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'T hr m1rhigan Daily
Sixty-Ninth Year
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Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily express the individual opinions of staff writers
or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints.
'(ESDAY, MAY 12, 1959
NIGHT EDITOR: THOMAS KABAKER
Discrimination Debate
Laeks Spirit of Sensibility
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DRAMA SEASON
Macbeth Provides
Fine Opening Night
THE 1959 DRAMA SEASON got off to a fine start last night with a
spectacular production of Shakespeare's Macbeth. Honors go first
of all to set and costume designers, Ballou and Emma Hirsch Mellen-
camp, for providing very exciting visual effects; the set was useful,
allowed for a maximum of movement on the small stage, and gave an
opportunity for variety. Some of the movements involving extras were
clumsy, but that is always a problem at Lydia Mendelssohn, especially
with student performers who must be trained during a brief rehearsal
period. The costumes were handsome and bright.
THE PRODUCTION got off to a slow start. Indeed, the first act
dragged in spite of some excellent touches: the witches were first-rate,
",
4
[N THE MYRIADS of attitudes and arguments
concerning fraternity discrimination a num-
ber are valid, and a number are not.
In viewing the rights and wrongs of discrim-
ination, two moral arguments are repeatedly
dragged forth. Both are handy defenses of
respective positions, neither highly useful in
reaching an equitable agreement. One is the
argument that a fraternity, as a voluntary
social association, has the "democratic" right
to selective membership, and that the individ-
ual has not the inherent right to eligibility. The
other contends just as firmly that the indi-
vidual has the "democratic" right to equal
opportunity, and thus the inherent right to
eligibility for membership in any fraternal
group. Both constitute nice moral injunctions,
but In trying to convince each other of their
personal righteousness, each side is overlooking
at least one important consideration: that.
moral principles can rarely be foisted or dic-
tated to someone already predisposed to reject
them.
HERE ARE, HOWEVER, a number of valid
reasons for removal of discriminatory
clauses.
For one thing, a state university which does
not practice racial or religious discrimination in
its admissions requirements, classrooms, dormi-
tories, which 'provides its students with broad
opportunities for interracial, inter-ethnic con-
tacts, cannot condone discriminatory practices
among organizations it officially recognizes as
student living groups.
Fraternities have for too long been walking
the thin "public-private" line. When it means
pelp from the Assistant Dean of Men (and
implicitly, the University), when it means the
use of the University fieldhouse and other
facilities, the fraternities are implicitly taking
the role of public organizatons.But when it
comes to the matter of discriminatory clauses,
the fraternity system withdraws to "private"
status. A fraternity system at a public-sup-
ported university cannot adopt both roles. Not
ony are undergraduate fraternity men and
alumni directly concerned with all phases of
the fraternity system, but so also is the "public"
-including taxpayers, administrators, faculty,
and students.
A SECOND REASON for removing clauses is
that their existence brings a certain amount
of discredit to the fraternity system, to the
University, and to the nation.
Third, in some cases a local chapter is limited
in Its freedom to pledge a man because of regu-
lations unposed by the national organization.
Fourth, while insufficient evidence presently
exists, there is a distinct possibility that fra-
ternity discriminatory clauses at state univer-
sities are unconstitutional.
Fifth, clauses are an obvious and flagrant
contradiction of the National Interfraternity
Council's "Principles of Democracy."
IN SUPPORTING clauses, fraternity men re-
turn time and time again to the normal
argument for voluntary .associations. Or they
argue, "morals cannot be legislated." While they
are often correct in claiming morals cannot be
dictated, it is not completely true to say they
cannot be legislated. For without legislation, no
legal and jurisdictional guides or framework
would exist to give diregtiort to efforts to elimi-
nate clauses.
The central question here is not whether a
university (or state) should legislate, but what
degree of legislation is desirable.
Again, extieme views' arise. One is the time
limit for clause removal proposed by many
schools. This is unrealistic, since in many cases
a fraternity cannot remove a clause in the time
allotted, and in other cases, the national
fraternity is willing to sacrifice the chapter
rather than a prohibitive membership policy.
