In WeekendMagazine, How gay students cope with bigotry * John Logie Ballots for our Best of Ann Arbor poll - The List Ninety-seven years of editorialfreedom VOLUME XCVII - NO. 121 ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN - FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 1987 COPYRIGHT 1987, THE MICHIGAN DAILY Ii / : T p - Subletters seek spring- summer s tudents By ELIZABETH ATKINS The spring and summer sublet season is once again in full swing as students advertise sublets of apartments and houses. And this year, as always, it's a buyer's market. Colorful sublet ads spot campus walls and kiosks, with catchy messages like "Sublet of the Gods!" Another sublet ad boasts, "A huge spring/summer sublet for a tiny price." For spring and summer subletting information, See The Daily's Summer Sublet Supplement, Pages 12, 13, and 14. The student who placed the latter ad said she received about two or three calls a day for two weeks, but that students are looking to settle ,for something "dumpy," as long as it's cheap. LSA sophomore Milton Feld said he received six or seven calls during the two days in which he advertised his apartment for subletting, but he got no definite bids. "People are calling around because it's a subletter's market," Feld said. The whole sublet procedure can be confusing and risky, so the See TENANTS, Page 2 Ii,7 student apologizes for jokes By EUGENE PAK One of two University students who called-in racist jokes during a WJJX radio program, publicly apologized to students at a forum on racism held in West Quad Sunday night. LSA freshman Peter Michael Gonzalez said in a phone interview last night, "I deeply regret the incident and am very sorry for what I did. I realized how wrong it was and am ashamed of it. What I did was just plain stupid." Gonzalez, who used the name "Miami Mike" on the Feb. 4 radio program, said "I was not trying to be malicious... at the time I did not realize the gravity of my actions." He said the incident had been bothering his conscience for some time and the forum offered him the opportunity to gain "peace of mind." Vice President for Student Service Henry Johnson ordered the closure of WJJX in February, then appointed a special panel to investigate the incident. Gonzalez and the program's disk jockey, Ted Sevransky, said they were not obligated to appear before the panel. Scvransky was fired from the station, and issued an apology earlier this month. The panel forwarded its report last week to a three member special commission headed by Vice President for Government Relations Richard Kennedy. The commission will recommend possible disciplinary measures to University President Harold Shapiro. Law School Prof. Sallyanne Payton, a commission member, said they can not take further action until Johnson details specific charges against the perpetrators. Two weeks ago, a student in Couzens Hall was evicted from the dorm after he admitted slipping a racist flier into a room where ta group of black women were meeting. Johnson would not comment on whether Gonzalez was named in the investigation committee's report. But Gonzalez said they had only "circumstantial proof' of his guilt. "I could see someone saying 'he is just trying to save his ass,' but I wasn't in jeopardy," Gonzalez said. Gonzalez, who has already signed a lease for next year, said he hopes he is not evicted and is interested in both personally apologizing to the United Coaltion Against Racism and doing service work for UCAR or other anti-racist groups. Gonzalez, whose father is Cuban, said he was the object of racist attacks as a junior high student in Miami, Fla. He said he has not experienced racism here partially because he does not look Hispanic nor does he have an accent. Esca. pe to natureDaily Photo by JOHN MUNSON Carol Makielski, the promotional coordinator of the University's Matthaei Botannical Gardens, poses by a goldfish pond. The gardens, which provide a natural escape from worries, are located near North campus. See Story, Page 7. Pierce By JERRY MARKON Ann Arbor Mayor Ed Pierce wants to ,be a full-time mayor. "I'm constantly behind in my work," says the 57 year-old Democrat, who spends 25 hours each week in the mayor's office, and another 25 at his local doctor's practice. But Pierce can't afford the economic cost of working as a full time mayor. "This job pays $13,750 a year. They're not going to get me here full-time for p that," he says. CITY Councilmember Gerald Jernigan (R-Fourth Ward), Pierce's opponent in supports next month's mayoral elections, thinks Pierce is already working far too hard. Jernigan, if elected, plans to work no more than 15 hours a week. "I would put more confidence in the city administrator. I don't think the mayor has to sit there and nit-pick and read every inter-departmental memo," Jernigan says. Throughout Ann Arbor history, mayors have been limited to part-time, supervisory roles. The city charter, updated in 1956, designates the city administrator as the head of local government. full- time mayoral position The administrator runs the day-to-day operations of City Hall, directs city departments, and prepares the city budget. Mayoral responsibilities include presiding over the city council, appointing council committees, and "acting as the ceremonial head of the city." BUT PIERCE and some other Democratic leaders argue that today's complex social issues - such as affordable housing and economic development - require a more influential, higher-paid mayor. "The leadership has to come from this office," says Judith Overstreet, Pierce's assistant. Former Mayor Albert Wheeler, a Democrat, says he worked up to 65 hours a week during his 1975-1978 term while teaching a full load as an associate professor at the University. Although he doesn't think every mayor needs to work that much, Wheeler strongly supports a full-time mayoral position. Wheeler, who says he spent hours poring over detailed city memos, describes himself as "a Jimmy Carter at the local level." According to Overstreet, Pierce also spends the majority of his time reading and commenting on city memos. "It's a voluminous amount of paper - he is constantly behind," Overstreet says. SHE ADDS that Pierce also answers correspondence, meets with constituents and interest groups, and attends ceremonial functions. But Jernigan and other Republicans believe Pierce should let the city administrator run the city. The mayor should concentrate on setting long-term city policy, Republicans say, and should spend less time working with, for See POLITICANS, Page 2 Beta nabs Mr. Greek Week. et .i Y By PETER MOONEY Mirror, mirror on the wall,T who's the fairest Greek male of all? This was the question answered by judges at the Seventh Annual Mr.: Greek pageant last night at the Michigan Theatre. The answer was Beta Theta Pi's Noel Dennis, an LSA sophomore., The best of the Greek system' were judged on a variety of criteria. Poise, enthusiasm, creativity, and wit were among the factors in- fluencing the judges' decisons. ,, "We don't judge purely on looks," said Zeta Tau Alpha mem- ber Shelley Krohn. Other factors include "charm. charisma, and good 9,000 GM workers strike in three Pontiac plants DETROIT - Nine thousand workers at three General Motors Corp. truck plants in Pontiac walk - ed off their jobs at noon yesterday in a strike analysts called a show of union muscle as summer's national contract talks near. "We're in pretty good shape and we hope it will be a short strike," said Frank Cronin, spokesman for the GM Truck & Bus Group. Cronin said he had no other information on potential strike ef - fects on the company. Talks between the United Auto Workers union and GM had in - tensified last week when union leaders in Detroit gave the Pontiac 'U' racism reaches Soviet televiDsion- workers permission to strike and gave GM a week to resolve the dispute. Negotiators failed to resolve more than 1,000 grievances on issues including subcontracting of union jobs to non-union workers, contract rules on job classifications, See GM, Page 5 INSIDE Democracy doesn't work for ordering pizza. OPINION, PAGE 4 Miles Davis sets to blast the Power Center tomorrow night. ARTS, PAGE 8 The baseball team heads to Coimhus toiv for fnr games- By DAVID WEBSTER On Wednesday afternoon about 30 million Soviet citizens viewed a segment on the daily newscast, Novosti, about racism at the Univ- ersity. .The 90-second segment included Duskin, a graduate student, said, "They tend to show a lot of stories of this nature when they cover the United States... Racism is a pretty common theme so that aspect probably wasn't very shocking to them."