The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, April 11, 1989 - Page 3
Officials seek
suggestions
on
r...
fighting racism
BY MARION DAVIS
In response to recent racist attacks
on campus, two University officials
yesterday invited student leaders to
an open discussion about the inci-
dents.
The meeting - organized by
Provost and Vice President for Aca-
demic Affairs Charles Vest and Mu-
sic School Dean Paul Boylan, the
head of the newly-created Task Force
on Safety and Security - will take
place Thursday at 6 p.m. in the Pond
Room of the Michigan Union.
The students invited to the forum
were selected from the list of student
organizations recognized by Michi-
gan Student Assembly. In addition,
members of the faculty's Senate Ad-
visory Committee on University
Affairs (SACUA), also received a
copy of the letter.
The letter, which began circulat-
ing yesterday, said "if our commu-
nity of students can be enlisted in
this mission, surely we can make
significant progress in our goal of
liberating the campus of the scourge
of racism,"
Vest said the meeting will pro-
vide a way for the faculty and stu-
dents to make make sure "these
incidents don't go on happening."
The letter labeled the recent inci-
dents as "disgraceful behavior," and
asked for assistance "in formulating
proposals and programs which are
responsive to these incidents."
"The idea is mainly to get some
student input and suggestions," said
Kay Dawson, an assistant to Vest.
Although Dawson said there is an
invited list, other interested students
may come. "There is a limitation on
space, but it's not a closed meeting,"
she said.
MSA President Aaron Williams,
an engineering junior, applauded the
administration's desire to include
student input in dealing with the in-
cidents. "It's always best to get stu-
dent input on everything," he said.
Williams said he would like to
see an official mechanism or policy
developed for handling incidents such
as the distribution of racist fliers.
"I'm lost as to what we can actually
do about the fliers because, we don't
have a set policy," he said. "There
needs to be more than (the Univer-
sity saying) 'We will be investigat-
ing it."'
At a press conference last Thurs-
day, students demanded that the Uni-
versity publicize procedures for and
results of investigations dealing with
racial incidents.
"It's not just a minority prob-
lem," Williams said, "it's a problem
for everyone."
DAVID LUBLINER/Daily
IS CRISP for kids?
Like every other returning student, Rackham graduate student Mary Locke lines up to CRISP for
next year's classes yesterday. Her Student Verification Form-less children, Sara (left) and Jona,
get some early scheduling lessons.
Mayor calls for committee to
consider city charter overhaul
MSU
paper to
continue
column
BY DIANE COOK
With wire reports
Although Michigan State
University's student newspaper does
not condone comments made by
Economics Prof. Patrick "Lash"
Larrowe last week, the paper's Edi-
tor-in-Chief said Larrowe's weekly
column will continue to run.
The State News decided not to
print Larrowe's column last week so
its staff could decide how to handle
the issue. The column was not
pulled for its content, State News
Editor-in-Chief Kelley Root said
yesterday.
Larrowe came under fire last
Thursday, when he responded to a
Detroit television reporter's question
why Black students seem to be un-
derrepresented in his labor law class.
Larrowe replied, "You won't find
too many Black students in a class
as tough as this."
He later publicly apologized for
the "profoundly stupid" remark,
which he says actually meant "(to)
convey the idea that affirmative ac-
tion is not working - that they're
here when they're not qualified."
"I didn't mean to convey that
they're not capable and they're not
qualified," Larrowe said.
The State News printed an opin-
ion feature yesterday, along with a
formal written apology for the re-
mark written by Larrowe.
"No amount of defense or praise
can erase the insensitive and ap-
palling comment... But Larrowe de-
serves the same right we all have -
to make a mistake, admit it, and
apologize," the State News editorial
said.
Larrowe's comment, which fol-
lowed MSU President John DiBiag-
gio's announcement that anyone in-
volved in racist activity of any sort
would be reprimanded, has outraged
some minority student groups.
"We agree that it was a pro-
foundly stupid comment to make.
But evaluation of this poor judgment
has to be out of context with his
overall record," said John Denbow, a
spokesperson for DiBiaggio. "We
appreciate Professor Larrowes expe-
ditious and accurate apology.
Larrowe said yesterday he under-
stands such a comment can't be tol-
erated, adding that a fine or a letter of
reprimand on his record might be
See MSU, Page 5
Hairstyling to Please!
6 Barber Stylists-
No waiting
DASCOLA STYLISTS
Correction
Julius Lester is a professor at the University of Massachusetts. He was
misidentified in yesterday's Daily.
THE
LIST
What's happening in Ann Arbor today
Speakers
Lecture on the Savings and
Loan Crisis - 1310 Kresge, 5-
6:30 pm.
'fSports on ,,Trial: NCAA
Regulations and Their En-
forcement" - Dan Beebe,
NCAA. Enforcement Committee,
and Mark Slive,132 Hutchins Hall,
Law School, 4 pm.
"Amphibolite Grade Defor-
mation of Quartzo-Feld-
spathic Rocks" - Carol
Simpson, Johns Hopkins Uni-
versity, 4001 C.C. Little, 4 pm.
Coffee and cookies at 3:30 pm.
"A Geometric Approach to
Nonlinear Feedback Con-
trol" - Prof. Arthur Krener, U.C.
Davis, 1200 EECS, 4-5:30 pm.
