did you even wonder why the Palestinian people are contained in con centration camp-like shanties on the West Bank, or why the Indians were banished to reservations where they remain today? Or, why the boat people became the 'boat people?' Walter Cronkite had nothing to do with it, or did he? Most social scientists will admit that the controlling, or ruling classes of people, usually homogenous in their backgrounds and values and having access to the means of exploitation, oppression and suppression, are the real racists. By their racist beliefs they institutionalize racism by con sequence of their bureaucratic position. Racism has a uniform base fear and ignorance. Power, or the will and means to carry out schemes that systematically exclude a particular group of people because of their racial classification is the primary difference between racists and those suffering from racism. There are racists that exist within the African mass Sunday observance for other groups. A more equitable system would schedule exams on both Saturday and Sunday or on neither day. Classes are also scheduled on Saturdays, but not on Sundays. FUrthermore, religious discrimination occurs under the present dorm contract. Currently, the meal ticket must be purchased for students to live in the dorms. However, if students want to keep kosher, they have two choices. Either they can become vegetarian or move out of the dorms. The dorms are quite often more convenient and socially beneficial for students. Requiring students to buy meals in order to live in the dorms forces the choice between religious observance and social convenience. Darlene Knight Black Caucus Oct. 8 At other schools, with a lower percentage of Jewish students, no exams are given on major holidays and the meal ticket is separate from the dorm contract. In other words, more ac comodation is possible Endangered species In view of last year's blunder, my attitude toward the Daily Collegian has now been somewhat modified for two reasons. First, for having the courage to acknowledge the fact that racism does exist here at Penn State University, and second, for affording the university community the express op portunity to voice its opinion on the subject. If I were asked, "Is racism a significant problem at• Penn State?," reality would compell me to respond categorically, yes! Beyond all reasonable measures of doubt, the übiquity of racism permeates every crack and crevice of minority existence. It's ad infinitum. Having attended and received a degree from another institution, I can testify that this problem does not prevail here alone. Racism is omnipresent. The only consolation (if it can be considered that) is that the magnitude is less at some places than at others. Members of the university community should not delude themselves into thinking that Penn State University is unique in its racial situation. The only uniqueness to this university vis-a-vis its racial situation is that minority students, particularly blacks, diminish by the hundreds annually. Racism is placing us on the endangered species list. It would, however, be truly prejudice to rest the total blame solely on the faculty and administrators. The blame rests with PSU, in its entirety. I adamantly believe that the principle source of this problem is simply pure, unadulterated ignorance, and a reluctance on the part of the majority, to understand and to accept the existence of Black Culture, in all its manifestations. If humanity is to survive, then a resolute willingness to com municate and appreciate people of all races must not only exist but flourish. I submit to you, that without this kind of universal brotherhood this University, this Country, and the world as we know it will surely perish. "If lam only for myself, what am I?" John T. Flynn, Jr. graduate-public administration Oct. 8 important. Indian people believe their culture could contribute in a meaningful way to the larger society. American Indians were the first environmentalists. They believe in living in harmony with nature and do the world over. The difference is they do not have access to institutional positions whereby they can systematically direct their narrow views against a hated race. With this view in mind, many may be wondering about their own views are they racist? Do one's own views impact against a specific group of people because of the values one holds sacred? Again, most racists do not know they are racist and if they do, they usually do not travel alone, or sleep without a weapon close at hand. Lately we have heard a lot about reverse discrimination. This writer is nauseated by the psuedo-terminology. How can a group of people still oppressed, still second class and still very `visible' be discriminatory? The rationale is deceptive on the part of those who coined the phrase, initially. To reverse discrimination obviously implies that there was, and is, discrimination in the first place. I mention discrimination because it is a component of racism. It is the systematic process by which racism is executed. For example,• if Bakke (remember him?), was discriminated against at the admissions level, what about all those 'people' who, because of color, religion or sex, were not even able to make it as far as he did? Are we to believe that because Bakke was admitted that Justice prevailed? If so, then it points out the discriminatory nature of this