TODAY Partly cloudy; Hig y L ow: 23. TOMORROW Windy, chance of snow; High: 29, Low: 15. One hundred and one years of editorial freedom Notes tackles The American Nightmare. See ARTS Page 7. In-,"I'l .at951 Vol. CI1, No. 27 Ann Arbor, Michigan - Tuesday, November 5, 1991 ,e fc an ua~fy Qp 3Al Y < ..Aftermath of tragedy brings shock to Iowa Classes cancelled for counseling sessions University of Iowa students Clarissa Ramos (left), Dave Pasley (center), and Janet McLarty grieve during a memorial service yesterday for those killed when a student opened fire on campus. 'U' students believe killings were not caused by academic climate, ethnicity by Gwen Shaffer Daily Higher Education Reporter IOWA CITY - A sense of fear and shock continues to pervade the University of Iowa campus four days after a Chinese student killed five people and critically wounded another before fatally shooting himself. Gang Lu shot members of his doctoral dissertation committee and an office of academic affairs employee as an act of revenge after being passed over for an academic honor nomination, university offi- cials said. Yesterday, students seemed to be going about their business as usual, although the campus of 28,000 students appeared unusually inactive. Still, a few students could be seen studying for midterms in the union and coffee shops. Record- cold temperatures and flurries con- tributed to the gloomy mood on campus. Those who were out in Iowa City yesterday expressed a range of emotions, from tears to shock to outright confusion. First-year student Julie King said her immediate reaction when she heard about the shooting was shock. "You just never would think something like this could happen here," she said. "People are laugh- ing because of the reason he did it, to try and make it seem less seri- ous." Many people said their major concern is that the Chinese on cam- pus will be the victims of increased racism from members of the uni- versity community who can't oth- erwise channel their angry emo- tions. Administration, faculty, Chinese students and American students are all dealing with the tragedy in their own way. "Everyone on campus is defi- nitely feeling pain," said senior staff psychologist Luis Vasquez. "Many of us that experience shock don't even know it. "I think what happened is re- ally going to hit in about a week," he said. "That is when we'll really start seeing the aftermath." International activities coordi- nator Elizabeth Pearce-Burton said the mood on campus has been somber. "Even after the football game on Saturday it was very quiet. People are uneasy," Pearce-Burton said. "People are beginning to question their own mortality and the nature of chaos and order." The administration cancelled classes yesterday and scheduled small group counseling sessions for students wishing to talk about last week's events. A campus-wide memorial service will be held Thursday, and many faculty mem- bers said that they will encourage discussion of Friday's shootings in their classes to help students deal with their emotions. "It is the university's job to in- sure that what one Chinese person did is not generalized to all," Pearce-Burton said, noting that the assailant could have been of any ethnicity. Students and faculty have been coming to the university counsel- ing office with a variety of ques- tions and psychological conflicts, Vasquez said. "People want to go over the de- tails of the events again and again, which is very common after a trauma," he said. "There is a lot of fear of going in buildings or on campus at all." Pearce-Burton said several See IOWA, Page 2 by Merav Barr Daily Staff Reporter Most Michigan students inter- viewed yesterday agreed that aca- demic competition and ethnicity were not factors in last weekend's killings at the University of Iowa. When Gang Lu was denied an award for his dissertation, the for- mer physics student opened fire on the student that was given the honor, associated faculty, an associ- ate vice president, and a secretary. Joel Kaji, a political science graduate student, is among many Asian students who fear this inci- dent will lead to unwarranted gen- eralizations about Asians. "I hope that people won't look at this one Asian student that flipped out and think that Asian students, who are known to be in- tense students, are more likely to do this," he said. Many Asian students are aware of expectations others have of them. An LSA sophomore who See REACTION, Page 2 City Council draws 600 with partnership hearing by Ken Walker and David Reingold Daily City Reporters Private citizens cried, pounded the podium, quoted Biblical verses and made emotional appeals to City Council last night at a public hearing over an ordinance that would allow unmarried couples to register their relationships with the City Clerk. Partitions on either side of the room were opened so the standing-room only crowd could spill out into the hall. City Administrator Alfred Gatta