Black Music Lecture -
Maurice Wheeler, Curator Detroit
Public Library Repositiry of Afro-
American Music, Hillel, 7:30 pm.
Tagar General Meeting:
"This Far Shore: Jewish
Identity, the. Diaspora, and
Israel" - Hillel, 7 pm.
"Insights to the Dynamic
Systems and Control
Program" - Dr. Elbert L.
Marsh, 2277 G.G. Brown, 3 pm.
"Soviet Armenian Scholar-
ship in the Armenian
Diaspora" - Dr. Miriam Ter
Gregoriants, 200 Lane Hall, 4 pm.
"China's Automotive In-
dustry and the Economic
Reforms" - Prof. Kenneth
Lieberthal, Lane Hall Commons,
12 noon.
"Press Ethics and the First
Amendment" - panel discussion
with David Gergen, U.S. News &
World Report, and Lee Bollinger,
dean, Michigan Law School. 100
Hutchins Hall, 4 pm.
"The Social Roots of the
Palestinian Uprising" -
Prof. Samih Farsoun. 116 Hutchins
Hall, 7 pm.
Meetings
Lesbian and Gay Rights
Organizing Committee -
3100 Michigan Union, 8 pm.
Iranian Student Cultural
Club - Rm. C, Michigan League,
7:30 Pm.
Candlelight Vigil - to
express concern over the recent oil
spill in Alaska. Diag, 9:30 pm.
BY NOAH FINKEL
Ann Arbor Mayor Gerald Jernigan
will formally call for an overhaul of
the city's 1956 charter at next Mon-
day's Ann Arbor City Council
meeting.
The city charter is a comprehen-
sive document that outlines the
city's governmental structure, laws,
and election procedures.
During last week's council meet-
ing, Jernigan surprised city council
members by initially proposing a
resolution diagramming his plan to
change the charter.
"The charter is over 30 years old
now," Jernigan said. "I want to go
through it and see what has to be
changed."
Jernigan said a city committee
should look at the possibilities of
holding non-partisan elections, hav-
ing council members run for at-large
seats by removing ward boundaries,
making the terms of council mem-
bers concurrent rather than staggered,
and extending the length of terms for
the mayor and council members.
Jernigan's resolution would
establish a seven-member Charter
Review Committee. The mayor
would nominate the panel members
subject to confirmation by the
council.
The committee would work with
City Attorney Bruce Laidlaw to re-
view the entire charter, draft the text
of charter amendments as it sees fit,
and submit a report to the council by
December. The proposed changes
would then be submitted to a city-
wide vote next April.
Presently, the city conducts
This is not the first time a mayor
has complained about some aspects
of the city charter.
Robert Harris, who served as
mayor in the early 1970s, said he
voiced complaints about neighbor-
hood groups having too much clout.
He said this may imply a problem
with the ward system.
But University Political Science
Prof. Sam Eldersveld, who was
mayor from 1957 to 1959, said the
system worked well when he was
mayor.
"My own feeling is that it is still
a pretty good system," he said.
Eldersveld was the city's first
mayor to serve under the present
charter, which replaced the
"commission system" that employed
citizen boards and commissions to
run the city.
Eldersveld said that system re-
sulted in people running the city
who had the most interest, not those
with the most ability, and in too
much of a diffusion of authority. He
said the present system is far supe-
rior.
"I wouldn't tinker with the sys-
tem at all," he said. "Ann Arbor is a
unique city with partisan ward elec-
tions. (The system) is not responsi-
ble for any breakdowns or prob-
lems."
Jernigan
...proposes charter overhaul
partisan elections in which two
council members are elected from
each of the city's five wards. The
mayor and council serve two-year
terms, with half the council seats up
every April.
Jernigan, a Republican, said hav-
ing council members run for terms
concurrently would make the city
council more efficient.
Councilmember Liz Brater (D-
Third Ward) echoed Jernigan's
thought. "(The staggered system) re-
sults in a very high turnover," she
said. "That takes away from council
efficiency."
Jernigan also expressed a desire to
revise the charter amendment that
established a $5 fine for possession
of marijuana, but said such a revi-
sion would likely be defeated by the
voters.
opposite
Jacobson's
668-9329
I NNW
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY
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the Friday before publication.
,I
Come Laugh With Us!
SAUJG oRACK
StandUp Comedy
Features A Comedy Jam With:
Jill Washburn
Tim Herrod
and
Jim McClean
With Student Comedian
Dayv Gould
a .f^ ,...
SUMME R SESSIONS 1989
Programs at G;eorgetocn
Q Over 200 graduate and undergraduate
courses
aI
LI
0I
0I
0I
DI
LI
OI
Public Affairs Internships
H igh School Programs
Intercultural 'training
Interpretation and 't'ranslation Institute
Language Courses
Theology Conference
Iiterars (Criticism Conference
Institute for I.S. Teachers
Sacred Scripture Institute
Alumni College
English as a Foreign language
Programs abroad
L antmerp. Belgium- Int'l. trade
L I ours, I rance- Language and Culture
L Fiesole, Italy - Italian
L Iillingen, Germane - Teachers
L Greece-I lumanities
L Oxford, England-Comparative
Business (undergraduate)
L Oxford. England -International
lanagement (graduate)
L Quito, Ecuador -Spanish
STrier , West German -German
Q Mdiddle East-ILI.S. Teachers
i