OPINION
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Page 4 Monday, February 2, 1987 The Michigan Daily
Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan
Vol. XCVII, No. 87 420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Unsigned editorials represent a majority of the Daily's Editorial Board
All other cartoons, signed articles, and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Daily.
LETTERS:
CDLA doesn't take
Demand equitable pay
ANN ARBOR CITY COUNCIL WILL
address the issue of pay equity
tonight at 7:30. Members of the
Pay Equity Coalition will ask city
council to fund a six month study
to determine if sexual discrimin -
ation is a factor in inequitable corn -
pensation among city employees.
Comparable worth studies attack
sexual discrimination in the
workplace by 'determining wage
rates based on rational reasoning,
such as the factors which make up
a job, instead of gender. These
studies also examine current job
classifications to determine if
sexual discrimination is a factor in
placing employees.
It is illegal to discriminate by sex
in employment. City council mem-
bers are asking for a study because
the city is risking potential liability.
Currently there are 253 separate
job classifications for city
employees: 180 are held exclu -
sively by men. Only 19 of the
current job classifications harbor
members of both sexes. These
classifications are over 15 years
old.
80 percent of the women working
for the city are paid less than
$25,000 annually compared with
38 percent of the men. There is
almost a $6000 differential between
male and female employees on the
payroll with men in the higher
paying positions.
The management should update
the job classifications and set
standards for determining pay
instead of haphazardly awarding
titles and salaries as it does now.
Some city council members
believe the city should be a model
employer and practice fair
administration, but the pay equity
issue does not end with the city
administration. Given that women
make 59 cents on the dollar that
men make nationally, it is likely
that employers in Ann Arbor and
elsewhere are risking prosecution
based on sexual discrimination.
More importantly, those students
who are seeking employment are
directly affected by inequitable
compensation in the workplace.
The Daily urges all students to
attend tonight's meeting at 7:30 on
the second floor of City Hall in the
council chambers.
To The Daily:
In a recent letter, "CDLA
supports the Contras" (Daily,
1/15/87) an attempt has been
made to confuse the Coalition
for Democracy in Latin
America's (CDLA) position on
support of the Nicaraguan
rebels. This group has no
official position on them
because it wishes to give equal
consideration to all viewpoints
for bringing democracy to
Nicaragua. It is CDLA's
purpose to promote ,ways in
which people of Latin
America, as well as here at
home, can work for freedom,
peace and justice. We realize,
however, that there are many
different paths that one can
follow to reach the common
goal of democracy, in Latin
America, and members are
encouraged to discuss and
deliberate the best way that this
can be accomplished. The
letter misinterpreted the views
of the group's President,
Roberto Javier Frisancho, by
implying that he supports the
Nicaraguan resistance. Just
because I as the Vice President
support the Nicaraguan freedom
fighters does not mean that my
personal views have a binding
effect on all other fellow
members.
Mr. Schnaufer also mislead
the readers by writing that we
wish to "get the Michigan
Student Assembly to finance
the visit of a prominent Contra
leader to campus by posing as
a "liberal." No such devious
plan lurks in our minds. In
fact, the man the group wishes
to invite is Humberto Belli.
He is a native Nicaraguan who
was a Marxist and a member of
the Sandinista movement until
1977, when' after becoming
disillusioned with the organiza-
tion and its organization he
left. After the Sandinista
revolution in 1979, Belli
worked as an editorial page
editor of the independent La
Prensa. He often wrote about
the difficulties Christians faced
under the Sandinistas. The
imposition of total censorship
in 1982 forced him to leave the
Abortion difficult decision
country, and ever since then, he
has lived in the United States.
I would also like to point
out that the group's policy of
community service is not
really a public relations ploy
To The Daily:
Abortion does not exist in a
moral or political vacuum.
Despite the existence of other
alternatives, many women
obviously feel these choices are
too painful and too damaging
to themselves, their partners,
and their potential child. Yet,
for women who choose
abortion, and for their partners,
the decision becomes a very
personal and emotional
struggle that can affect their
self-esteem and relationships
for years.
On January 28th, Michael
Binder wrote that adults who
"through carelessness or
chance" conceive a child should
not just "dump it" through
abortion. Perhaps Michael
would do well to remember
that a) no method of birth
control is 100% effective and
b) when a women decides to
have an abortion, she does not
simply "dump" her "clump of
cells" and forget about it.
