The Michigan Daily-Sunday, April 13, 1980-Page 3 Bonior: ~j.S. liable for Agent Orange By MAUREEN FLEMING Vietnam War veterans must unite to convince the Veterans Administration to provide disability payments to victims of Agent Orange poisoning, U.S. Rep. David Bonior (D-Mt. Clemens), said yesterday. Bonior, chairman of a legislators' caucus on Vietnam veteran issues, spoke to 50 veterans yesterday at a legal conference sponsored by the Association of Concerned Veterans. BONIOR IS sponsoring a bill that would provide for disability compensation to veterans who have symptoms of Agent Orange poisoning. According to the proposed legislation, the veterans would not have to prove they were in direct contact with the poison in order to receive, compensation, Bonoir explained, they would only have to prove they had the symptoms. Between 1962 and 1970, 11, million gallons of Agent Orange-a chemical defoilant-were sprayed over Vietnam jungles by the U.S. military, Bonior said, and each of the 2.8 million American soliders who were in Vietnam have been in contact with the substance. Some of the soldiers were directly sprayed with Agent Orange and others were exposed by eting con- taminated food or drinking.contaminated water, he added. VETERANS HAVE reported ill-effects from exposure to the toxic chemical including chloracne (a skin rash) and birth defects in their children. Dioxin, a substance in Agent Orange, has been linked to cancer, DNA alteration, and birth defects, Bonior said. "There have been five independent studies which establish a clear association between ex- posure to Agent Orange and cancer," Bonior ex- plained. "And despite all this evidence, the Veterans Administration refuses to admit the truth." The victims of Agent Orange poisoning are a primary concern of the caucus of federal legislators who are Vietnam-era veterans, Bonior said. The group was formed because there was a lack of interest in Vietnam veteran issues on both the Senate and House veterans' committees, he added. JULES OLSMAN, an attorney in the audience said veterans have told him that not only has the Veterans Administration refused to pay for toxic poisoning tests, but has also cut disability payments when they tell them that Agent Orange may have caused their disability. Olsman later said a class action lawsuit was filed in March against seven chemical com- panies who supplied the government with Agent Orange. The suit was filed against the-companies because they had full knowledge of the harmful effects of this substance when they sold it to the government, he said. "This case is like any other products liability case with the exception that it is potentially wor- th billions of dollars," Olsman commented. ~S',. ....,............,.'..........'.*....................................................... S ..'. ~ ..... . Cellar's labor tensions ease; 'U' to be focus of AZ 'Big Business Day' store council makes decisions BY ELIZABETH SLOWIK The University Cellar bookstore doesn't look much different than it did last year when union- management tension threatened store operations. Pens, books, deodorant, and desk lamps still overflow the shelves in the store in the basement of Michigan Union. Hand-lettered signs still decorate the various departments. But in the three months since a ew managerial structure was in- orporated and a new 14-member council was created, the high-strung emotions caused by a year of con- tract disputes have ebbed. The student-owned and controlled bookstore offers textbooks and other supplies at discounted prices. The Cellar was established a decade ago after student demonstrations again- st University administration reluc- tance to allow the student bookstore. "It's a responsibility for all em- loyees. The political ideology and rhetoric are gone," said Nelson Jacosen, a member of Cellar's Board of Directors. "I'm happy with y what's happening." Jacobsen, a University junior, was the board's president during the long months of controversial contract negotiations between newly organized members of Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) Local 660 and the board of directors. THE UNION'S first contract, guaranteeing worker input in store decisions, was signed in October. A committee consisting of four union members and four board representatives devised the council, and the proposal was approved by both sides last December. The council includes 11 depar- tment representatives and three store managers-General Manager Tudor Bradley, Assistant Manager John Sappington, and Personnel Director Bruce Weinberg. THE GROUP meets twice a week and is directly responsible for the bookstore's day-to-day operations, such as departmental budgets; ad- vertising, store appearance, and allocation of floor space, according to Chairwoman Jan Self. THE COUNCIL'S creation culminates more than a year of dissatisfaction with the Cellar's managerial structure. The IWW unionization drive in 1977 and early 1978 and the issue of management and worker role definition triggered conflicts throughout the bookstore. A report, which assessed the store operations, said 79 per cent of Cellar employees mistrusted the board and 88 per cent mistrusted management. Last February, the