Page 4-The Michigan Daily- Tuesday, December 3, 1991 Sh Itig dan 1arIg 420 Maynard Street Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109. 747-2814 Edited and Managed by Students at the University of Michigan ANDREW K. GOTTESMAN Editor in Chief STEPHEN HENDERSON Opinion Editor Unsigned editorials represent a majority of the Daily's Editorial Board. All other cartoons, signed articles, and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Daily. ..1... J ................. r: X;::.1': :1:"r:.1Ntt:v.': r:: rr:J:: :V: rr: A1:Y." 1Y.": ;:J. r: :": N :vr::::.}v::":"::."x: r:."r: reot::::: ::":.".vrr: o:r::::::: er.".",v: Jr:."r:JJ:: J.vr4;.;o.Y4:":S":":":S"}:S"ii:"}:.:: ; ".}}}:.}:: Sii::i::"vr:: }}}: ..t :1 r. vXJ::: :1" ".":::: "r1 ... y." "- " r.:"'r ,7.J f; "...'":fS ":S:S J ^ frr. :v. .".: ,."s::.::.:.".::::.: :4:"}::::: " ": ,:?::{:"Y.4:4:v:":?::4:: : : :::::: v. n:v :":. J. ..ti}. ..r :v ....... .........:.":: ... ..:. 'lr .Jf vZ. .".1 S { rf ".1 .s .r .r1. ar:": ..Jf. .tit...:}:4:"". :: rr: Condoms Magic's flip-flop may do more A t an interview given from his home in Lansing last Tuesday, Magic Johnson, the media-ap- pointed chief national spokesperson for AIDS,just caved in. Yielding to pressures from conservative and fundamentalist groups, Johnson retreated from his earlier statements that birth control is the best measure to prevent the spread of the disease, and instead advocated abstinence from sexual activity as the only reliable protection. Johnson's conver- sion is disheartening, and is symbolic of an archaic and ineffective stance that withholds information that the public has a right to know. When Johnson contracted AIDS and nobly spoke out about the dangers of his disease and the fact that it can afflict anyone, there was hope that at least some good could come out of the basketball superstar's illness. Johnson, as a role model, is in a position to reach many young people, including Blacks, who are especially hard hit by the AIDS epidemic. As a sports hero, Johnson's admission that he has AIDS has helped de-emphasize the stigma associated with AIDS - that it is a disease reserved for homosexual men. B(1s74Y A Nb T-E EAS~-- . . YJ YJI" . :A .:...A....vr..... : .'...1 1. .1 s.: ~ Y.. AS.. . Z 3.' Y '1i y6%% ."}« r. rfl .Sx... . ..".s {. .5 1{ ":Y " YJ1 h ...'' ".YJW. "f">. Y: r:V.. A...::: J: >t. .. . . . . . .A harm than good By preaching abstinence as the only safe way to prevent the spread of AIDS, Johnson is nullifying any good he could do as a spokesperson for the disease. While abstinence from sexual activity and intravenous drug use is the most effective way to prevent the contraction of AIDS, to preach this behavior as disease control is useless. No matter how many heroes speak out for abstinence, sexual activity will continue. AIDS education must be based in this reality. Frank discussions about AIDS must take place in the nation's schools. Condoms must be made accessible to young people and those who cannot afford them. The New York City public schools took this step last week by offering condoms to its students. AIDS testing on a regular basis must be encouraged. Only through steps like these will the spread of AIDS be curbed. The dangers of AIDS are serious. The seriousness of this disease calls for drastic - and perhaps uncomfortable - measures. If our heroes and our politicians continue to skirt the difficult and uncomfortable issues such as condom use, the AIDS epidemic will only get worse. Advertisers skirt real issues at public's expense he AIDS scare reaches new proportions ev- Tery day. It has become increasingly clear that AIDS is not a disease exclusive to homosexuals and drug users. AIDS is a disease that effects people of every sexual orientation and every color. Although researchers are working diligently to find a cure, it does not look like one will be discovered in the near future. As a result, it becomes crucial to educate people on ways to prevent con- tracting AIDS. One way of educating the public is through public service announcements that let people know that using a condom during sexual intercourse can prevent the transmission of the AIDS virus. Cur- rently, there is a great debate as to how descriptive and graphic these ads can be. As it now stands, the most blatant ad that has been accepted by the television networks compares using a condom to putting on a sock. In the ad, a man says: "If I told you that putting on your socks could save your life, you'd do it." The man then rolls up his socks. He then says: "Putting on your socks can't save your life, but there is something just as simple that can." This ad makes the point and is even humorous. However, it merely glosses over the real issues behind the importance of using a condom. Other, more direct, ads are being rejected because they are deemed "inappropriate for television." They deal specifically with teen sex, monogamous relation- ships, and the importance of knowing a person's sexual past. These are crucial issues that deserve to be addressed. These are the issues that the public is grappling with. Most of these ads are run in Europe, where the AIDS scare is equally troubling. Unlike American television, European television is dealing with the deeper issues that only enforce the need for the use of condoms. In the United States, the closest we come to addressing condom use is a sock analogy. Ads that tell people not to drink and drive are not promoting drinking. They recognize the reality that people are going to drink alcohol, and act accordingly to discourage drunk driving. Likewise, ads that tell people to use condoms are not promoting sex. They merely recognize the reality that people of almost every age group are having