The opposite extreme is total removal of all
pressure, allowing a gradual educational process
to smooth out the problem. This too is in many
ways unacceptable. In the first place, the
progress so far has been excruciatingly slow.
While a number of fraternities have elimniated
clauses, in reality most have maintained the
same membership policies. Gradualism is often
a cloak for inaction.
W ILETHIS IS NOT an issue which can be
resolved quickly, since it involves a social
Editorial Staff
RICHARD TAUB, Editor
as well as constitutional change, and while
there is no simple blueprint which, if followed,
will end discrimination, there are a number of
moves towards settlement which might be
taken.
The first is in the area of legislation. Return-
ing to the question previously posed, what is
the, proper amount of legislation?
The answer is not simple, and it varies from
school to school. The University of Michigan
is a colossus among American educational insti-
tutions and, as such, has a commensurate re-
sponsibility to take a strong and forceful lead
in this area. The statement from Dean of Men
Walter B. Rea and Vice-President James A.
Lewis, published in Sunday's Daily, is encour-
aging. It. is hoped that President Hatcher and
the Board of Regents adopt a strong-worded
stand, leaving no ambiguities.
THE PROBLEM is to be dealt with effec-
tively, Intprfraternity Council must become
more vigorous in the area. Ten years ago, IFC
pledged itself to a campaign of education and
action against existing discriminatory practices.
While the creation of the present selectivity
study committee is highly commendable, the
organization has been generally lax with regard
to its pledged duty.
Unfortunately, the same laxness permeates
the fraternity system. The number of fraternity
men who know and/or care little about the
issues involved is frightening, particularly since
the IFC argues that change should come from
within the system itself. The sociological term
"pluralistic ignorance" fits the situation in
many fraternities; too many men have a wrong
opinion about the general feelings of their
brothers, as was pointed out in a survey taken
a few years ago.
This creates the real necessity for discussion
within the local chapters. Discussion is the
healthiest means of eventually coming to terms
with the stumbling-blocks involved. An analogy
might be used here. When new practices are
initiated in industry, there will be resistance
unless the practices have already been discussed
with all concerned. The same holds true for the
fraternity system.
ANOTHER IMPORTANT problem, and one
which must be faced somehow, is that of
members of an ethnic group who face discom-
fort and uncertainty over what would happen
if they rushed a house of another ethnic
background. A form of self-segregation might
arise even if discriminatory bars are cleared
away. Therefore, those persons who are leaders
in various ethnic groups must try to develop
some device to help incoming freshmen use
their opportunities.
Then there are the nationals. In some in-
stances, the local chapter is restricted to choos-
Ing its members by the national's membership
code, In many cases, it seems an ideal solution
would be to give the local chapter autonomy as
far as membership requirements are concerned.
Yet national's tend to be reactionary, which
undergraduates are tempted to be idealistic or
liberal, thus setting up a definite conflict. While
not going to the extreme of severing national
ties, undergraduate chapters, particularly in
the North, have a strong responsibility to exert
all the energy possible for removal of clauses.
If this is not carried out, difficult though it may
seem, outside pressures for local autonomy will
only increase.
THREE THINGS have so far gone largely
unsaid. They are extremely simple theses,
yet all three are at least as important as any-
thing yet mentioned.
The first is simply this: the problem of fra-
ternity discrimination will be settled and the
solution is not so far off as a great number of
fraternity men believe. With crisis after crisis
erupting on American- college campuses, with
pressures piling up from various civic groups,
with unfriendly attitudes from legislatures and
courts increasing, with anti-discriminatory
statements such as the one issued last week
by Dean Rea and Vice-President Lewis, with
more and more pressure from the rushee, a
solution seems inevitable and not too distant.
The second point is simply that the elimina-
tion of clauses does not eliminate discrimina-
tory practices. However, it should be recognized
that the clauses represent unwarranted dis-
crimination and their removal would be a step
forward. This must be the first move taken in
facing discrimination in fraternities. All the
same, a careful eye should be kept by the IFC,
campus leaders, and the administration on
nationals which practice circuitous means of
discrimination. Censure, or even stronger ac-
tion, should come from all three groups in
cases where it is felt that the national group is
practicing evasion. A strong statement of
University feeling, although it may antagonize
a national, could be quite effective as a catalyst.
