The Michigan Daily - Thursday, February 9, 1995 - 3
Students at
Rutgers
protest pres.
Students at Rutgers University in
New Brunswick, New Jersey, are call-
ing for the immediate resignation of
the university's president, Francis
Lawrence, after he made a comment
they perceive to be racist.
During halftime of the Rutgers-
Massachusetts basketball game Tues-
day night, approximately 150 students
crowded the floor and sat down, caus-
ing play to be suspended. Yesterday,
about 750 students staged a protest
rally on an outdoor commons area.
On Nov. I1, Lawrence, during a
faculty meeting, made an off-hand
comment that the reason why African
Americans and other minorities gen-
erally score lower on standardized
tests, such as the SAT, is because they
lack the "genetic, hereditary back-
ground" to score well.
Ironically, thepurpose of the meet-
ing was to suggest that low test scores
of minority students should not hinder
admission. During and immediately
after the meeting, no objections were
raised to Lawrence's comments.
Student anger, mostly among mi-
norities, has risen in the past week since
Lawrence's' comments were printed in
the Newark Star Ledger. Most faculty
and the board of governors support
Lawrence, but many students disagree.
"It's not a Freudian slip when
someone says something like that,"
senior Denise Troope told The Asso-
ciated Press. "I know he has helped
minorities in the past, but this negates
everything he has done."
Lawrence has denied the charges
that his comment had racial implica-
tions. Many people, pointing to
Lawrence's good track record of mi-
nority recruitment at the university,
feel that his comment was not in-
tended to be derogatory or racist. They
said it was misinterpreted.
Study: Campus
crime increasing
Across the nation, colleges and
universities reported an increase in
the number of crimes related to drugs,
weapons, robberies and aggravated
assaults in 1993, according to a study
published last week in the Chronicle
of Higher Education.
There was a decrease in the number
of murders, rapes and burglaries re-
ported. The report surveyed 796 institu-
tions with more than 5,000 students.
Drug-law violations increased
34.3percent from 1992,jumping from
3,601 to 4,837. The number of rapes
reported declined from 458 in 1992 to
367, or 19.9 percent.
Here in Ann Arbor, the University
reported no murders, six rapes, seven
robberies, 30 aggravated assaults, 184
burglaries, 39 motor-vehicle thefts,
191 liquor-law violations, 215 drug
arrests and 12 weapons arrests.
The statistics show an increase in
all crimes except murder from the
year before. In 1992 one murder was
reported at the University.
-Complied by Daily Staff Reporter
Kelly Feeney
Speaker
describes
eating
disorders
By Deborah G. Weinstein
For the Daily
Psychologist Sheri L. Szuch, the
assistant director of the Institute for
Psychology and Medicine, attempted
to dispel myths about eating disor-
ders during a workshop at the Michi-
gan League last night.
The program, titled "Friends Help-
ing Friends," was part of Eating Dis-
order Awareness Week, which runs
Feb. 6-10.
"Food is not the problem," Szuch
said. "An eating disorder is a way of
trying to cope. The person with the
eating disorder tends to focus on body
weight. It is a way of distracting,
blocking. It is not coping."
Szuch said symptoms may be hard
to see, but could include noticeable
weight loss, unwillingness to eat in
front of others, frequent bathroom trips
after meals and excessive exercise.
Szuch said approaching a person
is difficult, because people tend to
ignore what they do not understand
and are unsure of how the suspected
person will react when questioned.
"The question to ask yourself, is
what happens if no one says any-
thing?" Szuch said.
Szuch advises students who sus-
pect that a person has an eating disor-
der to first get information and under-
stand forms of treatment, confirming
their suspicions before questioning a
friend's habits. Students who are still
uncertain can call a service like the
institute.
When approaching someone, Szuch,
in the institute's literature, advises us-
ing "I messages," that show concern
such as, "When I see you (lose weight,
starve, depressed) I feel worried and I
want to know if I can help."
"The most important thing to do is
let the person know you are con-
yr..s.
I , -
r' ,r
_V. ', r F
Woman files 2nd
suit against 'U'
By Michelle Lee Thompson
Daily Staff Reporter
Claiming the University's man-
agers are "racist," former Univer-
sity Hospitals employee Ella Jones
filed her second suit against the
Medical Center and her former man-
ager, Jeannie Rizzo, last week.
Jones' first suit contained com-
mon-law tort allegations charging
institutional racism, from which the
University as a government-run or-
ganization is all but immune.
In the latest suit, Jones alleges
that she was the victim of racial
discrimination at the hands of only
Rizzo and Jones' immediate super-
visor, Janet Hall - a breach of the
Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act. Hall
is not named as a defendant in the
case.
Jones claims the alleged dis-
crimination compelled her to resign
from her position, due to declining
emotional health.
"She decided that her health was
more important and she got out -
she resigned," said Jones' attorney,
Dewey Martin.
Jones was hired in 1987 as a
clerk III in the obstetrics/gynecol-
ogy department and was promoted
in 1988 to patient representative.
The Ypsilanti resident worked un-
der the direction of Rita James and
said that she received "good" per-
formance evaluations under James'
management.
When Rizzo replaced James as
Jones' manager, she assigned Hall
to be Jones' immediate supervisor.
"Under the direction and control
of ... supervisor Hall commenced
an unrelenting campaign of racial
discrimination," according to Jones'
complaint.
In November 1992, Jones said
physicians diagnosed her as being
"medically disabled to perform her
job duties due to work-related
stress," according to the lawsuit.
The following month, while on
medical leave, Rizzo allegedly no-
tified Jones by mail that she would
have the position of Clerk III once
again upon her return.
