The Michigan Daily-Thursday, March 3, 1988- Page 3 MSA rejects campus-wide vote on Steiner By ROSE MARY WUMMEL The Michigan Student Assembly Tues- day night voted not to ask students whether 4SA should work for the dismissal of ISA Dean Peter Steiner for his remarks rgarding Blacks and affirmative action. The decision, following an hour of debate, prevented the question from becoming a referendum on the March election ballot. Some representatives expressed fears that a negative response to the question could hinder similar efforts already under- way by the United Coalition Against Racism. The specific wording of the question and concern that students wouldn't be informed enough about the issue to vote were also discussed. Graduate student Bruce Belcher, a non- voting MSA member, said the question should not be put on the ballot because UCAR is already working to facilitate Steiner's dismissal. He also said MSA should not survey student attitudes toward Steiner because many have not considered the issue. But engineering representative and sophomore Dan Toboeman disagreed, "I want to know what students think... I don't want students to just rubberstamp my opinion." LSA representative and sophomore Jodi Friend agreed, "I think it's really sad that we wouldn't put it on the ballot because students might not vote the way we want them to." Sarah Riordan, an LSA sophomore, said MSA should get feedback from UCAR on the resolution before voting on the issue. But Bryan Case, a new LSA representa- tive said feedback from the student body is paramount. "We have yet to receive the significant student (feedback) on this issue and without we can't act in the interests of the students," he said. The resolution originally passed by the slimmest majority possible,11 to 10 with five abstentions. The vote was retaken as a roll call vote and lost 16 to 11 with no ab- stentions. But many assembly members main- tained that the constitution did not allow a recall vote after the first results were an- nounced. Tobocman, reading from segments of the constitution that left most representa- tives bewildered and unclear over actual MSA policy, said, "I believe the recall vote was out of order." But the resolution was recorded as de- feated. In other business, the assembly passed a resolution condemning Interim University President Robben Fleming's revised pro- posal on discriminatory acts 21 to two with three abstentions, almost the same margin as the vote on the resolution blast- ing Fleming's first draft. The assembly also passed a resolution pledging support for University employee Nelson McEwan, who was allegedly physically assaulted and racially harassed by his supervisor, Jim Boyd in the Under- graduate Library last month. In addition, the resolution called for the firing of Boyd and his co-supervisor, Tim Block. Native American Week to highlight education, culture .~ e - By JIM PONIEWOZIK A series of cultural and informa- tional activities focusing on Indian education will highlight the March "Native American Awareness" pro- gram co-sponsored by the Native American Student Association (NASA) and Minority Student Ser- vices. Michael Dashner, Native Ameri- can representative for Minority Stu- dent Services, said the theme of edu- cation is being tied in with the cul- tural activities to show that Native Americans do not have to sacrifice their culture to get an education. "It's OK to get educated and still be an Indian," said Dashner. Many Native Americans believe there is a negative connotation to maintaining ties to their cultural heritage and that therefore they must sever those ties in order to be successful at school and at work, he said. This attitude is held not only by young Native Americans, but also by the older generation, Dashner said. "PARENTS OF (Native American college students) that are cpming in now often feel that if you want to be a success, you've got to break away from the old culture," Iashner said. As .a result, he said, "the best and the brightest go off to cpllege, get assimilated (into the cultural mainstream), get married, aind that's it." - NASA Vice President and LSA senior Holly Powless agreed that }young Native Americans feel pres- sure to disassociate themselves from their cultural roots. Powless said Native American students at the northern Michigan high school she attended were iso- lated and discriminated against. "It was really cliquish, and (non-Native American students) wouldn't talk to you." In keeping with the theme of education, Powless said, Native American students from Michigan secondary schools will participate in a College Day program on Friday, Mar. 11, and will be invited to at- tend the annual Pow Wow. The stu- dents' activities were planned in conjunction with the Michigan Edu- cation Association. POWLESS SAID this oppor- tunity to visit the University may help acquaint the students with Uni- versity life, which is faster paced than that in the rural