board attep- pted to implement a hierarchial management structure with little worker input. The move was met with a two-day employee sick-in. The board withdrew its structure proposal. "We were trying to create something nobody could agree to," Sappington said. When negotiations stalled at the end of August, Cellar workers held a three day long strike. A contract was approved in Oc- tober, and the council described in the contract has been at work for three months. It is beginning to make progress and form policy decisions, Self said. One of the council's major goals is to develop a store-wide budget for the upcoming year, said Self. An accounting firm is studying the Cellar's financial system, according to Jacobsen, and the bookstoe will start using a more formal budgeting system. "It's a decision-making tool," Jacobsen said. BEFORE THE contract was negotiated the council's decision- making role was held by managers Bradley and Sappington. "We don't have the authority for a final decision," Sappington said. In- stead, he said he views his job as "feeding stuff into the council." Sappington, who has worked at the stoe since 1972, said he is relieved to see politcs receeding from the store operations. "The group is working toward the same goal rather than trying to implement something on each other," he said. In addition to planning for a location change and expansion the Cellar council- is exploring the possibilityu of selling U-M momen- tos and insignia merchandise and running book buy-back services on North Campus. By BONNIE JURAN In an effort to expose "abuses of cor- porate power", groups in more than 100 cities across the nation are planning teach-ins, debates, and film festivals on April 17 which has been designated "Big Business Day" by a coalition of consumer, labor, religious, and student organizations. The University will be the focus of the Big Business Day events in Ann Arbor, according to Rob Leighton, a member of the Students for Employment and Economic Democracy (SEED) and an organizer of the event. Leighton said the local coalition of student, labor, and religious groups chose to target the University because they say it is the "corporation" which holds the most sway over the lives of students and it must be held accountable to the public for its policies. The University's policies to which Leighton specifically referred were those concerning tenure, women, minorities, and investment. Leighton said the University's investments in South Africa and its discussions of possibly changing the Women's Studies program next fall are two areas where the University has been "socially irresponsible." THE EVENTS taking place April 17, including a Diag rally and four workshops, will culminate that evening with the first meeting of the People's Board of Regents. The board will be composed of representatives from the organizations which make up the coalition and will hear the grievances of union members, women, minorities, and community members. The board will also "shadow" the official Board of Regents in order to detail its policies and propose policy alternatives, Leighton said. According to Leighton, the University needs the input of the type of people represented in the coalition who can "pose an alternative perspective to the University." He said without hearing the opinions of those outside the ad- ministration of the University "might start cutting programs like Project Community or the Residential College,"(if it is faced with mandatory budget cuts), and then it would find it- self in "rigid confines with no way to broaden its horizons." IN WASHINGTON, representatives of the Big Business Day coalitions have introduced the "Corporate Democracy Act" in Congress. The bill would make the "800 largest non-financial cor- porations more accountable to con- sumers, employees, and shareholders, according to Andy Buchsbaum, public relations director for the coalition. Hearings on the Corporate Democracy Act are scheduled to begin April 17. N ativ e Americans i4ra, cx.}"r't"r~i:: a:>:>::'>::,> :{:di: i; on beads, feathers .:z:;;;J. C:::.'''::q . for:::::<.:}.A:2.{i P o w fr;:;. W ow}i:::i.::?:: CAMP TAMARACK Good Summer jobs still available at Brighton and Ortonville, Mi. IntiingApr.17 SUMMER PLACEMENT Call 764-7456, for appointment Open house for 1980 staff, 7:30 pm Hillel Fresh Air Seoey 6600 W. Maple Rd. W. Bloomfield, M.,48033 313/661-0600 Coll or write for further information SUNDAY FILMS Cinema Guild-Chinatown, 7, 9:30 p.m., Old Arch. Aud.g Cinema Two-The Fire Within, 7, 9p.m., Aud. A, Angell. SPEAKERS Gay Discussion Group-Reverend Ed Koster, "Christianity and Sexuality,"6p.m., 802 Monroe. Hillel-William Brodhead, "Soviet Jews and the Breakdown of Deten- te,"12 p.m., 1429 Hill. CONFERENCES Rudolf Steiner Institute-"Biodynamic Gardening-Beyond the Organic Method," 10:30a.m.,1923 Geddes. MEETINGS Hiking Club-meet Rackham N.W. entry on E. Huron, 1:30 p.m. Women's Crisis Ctr.