WE ' , . 2. Y leather day: Sunny, High 70. LowE imorrow: Cloudy. High 68. 52, One hundred ninze years of edit n l freedom Tuesday October 12, 1999 ME 1 Meningitis affects MSU Jewel Gopwanl aily Staff Reporter A Michigan State University sophomore as hospitalized this weekend at Sparrow ospital in East Lansing after contracting eningitis. 'am Busuttil, living on the second floor f U's Wilson Residence Hall. was admit- d to the hospital on Friday night with a life ireatening strain of bacterial meningococco- tia, a form of meningococcal meningitis. Busuttil is a member of the MSU march- ig band, but did not take part in the activities Saturday's game. Meningitis which can be viral or bacterial, uses an inflammation of the lining of the rain and spinal cord. Bob Winfield, director of University Health Service, said one University stu- dent who stayed at Wilson Hall this week- end was treated yesterday with anti-biotics and could have come in contact with Busuttil. Winfield said meningococcal meningitis is "contagious through saliva and immediate contact with an individual." He added that symptoms include headaches, mental change such as lethargy and confusion and a rash that can be small or large blotches that are flat, red and do not change color under pressure. In order to keep the latest infection from spreading at MSU, the university is dispens- ing preventative anti-biotics to residents of Wilson Hall or anyone who may have been in contact with Busutill, said Terry Denbow, MSU spokesperson. Denbow added that MSU is also offering free vaccinations to its students, faculty and staff. As of yesterday evening, 1,300 Menumune vaccinations had been per- formed. Each vaccination cost the univer- sity about S50. The vaccine will be available until Nov. 1. But the vaccine, said John Greene, director of Vanderbilt Student Health, only protects against the A, C, Y and W- 135 forms of meningococcal meningitis. It does not protect from the B form of the infection. Greene said meningococcal meningitis student can cause death as quickly as 24 hours within the infection. Greene said Vanderbilt had a case of meningococcal meningitis in 1996, where the student survived the infection. "It's more common among those people who live in a dormitory setting" Greene said. Brian Kopinski, a first-year student and Wilson Hall resident, said he has had no contact with Busitill but still wants to take precautions. "I want to go get the vaccine just to be safe," he said. MSU junior Dan McKeown. who lives in East Holden Hall, which is located behind Wilson Hall. said he isn't worried about infection. "I'm kind of hesitant to become Michigan State University first-year student Shannon Switzer t, vvan pniic vr2in frn L mi mp nnAtt Pnla .ntar OUT. 'community shows pride By Jon Zemke Daily Staff Reporter The door opened and some 60 students and University community members walked proudly out of the closet onto the Diag as the Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Affairs sponsored National Coming Out day yesterday. The student group encouraged all homosexuals and allies of homosexuality to come out of the make-shift clos- e set up on the steps of the Harlan Hatcher Graduate rary. Students held up two colorful decorated planks covered with gay pride symbols to represent a closet. Students then came out of the closet through a rainbow flag of streamers and declared that they were homosexual, bisexual or an ally of homosexuality. "We're just hoping to encourage people to come out, support those who come out and build awareness," said Lisa DeBruine, a second- year Rackham student and one of the event's organizers. tf those who came out of the closet, 15 people walked of the close to declaring themselves as straight allies of the gay movement. Several students dressed in drag also walked through the crowd of 100 people at the rally. "I'm here to support those who came out and show Ann Arbor that we have a strong LGBTA and that we need their support," said School of Art and Design senior Michelle Sabe. Fredric Dennis, director of the LGBT office, led the rally stating that the LGBT community is stronger than public figures and "homophobes like Pat Buchanan, Pat ertson and Jerry Falwell." Dennis also shared the microphone with LSA senior Andrea Zellner who asked the LGBT community to stand up for themselves against bigotry. "We are not animals to be beaten on and treated like crap," Zellner said. Dennis initiated the walk through the closet. "I came out to encourage other people to come out and to encourage students to be who they are," Dennis said. "I did it to help them feel comfortable and confident in who they are in the community." everal community members and students said they felt comfortable declaring who they are and that they are homosexual or an ally of homosexuality into a microphone that carried their message across the Diag. National Coming Out Day marks the mid point in National Coming Out Week. See PRIDE, Page 2 AND PROUD r gets a meningits vaccine train nUrse ynnect r OMMUner See MSU, Page 2 yesterday. City, MSA offer new ticket boxes By Jeannie Baumann Daily Stati Reporter Parking adh codes. Univ A collaborative project by the meters must Michigan Student Assembly, the City of order to rec Ann Arbor and the University will as city parki enable students to pay their city parking next busines tickets on campus. boxes can e Drop-off boxes will be available later types of par] this semester in the Michigan Union "My long and Pierpont Commons, where stu- the way the dents can pay their parking fees. City University " couriers will pick up the ticket fees on a little easier.' daily basis. Audrey S "Parking tickets are already not seen director, sai( in a positive light, so the idea is to make it as conve- Drop on by nient as possible," said Ann Arbor City Council 3 