Instead, she must suffer the
physical symptoms of
pregnancy, i.e., fatigue nausea,
etc... which may cause her to
miss classes and work, and
may seriously disrupt her
normal lifestyle. She is
confused and frightened. A
million questions run through
her head all day, every day.
Who should she tell? What
should she do next? Where can
she find a reliable physician to
perform the"abortion? Is she a
"bad" person as so many
elements of society tell her? Is
she killing a baby? Contrary to
the seemingly popular belief,
many women who have
abortions question whether
they are murderesses. (Coun-
seling and support help.
Right-to-Lifer's cruel attacks
Uphold M i rand a
do not).
The actual physical
procedure of an abortion seems
to be the most frightening
aspect of an unwanted
pregnancy. An injection into
the cervix and the vacuum-suc-
tioning out of the uterine
lining sound and can be the
very unpleasant experiences of
a first tri-mester abortion. The
procedure, therefore, rather than
being simple, only multiplies
the feelings of fear and sadness
in a woman who decides to
have an abortion.
Thus, before one decides to
criticize women who choose
B orowosky
To the Daily:
Russell Baker and Art
Buchwald possess the rare gift
of writing satire with a flare
and wit that neither offends nor
insults etheir readers.
Unfortunately, Mark Borowsky
does not. This is perhaps the
reason why his most recent
article, "New York fans...You
Make Me Ill...," (Daily, 1/28)
provoked me to respond so
vehemently. I will be the first
one to admit my lack of
literary genius; however
Borowsky article was written
in poor taste and demonstrated
an obvious prejudice that has
no place in American
journalism. The Daily's
editorial staff underestimates
the power it has to influence
its constituents and should
become more responsible about
its editorial decisions in the
future.
By his biting and vindictive
article, Borowsky simply
fosters negative attitudes
towards people from the New
York metropolitan area. It is
appalling that Borowsky
received threats and verbal
abuse, but his schoolyard type
approach to the problem,
whereby push comes to shove,
certainly lowers the esteem and
New York's
To the Daily:
To Mark Borowsky,
I've had enough,
I don't think
You're so tough.
I'm sick of hearing
Your anti-N.Y. cry,
Why don't you just
Roll over and die.
Enough is enough,
Hang up your hat,
It's time for me
To go to bat.
I want to tell you
A thing or two,
I'd love to make you
Black and blue.
You say N.Y. fans
make you ill,
I'm sure in person
You're no thrill.
I know you think
New Yorkers are loud,
And yes we do stand
Out in a crowd.
but an effort to remind our
members that social problems
begin here at home. And that
our inspiration to activism
should not be the lively chats
in warm conference rooms but
the cold and and harsh realities
sides
of the world around us.
-Denis Dolgache
Vice President
Coalition for
Democracy in Latin;
America
Jan. 28
abortion, one must consider th
personal pain they will or have
suffered. Abortion is not ,
simple decision or an easy w
out. It is not just a dumping
a clump of cells. Rather, for
men or women, it is A
mentally confusing, emo-
tionally painful, and physically
frightening experience. Ye
women who choose abortior
do so because they feel it is the;
most responsible choice they:
can make. Although not
regretted, it is never forgotten.
-Lisa Hardy
January 29tl
is insulting
reputation of the The Michigan
Daily. Borowsky has claimed:
his intentions were to chide the
New York fans. However, his
comments hurt and are deeply
rooted. I am from what is
commonly known as the
"armpit of America," or New
Jersey. Yes, I am also a long
suffering Giant fan and to
engage in a fist fight type
defense of my team and even
my state would lower myself'
to Borowsky's level. Let it be;
known, however, that Giant
fans are as loyal and;
enthusiastic as fans come and:
there is more to New Jersey.:
than Port Newark. It upsets and.
worries me to see Borowsky
express his condescending
opinions to a large mass
because he has the power to
bully his views on us. If there:
is at all anything positive:
about the Borowsky article, in
is the First Amendment
principle it hides behind. Stic
to sports journalism,
Borowsky,rand leave the w
and charm to Baker and:
Buchwald.
-David Kreis
January 29
had enough
We just wanted
To show we're the best,
And give you Bears' fans
A years rest.
So we want you to crawl
Back in your hole,
It's unanimous,
I've taken a poll.
Don't worry the Knicks
Aren't good this year,
So you won't have to
Chop off your ear.
Here's to the World Series
And Superbowl,
Watch out world,
New York is on a roll.
So give a pheer to
Ron Darling and Phil Simms, w;
In hopes they'll come here
And break all your limbs!
