4 OPINION Page 4 Tuesday, September 20, 1988 The Michigan Daily# MSA By Nikita Buckhoy and Elizabeth Paige The following is a story and example of the sexism women face in their'interac- tions with MSA and other elected repre- sentatives. On Wednesday, Sept. 14, 1988, Liz Paige and I discovered that the Michigan insensitive to women ately offended that MSA was giving out douches to women on campus. Histori- cally, women have been subjected to the belief that our genitals are dirty, disease ridden and that "extra special" cleaning and deodorants are needed. This belief still ex- ists, a quick look through any women's magazine will verify this claim. The companies that manufacture and distribute 'The companies that manufacture and distribute [douches] are clearly making a hefty profit off of this misogynist notion. Thus, giving out douches is not a trivial issue, it is rooted in sexism and insulting ideas about women's bodies.' Student Assembly would be giving out "care packages" to students at Festifall. We noticed at least 20 boxes lining the hall in the MSA area labeled either male or female, we asked someone if we could look in the packages to see what they contained. In the men's packages we found pain killers, cologne, cold medicine and other free samples. In the women's pack- agles we found similar items; cold medicine, pain killers, tampons and douches. My friend and I became immedi- Buckhoy and Paige serve on the Women's Caucuses of the United Coali- tion Against Racism (UCAR) and the Fiee South Africa Coordinating Cdmmittee (FSACC). Buckhoy is also a member of People Organized for Women, Equality and Rights (POWER). these products are clearly making a hefty profit off of this misogynist notion. Thus, giving out douches is not a trivial issue, it is rooted in sexism and insulting ideas about women's bodies. It is relatively well known that: 1. The insides of healthy women's genitals do not need to be disinfected, cleaned by the chemicals contained in douches, the internal parts of our bodies clean themselves, the outsides we clean with soap and water. 2. Douching is unsafe, for it upsets the Ph balance in the vagina, washing away our bodies natural bacteria and germ fight- ing defenses. 3. If there are women who feel they need to use douches for hygienic or medi- cal/health reasons, it is a woman's prerogative and responsibility to purchase these products herself. And to discuss with her doctor the possible side effects of us- ing these products. We tried to explain this to Rob Bell, one of the organizers of MSA's Festifall participation, in addition to expressing our anger and asking that the douches be re- moved. Bell informed us he did not have enough people to remove them. (This was Wednesday afternoon and there were sev- eral MSA people in the offices at the time. Granted these people may have other things to do, but the process would not take that long and they would have two days to do it.) Then Rob Bell had the au- dacity to suggest that my friend and I take them out. I promptly reminded him that this was not our responsibility, not our fuck up. He appeared not to understand the issue or our anger. Our elected MSA President, Michael Phillips did not seem to care. During the course of the conversation with Rob Bell, Phillips walked into the MSA area of the Union, Bell then went to explain the situ- ation to him. He approached us and gave us his arrogant and insensitive opinion. He informed us that the packages were a gift from the companies who make the products, that MSA was not condoning the use of any of the products and was not in any way affiliated with the contents. Our beloved president must be some kind of fool if he thinks that MSA will not be associated with the care packages that they are giving out, be they the mid- dle people or producers of the products and packages themselves. What kind of orga- nization, which claims to represent the student population, would think and do something as irresponsible as not giving considerable thought to any process in which they are engaged? We were told, by Phillips, that if we and other women are offended by any of the items in the "care packages," don't use them. In other words, don't bother to look at, listen to and speak out against an offensive act. After giving us his words of wisdom, he then recommended that we raise it at MSA's constituency meeting the follow- ing Tuesday, and walked away. Phillips' message was, don't bother him with it until the appropriate time and place. Phillips dismissed us and our concerns. On Thursday, I was told of an interac- tion that Phillips had with Audrey Haber- man, a SAPAC staff person. Phillips told Haberman that two UCAR women had come into the office causing trouble and complaining about the presence of the douches in the packages they were handing out at Festifall. (In fact, I think we ruined his day.) Haberman responded with disbe- lief that the douches were to be distributed, Phillips asked what he should do, and Haberman told him to remove the douches. He responded that he would, and would tell other MSA members that she advised their removal. That evening I was informed by Pam Kisch and Cathy Cohen, fellow members of People Organized for Women, Equality and Rights (POWER),. that Phillips told them that the douches had been removed. Phillips did not bother to inform the women who initiated the complaint. There are several possibilities to explain Phillips' response to Haberman. The most important and probable is that she is seen as more of an expert on women's issues because she works at SAPAC, while Paige and I belong to anti-Apartheid and anti-racist organizations. Needless to say, Paige and I have a very good understanding of women's