T HE THIRD POINT is probably the most im-
portant of all. It is simply that a spirit of
sensibility must be adopted by all concerned.
Discrimination in a free democracy is a sensi-
tive, even seamy, topic. The tremendous emo-
tion which has been already expended serves no
............9._. t .-U _.. ...«.A . - 1_,., - _ - A
,7
CAPITAL COMMENTARY :
The Senate a
{:y WILLI
FOR THIS SUMME'S more or ent Senate, and part
less inevitable summit confer- controlling Democrats
ence President Eisenhower has general state of mind
available to assist him a powerful Like everybody else
second-line force from -the Senate. confere ce of foreig
The Senatorial reservists, how- will bring some progre
ever, are not 'aching to be called East-West tension. Lik
up; and certainly they will go into else, it doubts very mu
no action without his specific and will occur. So, it assum
clear invitation and command. crisis will really come a
An infantry outfit is reckoned in a summit confrontat
by old soldiers to be really grown President Eisenhow
up once the men have learned the Khrushchev, and the
first law of army professionalism, our British and Frenc
This is that a good soldier keeps There is, therefor
his mouth shut, his eyes open, and slightest feeling in th
never, never volunteers. The Sen- sponsible Senate quart
ate will not volunteer. Senate representation
The idea of bipartisanship in eign ministers' meeti
foreign affairs has now reached a either necessary or des
similarly adult and professional It is' felt to be possit
level. This is a very good thing in- -and only possible -
deed. In the past years those de- summit conference itse
voted to doing things in the bi- duce a reason and a n
partisan way have sometimes ate representation. It
leaned too far forward. Adminis- for example, that th
trations sometimes have too en- might think it wise
thusiastically called on the Senate Senate to send observer
to come into the game too soon. the big show under t
Past Senates, like rookie soldiers tions:
looking for premature glory, have 1) If, toward the cl
insisted sometimes upon getting summit, he was actuall
into the game before they were ing a proposed agree
really needed or really useful, the Russians.
The consequences have been to 2) If, as would be i
downgrade the proper authority of tairesenate action, sa
the executive branch of govern- cation of a new treaty
ment and to cause unnecessary 3) If this arrang
confusion in the outer world as to such as to make it pru
who was running what on our side, tecusladsp
the counsel and supX
* * *Senate before the Presi
THE LEADERSHIP of the pres- name on the line.
xnd the Summit
[ANi S. WHIT
ticularly its
, is in this
e, it hopes
va Big Four
n ministers
ss in easing
e everybody
ch that this
nes that the
bout August
ion between,
'er, Nikita
leaders of
ch allies.
e, not the
he most re-
ers that any
at the for-
ng will be
sirable.
ble, however
- that the
elf may pro-
eed for Sen-
is assumed,
e President
to ask the
r-advisers to
hese condi-
imax of the
y approach-
ement with
all but cer-
it would re-
y the ratifi-
ement were
dent to seek
port of the
dent put his
FEW HERE believe the Presi-
dent will ask Senate participation
under circumstances short of these
--the Democratic leaders specifi-
cally believe he will not. They
themselves do not, however, dis-
cuss at all another kind of cir-
cumstance in which, this cor-
respondent suggests, the President
might well summon them to the
scene.
It is entirely conceivable, though
raising the suggestion at this early
point is not relished, that the real
function of a Senate delegation
might be to take the President off
the hook. This is a crude term to
recognize a plain possibility: the.
summit meeting might develop
overpowering "peace" pressures,
from our own people and our allies,
for making with the Russians the
kind of deal which a chill and un-
pleasant realism would be unwill-
ing to make.
At this point, the President
might find a Senatorial delegation
infinitely useful. He could say to
all concerned, in sober truth, that
while he himself would risk going
along the Senate simply would not.
The Senate in a word, though few
realize it, can be far more resistant,
to emotional clamor than can the
Presidency.
This might become the true and.
ultimate utility of the second-line
forces from the Senate, though, of
course, nobody in his right mind
wants to see this sort of thing
become necessary.