-Gillian Goldsmith:
January 2:
U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL
EDWIN Meese III and the Justice
Department have declared war on
the Miranda decision which
demands that police tell the accused
their constitutional rights upon
arrest. Meese contends that the
police cannot effectively investigate
crimes and prosecutors cannot use
crucial evidence such as con -
fessions or conversations with
suspects all due to this decision.
Meese and opponents of
Miranda argue that only "guilty"
defendants benefit from Miranda.
Nothing is further from the truth.
Miranda affords innocents in
society protection against coercive
police questioning.
Contrary to the Bill of Rights,
opponents argue that the Warren
Court overstepped its bounds of
constitutional interpretation and
mandated a decision outside the
Constitution. The Fifth and Sixth
Amendments, however, guarantee
the right to counsel and the right of
the accused not to testify against
themselves.
Suspects begin their defense at
the time of questioning; thus, to
keep the individual ignorant of the
constitutional right to counsel
provided by Miranda would
destroy the prosecution's case,
regardless of guilt or innocence. If
testimony is obtained from a
suspect not cognizant of her or his
rights, it is invalid in court.
Miranda is a direct application of
the Constitution.
Last year, the Supreme Court
affirmed Miranda's legitimacy in
Moran v. Burbine. The court
majority wrote: "We think that the
decision as written strikes a proper
balance between society's legiti -
mate law enforcement interests and
the defendant's Fifth amendment
rights." Miranda is necessary
protection against overzealous law
enforcement rather than freedom
for criminals.
Meese denies the premise of the
justice system: a suspect is
innocent until proven guilty. In the
federal courts in 1985,
approximately 19 percent of
suspects charged were not guilty
and another 16 percent had the
charges 'dismissed. Assuming
people are guilty before proven
innocent, and disregarding the
innocents already falsely accused
by the system, Meese desires to
undermine the justice system by
overturning Miranda.
Miranda insures that coerced
statements do not convict innocent
suspects. Miranda does what
Meese wants to avoid; it protects
the innocent.
The dangers of a coercive
government far outweigh the
dangers of a few isolated criminals'
escaping prosecution. If the
decision were overturned, it would
be a grievous blow to civil liberties
in the direction of unchecked police
power.
By following the Miranda
decision, police will improve their
conviction rates of criminals by
making their evidence admissible in
court and insuring civil liberties for
the accused.
AACWR supports choice
To The Daily:
We, the Ann Arbor Coalition
for Women's Rights, feel that
it is imperative for a woman to
maintain control over her own
life and this includes the right
to have an abortion. Con-
sidering the high rate of
teenage pregnancy, the lack of
adequate health and child care,
and the frequent occurrence of
rape, abortion must remain an
option. Organizations such as
the Right to Life have
separated the abortion issue
from women's rights issues
and made it into a narrow
moral issue - that abortion of
a fetus is the murder of a child.
What is immoral is to coerce a
woman to have a child that she
does not want and may not
have means to support. The
end result is that both woman
and child must struggle to
survive in a society that
chooses to supply weapons for
ongoing wars in other
countries rather than provide
for its own population.
The Ann Arbor Coalition for
Women's Rights feels that the
abortion issue is only part of a
larger struggle for women.
Other women's issues such as
comparable worth, contra-
ception and forced sterilization,
rape and all forms of violence,
are central to the struggle for
equality, and not peripheral as
the Right to Lifers would have
people believe. Furthermore,
the women's struggle is
directly linked tosall minority
struggles against discrimi-
nation. In this respect, the
AACWR fights not only
sexism, but racism and lesbian-
gay bigotry. Society must
provide equally for every child
it bears.
With the recent attack on the
fundings of abortion through
Medicaid, this issue is par-
ticularly urgent." The current
standing of the Medicaid bill
puts the coat hanger into the
hands of the Right to Lifers.
They are circulating a petition
demanding that Medicaid
funding for abortions be cut
off. If they are able to get
190,000 signatures, the Michi-
gan legislature can vote to pass
the demands of their petition as
a law. If it does not pass in
the legislature, it will be on
the next ballot.
Women have played a passive,
non-confrontational role in
history,nbut if we are going to
control our lives we must take
action and defend our rights.
-Laurie Wonnell
Gretchen Billmaier
Ann Arbor Coalition for
Women's Rights
Jan. 19
Are you energetic? Do you want to-have
an impact on issues you care about? Write
,for the Michigan Daily Opinion Page. Call
747-2814
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