NEWS The Michigan Daily - Friday, March 25, 2005 - 5 WALK-OUT Continued from page 1 "They are holding our education hostage by keeping us from attending classes," said YAF member and LSA senior Laura Davis. Megan Tuura, an LSA sophomore and YAF member, said the walkout "prohibits us from learning. "And it's our tuition. (GEO) is taking my money,' Tuura added. In addition to anger over the issues of withholding education and tuition, some YAF protesters decried GEO's current con- tract demands. Jeremy Fertner, chairman of the campus YAF chapter, said the University's GSIs already receive higher salaries than their counterparts at other universities. Fertner cited the University of Wisconsin at Madi- son as an example of an institution that offers only one-third of the wages the University currently gives GSIs. In a YAF statement issued Wednesday, Fertner explained that although YAF is not opposed to the union, it does view GEO's demands as unrealistic and damaging to undergraduate students. "They are asking for high wage increases, increased health services - including trans- gender transition services and more money for daycare - at a time when the University is having to make financial cuts across cam- pus," Fertner said in the statement. "GEO members' unrealistic demands could ultimately raise tuition for all stu- dents, but GEO members themselves are insulated from the high tuition costs," Fertner said. "This does not seem fair to the undergraduates who will be the ones stuck with the bill. ... If GEO claims to be pro-student and pro-education, they should reexamine their demands and their tactics." For some GEO members, such as sociol- ogy GSI Tanya Saunders, the YAF student protest is a perfect example of the tendency of the University's undergraduates., to view GSIs as "regular" students. "I think there is a huge misunderstand- ing between undergraduates and graduate students about what we do. Because we have student status, many undergraduates forget that we are employees, and they don't think about how the University benefits. from our production of knowledge," Saunders said. "They should think of us as employees try- ing to get a living wage, and not as students trying to get extra money." But for Holly Burmeister, a GSI in the Eng- lish department who participated in the walk- out, the YAF protest was more than an example of a misunderstanding. Burmeister said she believed YAF had more sinister goals. "The terms of civil discourse were breached in almost violent ways," Bur- meister said. "That they would choose to engage in such homophobic and trans- phobic language tells us that their mission was to divide GEO's membership rather than to engage in social discourse." Ryan Kinser, a GSI in the mathematics department who was one of the picketers, said he does not like the idea of striking but feels that it is necessary. "I don't like not teaching ... None of us want to punish the students," said Kinser, adding that he thinks the walkout will ben- efit not only the GSIs but the students and the University as a whole. "We want our students to do well and be taught well," Kinser said. "The quality of pay (for GSIs) directly affects the quality of instructors, which directly affects the quality of student education at the University." Although Kinser cancelled his classes for the day, he said he provided students with an alternative meeting place at 6 p.m. after the strike was over. - Andres Kwon contributed to this report. TEACH-IN Continued from page 1 SDS, which was staged in protest of the Vietnam War. At this famous teach-in, many teachers declared a moratorium on classes and instead clustered in the Diag, carrying signs express- ing their discontent. It served as the paradigm for the many teach-ins that eventually spread throughout college campuses nationwide. LSA Senior Ryan Watkins, who also helped organize the event, wanted to commemorate the achievements of this day, but more importantly, to incite discussion on pressing political issues to keep with the spirit of the original teach-in. "One of the incentives behind the teach-in is to honor the original. Yet, I don't want to get too nostalgic, because it is disempowering to locate the locust for change in the past. Instead of just commemorating what happened, we want to recreate the teach-in by asking questions about the world we inherited," Watkins said. The teach-in anniversary began at 6 p.m. yesterday as tables from various organizations - ranging in issues from environmental to women rights - outlined both sides of a hall- way in Angell Hall. This was followed by a lecture, "Evaluating the American Empire," opened by socially active University alumni Al DeFreece and Rich Feld- man. Hayden served as the keynote speaker. In his speech to a packed auditorium, Hayden characterized the United States as an empire because of its extensive satellite and spy net- works, as well as the international military bases that protect the interests of the United States and make sure countries are not accruing too much power. However, Eric Weiler, an LSA senior and press coordinator of Young Americans for Free- dom, disagreed with this characterization. "Some people say that America does not have a territorial empire like Rome, but .a commer- cial empire. American corporations maintain a global presence, but this is because people like American products. This globalization brings jobs and economic growth to other countries. America still faces competition from Europe, Japan and China." Weiler added that his viewpoints do not rep- resent YAF; in fact, he said the group also has many members who question America's for- eign policy. Another phrase that echoed throughout the event was "Connect the Dots," which refers to the interconnectedness of problems afflicting society, such as racism and globalization. This symbiotic view of world problems reverberated in each speaker's lecture, which highlighted a range of social dilemmas that ultimately impact each other. Hayden's speech ranged from