class rid den, race-hating, hypocritical democratic society Penn State included. On a microcosmic level, all of what exists at large in society is present here. Unfortunately, because 'our books' come first, we are forced to 'close out' whatever is not geared toward obtaining that degree. We pay $495 per term to be isolated and pacified ultimately becoming 'social cripples.' I ask you to look around you and 'see' the people you live amongst. Are they Martians? Plutonians? Sea creatures? NO. They are people people whose ancestors helped forge the present. They are people who will shape the future. They are people who will one day look back over their lives, and some will weep and others will smile. Some will have missed the opportunity to have fully participated in the "Human Ex perience." Some, because of their beliefs, will hurt, kill, and banish others, while never meeting them. Hopefully, the one thing that will equalize us all in the end will not be unleashed upon us . . . the nuclear holocaust. Prejudice it exists in all forms. It is not just directed at minorities, homosexuals or women. Nor is it confined to the reverse discrimination that exists against Caucasians and men in the job market. Prejudice effects all of us in one form or another as we are all different in some way. None of us are only a recipient of prejudice, either, for we all express it to some degree. We all set standards for ourselves and then we pass judgment on others accordingly. What gives us the privilege to play God and decide that our views are the right ones? What enables us to condemn someone just because they happen to be younger or older, wear their hair and clothes differently, like disco or rock, or have different political views? Why can't we accept people for what they are and find value in them for that? Then maybe prejudice wouldn't exist for anyone even the minorities, homosexuals, and women. As the song goes: "Walk a mile in my shoes before you condemn, criticize, and abuse." We all have to live with ourselves; why can't we live with each other? I guess we all have a lot of walking to do. Wayne Amchin 10th-social work Oct. 8 The real issue Penn State is many things to many people. So is racism. In viewing the last twenty years, in terms of racial relations in central Pennsylvania, one must say that a considerable ad vancement has been attained. Penn State as an appendage of local, state and federal policy has attempted to provide a showplace of racial harmony. But what is racism? What is the root of this thing which is many things to many people? Racism is mainly social oppression. This social oppression is perpetrated by means of physical and psychological tactics. In our educational facilities this oppression takes the form of psychological rather than physical oppression. • The fact that the ruling class is white in our state adds to the feeling that oppression is racial rather than the domination of one class against another. The working class in our state is multi-racial, multi-ethnic and multi-lingual. Penn State,.which was chartered "to educate the sons and daughters .of the working class" is in open violation of the charter itself by such oppressive tactics as anti-communist policies of employment for faculty and labor with cold-war 'loyalty' oaths, classified secret military research whose products are mainly directed against minority peoples and economic investments in fascist racist countries in South America and South Africa, to name a few. The issue of racism must be seen in terms of class op pression. Any other method of viewing this menace to the unity of our working class, is mostly an attempt to divert our at tention from the real issue, that is, class oppression. Mark Voultsos 137 South Atherton St. The Daily Collegian Tuesday, Oct. 9.1979-3 lot to offer not believe in exploiting the land in deference to the human and other creatures living there. Indians value the humanistic approach rather than the materialistic point of view. This value facilitated the taking of land by early settlers because Indian people were willing to share, since they did not believe a person could own the land any more than he could own the sun, the air or the moon. Sharing is an important Indian value. However, it is not so much the value itself but the manner in which it is achieved that is unique. The term "Indian-giver" has a negative connotation, but it is a positive Indian concept. Some tribes of the American Indian practiced giving away their wealth to gain prestige with their associates. This was a way of redistributing the goods of the tribes and was functional since the cooperating tribes held similar customs. Today, the term refers to someone giving another person something of value and then taking it back, quite a difference from the origipal Indian practice. Native Americans still are offering the larger' society ideas' they •have.had in' their culture fOr 'cetitikies 'and the larger society 'still 'is repeating its iegtionses `of yesterday. "offer conservation aid a simple value system, and the non-Indians respond materialistically and take land and specific rights. It is up to the educators and the educated to find a way to take the best from both cultures and blend them into a system that will work for all people. Walk in my shoes Kahn (Karen Kling) Ist-biology Oct. 8
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers