1w Steea emi
Sixty-Ninth Year
EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
UNDER AUTHORITY OF BOARD IN CONTROL OF STUDENT PUBLICATIONS
STUDENT PUBLICATIONS BLDG. * ANN ARBOR, MIcH. * Phone No 2-3241
The Future of SGC
When Opinln~s An reFe
Truth Will Premv
Editorials printed in The Michigan Daily ex-press the individual opinions of staff u-riters
or the editors. This must be noted in all reprints.
I
DAY. NOVEMBER 15, 1958
NIGHT EDiTOR: ROBERT Jurcm
". vs r aw an .nT s wen+ wss + ::,
Phoenix Project:
A Credit to Humanity
PHOENIX PROJECT will end in July, 1960,
unless funds can be obtained to keep it
running.
Two million dollars is needed, and a large
fund-raising project, headed by James C.
Zeder, Chrysler Corp. vice-president, is under-
way.
Perhaps the original motive for donations,
erecting a memorial to University World War
II dead, has faded, but the necessity for study
of peacetime uses of atomic energy is more
important than ever.
Phoenix Project relies completely on dona-
tions for funds, and on the investments bought
with donations. No state tax money is used to
support this unit of the University. The project,
through its facilities such as the Ford Nuclear
Reactor, provides further stimulation for fac-
ulty research, and attracts top scientists to the
University. These top men, in turn, add to the
University's prestige as an institution of higher
learning and research.
THE PROJECT needs unrestricted funds for
operation of the reactor, administrative
costs and research aid, for unlike the restrict-
ed funds earmarked for specific projects, un-
restricted donations permit flexibility in choos-
ing research projects, thus helping new devel-
opments in the atomic energy field.
Suggesions for
'H MOVE afoot to hold a straw vote in Ann
Arbor's Urban Renewal area to determine
the residents' sentiments on the plan is one
of the most rational moves made by City Coun-
cil yet in their consideration of the program.
There is really no reason why such a vote
should not be taken.
Ever since its conception, arguments and
claims have flown from side to side with the
fury of one of this country's interdepartmental
military programs. One side claims the area
Is in favor of the program and the other claims
to represent huge percentages against it.
The North Central Property Owners Asso-
ciation claims to be backed by 95 per cent of
the residents of the area while one responsible
city official claims the group represents no
more than 15 per cent of the families there.'
Clearly if the Council is to make any correct
judgment on the plan they need more accurate
information than is now available.
BUT THIS St7RVE!( of opinion can turn out
to give false information if it is not handled
carefully. First 'of all, a formal vote should IM,
taken only if the Council seriously wants to
find out the attitudes of the entire city. At
the moment this is not necessary. A better idea
is to canvass the 75-aere area using survey
methods rather than voting procedures.
One eminently practical method would be
simply to send letters to each family in the
Already several faculty projects have paid
off. The "bubble chamber," a device to measure
the effects of high-energy particles passing
through matter, is the best device which can
perform this function, and is widely used,
studied and acclaimed. A study of nuclear en-
ergy law financed by a project grant has pro-
vided three trained experts at the University
in this new field.
Thus the project does perform an important
function and deserves support. The campaign
is being conducted by the Development Coun-
cil, and the two million- dollars it hopes to
raise will finance an expanded Phoenix Proj-
ect for five years. Most of the help in the drive
is expected to come from Michigan industry,
but alumni aid is also needed.
STUDENT SUPPORT for the drive, physical,
financial and moral, would be welcome, but
the most effective aid which can be given is
developing an awareness of the Project's aims
and needs, so that as alumni, active support
would be forthcoming.,
Phoenix Project is searching for new ways
to apply the force which obliterated Hiroshima
and Nagasaki. This goal is a credit to the Uni-
versity and to humanity.
--ROBERT JUNKER
Urban Renewal
district with an explanation of what the proj-
ect is and how they will be effected. The let-
ter would contain a post card with various
views listed on it. The post card return would
indicate the sentiment.
The possibilities on the card should include.
such items as 1) "I favor the program," 2) "I
favor the program with some modifications,"
3) "I have no opinion on the project," and
4) "I am opposed to the program." The letter is
the key to the survey because it must explain
clearly what the Urban Renewal Program in-
volves.
THIS I TTER must tell how the program,
will be implemented, who will be effected
'and how. The letter must be clear and objective
and, most of all, easy to understand. This will
mean that some aspects must be glossed over
but if it cannot be easily -understood it would
be worse than useless.
It must also emphasize the need that the
card be sent back so that an accurate sample is
obtained. If the Council is unwilling to trust
such a method, some sort of personal surveying
technique must be used.
Regardless of the system utilized, the deter-
mination of opinion in the Urban Renewal
area is vital to the Council's opinion. The ex-
pense of such a survey clearly is cheaper than
making a wrong decision with insufficient data,
-PHILIP MUNCK
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Peter Eckstein
'58, and Richard Snyder, '57, the
writers of this statement, are form-
er editors of The Daily. Snyder now
attends Harvard Divinity School on
a Rockefeller Brothers scholarship
and Eckstein is studying for his
masters in the department of Social
Relations, Harvard University, on a
Woodrow Wilson fellowship. In sub-
mitting this statement the writers
point out that they realize as alumni
and no longer a part of the Univer-
sity community, they have absolute-
ly no right to try to influence Uni-
versity policy on grounds other than
any intrinsic merit of their argu-
ments.)
FOUR YEARS ago the Univer-
sity adopted a new form of
student government. Ever since
the war, the University had a dual
system: Student Legislature, a
forum on which student views
were frequently and courageous-
ly expressed, but which had no
actual "power" beyond the force
of student opinion and control
over the numerous service proj-
ects it initiated or ran; and the
Student Affairs Committee, on
which students were a minority
alongside faculty members and
administrators. SAC held several
powers, including those of ap-
proval and calendaring of student
organization activities and the
granting and withdrawal of rec-
ognition to student organizations.
The new form, the Student
Gove-nment Council, called for an
all-student body much smaller
than the SL, but combining its
opinion-expressing and project-
Initiating powers with many of
the powers over student organi-
zations and activities previously
exercised by the SAC. Above the
SOC in the plan was placed the
Board in Review, a faculty-stu-
dent-administration 'body with
clearly limited Jurisdiction.
The plan had strong support of
an administration frequently em-
barrassed by the out-spokenness
of the Student Legislature, and of
student and faculty members of
a study committee. The chairman,
Prof. Lionel Laing, sincerely felt
they were increasing the effec-
tiveness and responsibility of the
student body - both in the sense
of acting responsibly and of exer-
cising responsibility.
* * *
AT THE TIME, some student
leaders and interested faculty
members, including Roger Hynes,
now dean of Lit. school, opposing
SGC publicly debated the new
plan and structure. We can recall
several students expressed misgiv-
ingshabout the new proposal. Why
is the administration so anxious
that the new plan be adopted?
Would SGC work so closely with
the administration and be so
bogged down with administrative
detail that it would be unable to
express clearly and frequently
student opinion on subjects where
administrative and student view-
points diverge? Is the attempt be-
ing made to put students in the
position of having to make un-
popular administrative decisions,
which will serve to divide the stu-
dent community? Are the Board
of Review's powers really so lim-
ited as one might think; can the
administrators be trusted to see
that they interpret Council limi-
tations broadly? Or is the Board
able to void SGC decisions on any
grounds?
Students who raised such ques-
tions were scoffed at by adminis-
trators and even by fellow stu-
dents. A new era of good feelings
was being initiated, as symbolized
by the creation of a new position..
Vice-President for Student Af-
fairs. Students were given powers
exercised by few student govern-
ments in the country, a wonder-
ful indication of trust in student
responsibility.
* ~
THUS IT WENT for more than
three years. There were only a
few indications of any difficulty,
e.g., Dean of Women Deborah
Bacon's consistent refusal during
debate in Board in Review meet-
ings to be bound by any rules of
relevance or adherence to the
strict limitations placed on the
Board's jurisdiction. But these
could be easily disregarded, and
the Board did uphold the SGC on
the few decisions it took on mat-
ters which were controversial
enough to warrant a meeting.
Specifically, it overwhelmingly
upheld the December, 1956 find-
ing by SGC that Sigma Kappa
was in violation of University
regulations on discriminatory
practices and the Council's 1957
decision to postpone withdrawal
of recognition from the national
sorority until the fall of 1958. The
administration had apparently
been angered by the haughty ac-
tions of national Sigma Kappa in
ignoring administrative officials
at Tufts and Cornell when chart-
ers were withdrawn and suspend-
ed from chapters there, after
they pledged Negros, and the ad-
ministration, in private, support-
ed the Council's decision to find
the sorority in violation.
It did not support immediate
withdrawal of recognition, and
again said so in private, and Dean
Bacon went so far as to suggest
to the SOC committee on the
matter that she would be satis-
fied with an agreement whereby
no action could be talten without
tion for any clauses which might
be interpreted as discriminatory.
She reported the simple fact that
there was no mention of race or
religion in the Constitution.
No one, least of all Dean Bacon,
confused this with a statement
that the sorority did not discrim-
inate in practice. but since there
was no evidence that it did, the
Constitution was approved - not
on Dean Bacon's judgment, but
simply on the Council's evalua-
tion of the evidence in the matter,
which included the Dean's letter.
Judgment resided fully with the
Council. Again in 1956-57, when
new evidence had come to light,
the administration was free in
private discussions with its opin-
ion on the matter, but it never
presumed officially to suggest to
SGC that that opinion was bind-
ing. that SGC was obliged to abide
by it; perhaps it knew that the
Council would anyway. In short,
while administrators played a role
in the discussions which led to the
Council's decisions, SGC's ulti-
mate jurisdiction - subject to the
restrictions in the SGC plan --
was never officially questioned.
* * .
NOW, it appears, the shoe is on
the other foot. Sigma Kappa sec-
retary-treasurer Margaret Tag-
gart, who had already misled the
University when she said in 1955
that the national sorority stood
ready to abide by University regu-
lations, in effect reaffirmed that
discredited position this fall. She
acted on the authority of the na-
tional convention, which had
passed what was ambiguous reso-
lution agreeing to abide by local
rules; at the same time the con-
vention re-elected Mrs. Taggart
and two others who had partici-
pated in the original decision to
expel the two chapters which had
pledged Negro girls, and at the
same time the sorority refused re-
admission to the Cornell chapter,
which had insisted upon its right
not to be forced to discriminate.
In short, the long-awaited con-
vention yielded nothing which
might permit a reasonable person
to suppose that Sigma Kappa had
repudiated the action which kept
out Negro members.,
* e *,
THE administration quickly
wrote an amazing letter to the
Council saying that it was con
vinced, in effect, that the natipn-
al sorority, all evidence to the
contrary, was as good as its word,
and that its word was sufficient.
The administration further
discredited itself by arguing that
the letter, while not a "mandate"
was binding on the Council be-
cause the administration after
having served in a purely auxiliary
and delegated role in these mat-
ters during the whole history of
the Council (and probably of the
SAC before it) all of a sudden had
"concurrent jurisdiction."
There are only two possible
bases for administrative involve-
ment aside from the continuation
of thehcooperativeurelationship
which had existed up until now
in decisions of this sort. It is not
clear which the administration is
using to base its claims for "con-
current Jurisdiction,"
One is the provision of the SGC
plan which says that items oth-
erwise within the Council's juris-
diction may be overturned by the
Board if not in accord with "Re-
CAMPUS:
'Polish'_
Shines
THE BILLBOARD at the Cam-
pus theatre self-deprecatingly
proclaims "for lovers of arty mo-
tion pictures." This, with the end-
less comparisons to "Shoeshine"
is unfortunate for the Indian
film "Boot Polish" is decidedly
not "arty," as the Campus
Theatre so pithily puts it, and the
resemblance to DiSica's picture
ends with the fact that both are
over dependent on the visual
charm and histrionics of a re-
markable quartet of waifs.
The familiar tale is of two or-
phans, an idealistic, impassioned
boy and his Lolita-like sister, who
fight desperately to maintain
their self-respect in a self-
corrupted society. The pair are
cruelly mistreated by their prosti-
tute aunt, influenced by a spastci-
neurotic young hoodlum and sep-
arated with great show of grief
and trauma until their final re-
union. The new and remarkable
part is the exultant gleam of hope
which shines through the gloomy
portrait. "To the dawn" crys the
pathetic young girl and into the
light they will go.
There are some situations which
transcend the critical faculty. Ap-
pealing to our most primeval in-
stincts they stand aloof from the
barbs of reason, learning and un-
derstanding. We can empathize
with a portrait of a frustrated
adolescent but the image of a
child calling for her dead mother
in alternating transports of joy
and agony moves us too deeply for
gental Policy" or "Administra-
tive Practice." Since the Regents
have thus far supported the 1949
regulation. invoking this provi-
son would mean that "practice"
does not mean the consistent ac-
tion of the administration over
time but merely the most recent-
ly enunciated opinion of an ad-
ministrator. in which case SGC
has not one iota more power than
the Student Legislature.
The other is the provision of
the plan which holds that with-
drawal of recognition must be in
accord with "Regental, adminis-
trative and Joint Judiciary poli-
cies." This can reasonably only
refer to standing rules of proce-
dures, and the Council's proce-
dures as such have not been a
matter of dispute thus far, In
this case the administration
would not have any "concurrent
jurisdiction" beyond the proce-
dural area. It would be difficult
to construe the clause in the plan
as referring to substantive atti-
tudes toward a particular issue,
because Joint Judiciary "policies,"
insofar as they exist, are proce-
dural policies, not substantive
ones.
IF THE CLAUSE refers to sub-
stantive policies then the admin-
istration logic would hold that
"concurrent jurisdiction" is ac-
tually shared by three groups be-
low the regental level, not by two,
as the administration has been
implying. Then, too, the adminis-
tration has erred previously in not
insisting that Joint Judic state
its "policy." It also faces the pos-
sibility of being overruled two-to-
one should Joint Judic be asked
its "policy" and side with the SGC
but all this is absurd and merely
cited to point out the flaws in the
administration's position.
The Student Government
Council, to its everlasting credit,
had the courage to say that it had
the right to reach an independent
decision as to the sorority's recog-
nition and that the facts clearly
warranted both a finding of a
continued violation and a with-
drawal of recognition. The cam-
pus has a right to be proud of
its student government.
* * *
BUT THE administration had
persisted, and after devoting his
complete attention and energies
to the issue for the entire semes-
ter, with an administration ap-
parently determined to save Na-
tional Sigma Kappa on the 'cam-
pus at all costs, the able President
of SGC followed the Executive
Vice-President in withdrawing
from the election race. Thus, with
its powers undercut and its lead-
ership exhausted by the seeming-
ly fruitless fight to sve- those
powers, Student Government
Council would have been all but
destroyed but for the spectacular
and unprecedented write-in vote
which has given new life to the
Council's mandate.
It is incredible to us that the
administration would have pushed
the Council so far, and that it
may prove to be so determined to
keep on campus a discriminatory
and deceitful national organiza-
tion as to be willing to Jettison:
1) the whole basis of the SGC
plan, i.e., student responsibility;
2) the meaningfulness of the ex-
cellent and never-repealed reso-
lution barring from coming onto
campus any groups which dis-
criminate, and 3) any semblance
of consistency or rationality.
* * *
WE BEGAN by recalling an old
question: what was behind the
administration's original support
of the SOC plan? Doubtless few
people would have anticipated
then that a situation like Sigma
Kappa would arise and that the
Council after lour years of close
cooperation with the administra-
tion, with many drains including
small size, on its energy and ar-
ticulateness would have acted so
courageously.
But given the fact that SGC
has done no more than attempt
to enforce a regulation which
antedates the Council by six years,
one cannot help but wonder
whether there ever was anything
like the intention to grant wide
student responsibility so grandly
proclaimed to both faculty and
students four years ago. We must
ask anew whether the SOC plan
was not merely a means to keep
students problems from bothering
or involving unpleasantly the ad-
ministration while insuring that
the student government had
seemingly more interesting and
constructive things to do than
criticize it,
IF THE administration view
prevails, the students have the
right to answers to certain ques-
tions? Why, in a choice between
Student Government Council and
Sigma Kappa, has the adminis-
tration seemed to decide in favor
of the sorority? Is it just some
generalized fear of upsetting the
applecart. or have direct outside
or internal pressures been brought
to bear? If so, by whom?
Is it mere coincidence that the
three faculty members appointed
by the administration to the
Board in Review are all academic
-Ensanavid (3iltrow
A Philosophy
(EDITOR'S NOTE: The following excerpts are reprinted from the final
column written by Ji R Baad, last year's Daily Sports Editor, now a freshm-
man in Dental School.
By JIM BAAD
INTERPRETING THE NEWS:
Gomulka Drifts East
By J K. ROBERTS
Associated Press News Aaalyst
TWO YEARS AGO the United States gave
limited approval to the Gomulka regime in
Poland.
Gomulka was credited with trying to put
Poland in somewhat the same position as Fin-
land with relation to Russia. Peaceful coex-
istence was the order of the day, with an in-
crease in the civil rights of the Polish people.
Free speech and religious tolerance seemed
to be making some headway.
The negative results of outright revolution
had just been made apparent by the Hun-
garian fiasco.
Gomulka appeared to be moving in the Tito
direction, but without the provocations which
have disturbed Yugoslav relations with Russia.
At first Russia showed signs of cutting off
Poland's economic water. Contracts for ships
under construction were canceled. Unemploy-
ment became a threat.
To help what it believed to be a lirited lib-
eralization movement, the Eisenhower admin-
istration persuaded a reluctant Congress to
give Poland some aid from surpuls stocks -
food and cotton - and some machinery. It's
Editorial Staff
RICHARD TAUB, Editor
MICHAEL =RAFT JOHN WEICHER
Editorial Director City Editor
DAVID 'TARR
Ausoclate Editor
DALE CANTOR Pe.... frsonnel Director
JEANl WILLOUGHBT...... Associate Editorial Director
DUATA JORGENSON.........Associate City Editor
ELIZABTH E GINE....Aaantite Personnel Director
ALANI JONWS...... !,,... Sports Editor
CARL RISUMAN. .......... Asciate Sports Editor
SI COLEMAN.................. Associate Sports Editor
been hardly more than a token - about 200
million dollars worth, but a help, nonetheless.
The liberalization movement, however, has
seemed to be losing ground. There have been
conflicts with religious and liberal elements.
The Polish government has frequently seemed,
to be going farther than was necessary in sup-
porting the international Communist propa-
ganda campaign.
Warsaw's promotion of the idea of a de-
militarized zone in Europe including Germany
Is a case in point.
Gomulka undoubtedly was put under heav'y
pressure during his recent visit to Moscow. He
joined in some of Khrushchev's latest bombast.
On his return home he said U. S. imperialism
Is the principal danger to peace.
The question . now is how much of this ac-
quiescence in the Russian position is forced
or whether some of it is gratuitous.
The administration still seems inclined to be
lenient and understanding with Gomulka. If
he keeps it up, however, Congress may decide
to understand him in a different way.
There has always been some suspicion that
his liberalization program was designed to keep
Poland in thralldom without revolution rather
than as a truly progressive movement. -
Gomulka always has been a Communist.
Washington no longer forgets as easily as it
once did that the ways of Communists are
devious.
New Books at the Library
Alleg. Henri-The Question; N.Y., George
Sarziller, 1958.
Canham. Erwin D.-Commitment to Free-
dom: The Story of the Christian Science Moni-
tor; Boston, Houghton Miflin, 1958.
Crisler, Lois-Arctic Wind; N.Y., Harper,
1958.
T ..nr n nr.t. 9 ..^ - ar....... 1s,}_.
I HAVE BEEN down to talk with Bennie Oosterbaan many times in
the course of my duties, and on one occasion he gave me a long yellow
sheet of names. It was a list of the men who had played on the un-
defeated team of 1948 and it described what each was doing ten years
after graduation.
It's no use going over the list - every man on it was a success --
but the list itself is symbolic of-the man who gave it to me. The man
who runs Michigan's football team is most interested in what his play-
ers have accomplished off the field.
Always when I have come out of his office, I have learned a little of
what happenson the gridiron, and a whole lot concerning the academia
and post-graduation success of the players. Is this the way for a foot-
ball coach to act, showing such an interest in a field other than
football?
* * *
AT MICHIGAN it's most certainly the way for a football coach to
act. Because Oosterbaan hates recruiting and is satisfied completely
with the basis of need aid plan which takes the bidding out of the job,
because he completely adheres to the recommendation of the admis-
sions committee and is unwilling to take a chance on a boy's flunking
out just because he's a good football player, because he is interested
in the educational opportunity he can offer to athletes, and because he
is most interested in seeing his players graduate and become suc-
cessful after graduation, he is the right man in the right job in the
right place.
MICHIGAN NEEDS the coach that Oosterbaan is. It needs a man
with a philosophy of football which can allow him to adapt to the
pressures put on him by the academic side of the University and still
produce a winning football team. This is the important thing. In the
face of stiff entrance requirements and study schedules, Oosterbaan
has established a Conference record second only to Woody Hayes and
his Ohio State Buckeyes.
Because of my relationship with Oosterbaan, knowing that he
hates recruiting and the high pressure football that is the college sport
today, and knowing that he is interested in his players as students,
I can't held but feel that a man like this couldn't hold a job in a
college not interested in bringing athletes into perspective.
* * *
HE SAYS the saddest part of his job is turning away the boys
whose grades don't merit entrance to the University. It's just as sad
to him if the boy's a highly-rated All-Stater or a not-so-highly-rated
-All-Stater. He wouldn't take a chance on anyone flunking out when
the admissions committee assures him that the chances are high. For
his reason he can feel proud of the 99 per cent graduation average
that his lettermen since 1952 have established.
Because he loses so many players in this way he is severely criti-
cized for sloppy recruiting. Also, because he excuses athletes occasion-
ally who are way behind in their work or who have an unavoidable
class. he is criticized for holding a sloppy practice.
I don't think he cares about this criticism, however. He is trying
in the ways he can to approach a situation that is ideal. True, fooball
is far from deemphasis, but it is more casual here than other places,
and for this Oosterbaan can be proud, especially proud since he's
won three titles, and never had a season below .500 in 10 years of
Big Ten play,
0DAILY OFFICIALULLTN