his own dis- satisfaction with the government's current involvement in foreign affairs to his vision of a more democratic future. "We are alone in this mentality that no one can hurt us. This is why 9/11 came as such a shock. Other countries see that some countries are more and less powerful," Hayden said. Hayden also said the Bush administration has no plans to pull out of Iraq. "During the presidential race, Kerry kept complaining that the Bush administration has no exit strategy. I have a rather direct explana- tion for this - there was no exit plan from Iraq, because no exit was planned." Hayden was involved in politics for 18 years and served as a state senator in the state leg- islature in California. Now, under the Bush administration, he has been inspired to resume political activism - referring to himself as a "recovering politician" in his speech. Hayden also expressed discontent with the University administration's lack of support. "It is unfortunate that the University did not choose to reclaim its own history. It's like ignoring something not worthy of memory," he said. Weiler disagreed that the University has a responsibility in sponsoring the event. "The University cannot take political posi- tions that do not affect them directly," Weiler said. The lecturers were not the only people from the original teach-in that attended the event yesterday. Julien Gendell, who was a chemistry teach- er from 1963-69, also participated in the first teach-in. Yesterday, he recalled how the protest began outside at 8 a.m. on a cold day. He said the idea for the teach-in evolved out of casual conversation among a couple of the faculty members. "It was originally 13 people talking about how they wanted to go out on strike. Before anyone could chicken out, we told the media," Gendell said. "It spread like wild fire. We had no idea it would catch on the way it did," he added. Immediately after the lecture, workshops were held to discuss issues such as globaliza- tion and the environment. Odile Hugonot, a nurse at the University Hospital and chair of the International Middle East Committee, facilitated a discussion enti- tled "Woman in the Empire." Hugonot, who also is Haber's wife, led a discussion that delved into issues about how women bear the consequences of war and how the disparity in gender representation in the government affects women. "This is a great way to incite discussion. We all come from different perspectives and backgrounds and have a lot to learn from each other," Hugonot said. Even though the night was politically charged, it was also just a chance for the protesters to reunite after a 40-year void. "We shared a moment in our lives when we changed the direction and gave meaning to our lives. I can't wait to catch up," Feldman said. To continue celebrating this legacy of stu- dent activism, today there will be a Vietnam War Symposium at the Rackham Assembly Hall. There will be panels revolving around the impact of the Vietnam War held between 11:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. and led by various esteemed poets and professors. PIRGIM Continued from page 1 concerned that there were no guidelines in place, Hol- lerbach said. CSJ is ordering the assembly to implement guidelines that are stricter than is required by legal precedent, and if implemented, these guidelines risk imposing unrea- sonable expectations and regulations on the assembly, Hollerbach said. Pierce Beckham, the chief justice of CSJ, said the guidelines are needed to ensure MSA's political neu- trality. Beckham said PIRGIM, unlike most student groups, did not provide its own spending guidelines when it requested money. Student groups apply for money through the Budget Priorities Committee and the Community Service Com- missions of MSA; those student groups have guidelines that they follow, and those guidelines are reviewed, Beckham said. "The problem with the PIRGIM funding account was that there were no guidelines," Beckham said. He added that, because of its lack of guidelines, PIRGIM could potentially support political issues or lobby, which could threaten MSA's tax-exempt status. While supporters of PIRGIM were discouraged by the injunction, some said they are more troubled with the manner in which they said they thought CSJ han- dled the injunction. Hollerbach said an appeal is necessary to prevent future control over the assembly by CSJ. "The concern is that, if the assembly doesn't appeal, there is a precedent that the judiciary can make sweep- ing decisions that would change how MSA works," Hol- lerbach said. "In the orders given in its decision, the judiciary assumed legislative power granted to the assembly," he said. "It was a breach in the separation of powers; CSJ was trying to legislate from the bench." Donica Varner, assistant general counsel for the University, said PIRGIM's status as a lobbying group remains a concern. "They said that, going forward, they wouldn't engage in lobbying, but I think it is indisputable that they are a lobbying organization," Varner said. Students for PIRGIM Committee Chair Carolyn Hwang expressed confidence in PIRGIM's future and said that, despite the efforts of some MSA members and the CSJ, the pilot program will exist at this time next year. " "If the process of the appeals is fair and just, we will be able to win," Hwang said. CSJ's attempt to prevent PIRGIM from having a student program on campus is just another example of the challenges that PIRGIM has had to endure, Hwang said. Although it supports Hollerbach's appeal, Students for PIRGIM will be filing its own, separate appeal to the decision, Hwang said. Hollerbach's appeal, in its current form, is focused on defining the relationship between CSJ and MSA. "What the CSJ can do is to order us to put these guidelines in place, but what they have done is gone 10 steps beyond that," Hollerbach said. "They can tell us that we're doing something wrong and suggest how to fix it, but they can't order us on what the guidelines should say." r . M .