LOCAL/STATE The Michigan Daily - Monday, March 19, 2001- 3A .CAMPUS Conference looks at Palestinian activism Researcher added -to Life Sciences Institute faculty Alan Saltiel, a cell biologist and diabetes researcher, has joined the University's Life Sciences Institute. Vt their March 15 meeting, the University Board of Regents approved Saltiel's appointments of a professorship of internal tnddecine with tenure and a profes- sorship of physiology without tenure. Saltiel has been an adjunct profes- sor of physiology at the University smce 1994. Coming from Parke-Davis Par- maceutical Research Division in -Ann Arbor, Saltiel has written more than 175 articles for biomed- ical journals. Saltiel is a member of the editor- i4:boards for four medical journals and is an associate editor of the otrnal for Clinical Investigation. Prof. to speak on authoritarianism in Palestine, Egypt Northeastern University political science professor Deis Sullivan will give a talk on "Confronting Authoritarianism (and Occupation) in Palestine and Egypt: How Can Civil Society Remain Civil?" The free lecture will be in 1636 Sihool of Social Work Building Oomorrow ac 4 p.m., and is spon- sored by the University Center for .MddleEastern and North African S:ftudies. Lecture planned on modern Buddhism The University College of Liter- ature. Science, and the Arts will sponsor a lecture by University Asian languages and cultures Prof. Donald Lopez. .'Iln conjunction with his appoint- ment as Belser Collegiate Professor in Buddhist and Tibetan Studies Lopez will present a lecture titled "The Making of Modern Bud- dhism." The free lecture will be tomorrow at 4:10 p.m. in Rackharn Amphithe- ,tcr, on the fourth floor of the Horace rackham Building. Emory prof. speaks on Holocaust denial Deborah Lipstadt, Emorv Uni- ve rsity modern Jewish and Holo- caust studies professor will discuss themes from Denying the Holo-' C'aust: The Growing Assault on 'Wrath and Memory, her study of "the'rise of Holocaust-deniers since "World War II. Lipstadt is part of the Hilel twenty- second Annual Conference on the 'Holocaust. This free lecture will be held at Rackham Amphitheater, on the fourth jfloor of the Horace Rackham Build- ing at 7 p.m. Wednesday. 'U' poetry team ooks to fill final .Qur openings The Grand Slam!, the University's ,,ozdry team, is looking for members to MI1 its final four spots. On Thursday at 10 p.m., anyone at the University will be able to audition to be on the team. After this competi- ion, the members on the poetry team lwill compete in the College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational on April 14 Mandi. . M'The opening event Thursday night will be a presentation Kip Fulbeck, film-maker, poet and associate profes- sor of art and Asian American Studies at the University of California in Santa Barbara. +The College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational is hosted by the Uni- "rsity and will include teams from J ale, University of California at Berkley, Case Western, Louisiana State, Southern University and a team yet to be determined. This free event will be held in the SMeun of Art. For more information on how to audition or about the team, x ;sit www. umich.edu/-poetslani or cal(734) 763-3202. Compiled by DaiIl Staff keporter Whitney Elliott. By Elizabeth Kassab Daily Staff Reporter Whil.e some students headed to the bars to down pitchers of green beer Saturday, others headed to Pier-- pont Commons to draw attention to what Steve Sose- bee, founder of the Palestinian Children's Relief Fund, said is the "most extreme level of oppression" the Palestinian people face from the state of Israel. "Education and Empowerment," was the theme of the Conference on Palestine. During the first part of the conference, which consisted of four simultaneous sessions on specific topics, approximately 500 partici- pants were provided with basic information about the conflict. Speakers focused on Jerusalem, the Palestin- ian right of return, Zionism, the United States' role and past peace-making efforts. The second part of the conference was designed to give the audience an idea of its role in the conflict. Speakers lectured on political lobbying, media activism, grassroots and campus efforts and relief work. "Basically this is a way for people to learn about the situation and find out what they can do once they have learned," said LSA sophomore Sameer Hossain, who helped plan the conference. "Even though this problem has been around for a while this is a relatively new issue ... being publicized on campuses and in the media in general," he said. Rackham graduate student Idris Elbakri, who chaired the event, said he and other students wanted to respond to the feeling of helplessness in the local Palestinian community, especially since the outbreak of the current violence and failed peace talks. The event was the first of its kind at the University. "We hope to do it again," Elbakri said. "I think the fair was a great success." "This kind of conference is timely especially in light of the Palestinian popular uprising against the Israeli occupation of their land," Turaani said. The conference gave people statistics and facts to reinforce their ideas, SNRE junior Norah Rabiah said. "So many people feel a certain way, but they don't have the facts to back up their feelings." LSA sophomore Nada Abu-Isa said she appreciated the empowerment section of the event because it gave people an idea of what they could do. Knowledge of the situation alone can leave people with a feeling of frustration, but the empowerment sessions gave people a sense of direction, she said. "Don't just sit on your hands. It's our duty and our obligation to help them I think," Sosebee said. Sosebee stressed that people in America can have a role in pro- viding aid to Palestinians, however small. "If you have money but no time, give money. If you have time but no money, give time." "If you don't do it, who's going to do it?" asked speaker David Sole. He credited the efforts of grass- roots campaigns with drawing attention to the situation and opening up dialogue on issues where there was none a few years ago. "I count that as a success," he said. Sole cautioned that the campaigns were only a first step. "We need a mass movement and we can't do it with'a handful of people," he said. Letters to congressional representatives are another way of showing support and working to change the sit- uation, Turaani said. Visual images were present along with speakers at the conference. "Innocence Under Seige," an art exhibit featuring the drawings of Palestinian children in Jerusalem, ws incorporated into the event. The pictures reflected the childrens' reactions to the recent violence between Palestinians and Israelis. Some showed stone-throwing Palestinians facing Israeli soldiers with machine gunk while several depicted the death of 12-year-oLd Mohammed Jamal Aldura, who was caught in the miff dIe of a skirmish and was allegedly killed by Israd bullets last year while his father tried to shield him.