Page 2- The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, March 8, 1989 Speaker studies Middle East women BY MONICA SMITH Women of Middle Eastern and Islamic origin- are a diverse group who are under-researched and have often been wrongly classified as a mono- lithic group, said assistant Sociology Professor Muge Gocek. Gocek led a discussion yesterday onwomen in the 18th-Century Ottoman empire. Gocek studied inheritance registers, detailed documents filed at the time of a person's death 'that described everything the person owned, their debts, their loans, and the final disposition of their estates. She cited research which tried to "recreate the daily lives of these women from the information in the records. Gocek's study sampled 124 of these records, 29 of which were of women. She said although - women lacked the administrative skills to partic- ipate in politics, they nevertheless participated in court proceedings and money lending, owned land, and produced and owned silk. Her research revealed that many men owed women money, and religion had little relationship to debt. Gocek said Islam is a religion associated with unchanging social relations and is seen as tradi- tional. She said the assumption that all members of Islam are the same hampers research. "If you assume women of Middle East or Is- lam are different you are marginalizing them," Gocek said. "You study them as a chunk... you assume people of the Middle East are one mono- lithic group. People see Islamic women as one category. No one sees Christian women as one category." Gocek said she sees the need for a change in the study and approach to studying Middle East- ern and Islamic women. "We need to have a more humanistic ap- proach, approach them as human beings," she said. Gocek said she thinks the social sciences' emphasis on Islam is leading to an incomplete view of the Middle East. While Islam is an im- portant factor in the study of Middle Eastern and Islamic women, Gocck said it is necessary to maintain a balance so that examination of one variable, such as religion, would not preclude study of other aspects. Women who have not participated in public institutions have historically had little informa- tion recorded about them, Gocek said. Available information on Middle Eastern history draws largely upon accounts by western travellers, which often leads to problems. Gocek said western travellers often visit the Middle East with a cultural bias, causing them to judge and compare the area to their country. Also, she said Western travellers tend to view the Middle East in relation to its biblical image. She said this can interfere with their interpreta- tion of the Middle East and its people. Native American artist discusses history Good Times do come cheap Wednesday. Make the week bearable. A Pitcher of Beer is only $2.95 Thursday. Another Pitcher special to celebrate Friday, all Pitchers are $1.00 off. Charsey 114 S.4 eriva Cuc 668-841 BY DONNA IADIPAOLO "We don't want Indians/Just their names/mascots/machines/cities/prod ucts/buildings/living people." These painted die-cut words are just one of the many forms of art shown last night in a slideshow pre- sentation by renowned artist Edgar Heap of Birds. Heap of Birds - a name as common as "Smith" for Native Amerians - discussed last night the insurgent messages present in Native American art and how it dif- fers from the dominant white culture in America. The presentation, titled "Apartheid Oklahoma," was made at Rackham Amphitheater to more than 100 people. "Political art is becoming a man- nerism," said Heap of Birds. "[Art] is becoming a little tainted by people being so far removed from certain affirmations. If you don't have that experience, then maybe you shouldn't speak out against it." Heap of Birds not only presented slides and posters of his own paint- ings, photographs and prints, but included drawings by Native Ameri- can prisoners during the 1800s, and works from other contemporary artists. Also depicted were portraits by today's Native American photogra- phers. One of these artists focused on the condition of the "Street Chiefs" of Oklahoma. Street Chiefs, said Heap of Birds, are Native Americans who are victims of homelessness and poverty because of state oppression. In reference to his own work, Heap of Birds said that he purposely did not sketch a framework before beginning to paint. He said that he "starts the painting like astorm - see art Page 3 IN BRIEF Compiled from Associated Press and staff reports New committee to investigate Tower WASHINGTON - Senator Sam Nunn, the Democratic chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said yesterday he has directed staff from another committee to investigate new allegations of excessive drinking against John Tower, an unusual move that quickly raised protests from Republicans. The partisan disagreement erupted as President Bush once again de- fended embattled defense nominee, saying there would be "25,000 people in the Pentagon" making sure Tower stands by his no-drinking pledge. Senate Democratic Leader George Mitchell, meanwhile, conceded there may be further Democratic defections but insisted the GOP will not have enough votes to win Tower's confirmation. "Why are we still investigating Senator Tower?" Republican leader Bob Dole of Kansas asked on the Senate floor. "Isn't the FBI report ade- quate? When does the investigation stop?" Iran breaks relations with Britain NICOSIA, Cyprus - Iran broke relations with Britain yesterday be- cause it refused to suppress "The Satanic Verses," whose author is under a death sentence by Ayatollah Khomeini for blaspheming Islam. Khomeini's fundamentalist Shiite Moslem regime said it was deter- mined to defended Islam against foreign insults. The regime has put a price of $5.2 million on novelist Salman Rushdie's head. Britain said that Khomeini's order that his followers kill Rushdie, a British citizen, violated the principles of international relations and that the diplomatic rupture was "entirely of Iran's making." In London, the Foreign Office said yesterday that British officials had not received formal notification from Iran, but had heard of the action through news reports and a Tehran radio broadcast. Iran decided February 27 to sever diplomatic ties unless Britain met its demands. Baker meets with Shevardnadze SHANNON, Ireland - Secretary of State James Baker met with the Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze yesterday and agreed to visit Moscow in May, where the will discuss prospects of a Bush-Gorbachev summit. 'His two-hour meeting with Shevardnadze in Vienna took place the day after they outlined their governments' positions at a 35-nation conference at reducing conventional military forces in Europe. Baker resisted a Soviet overture to reopen negotiations in April or May on reducing long-range or strategic nuclear missiles. He said the Bush administration wants to complete parallel reviews of its arms control policy and nuclear force structure before resuming talks. Reopening the talks on long-range bombers, nuclear submarines and missiles will be discussed during the visit to Moscow in the first half of May, he said. Industrialized nations commit to ban chemicals harmful to ozone LONDON - Industrialized nations committed themselves to banning chemicals that are destroying the ozone layer. at an international conference on the ozone layer that ended yesterday. They reacted coolly to Third World demands for money to find substitutes, however. China, India and other populous developing nations embarking on mass production of consumer goods containing chlorofluorocarbons rea- son that since the west invented and produces most of the ozone-destroy- ing chemicals, the west should pay to replace them. Despite the split, the 123 countries agreed that pressure is on scientists and industry to find safe alternatives before more damage is done to the atmospheric shield. William Reilly, head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said the conference sparked as much public discussion as any international environmental issue since the 1985 Chernobyl nuclear accident. EXTRAS Spring Break in Daytona will mean sun... and arm wrestling DAYTONA BEACH - Spring Breakers will get a chance to test their strength in the 1989 National Collegiate Arm Wrestling Championship on March 19 at the Carnival Hotel in Daytona Beach. The event, sponsored by the World of Arm Sports Magazine, Budweiser and the Carnival Hotel, will be held on the hotel's pool deck. Weigh-ins for contestants will precede the competition. The cost per entrant is $10. Awards will be given in five men's right hand divisions, three women's right hand divisions, and three men's left hand divisions. Awards will range from first to fourth places. Team awards will also be given. The competition is free and open to the public. & Mi Xan B The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by students at the University of Michigan. 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