issues and feminism. A sec- ond possibility is Phillips suspected an- tagonism towards and dislike for UCAR as an organization and some of its members. (Pure speculation on my part, of course.) In either case, Phillips handled this situa- tion poorly. Speaking for both Liz Paige and myself, we think at least an apology is in order. This issue is larger than women's hy- giene/health care products, it is about the various manifestations of sexism, Phillips' and Bell's egos and irresponsi- bility. Both men could benefit from some education on women's issues and sexism, among other things (which I hesitate to put in print). It is important to know how the president of MSA handles complaints, women's issues and the responsibilities of, his office. We may indeed see Phillips and Bell at the next constituency meeting, but I think it would be a waste of precious time and energy. In the mean time and thereafter, their personal and this University's institutional sexism will not be ignored or tolerated. 4 -k 0he mFbtudnsanrtichigan l Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan Abortion too important to GOP Vol. IC No. 9 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily's Editorial Board Women helping women FOR WOMEN in Ann Arbor, several organizations serve as important resources. They all share a common commitment to provide support and care, to women in particular, and to all people in the Ann Arbor area. These organizations include the Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center (SAPAC), the Women's Crisis Center (WCC), the Washtenaw County Assault Crisis Center and the Domestic Violence Project/Safehouse. While all of these organizations func- tion in support of and in coalition with one another, they are all distinct groups working in different ways toward com- mon goals. SAPAC is a University-sponsored cnter which has its offices in the Michi- gdn Union. SAPAC focuses on three cmplementary purposes. The first provides counseling for sur- vivors of sexual assault and their family members and friends. SAPAC provides individual counseling and survivor sup- port groups. :SAPAC's second focus promotes cre- ating a safer campus. SAPAC works in cpnjunction with Safewalk, a co-educa- tional escort service, which operates out of the Undergraduate Library. SAPAC was also instrumental in installing emer- gency phones on campus. SAPAC's third focus deals with edu- cation on campus. The purpose of this education is to make women and men re- sponsible for understanding the issues surrounding rape and violence against Women. SAPAC has approximately 100 vol- unteers who organize and facilitate their many programs. They are currently for- tunate to be functioning with a very full staff. People can express their support of SAPAC and their desire to be involved by attending SAPAC sponsored events. The Women's Crisis Center (WCC) is a community-sponsored organization which defines its basic philosophy as "women helping women help them- selves." The Center's role focuses pri- marily on dispensing information to women in the community. As well as offering peer phone counseling to women who seek it, the Center provides referrals to organizations such as the Domestic Violence Pro- September 29th. WCC is currently located at 306 N. Division. They are in need of a new loca- tion, but due to budget limitations are able to pay rent no higher than $50 per month. Any information which could help WCC find housing is welcome and encouraged. The Domestic Violence Pro- ject/Safehouse is a United Way agency dedicated to the empowerment of women. It has several goals: providing safety and shelter for battered women and their children; reducing incidents of domestic violence; shifting the responsibility of prevention from battered women to the perpetrators and the community; and making battering a public policy and community issue rather than a private one. The services offered by the Domestic Violence Project/Safehouse focus on cri- sis intervention, counseling and support for battered women. Women can seek shelter at Safehouse by using the crisis line. Support for women is also available in the form of support groups and public education. Such educational efforts are vital to creating sensitivity to the needs of battered women. The Domestic Violence Pro- ject/Safehouse is also currently seeking volunteers. More information can be ob- tained by calling their crisis line. The Washtenaw County Assault Crisis Center is supported through community grants and private donations. Its goals are to provide support to survivors of sexual assault, their families and friends. This is accomplished through crisis line phone counseling, short term counseling and support groups. The Assault Crisis Cen- ter stresses the need to increase aware- ness and sensitivity in the community to the needs of women who have survived sexual assault. The Center offers its services to all residents of Washtenaw County and also to non-residents who are assaulted in Washtenaw County. Each of these organizations was cre- ated to deal with the special needs of women. They exist for women as sup- port mechanisms and networks of com- munication, however all members of the Ann Arbor community can benefit from their service By I. Matthew Miller Last Friday, Republican Presidential candidate George Bush stated that the issue of abortion should not become a "litmus test" for candidates running for office in this country. On Saturday, Michigan Re- publicans held their convention in Detroit and made the abortion issue the leading factor to decide which candidates would represent their party in the election in November. The two most hotly contested positions last weekend were for Regent of the