es- timated the crowd's size at 600 and re- quested police department assistance in dealing with the crowd. "With a large crowd ... we'd like to as- sure ourselves that we uphold our general responsibility to safety," Gatta said. 101 people remained on the speakers' list as the Daily went to press, approxi- mately 20 of which were still waiting to speak. Under council rules, speakers in public hearings are allowed to address the council for five minutes. After Mayor Brater requested the audi- ence refrain from applauding during re- marks, audience members waved their hands in the air to show support. The first speaker, Ann Arbor resident Leo Simon, criticized the unanimous ap- proval Council gave the ordinance upon its first hearing. "What bothers me most about it is that not one of you had the courage to oppose it," he said. "This ordinance defies the law of God," Simon added. Many non-residents also traveled to Ann Arbor to address the council. Paul Turner, a reverend at Metropolitan Com- munity Church in Toledo, Ohio, said he be- lieves that God accepts gays. "We believe that God loves gays and lesbians just like God loves heterosexu- als," Turner said. Councilmember Robert Eckstein (D- 5th Ward) said he felt religious arguments were irrelevant to debate over the ordi- nance itself. "Nobody has raised a problem with the ordinance itself. The complaints about it are based on a person's moral beliefs ... Re- ligion is such a diverse thing. How can I possibly say, 'Your religious beliefs are more valid than another person's?"' Eck- stein said. Many speakers who opposed the ordi- nance feared its approval would lead to an erosion of moral standards or the spread of disease through the community. But Anthony Welch, an Ann Arbor res- ident who said he tested positive for AIDS, dismissed the idea that the ordinance would spread sexually-transmitted dis- ease. "In fact, this ordinance would promote and support monogamous relationships, See HEARING, Page 3 DOUG KANTEH/Daiy Members of the crowd at last night's city council meeting waved their hands in support of the Domestic Partnership Ordinance. Incoming VP believes students have important voice by Bethany Robertson Daily Administration Reporter Maureen Anderson spent her first two weeks as Washington State University's vice provost of Student Affairs living in a residence hall, seeing first hand the challenges facing a WSU student at the begin- ning of school. When Anderson comes to Ann Arbor in January to take over as the University's vice president of Student Services, she may not be liv- ing in the residence halls, but she is interested in getting to know stu- dents and their concerns in a "non- stuffy" way. "I'm really looking forward to meeting more of the students," Anderson said. "I think it's impor- tant for students to have aivoice that makes a difference." Anderson, 43, has a wide range of experience, collected over the years as a teacher and administrator at several schools around the country. She directed counseling and stu- dent services at the University of Maine, University of Arkansas, Case Western University, and WSU. Each job has entailed different re- sponsibilities, Anderson said, which has added to her understanding of the position. "Doing that has given me a greater feeling of students' whole lives outside of classes," she said. Anderson said she is not intimi- dated by the pre- dominantly male administration in which she will be working., "Almost ev- ery position I've ever been in, peo- ple have said, 'Well gee - you're the first woman in this kind of posi- tion,"' she said. "I believe I bring a fairly different perspective to de- cision-making than many men do." Coming of age in the '60s and '70s made Anderson realize the im- portance of good communication be- tween the administration and stu- dents, she said. "I sat through a lot of demon- strations, and I really don't believe that's the way you make change in the world," Anderson said. Anderson said she would like to consider implementing a program from WSU which formed a research unit to track students' progress from the time they apply to the University until five years after graduation. "I really feel like a lot of us have a much better feel for what's See STUDENTS, Page 2 Anderson Professors play water .- polo -suits optional by Erin Einhorn A hostess at the U-Club hesi- tated before answering questions about the 12 to 15 men, mostly professors, who eat lunch at the restaurant three days a week. Other employees had told her the men played naked water polo to- gether. She didn't think it was true. But the Flounders - a Rroun of drop their clothes on the bleachers, take a shower and just join the game," recalled College of Engineering English professor Ralph Loomis. He started playing with the Flounders in 1957. "This meant nobody had to go to a locker room, get a towel, get a suit - we could just play," he said. Loomis said he enjoys the com- - I ~ _ ,.< i . > . :; .