The Michigan Daily-Saturday, .une6, 1981-Page 11 CHANGING ROLES AND ERODING STEREOTYPES Women on the medical campus (Continued from Page 3) husband who does more than half of the homemaking." Other women, like Payne, are able to take time off or work part-time. Payne took eight years off to raise her family after receiving her Ph.D. "I came back (to academics) in the sixties," she said, "which in the sixties was possible. I think it may be impossible in the eighties because of the tight financial situation." The increase of women in the medical field provides more role models for women now than there were in the past. "There weren't that many women around" when she was in medical school, Paluszny said. FEMALE ROLE models are an important factor for women. "Positive role models make all the dif- ference in the world," Payne said. Another change for women in the medical field is access to all specialty areas, such as surgery and in- ternal medicine. "Strangely, there was a long time Inf laton Jobless rate is up that women didn't even get into obstetrics and gynecology," Schultz said. "There are some who treat women as "equal colleagues, and then there are some who never forget you 're a woman. " -Miriam Meisler, associate professor human genetics Medical student Rocio Huet is a past president of the American Medical Students Association. "I think what has happened in the past is that women were funneled-into pediatrics, for instance-and not such WASHINGTON (UPI)-The first wave of cheaper fuel in more than three years knocked inflation at the producer level down to an annual rate of 4.6 percent in May, while unemployment edged up for the month, the government reported yesterday. A world oil glut and gas-pump shy Americans, which have forced fuel retailers to trim prices to stay competitive, combined to cut wholesale fuel prices for the first time since February 1978. MAY'S 1.8 PERCENT drop in gasoline prices was long-awaited confirmation that more than a few weeks of competitive pressure is at work in moderating America's cost of living. Fuel oil got 1.2 percent cheaper. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate, which had held steady at 7.3 percent for three months, rose to 7.6 percent, matching the level of October 1980, the peak for that year. It was the highest since January's 7.4 things as surgery," she said. SUSAN RASMUSSEN, a research assistant at the University's Affirmative Action office, agreed. She pointed out that the distribution of women in the medical school departments may reflect the past "funneling" trend. She said there is one female faculty member out of 83 in surgery, and 8 percent of boththe human genetics and internal medicine faculty members are women. In contrast, women account for 25 percent of the pediatrics staff, and 43 percent of the family practice staff. Rasmussen said that for women to constitute a total of 13 percent of the medical school faculty is "not ' too bad," when compared to the national average of 15 percent. Beverly Mitchell, an assistant professor of internal medicine, said one change brought about by the in- flux of women to medicine is that "you're not singled out as being unusual. I think by and large it's easier (for women) now." percent. The number of unemployed rose by 425,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis to 8.2 million in May. Forty percent had been out of work less than five weeks. BUT WHILE FUEL prices decreased, the Girard Bank of Philadelphia, the nation's 45th largest in- stitution, hiked it's prime interest rate yesterday one percentage-point to 21 percent, the first major bank to react to a sharp upturn in money market rates. Girard's action came after the cost of overnight money rose past 20 percent and no one knew if the higher cost represented Federal Reserve policy. "It's too early to tell if the higher funds represent the Fed's policy wishes or if the higher rates reflect technical factors," said William Sullivan Jr., senior vice president at Bank of New York. "We could see most banks ride the prime.out until after Friday's money figures come in. 'For colored girls .. . opens at Mendelssohn (Continued from Page 6) next to inspiringly believable perfor- mances like Pat Vereen's child-like in- nocence in "toussaint" and Stephanie McIntosh's gut-wrenching agony in "no assistance," they are found to be somewhat lacking. But this inconsistency between per- formers only seems to matter in the fir- st act. By the second, the ensemble is a cohesive acting unit making what at first seem to be discrepancies in talent, now only seem to be differences in style. It's a shame that the second act, which generally contains the stronger material, also contains the only vignet- te of questionable value. A long scene called "a nite with beau willie brown" manages to almost completely stymie the increasing personal power and collective momentum of the second set with its contrived, melodramatic air. THANKFULLY, it did not seem to significantly hinder the revelatory gospel sing-along that closes the production, "I found God in myself, and I loved her fiercely." Perhaps the most amazing aspect of this show is that it avoids weightiness like an agile dancer, bowing to the pathos of a situation without ever stooping to wallow in pity. Dealing with such serious issues, it could easily have been a draining, helpless experience. Instead, it is a richly moving and em- powering experience, even for those who aren't necessarily black and/or female. Part of the involvement we feel as an audience comes from the actresses, whose performances are so real that we can't avoid identifying with their joys and pains. But a large part of our emotional rapture also stems from the fact that in touching on growing up female and growing up black, Shange also speaks to the pains and joys of growing up (period). Fearing a lover's power to walk away with your heart at any given moment, and the feeling of being too alone to even ask for com- panionship are clearly not emotions peculiar to black women. BUT EVEN THOUGH it speaks to all of us, "for colored girls . . . " is just that. It is written for black women to help them recognize and develop their common heritage. In many ways, Shange seems to have answered her own call (in the words of one of her characters) for "someone ... anybody (to) sing a black girl's song." The New Common Ground Theatre Ensemble is singing Ntozake Shange's song, and we'reinvited to join in. OPEN HEARING for Review of the Department of Geograpy Monday, June 8, 1981 Regents' Room First Floor, Fleming Administration Building 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Those wishing to make a public statement should call Edward Dougherty, 764-9254.