Parking ticket drop member Chris Kolb (D- off boxes will be Ward 5). located in "After someone gets a the Michigan ticket, to make them walk Pierpont down to city hall or mail in Commons. the ticket is adding insult U Fines are to injury," he said. reduced from $10 to Ann Arbor parking poli- $5 for those who pay cy reduces the fine from the fine by end of the 50 to S5 when tickets are next business day. paid by the 5 p.m. the next business day. This rule will also apply this is imp( heres to a different set of ersity tickets for expired be paid within the hour in eive a reduced fine, where- ng allows payment until the ss day. Elias hopes that the ventually be used for both king tickets. -term goal is to harmonize city works and the way the works to make student life a Elias said. chwimmer, Michigan Union d she is unsure of the exact date that the boxes will be installed because inspec- tors still have to look at the wall space and ensure that mounting the boxes will not interfere with any pip- ing or other related fac- tors. She also mentioned a need to keep the historical feel of the Union. "It's relatively easy to put a box up anywhere. However, we want to keep up the aesthetic quality of the Union. We feel that ortant to the students and MARJORIE MARSHALL/aly Director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Affairs Office Frederick Dennis (right) applauds as LSA sophomore Juan Solomon walks through make-shift closet yesterday on the Diag. to those who use the. drop boxes. "We're planning on having a time stamp, so that we know what time you put it in the box," said Michael Scott, manager of Parking and Street Maintenance for the City of Ann Arbor. All parties said they are enthusiastic about the project and its potential. MSA President Bram Elias said it marks the first time in three years that MSA has collaborated with the city. "This is a good example of the three groups - MSA, U of M, and the city - working together," Elias said. "It shows that the city is interested in working with the students." "If we can do this one thing, then we can think of bigger projects," Kolb said. The boxes are only vlid for city parking tickets because University important to the alumni," she said, Schwimmer said that the University administration is looking at this project on a trial basis. "We want to see if this is service that students will use, and hopefully it is," she said. LSA junior Angela Zonderman said that she would definitely use the boxes. "It sounds like a good idea," she said. Many students echoed Zonderman's excitement. The drop boxes "would be better than having to walk to the police station. It would save a lot of time," LSA senior Jason Harwood said. LSA junior Blessing Fregene said she sees the benefits for both the city and the students. "The convenience will make it easier for students to pay their tickets, so the city will make more money," she said. Shepard jury s, LARAMIE. Wyo. (AP) - Almost a year to the day after gay college student Matthew Shepard died with a cracked skull, jury selection began in the murder trial of the man accused of instigating the attack. A few anti-gay protesters demonstrated out- side the courthouse yesterday, along with people who came to honor Shepard's memory by wear- ing angel costumes to spread what they said was a message of love. Inside, the defendant, Aaron McKinney, talked with his lawyers, looked at his notes and smiled occasionally as prosecutor Cal Rerucha briefed prospective jurors on the selection process and warned them they will be shown graphic evi- dence such as autopsy photos. "Murder is never pretty," Rerucha said. "In order to be a good juror, you have to be able to election begins examine those photographs." Shepard, a first-year student at the University of Wyoming majoring in political science, died a year ago today, five days after he was lured out of a bar, driven to a remote spot on the freezing prairie, lashed to a wood- en fence and pistol- whipped into a coma. Prosecutors say McKinney, accompanied Shepard by fellow roofer Russell Henderson instigated the crime to rob Shepard of S20, but that Shepard may have been targeted because he was gay. See SHEPARD, Page 2 High bidders Activist fights violence in Guatemala by Kelly O'Connor aily Staff Reporter When Adriana Portillo-Bartow eturned home one September day in 981, nothing could have prepared her or what was waiting on the other side of he door. Bartow's 70-year-old father, sis- e law, younger sister and two daugh ers had vanished and, she said, a 36-year- ong bloody civil war was to blame. In honor of Indigenous People's Day, artow spoke in a crowded room at the ichigan League yesterday about her xperience in Guatemala and the work he has done to raise awareness of the relationship" with Latin American gen- erals. The school is located at Fort Benning near Columbus, Ga. and is funded by U.S. tax dollars. Much of the United States' interest is economic, Bartow said. "The School for the Americas was established to protect the interests of the U.S. corporations in Latin America, Bartow said, adding that the U.S. trained officers to use violence and fueled the war with dollars. The U.S. invests more money in Guatemala than any other country in Central America. but it is the country Guatemala is "the home of one of the most despicable crimes committed against humankind." - Adriana Portillo-Bartow Guatemalan human rights activists breath-taking natural beauty, including many mountains, volcanoes and flowers that bloom year-round. But it is also the site of an ugly part of human nature, she said. "It's the home of one of the most forces against violence against indige- nous people everywhere. She is also a part of a grass roots movement to shut down the School for the Americas, as it continues to "misuse military might," she claimed.