-1; A fair including organizations dealing with Palestint- ans through relief, aid or other means also accompa nied the sessions. ELLIE WHITE/Daily University of Cincinnati students Tala Ali and Fatma Salama inspect audio tapes Saturday at the Conference on Palestine at Pierpont Commons. ' I/ Ah Alop"ka. . group begins Cancer Awareness Week By Kara Wenzel Daily StaffReporter University Students Against Cancer will kick off a week of events planned to promote cancer awareness among campus and com- munity members. Today on the Diag, USAC members will hand out blue ribbons signifying cancer awareness and fliers promoting events for the rest of the week. They will also be selling bags for candles that patrons can dedicate to cancer patients or relatives who died of can- cer. The candles will be lit Tuesday night during a candlelight vigil on the Diag. Tonight in the Union USAC will open an exhibit with artwork by community cancer patients and survivors of all ages. Tomorrow theyvill host a speaker from the American Cancer Society. Arb staircas Wednesday USAC is hosting a Bar Night at the Cavern Club. Proceeds from this and all other events of the week will go to Special Days Camp and Candlelighters. "Special Days is a summer camp for Michigan kids with cancer or their family members. It is a chance for them to be nor- mal for a few weeks and have some fun away from the hospital," said U SAC member Agatha Bommarito. "Candelighters is a group that is helping to write and publish a book for children who have cancer. They want to help the kids cope with their illness and make em feel better," USAC member Lauren Gudritz said. USAC's new event for this year is Thurs- day night's dinner and fashion show. "We wanted to keep making this week big- ger and better every year, so we had the idea to have a dinner and fashion show. We didn't know if it would work out because it is a huge event with many campus groups involved. There will be a cappella, dance and music groups performing in addition to the fashion show," said Gudritz. A 5K run starting at Elbel Field on Sunday will culminate the week. Anyone can run as long as they register before the race at 8:30 am. USAC is expecting this event to cater to community members. "This week is a campus wide event. We want everyone to be involved. Help from stu- dents has made this event and USAC in gen- eral bigger than ever," Gudritz said. "Cancer affects everyone, and it is a lead- ing cause of death. We are urging students to take part in the cause as well as the fight against cancer. Being knowledgeable helps because we are all affected," said event co- chair Anita Gupta. Cancer Awareness Week events * Monday:10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Diag Diag DTay 7 p.m., Union Art Lounge Art Exhibit opning 8 Tuesday: 9 p.m.,,Diag Candlelight Vigil i Wednesday:9:30 p.m., Cavern Club Bar Night M'hursday. 7 p.m,,Union Baitoom Dinner and Fashion Show M Sunday:9 aim, Elbel Field 5K Run e built i Engineering graduate was killed while working for the Peace Corps in Tanzania By Kay Bhagat Daily StaffReporter Friends and family of Natalie Waldinger came together Saturday to build a staircase in Nichols Arboretum to commemorate the 1998 University graduate who died in January while working in Tanza- nia for the Peace Corps. Local friends collaborated with those from New York and San Francisco to begin work on the project. "A couple of weeks after Natalie died we realized we had to do something, she meant a lot to us. We wanted to make a memorial, she always did services to clean up, and always put her friends to work," said Amy Fischer, a first- year aerospace engineering gradu- ate student. After much organization and preparation, a team of volunteers planned to create a permanent, con- crete memory for their friend. Approximately 40 people gath- ered to lay the foundation of the project. They said they anticipate the staircase will be complete by the onset of summer. "We are starting this project with the group most involved with Natalie, then utilizing other stu- dent volunteer groups," said April Pickrel, the project coordinator. Pickrel remembers the extensive work that Waldinger did in the Arb, as well as urging her friends to volunteer with clean up projects. Co-organizer and 2000 graduate Tia Sutton finds irony in Waldinger's past efforts. "It's kind of funny, because when Natalie started community service, she always put us out to work. Now this is the third time, and Natalie still made us come out," she said. The College of Engineering is donating the materials necessary to execute the project, Fischer said. The building of the staircase is expected to run smoothly, weather permitting. The ground may be frozen, making it difficult to dig steps out of a hill and put in a sloped staircase, Sutton said. "When the weather clears up, we will install a memorial bench,"she said. While the excitement of finaliz- ing this long-awaited project was apparent in the attitudes of Waldinger's friends and family, her father said he does not believe that she would approve of this effort. "She would hate it. She didn't do things to seek personal recogni- tion; she did things that had to be done," said Paul Waldinger. He described his daughter as a one with a kind persona and chari- table deeds. "She touched the heart of every- one she came in contact with, not only her friends and at home, but worldwide," Waldinger said. lek It0 United Jewish Communities' Half Shekel Campaign Join us and contribute to a world-wide community service effort. UJC represents and serves one of the world's largest and most effective networks of social service providers and programs, working to meet the needs of all people--Jews and non-Jews wherever IF THE CALENDAR What's happening in Ann Arbor today ,'VENTS I.-- - Art Exhibit, Sponsored by the I Inivrcrityi Sti ipcntc Un/Covered: Kabbalistic Unvmpnpitt ~irani Ta Einds SERVICES I they live. '_