sex, and it is important to inform them about the disasters that can come from not knowing your partner's sexual history and from not using a condom. By airing superficial ads and not addressing the real underlying issues, the television networks are denying the American public important informa- tion. The American public does not need a sock analogy that eludes to the importance of using a condom; the American public needs to be told flat out that using a condom during sexual intercourse may save a person's life. CC propoganda To the Daily: Last spring Conservative Coalition campaign posters promised to eliminate funding for "anti-American rallies." Luckily for all of us,the CC couldn't legislate that blatantly McCarthyistic promise into reality. The term "anti-American" remains as ambiguous and insipid as ever, though I don't doubt that some CC members still occupy their time compiling lists of things "American" and "anti- American." Such classification of the universe is the citizen's right; I exercised my own right to opinion last year by calling these cam- paign tactics ignorant. Yet this year's CC campaign posters go well beyond mere adolescent Cold War stupidity. With the CC's signatory short- sighted idiocy, these posters asked the U of M student body to "exterminate the radicals" by voting CC. It seems that last year's campaign strategist, Joe McCarthy, has been sacked in favor of Hienrich Himmler, Pol Pot, Idi Amin, and a familiar rogue's gallery of intolerant political despots. Although I do not fear for my radical little life yet, I must feel a bit curious and apprehensive about the way the CC dismisses the intellect of the student body. Do they really expect intelligent conservative support for veiled threats against the opposition? Do they not expect thinking students to ask obvious questions: who are the "radicals"?; how will they be "exterminated"?; WHY should they be "exterminated"?; how does a democracy go about exterminating one group or another? This letter may come too late to have any effect on this fall's elections. But before next spring's MSA election I ask the student body to commit to memory the CC's campaign strategies: they dehumanize their opponents through fascistic propaganda and expect voters to follow that line of thought as well. I hope that both conservatives and liberals will draw upon their education and humanistic sensitivity and reject the CC and their abhorrent and elitist political philosophy. Eric Bauman Rackham graduate student Follow BYU's lead To the Daily: The "BYU Feminist group proposes curfew for men" (11/26) was a very interesting article. It described an option for attempting to solve the problems women on campus face every night as they walk home or to the library. The University and student groups concerned about this issue should follow BYU's lead, by creating a committee that could deal with this problem at this university, emphasizing on areas where Safewalk becomes an impractical option, and assessing potentially dangerous areas. Danilo N. Gutierrez third-year engineering MSA elections To the Daily: TThe lack of turnout for voting seems to directly reflect the parallels between student govern- ment and U.S. Government. With a bunch of little wanna-be Republicans and Democrats training for the real world on student funds, there's little question why students don't care. Arguing in "court" over the recycled content of posters while the Defense Department spends $18 million on campus mirrors the same nonsense preached from Washington, D.C. Patrick Soule LSA junior 'U' police inept To the Daily: I am upset and frustrated. Correct me if I am wrong. The University police were created to protect the students from an increasing crime rate and to be able to answer calls more quickly than the Ann Arbor police . They were given guns to assist them with these two objectives. It boggles the mind to hear how the University police have been more involved and con- cerned with the harassment of African-American students than the real issuses they were founded on. How can an incident such as the one at East Quad go undocu- men ted and unreported? How can the there be no official warning to the student body about a sexual assault in front of Hill Auditorium? How can a suspected, believed, and probable rape outside of Stockwell dorm go without any investigation? Somebody's not doing their job! The bomb scare incident is but another case where University police have shown their lack of competence. It was so funny to me to see those "dedicated" students who, by the way, are on the payroll, support the actions of the police by denouncing their critics. Tell me, do those same students feel safe on this campus now? As an African American and as a woman, I almost feel like a target rather than a benefactor! Things must change! Amy Ellis LSA sophomore *I {0 Refugees U.S. has responsibility to accept Haitian refugees O n Sunday, the U.S. Coast Guard halted three sailboats carrying 128 Haitian migrants in an ongoing effort to deal with the exodus from the impoverished island nation. Currently there are 3,772 Haitian refugees in U.S. custody at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. By keeping these refugees off U.S. shores, the Coast Guard is preventing Haitians from exercising the automatic right to appeal the decision of the Bush administration to deny them political asylum. This comes on the heels of a Bush Administration decision last month to begin the forced repatriation of Haitians, and to classify them as economic, not political refugees. The policy neglectshumanitarian concerns. It has no place in a country that claims to be dedicated to the protection of human rights. Since the Sept. 30 coup