communities from which many Native Americans come. "It's really laid back (in the rural communities)," said Powless. "On the reservations, you hardly ever even see anybody wearing a watch." The difference between this lifestyle and that at the University sometimes intimidates the students, she said. - Dashner said the events, open to the public, are also intended to ex- pose Native American University students to a greater number of as- pects of their culture than is nor- mally possible in the Michigan area. The state does not have as thriving a Native American culture as other re- gions, such as the Southwest, he said. Ninety-six Native American stu- dents attend the University, comprising four tenths of one per- cent of the campus population. MOST OF THE Native Amer- ican Awareness program activities will be centered around the 16th Annual Ann Arbor regional Pow Wow on March 12 and 13. The Pow Wow, to be held at the University Sports Coliseum at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Hill Street, is a cultural festival featuring demonstrations of Native American dance, songs, and crafts. The Pow Wow will feature local performers as well as performers and artisans from Arizona, Florida, and Canada. The activities will include demonstrations of jewelry making, basket weaving, sand painting, lacrosse, Native American legends, and storytelling. Doily Photo by JOHN MUNSON Feeding time Two-and-a-half-year-old Annie Ganger refills the birdseed in the bird house in front of her house on McComb Street. Her mother, Gail Sinclair, works as a cook at the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority house. Robertson drops libel lawsuit M " , I. !!: V t,,Irov,. :l , ~r70 i o i, .vo ! !i I, ,v , i v nV~ :, , ~m Im vv r 1 .i#ofNative " Nativet American Critical Issues Cnfeie, HIoliday Iran West., 1900 ..Jakson Kcal: M ,ar. 10 -Registration, dinneryn t p eh b r 'i -i n .Mar. I1I -Conferenc(e sessions, coner byJonne Sedo* .ar.12.-- Clo~sinr unch kyoespeech by Tom orer -~College gYrogramHoliday Iran .W ,2900 JIksonRoad: .Mar.......Workshops on preparing for college. 8:30 - 11I:45 a.m.; Campus tour, 1:00 .6:311p.m. " Ainerican Indian Law Dlay,; .oliay mm nWest, 2100 Jackson Rod Ma_ s1 -S ekes William m American Awareness program Demmert, Alaska Commissioner of Education and Earl Barlow, 1:00 5:00 p.m.: Mar. 12-- Brunch with keynote speech by Tom Porter, 9:30 - 11:00 -rArbon Pow Wow, Sports Coliseum, corner of Fifth Ave. and Hill St.: Mar. 12 - 1:00 - 4:30 p.m. and 6:30 - 10:00 p.m.; Mar. 13 -- 1:00 - 6:00 p.m.; Admission: Adults $6/day, senior citizens and children $3/day. Weekend Pass $10. Group, student and family -Concert by Joanne Shenandoah, Sports Coliseum, corner of Fifth Ave. And Hill St.: WASHINGTON (AP) - Pat Robertson wants to drop his libel suit against a former congressmem- ber who questioned his war record because going to trial now would "sacrifice his presidential campaign," his lawyer said yesterday. But Robertson's accuser declared, "He's chickening out of the trial just like he chickened out 37 years ago." Former Rep. Paul McCloskey (R-Calif.), who has accused Robert- son of using his father's political influence to avoid combat duty in the Korean War, has said in recent Accused of chickening out' weeks he wouldn't settle the suit unless Robertson paid the costs, which McCloskey estimates at $400,000, of defending against the suit. The trial, set to begin on Tues- day, when Robertson hopes to do will in delegate-rich Southern pri- maries, would force him off the campaign trail for three weeks, at- torney Douglas Rigler said. In dropping the lawsuit; "Robertson does not intend to back away at any time from his denial of the charges that Mr. McCloskey made," Rigler said. He said that "It is quite possible that Mr. Robertson will be asked to pay a substantial amount of court costs" to cover the expenses of tak- ing depositions from more than 50 witnesses. ButRigler said he would likely appeal any such decision by U.S. District Judge Joyce Hens Green. - - - - - --i1iY ' : "" > . ^ '. .. : THEIST What's happening in Ann Arbor today PIRGIM may sue Detroit sewer dept. Speakers Debra Boyd-Buggs - can- didate for a position of Assistant Prof. in French and CAAS speaks on "Islam & Traditional Region in Senegalese Fiction," 4:10 p.m. in the Fourth Floor Commons, MLB. Jorge E. Silva - "Doing Ar- chaeology on the Pacific Coast: Taxi Cabs, Dogs, Skulls and An- cient Remains in the Chillon River Valley, Peru," brown bag lecture, noon, 2009 Museums Building. Geoffrey Ribbans - "Char- acter and Structure in Galdo's Fortunata and Jacinta: The Case of Feijoo," 8:00 p.m. in Rackham West Conference Rm. Marja Brouwers - Dutch fe- male writer speaks about "Femin- ism and Literature," 8:00 p.m. in The Interantional Center, 603 E. Madison. For info. call 764-5370 and 994-9276. Admission is free. Perry Bullard and Jeff Ep- ton -- "The road to peace in the Middle East" Their impressions from a recent visit to the W e s t Bank and Gaza. 7:30 p.m. in 120 Hutchins Hall, 625 South State Street. Meetings United Coalition Against Racism (UCAR) - Thursdays at 6:00 p.m. in the Michigan Union. Everyone is welcome. Lesbians of Color C olle c- corner of Hill and Fifth Streets. Society of Women Engi- neers - Exam raffle,. 