(Copyright 1959, by United
Features Syndicate, Inc.)
their costumes, chanting and
movements were appropriately
eerie and poetic. But it was only
in the second half of theproduc-
tion that the play really came
alive; the scenes involving Lady
Macduff and Macduff were gen-
uinely moving bits of theatre; the
final action, involving the most ex-
citing (and exhausting) battle
scenes probably ever staged at
Lydia Mendelssohn, was an ap-
propriate climax to a production
Inotable for its stagecraft.
The acting was, in many senses,
first-rate. Charlton Heston is a
magnificent Macbeth, since. he
combines a fine figure with great
skill of physical movement; he
looks, and is, impressive. Indeed,
this element of, vitality, of sheer
physical handsomeness, is charac-
teristic of almost every member of
the large, mainly professional,
cast. However, one expects that
they will look their parts (and
here one must not ignore the
stunning contribution of the cos-
tumes.)
BUT ACTING involves more
than presence and movement. It
involves the voice. During the in-
termission, there were many com-
plaints about difficulty on the
part of the audience to hear; in
a theatre as small as Lydia Men-
delssohn, and with its generally
good acoustics, this is a major
fault. In this case, the problem is
twofold: the failure of the actors
properly to project their voices
and, more si gnificantly for
Shakespeare, ,their unsuccessful
struggles with the poetry. This is
poetic drama. And no matter how
§killful the production of how
handsome, the language is essen-
tial; it must be clear (last night it
was, on several occasions, simply
sacrificed to the musical score)
and it must convey the poetry,
which, after all, is the meaning.
Mr. Heston, unhappily, spoke as if
he had a sore throat; his voice
lacks inflectional range and musi-
cal quality. Nor are the others.
much better, except that Ernest
Graves has obviously a well
trained professional voice which
he uses well. And Miss Brookes
had a moment or two of fine suc-
cess, particularly in her first soli-
ioquy.
The Drama Season's Macbeth
achieves distinction for many
technical (even i m a g i n a t i v e)
touches; as such, it is character-
istic of a great segment of the
American theatre today. Its short-
comings are really the result of a
failure .in vision. The play is seen
merely as a story; costumes, mu-
sic, setting and actions, however
fine, are devices of the narrative
or of certain psychological in-
sights into character. The tragic
vision, inherent in the play, and
conveyed by Shakespeare's superb
language, is lost or misplaced.
Without that element, however
exciting or spectacular or skillfull
the production, we are simply
missing the essence, the wonder,
and the awe.
Prof. Marvin Felheim
English Department
WHAT judicial bodies are very
qualified to do is gain an under-
standing of an individual and
allow that understanding to tem-
per their decision. Understanding,
in the context of a student ajudi-
cating group, halts when members
' attempt to play the role of psy-
chologists or read an entirely er-
roneous meaning intos a case.
Attempting to gain insights not
available to them, a judicial body
could miss a point entirely and let
a student off who told a "belev-
able story." The same situation in
reverse would result in a reticent
individual being "socked with a
heavy fine" because he was un-
willing to reveal his financial situ-
ation.
The middle ground which groups
tend to go beyond or fall too short
of is understanding students and
dealing with them, not as coun-
selors, but as a group of peers
sitting as sympathetic jurists,
* * *
CERTAIN judicial groups fail to
do this.
In the residence halls, ,staff
members often work to have viola-
tions heard on the quad level
rather than allow a house group
to handle a case. More confidence
is placed in the higher body be-
cause of the maturity of its mem-
hers.
What this points to is a lack of
responsibility which house coun-
cils sometimes demonstrate. In
one, a member pointed out that
hip Judic was a "mickey mouse
group" that failed to make which
avoided any controversial issues.
In a different house, a judicial
body does not exist because the
residents feel that handling disci-
pline problems would cause too
much friction.
Two houses does not amount
to the failure of the judiciary in
individual houses in the residence
halls. It does however point out
that students have not yet as-
sumed the necessary responsibility
to take discipline problems out of
the hands of the staff and into
the realm of house government.