-Potluck and Council Meeting, 6 p.m., 2111/2 Fourth Ave. PERFORMANCES Residential College/East- Quad-Chamber Music Spring Concert, 2:30 p.m., East Quad Aud. Residential College-"From Page to Stage," 8 p.m., East Quad Aud. Canterbury Loft-"Homegrown-Women's Music Series," 7:30 p.m., 332S. State. * University Lutheran Chapel Choir and Orchestra-Bach's Cantata Number Four, 10:30 a.m., 1511 Washtenaw. Museum of Art-Baroque Trio, 2:30 p.m., museum. Ann Arbor Indian Pow Wow-2 p.m., Huron High School. MISCELLANEOUS. WUOM-UM Presidential Inaugural: Program to precede inauguration, 1 p.m.,91.7FM. Hillel Foundtion-Vigil in memory of victims of Nazi Holocaust, 2 p.m.,Diag. MONDAY FILMS Cinema Guild-The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, 7, 9:05 p.m., Old Arch. Aud. Wesley Founation-Union Maids, 12:10 p.m., 602 E. Huron SPEAKERS Applied Mechanics-Richard Diprima, 'Instabilities in Transitions in Flow Between Concentric Rotating Cylindes," 4 p.m., 219 W. Eng. Archaeology-Eric Hostetter, "Figuritive Bronzes from the Graeco- Etruscan Empprium of Spina," 8 p.m., Rm. 203, Tappan Hall. CONFERENCES ILIR-"Planning Program on Sexual Harassment," League. PIRGIM-"Making a Stand" draft questions raised, 7:30 p.m., Conf. ;Rm. 4, Union b MEETINGS Dharma Study Group-meditation, 7:30-8:30, 215 E. Kingsley. Michigan Journal of Economics, 4 p.m., Rm. 301, Econ. Bldg. By CLAUDIA CENTOMINI Wearing beaded costumes and feathered headdresses, Native Americans performed their forefathers' traditional dances and chants yesterday at Huron High School. Approximately 350 Native Americans from all over North America are celebrating the third annual Ann Arbor Pow Wow this weekend. The pow wow features Native American dances, food, beadwork, and jewelry. Booths of authentic crafts lined the high school gym. The Ann Arbor festival is the largest pow wow held in the country, said Dorothy Goeman, organizer of the event and an associate in the University Minority Student Services office. The pow wow is held "to let the public know what (the Native Americans) are really like," Goeman explained. GOEMAN ALSO said the festival is a good way to recruit prospective studen- ts to the University because the pow wow attracts many types of people from all over the United States and Canada. Jose Marcus, a Native American- from Pueblo, New Mexico said, "I came to the pow wow to be with my people and enjoy myself." Marcus said he attended pow wows in other places in North America during the summer but he described Ann Arbor's as one of the most distinctive. MARCUS WAS joined by Native Americans from South Dakota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, New Mexico, and Canada. Participants represented the many North American tribes, including the Winnebago, Chip- pewa, Seneca, Mohawk, Ottawa, and Ottowatamis. People of all ages par- ticipated in the dancing, singing, and other festivities. The pow wow was sponsored jointly by University Office of Minority Student Services, the Native American Student Association, and the Ann Arbor Indian Center. The money made from the admission fee, food, and tradework sales will be used to help Native American organizations, Goeman said. ..4 f Om' 4pkVER(SITY MUSICAL'C8OIE7Y presenos 5 SbErI-fns Buttiii U.S. Olympic delegates affirm Moscow boycott (Continued from Page 1) national interest and national security is no longer threatened, the USOC will enter its athletes.", THE DECISION ends three months of uncertainty over the boycott issue, which was first proposed by Carter Jan. 20. The administration had stepped up its pro-boycott campaign the past week. Six hours before Saturday's vote, Vice President Walter Mondale delivered a final adminsitrationappeal that U.S. athletes stay home. IN HIS HALF hour address to the delegates, he said, "Athletes and sports organizations and national bodies around the world await your lead to mobilize their commitment. "They do so for good reason. Today, virtually every industrial nation on ear- th is dangerously dependent on Persian Gulf oil. How could we convince the Soviets not to threaten the Gulf, if a blow was dealt to our deterrent? How coud our government send a message to Moscow, if tomorrow's Pravda brags are asking of sports officials . . . on behalf of the president of the United States I assure you that our nation will do everything within its power to .. . recognize the true heroism of the athletes who do not go to Moscow." AFTER MONDALE spoke, the delegates went into a closed-door session, then adjourned for lunch before taking the vote on the boycott question. USOC officials had been hoping for a quick vote on the boycott, but as the meeting started, disputes began over who could vote and other procedural questions. Carter has been seeking a broad boycott of the Games and several coun- tries have made it clear that they want to see what the USOC does 1 afore deciding their own course. His fame has spread rapidly to every corner of the globe since his Metropolitan debut fifteen years ago. This "All-American Superstar," as he is known inter- nationally, has a notable record of leading roles in the world's greatest opera houses. Tickets available: $4, 6, 7, 8.50, 10, 12 TICKETS at Burton Tower, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109 Weekdays 9-4:30, Sat. 9-12. Phone 665-3717. Tickets also available at Hill Auditorium 12 hours before performance time. 1_1)iits 101st- eason 'Sm dop- in r the UofM. BLACK STUDENT UN/ON PRESENTS /. STOKELY r~awILA Ir wrA1y