in Haiti that ousted the democratically elected Jean-Betrand Aristide, the military government has increased repressive and violent treatment of Haitian citizens. At least 1,500 Haitian citizens have been killed in the violence. Widespread reports of violence directed at citizens opposed to military rule have been dismissed by the Bush administration, despite the report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, part ofthe Organization ofAmerican States (OAS), that two mass graves have been found containing the bodies of at least 60 people, including children. The position of the Bush administration conflicts with its opposition to the forced repatriation of the Vietnamese boat people from Hong Kong by En- gland. Since the British implemented the repa- triation policy, the U.S. State Department has harshly criticized this policy. The position of the administration also conflicts with the United States' acceptance of Cuban refugees seeking asylum over the past several years. Cubans have entered the country under the Cuban Adjustment Act, which classifies these Cubans as fleeing the re- pression of the Castro government. In the late 1970s, President Carter was thought to have been damaged politically by the immigration of thousands of Haitians in Florida. President Reagan immediately restricted immigration and established the policy of forced repatriation. President Bush has 'decided to continue in the footsteps of his predecessor, ignoring the human rights concerns of the Haitian people. With less than one year remaining before the 1992 presidential election, itis politically expedient to deport the refugees rather than allow them safe haven. Instead of thinking in purely political terms, Bush should think in humanitarian terms, and reverse his policy of forced repatriation, before more Haitians citizens are sent to their deaths. The Statue of Liberty reads, "Give us your tired, yourpoor, yourhuddled masses yearning to breathe free." Obviously, the systematic political repres- sion of Haitian refugees does not fit into President Bush's interpretation of this statement. ".}Yr{.Y{.:Jt.}"f.1 .{ad'1: Yn}".}}}}}}1r}:"}----J:"Y. ;{{AJ Y."{{.};{. 1h"J. ". "r.VJNr",".Yn YV J ".Y""" YN. YfN" Yr"VN' fiY :{ :}}r1 {}:'}}.. r'};h }.. }.:'}:". .}}" "{' r .. n }'~ 'i'"''.. lJ ... J:.. r.. r^.. 1. ...r.. . . }i°' .. :M1:. ."rr."." fih" . y : "'''' M XENIX.. {".{ r."n...vo.Y,.{ .n... Y.h Y%8}'M1 n .r.. ...}1... .r. {.h.. ..".r. Y.fi .. n .r. 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A"Y'''Y.r..J i.., .... r.. urA°; :?:.e :."59.. .A}'i'A,.rnA"rrr. fAVni. l..r,1}':TrJfili.: r: V.l3...:':.rr 'r',.;.r:.r..:;:..,,... ,.A.;.:ox, by Rich Constable In September 1991 three new elementary public schools were opened in Detroit. This in itself is not surprising, what is surprising is that these schools are single- sexed all male academies, which were set up on the grounds of helping the plight of African- American males. How is this to be accom- plished? By putting forth positive role models, in the form of Black male teachers, placing the students in a strict academic environment, and instilling the students with a pride for their African-American heritage. These academies received resistance from many feminine groups such as NOW and ACLU because they exclude women from the classroom. Conse- quently, because of a law suit brought by these groups, the academies were forced to admit female students. Is this so wrong? No. It is my contention that these schools, no matter how high their aims, fall short of their mark schools. So, with the commitment of principals and teachers, a sound educational plan based largely around an African- American context was developed, which would meet the unique needs of urban boys, in an all male setting. These boys are not forced to go to these schools, unless their parents will it. If a parent feels that another school in the district is better, their child may freely go. Also, these all male academies will not result in a reduction of resources from other Detroit schools. The reason these schools are single-sexed are so that the boys will concentrate on their studies and not have to worry about distractions from girls. I agree with the goals of these academies. It is well documented how low the graduation, and how high the drop-out rate is for Black high school males. The conse- quences of this are the lack of employment opportunities for Black males, their high incarcera- tion rate and the incohesiveness of the Black family structure. These the same horrid predicament as Black males, and do excel in greater numbers, would not they too benefit from schools which are implementing goals which benefit the African-American population in Detroit. The boys are not forced to go to these schools unless their parents will it. What if parents also want their daughters to go to these schools (seeing the positive benefit it may have on their daughters)? Are parents to be subsequently deprived of attaining the same quality public education for their daughters as for their sons? The idea that the academies have to be single-sexed in order for the boys to concentrate on their studies is ridiculous. In elementary schools most boys have no special inclinations to girls and usually treat them like "one of the guys." Therefore, that idea holds no merit. As I have stated before, I am all for the goals of these acad- emies, I only question the fact that then are consciously hnefitina I Nuts and Bolts YOU UN STAND. YoARE A MAL SANTA .WWANT ? HAT'~S WAT M IGUR~oED. 'YOUR ?COMMH ) ~4PPIES BUT Ot7T OF114OT COSiUMEAND WHNAT?. IF YOO Fik'EME, ~777JL CEO RIGHT r0 fl4E PA1fRS. MAU. SANTA FI~RER by Judd Winick HY YOU FILTHY WI C9m*lNG SON oCA -