Among the women the problem
often becomes not a question of
lacking responsibility but of show-
ing individuals in the residence
h1alls that University regulations
were made to be observed.
IF 90 PER CENT of the resi-
dents supposedly conform to the
rules, it is confusing to learn
that in April of her freshman year
a woman was still unaware of the
regulation which prohibits un-
chaperoned women from entering
men's apartments.
Courts argue that ignorance
of the law is no excuse. Student
judicial'groups should not strictly
follow that thought, but rather in-
clude the idea of education while
handing out fines and/or periods
of probation.
Drawing the line of their func-
tion at a combination of punish-
ment tempered with the idea of
counseling by a group which may
or may not be qualified to help
students cut short the services
that judicial bodies can perform.
The ability to educate and show
mature understanding, which some
of the group have shown, are the
two areas which judiciary groups
must develop further.
-Charles Kooll
JUDICIARY:
To Solv
Problems
COUNSELING a violator rather
than mechanically punishing
him is stressed through all. udi-
cial bodies on the campus.
While this concept is extremely
valid in the "extra-legal" system
of dealing with rule infractions,
the idea of students counseling
students has a certain built-in
danger which must be avoided.
The greatest difficulty here lies
in placing too much trust in stu-
dents to discover the motives of
one of their "peers" and arrive at
means to correct their behavior.
For while judicial bodies, have
shown much perception, it cannot
be assumed that they are com-
pletely qualified in areas of human
relations.
i
i'
EAST, WEST JOCKEY
OVER GERMANY:
Both Sides Yield in Conference Opener
GENEVA (JP) - Both the Soviet
Union and the West had to
yield points in order to get the Big
Four meeting started yesterday.
The West beat a Russian ma-
neuver to extract international re-
cognition for Communist East
Germany.
But Russia established a limited
right for East and West Germans
to intervene in the Big Power de-
bates on their country's problems.
Both Russia and the West had
to yield something in order to get
the conference started.
**e *
GROMYKO, seeking a voice and
a seat for East Germany at the
conference table, settled in the
end for the right of the East Ger-
man delegate to ask if he might
speak.
In that sense Gromyko won a
point. His maneuver also enables
the Russians to pose as the cham-
pions of both Germanies to have
a say in the conference room.
The West, resolved to confine
the role of both Germanies to that
of advisors, emerged from the
brush with their lines intact and
their position only slightly
changed. Neither Foreign Minister
Lothar Bolz of East Germany nor
Heinrich von Brentano of West
Germany will be full participants
interventions by either German
squad. But already an informal
East-West understanding - a sort
of gentleman's agreement -- has
been reached that the veto will not
be used in normal circumstances.
* * *
IF IT IS USED, the aggrieved:
side will be able to ask for an in-
formal meeting of the Big Four
to resolve the particular difficulty.
The entire episode, underlining
Gromyko's intention to bargain in
the toughest traditions of the
Kremlin, served to confirm the
most pessimistic forebodings of
Western officials that this confer-
ence is unlikely to produce any im-
portant political agreements.
It suggested that little progress
is likely toward a settlement of the
basic problems of Germany and
Europe.
Delegates of the West consider
Gromyko has come here under or-
ders to do no more than to guaran-
tee holding of the proposed sum-
mit conference.
These results highlighted 24
hours of hectic exchanges between
the Foreign Ministers of the two
great rival power blocs.
Britain's Selwyn Lloyd and Rus-
sia's Andrei Gromyko plunged
right into the heart of the issues
confronting the powers, centering
on the status of the two. Ger-
manies in the conference room.
nx
MICRALL KRAFT
Editorial Director
DAVID TARR
Associate Editor
JOHN WEICHER
City Editor
DALE CANTOR ...................Personnel Director
JEAN WILLOUGHBY .... Associate Editorial Director
ALAN JONES. ....... .... Sports Editor
BEATA JORGENSON .....Associate City Editor
ELIZABETH ERSKINE ... Associate Personnel Director
SI COLEMAN........ . Associate Sports Editor
CARL RISEMAN .............Associate Sports Editor
DAUT ARNOTC.-_-----hief Phntnernher
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