6:30 p.m. 1200 E.E.C.S. Furthermore Paul Bunyan Ball - Dancing to the music of the Sharon Hollow String Band. Old-time lumberjack contests. Sponsored by the Natural Resources Club. 8:00 p.m.-mid- night in the Union Ballroom. $3.50/person, $6.00/couple. Opportunities for Minority Students on Becoming a Professional - Workshop at 7:00-9:00 p.m. in the Trotter House. Call 763-7037 for info. Trumpeter Timothy White - performs two concerts at noon in the Pendleton Room of the Michigan Union. Sponsored by the School of .Music. Admission is free. Landscape Architecture Open House - School of Natural Resources. Call Bob Grese at 764-6453 for info. - Newman Night - Movie Night in the lower chapel at St. Mary's Church at Thomson and Williams Streets, 7;00 p.m. Call David Lehmkuhl for info. 763- 1735. Computing Center Courses - Call 763-7630 for more info. UAC Soundstage - The By DAVID SCHWARTZ The Public Interest Research Group in Michi- gan will sue the Detroit Water and Sewage De- partment unless it releases documents detailing pollution in the Detroit sewer system, two PIR- GIM officials confirmed yesterday. The Ann Arbor-based environmental group has filed in court a notice of intent to sue the sewage department, said Gary Kalman, PIR- GIM's executive director. Kalman said the de- partment has 60 days to turn over the documents before PIRGIM will file a lawsuit. Kalman said PIRGIM is entitled to see the records under the Clean Water Act, but that the department won't release all of the documents the group wanted. "Now we're wondering what the hell is in (those documents) that they're so sen- sitive about," he said. "IT IS VERY CLEAR that these are public documents. We see no reason for the courts to rule that we can't see them," Kalman said. "We're asking for something that's incredi- bly basic." James Ridgway, assistant director of waste- water operations at the Water and Sewage De- partment, defended the department's action. He said all documents, except for "enforcement" re- cords, had been turned over to PIRGIM. The "enforcement" documents, which Ridg- way said detailed violations committed by indus- tries, were not released because the lawyers of. various companies had requested that they be withheld. "THE INDUSTRIES ARGUED, and it made sense to me, that enforcement data should be exempt from the Freedom of Information Act," Ridgway said. He declined to name any such industries. Ridgway claimed the sewage department was an innocent third party. "We intend to back com- pletely out of the lawsuit and let PIRGIM and the industries fight amongst themselves," he said. "When we go to court, the industries will join the lawsuit. If they don't join the lawsuit, we'll turn over the documents (to PIRGIM)," Ridgway added. PIRGIM program director Andrew Buchs- baum, who has spearheaded the fight against the sewage department, disputed Ridgway's claim that it could remain a third party. "The City can't stay out of it. By law, they are forced... to turn over the documents," Buchs- baum said. BUCHSBAUM ACCUSED the depart- ment of patronizing the companies mentioned in the unreleased documents. "They don't want to offend the industries that are paying the fees," he said. When asked to speculate on why the depart- ment wouldn't release the documents, Buchs- baum said, "I expect that they are breaking the law, and they don't want us to know." Israelis lob tear gas in hospital RAMALLAH, Occupied West Bank (AP) -Israeli troops fired tear gas inside an Arab hospital yester- day, forcing doctors to don gas masks and sending dozens of chok- ing patients fleeing with their faces covered by Arab headdresses. Soldiers clubbed a Palestinian teen-ager suspected of throwing rocks at troops from a barricade erected about 10 yards from the hos- pital's emergency room. As Associated Press photographer saw soldiers throw the youth head first down a flight of stairs, then sit on his stomach while beating him with a wooden truncheon. Troops detained 20 Arabs sus- pected of participating in demonstra- tions in Ramallah, Israel radio said. 9 CONJUGATE!_Spanish _ Foreign-language software for the Macintosh® Students: Put away your flashcards and reference texts. Turn on your Macintosh and learn more Spanish verbs in less time. CONJUGATE! Spanish offers these features and more... " Gives immediate feedback on errors and provides help. " Allows you to customize and save drills, display and print drill performance, and switch screen text from English to Spanish. " Creates new drills automatically which focus on your weak areas. " Identifies more. than 200,000 verb forms from a dictionary of over