4 Page 2-_The Michigan Daily - Sunday, September 25, 1983 Biology Professor John Vandermeer says students must fight against the government's "illegal and immoral acts." Daily Photo by JEFF SCHRIE Takin a stand in the classroom By JAN RUBENSTEIN responsi my life.' The sign in university professor John THE N Vandermeer's office window reads not poli "U.S. OUT OF CENTRAL AMERICA," graduat followed by the required qualifier, Kansasi "'Not official policy of UM." fected b Though only one of many political adding ti signs on campus, Vandermeer's banner ti-war pr is especially revealing; the display is a Vande testament to the life of the activist "illegal Biology professor. tral Ame AT ONE TIME such exhibitions issue. caused a stir: During the summer of A pres public o nmenti there," h Towar tly co-au and po. 1981 University personnel repeatedly Nicarag removed - "against my will," Van- released dermeer says - a sign reading "U.S. HE IS OUT OF EL SALVADOR" from his New W Natural Science Building office win- agricultu dow; a University attorney and Zoology currentl3 Prof. Norman Kemp called Vander- Ministry meer's political actions "inap- Labor propriate." migrant Finally Vandermeer removed the famous sign himself. But it remained, along Campbel with others, as perhaps the most telling Closer metaphor for his life. classes c From visual displays to marches and His most rallies to his highly politicized biology Biology courses, activism for social awareness biology a and social change is Vandermeer's politics o most valued cause. While HIS POLITICAL leanings have put research him at the center of controversy and ecology drawn the criticism of those who say "His m overt political involvement is inap- relate to propriate for a professor. Schultz,. But Vandermeer maintains that "It is and teacl perfectly appropriate for a professor to "I'VE be concerned with his government, just him as t like any other citizen." departm His motivation for activism "comes Stude from a certain commitment," Van- generall: dermeer says. "I see things wrong in "It addsI the world, and I feel a responsibility to an LSA; do something about them. It's that in Biolog Thousands of (Continued from Page 1) Marcos gas, clubs and guns, injuring 14 people pressure and jailing 53. The government said Benigno those arrested were charged with had just sedition and rebellion. voluntary bility which gives meaning to 1ATIVE Chicagoan says he was tically active until he started e studies at the University of in 1961. "I was profoundly af- y the Vietnam war," he said, hat he participated in many an- otests during the Vietnam era. ermeer says he views the and immoral" actions in Cen- erica as today's most important sing need exists to educate the f "just how much our gover- is involved in waging war he says. d that end, Vandermeer recen- uthored a book on the history litics of Nicaragua, The" uan Reader, which will "be next month. ALSO an active member of the orld Agricultural Group, an ural development organization y working with the Nicaraguan of Agriculture; and the Farm Organizing Committee, a worker's lobbying group most for instigating the boycott of Il's Soup and Libby's. r to home, Vandermeer's carry overt political overtones. t popular course, Biology 101 - and Human Affairs, uses as a window into the issues and of contemporary society. Vandermeer conducts basic into intercropping and the of agricultural ecosystems, ain thing is making biology our own society," said Brian a graduate student in biology hing assistant for Biology 101. HEARD some people refer to he conscience of the (biology) ent," Schultz added. nts in Biology 101 seem y pleased with the approach. to the class," said Shari Miller, sophomore currently enrolled gy 101. "Rather than making you take sides, he uses (a political ap- proach) constructively," she said. Jessica Bernstein, Vandermeer's research assistant, agrees that the in- terdiciplinary approach benefits students, and said Vandermeer's method is thought-provoking without being coercive. "SOME PEOPLE get upset about issues, which makes for interesting discussions," she said. "It's not like he converts people, or even tries to." Vandermeer says the idea is to "en- courage people to analyze why they are doing whay they are doing." The en- couragement, he says, is toward in- trospection rather than activism. Nevertheless, some of his graduate students have left academia in favor of activism. "Sometimes they change," Vandermeer said. "It happened to me." THE POLITICAL approach has had some negative consequences, as well. "As a radical professor, he was a long time not getting promotions and things like that," Schultz said. And in Biology 101, which Schultz said is "open about being biased," Vandermeer's views "really anger some people ...They feel like they're being preached at," Schultz said. Vandermeer's approach to education is as unique