Jones says she was replaced by a
white employee with less experi-
ence and fewer qualifications.
"She was demoted," Martin said.
But Gloria Hage, assistant gen-
eral counsel for the University, said
"Her record justified whatever ac-
tion we took and we are satisfied
that there was no race discrimina-
tion in this case." Hage, who deals
with labor-related cases, said she
would not release details of person-
nel matters.
Due to her own emotional dis-
tress and severe depression, Jones
said she did not return to work at all.
"The action we took was not dis-
charge," Hage said.
However, Jones had earlier
called for an investigation by the
Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission before filing suit. Hage
said, "EEOC determined that there
was no cause to believe there was
racism."
Jones alleges that her supervi-
sors "came down harder on her"
after she filed with the EEOC.
Now, she seeks an injunction
against Rizzo and the University,
back pay and future earnings, in-
cluding fringe benefits and interest,
as well as the cost of litigation for
violating the Elliott-Larsen Civil
Rights Act, which prohibits racial
discrimination. She is seeking the
same damages for retaliation by
Rizzo and the University that fol-
lowed her EEOC complaint. Jones
claims these amounts total more than
$1 million.
"I am anticipating they're going
to deny everything," Martin said of
the University's reaction.
62
STEPHANIE GRACE LIM/Daily
This sculpture stands between the Fishbowl and the Diag as part of Eating
Disorders Week.
cerned," Szuch said. "Be sensitive to
the fact that you may get a variety of
responses. They may run out of the
room, yell, cry.
"Let them know you are there,"
Szuch said. "They may not bring it up
again, but may return weeks, or
months later. They may not get treat-
ment, but that is not your failure. That
you told them is your victory."
Szuch also addressed the impact
an eating disorder has on friends and
relatives.
"Everyone knows someone who
has an eating disorder," Szuch said.
"But you need to know where to draw
the line and distance yourself. Know
that you tried.
"I'm not saying to throw your friend
away," she continued. "But you may
have to distance yourself, not because
you don't care, but because you have
to take care of yourself. It's hard to
watch someone kill themselves."
Marcella Raimondo, a first-year
School of Public Health student,
helped organize the presentation.
"I did it because of my history
with anorexia," she said. "I would
like people to see that it is not some-
thing to be ashamed of. My friends
wanted to help me. I would feel really
good if someone left feeling they know
what to say. That really matters."
Local vendors share their wares in Black business fair
By Stephanie Jo Klein
Daily Staff Reporter
Strains of West African music
wafted through the air of the Michi-
gan Union Ballroom yesterday as ven-
dors sold their wares at the Ann Arbor
African American Fair.
The fair - ajoint project between
Minority Student Services and the
Office of Academic Multi-Cultural
Initiatives - hosted a slow stream of
customers throughout the day.
Daria Young, one of the fair's
organizers, said she "felt the fair went
smoothly, but I would have liked more
students attending or faculty attend-
ing because it is a rare opportunity to
have all of these Black-owned busi-
nesses in one place at one time."
The Center for African and Afro-
American Studies ran a similar fair in
pastyears thatonly involved students,
Young said. This year's fair com-
bined the local community with stu-
dent entrepreneurs.
LahTisha Evans, an LSA sopho-
more, said she was disappointed with
the low attendance at the fair. "It really
is a good opportunity for people to
network with each other. I didn't even
know there were this many Black-
oriented businesses in Ann Arbor,"
said Evans, who represented Dymonz,
a student organization for community
service and educational programs.
Several participants hinted that the
small crowd at the event was partly due
to the timing and the light publicity.
Derrell Locket, of D's Ceramics in
Detroit, said, "It could have been a bit
more advertised. Other than that, I can't
complain."
The Washtenaw County Health
Services also tested about 25-30 people
for high cholesterol and blood pres-
sure at the fair. "It gives us a nice
amount of time to really talk to people
who are higher risk for heart disease
and talk about diet and exercise in a
more relaxed way than if you have to
work real fast," said Ann Schreiber, a
Health Services employee.
Afrovisions, a business in Lan-
sing, sold cards and calendars with
such popular figures as Malcolm X,
Dizzy Gillespie and Bob Marley. Store
owner Saleem Shabazz said he found
the atmosphere to be "real low-key,
compared to some of the other shows
we do, but we did OK in sales."
Lamp starts Markley fire
By Jodi Cohen
Daily Staff Reporter
A small fire forced the evacuation
of approximately 1,300 residents of
Mary Markley Hall at 6:30 a.m. yes-
terday.
Resident AdvisorDerek Clark said
a lamp fell over in a double room and
the lightbulb landed on a resident's
bed.
"Rumor has it they weren't sober
... the mattress began to smolder, and
put a lot of smoke in the room," Clark
said.
According to an e-mail report sent
to Markley staff, a janitor smelled the
smoke and contacted Housing secu-
rity. The smoke alarm in the affected
room did not activate.
Clark said the word "smolder"
was used in the report to describe the
mattress. "It was not just singed, but
obviously there was some sort of fire
going," he said.
WIgFrEEgss QX3JBOg(*
BY PARTICIPATING IN A FOCUS GROUP ON YOUR FIRST YEAR
EXPERIENCE AT U OF M
Please complete the following information and drop the form off at 6015 Fleming
Administration Building or email all of the information to: debmor@umich.edu
by Friday, February 17, 1995.
time, and meeting location.
We will contact you to confirm your assigned date,
Correction
While several individual members of the Michigan Student Assembly at the Tuesday night meeting condemnedLSA
sophomore Jake Baker's posting of a "slasher" story on the Internet, the Assembly as a whole did not condemn Baker.
This was incorrectly reported in yesterday's Daily.
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