Uni- versity of Michigan and for Trustee of Michigan State University. Both govern- ing bodies have two positions available this fall and three Republican hopefuls were running for those two spots on each board. During the convention a flier was circu- lated on the floor of the convention by a pro-Pat Robertson faction which offered to the voting delegates the positions that the candidates held on various issues. On one I. Matthew Miller is a Daily opinion staff writer sioe of the sheet were the Michigan candi- dates and on the other side, Michigan State. The questions dealt with the stance of the candidates on the rights of homo- sexuals on campus, condoning drinking on campus, and affirmative action. The first question on the flier, however, inquired about the candidate's position on the abortion issue. In each contest it was the pro-choice candidate who was defeated - Alan May at Michigan and Dee Cook at Michigan State. I am still trying to understand how a candidate's position on abortion will affect that person's ability to govern a major university. I feel that it has no relevance and that the elections should be centered around more substantive issues like tu- ition increases and combatting the prob- lem of racism on campus. The Michigan GOP is losing sight of its purpose which is, first and foremost, electing candidates to office. After spend- ing twenty-two hours at the state conven- tion I feel that the party has taken an ill- advised, almost self-condemning, shift to the far right. With the current attitude that abortion is the primary issue of a cam- paign, the party is forgetting the rest of the issues while alienating pro-choice supporters. .At this rate, the GOP will never win a state-wide election and it is their own fault. The party gives too much importance to the nomination to a post and not enough to the general election where it really, counts. What's the use of nominating a Robertson clone only to see him lose in the general election, and lose big. In the. case of U.S. Senate candidate Jim Dunn, who leads the Republican ticket in November, some polls show his adver- sary, incumbent Senator Don Riegle, ahead by as much as 4 to 1 - Good luck closing that gap, Jim. Since the moderates of former Governor William Milliken's crowd have been forced out of power by the extreme right within the party, those self serving party faithful should take a long hard look at themselves and the failures they will real- ize in November and turn the direction back towards the center or else they can forget having any influence in a state-wide election again. Letters to the editor , Defining freedom and protest To the Daily: "Climbing uninvited onto the stage and speaking out of turn are exactly the kinds of behavior defined as unaccept- able under the new guidelines of student conduct adopted by the Regents this summer." To the authors of this article "Arms and the Law" (Weekend Magazine, 9/16/88): Do you actually need guide- lines to tell you that this is inappropriate behavior? To me, anyone who doesn't consider this rude and downright obnoxious on their own needs to go back to the first grade, where the basic rules of social interaction are learned. I'm also dismayed by your attitude that you were blind- sided-caught by surprise-by the regents action. When a child beats on another child with a toy, the toy should be taken whole. Regardless of her polit- ical views (hers and mine are decidedly opposite) she is a re- spected and accomplished member of the world political scene, and as such deserves re- spect. But more significantly, that Southworth and Stein- graber, the authors, claim that she should not have been in- vited here because her views are in opposition to theirs is both egocentric and personally re- pulsive. Who omnisciently de- cided your views are any more correct or moral than any other? There are certainly peo- ple at this university whose views are in opposition to yours. That the authors claim to speak for all of us is beyond reproach. Don't even think of claiming to speak for me. You don't. Not until you grow up. Nothing-no political view, no office, no race, no religion- gives one the right to be rude. Another point: Last time I checked, a university was sup- posed to be a place where those interested in learning gathered to hear and exchange view- points for the benefit of all in- volved. This is part of the concept of a 'Liberal Educa- tion'. Perhaps this process does freedom is curtailed. However, I don't think that the Regent's actions were unwarranted. Whether, in the end, this is a good or bad decision, only pa- tience will tell. But there is some kind of elegant irony to the fact that those who are an- gry over the guidelines are pre- cisely those who caused their inception. -Frederick Knops September 19 4 Complicating library computers To the Daily: The new MIRLYN com- puter system in the libraries is a waste of money. It is not user friendly: it requires com- puter language to operate it. Students who want to find books by call number, make a hold, or learn whether a book is in the library cannot. The old Geac system worked fine. Its only fault was the small number of computers. The University could have saved money by buying many as- suredly depreciated old Geacs. -Erik Owens September 19 The Daily Opinion page is actively seeking women and minorities who are interested in writing editorials or doing investigative work. The basic re- quirements are two meetings a week and writing one article per week. Call Jeff or Cale at 747-2814. Daily Opinion Page letter policy Due to the volume of mail, the Daily cannot print all the letters and columns it receives, although an effort is made to print the majority of material on a