as his "political biology" class: Biology and Human Affairs students are allowed to repeat examinations and rewrite papers as of- ten as they wish. "EVERYBODY can get an A if they want one," Vandermeer said. "I don't go along with the theory in general that students should be blackmailed by grades into learning." Instead, he says his goal in teaching is to make students want to learn by making biology relevant to students' lives. Because of the relative leniency of the course, Biology and Human Affairs has gained a reputation as a "blow-off class." Vandermeer, a professor since 1972, says he is not concerned with the class' stigma. "It does attract sometimes some sort of silly students, but that is an exception, not a rule," he said. ACCORDING TO students and co- workers, Vandermeer's concern with the state of the world rubs off on those around him. Hugh McGuinness, another TA for Biology and Human Affairs who described Vandermeer as "warmly demanding," said he feels the professor does prod people toward social awareness. "To work closely with him, their is a requirement to understand the political nature of things," McGuinness said, quickly adding that "I don't think that's bad at all. You can go work with two million other people if you don't want to (understand politics).": VANDERMEER IS open about his devotion to political issues even above his strictly scientific pursuits. "My first commitment is to participation in the making of a better world," he said. Sometimes that means working in politics, sometimes in science, but usually both, he added. What distinguishes Vandermeer in the eyes of many is the fervor with which he follows political issues. "I think he probably has less private time than any other faculty member I can think of," and averages only about five hours of sleep per night, Schultz said. DESPITE A growing conservatism on most campuses, Vandermeer says he is optimistic about today's students. "I see a lot of encouraging signs that students are waking up again," he said, citing student concern with militarism, the University budget, President Harold Shapiro's recent $10,000 raise, and cuts to the School of Education. "It's time to get active again," Van- dermeer says. "I hope that everybody becomes aware of what the government is doing, and that it's up to them, the students, to make the government change." IN BRIEF Compiled from Associated Press and United Press International reports Syria hits peacekeeping force The state-run Syrian newspaper Tishrin said yesterday that if the multinational force becomes further embroiled in the civil war, its with- drawal "will become a basic condition for any solution in Lebanon." Referring to U.S. naval bombardment of the mountains and a French air strike on militia positions, Tishrin said the force had become "a tool of killing and destruction, and a party directly involved in the fighting against Lebanon and its people." There is growing sentiment in both houses either to shorten the 18-month limit on the Marines' stay, which now is part of a Lebanon war powers com- promise, or require the troops to come home in 60 days unless Congress votes approval for them to stay. "What do we gain by keeping the Marines there?" asked Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del), "I think it is crazy what we are doing." "I don't think the American people want the Marines there at all," said Rep. Toby Roth (D-Wis.). Pope urges rhythm method VATICAN CITY - Pope John Paul II urged American bishops yesterday to launch a vigorous educational campaign to convince Roman Catholic couples to practice "natural" birth control. In a major speech on Christian marriage and family life, the pontiff said the number of couples successfully using the rhythm method of sexual ab- stinence is "constantly growing." But the pope, addressing 14 U.S. bishops at a Vatican audience, said a "much more concerted efort" is needed to help couples determine "the spacing of births and the size of the family." John Paul condemned artificial birth control and told another group of American prelates that it can never be justified "for any reason." The only method of birth control encouraged by the Roman Catholic Chur- ch is the rhythm method of sexual abstinence. During the 1980 synod on the family, Archbishop John Quinn of San Fran- cisco cited studies indicating that 76.5 percent of America's Catholic women use some type of artificial birth control method and only 29 percent of the Catholic priests in the United States believe artificial contraception is im- moral Search for jet debris stalled OTARU, Japan - Bad weather in the Sea of Japan yesterday hampered the race between the United States and Soviet Union to recover the "black box" from the downed South Korean airliner. U.S. Navy officials have said they believe the black box, which records cockpit conversation and in-flight information, is still lying on the bottom of the sea. "The sea is very choppy out there," said Maritime Safety Agency official Hiroshi Kijima. "With waves two to three meters (6 to 9 feet) high, it ap- pears both American and Soviet ships have suspended the underwater operations." Moscow has promised to turn over "objects and documents" retrieved from the Sea of Japan west of Sakhalin, where the Korean jet crashed after being hit by a Soviet air-to-air missile. Tsongas calls for Watt's ouster WASHINGTON - Interior Secretary James Watt, struggling to hold on to his job, came under renewed fire for what a Democratic senator charged was his "outrageous expression of bigotry." Sen. Paul Tsongas (D-Mass.) used the weekly Democratic radio address to charge that Reagan's refusal to fire Watt was symbolic of an ad- ministration "that has shown so little concern for women, for minorities and for theiles fortunate among us."e* Tsongas said in the radio address that, Watts commentwas his latest ef- f9g't fp "vide his fellow countryrnefl." :, ... "How is it possible in modern-day America for this kind of bigotry to be running amok in the president's Cabinet for such a long time?" Tsongas asked. "The answer is very simple - because the president allows it." He called on Americans to "let President Reagan know that James Watt offends the greatness, the moral sensitivity and the togetherness of America." Reagan talk beamed to Russia WASHINGTON - President Reagan beamed his weekly radio address in- to the Soviet Union yesterday complaining to the Soviet people about their government's "inflexibility" on arms control and shooting down of a Korean airliner. "We have no quarrel with you, the Soviet people," Reagan said in his ad- dress, simultaneously translated into seven languages and broadcast live to The Soviet Union and three continents by the Voice of America. "But please understand the world believes no government has the right ot shoot civilian airliners out of the sky. Your airline Aeroflot has violated sen- sitive U.S. air space scores of times, but yet we would never fire on one of your planes and risk killing your friends or loved ones." Reagan said the Soviet people have not yet heard the truth from the Kremlin on the Sept. 1 downing of a Korean airliner carrying 269 people. In a long-planned bit of diplomatic one-upsmanship, Reagan traveled several blocks to the BOA headquarters to make the address. The plans were kept secret to avoid tipping the Soviets so they take extra measures to elec- tronically jam the broadcast. . eI 4 I 4 Filipinos demand Marcos' ouster has come under increasing to resign because of the Aug. sination of his chief rival, Aquino, a former senator who returned from three years of y exile in the United States. A Major Events Presents: niangione Oct.13 Hill Auditorium growing number of Filipinos have ac- cused the authoritarian regime of engineering the assassination, but he has denied involvement and refuses to quit. There was no immediate reaction from Marcos but a church source who asked not to be identified said religious leaders were "cautiously optimistic" the president, a Roman Catholic, would accept the proposed council as an alternative to resignation. ULTIMATE TAILGATE PICNIC FOR RENT: 35' Luxureous Motor Home. Home and Away games. Groups up to 20. Call 663-5162 THE PRESIDENT SAID Thursday he would use force to handle demon- strations, after 11 people were killed and nearly 200 were injued in rioting Wednesday night around the presiden- tial palace. William Sullivan, who served as American ambassador to the Philip- pines in the 1970s, said Marcos should step down for the good of the country. Correction A quotation in Friday's Daily was in- correctly attributed to Ann Arbor Assistant School Superintendent Robert Moseley. The statement should have been attributed to Dean Bodley, the vice president of the Ann Arbor Education Association. 0 c A rbthnjan U at1 - Vol. XCIV - No. 16 Sunday, September 25, 1983 (ISSN 0745-967X) The Michigan Daily is edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan. Published daily Tuesday through Sunday mornings during the University year at 420 Maynard Street, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48109. Sub- scription rates: $15.50 September through April (2 semesters); $19.50 by mail outside Ann Arbor. Summer session published Tuesday through Satur- day mornings. Subscription rates: $8 in Ann Arbor; $10 by mail outside Ann Arbor. Second class postage paid at Ann Arbor, Michigan. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to THE MICHIGAN DAILY, 420 Maynard Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109. The Michigan Daily is a member of the Associated Press and subscribes to United Press International, Pacific News Service, Los Angeles Times Syn- dicate and Field Enterprises Newspaper Syndicate. 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