LETES0OTH EIOR
Services must
continue over
law exams
To THE DAILY:
Last December, I was sur-
prised to find restaurants in the
Union and some of the recre-
ational facilities closed during
the final two days of exams.
Someone in computing even
shut down the law library's on-
line catalog for a day during
exams. Once again, the school
has not paid attention to the
law school calendar even
though it's been posted for
over a year. For my $24,000 in
tuition, I do not expect ser-
vices to be unavailable during
exam periods.
Although the undergraduate
*emester is finished, the law
school's reading period runs
from May 1-4 and our exams
do not end until May 14.
Those of us having to work on
final papers overlapping with
other disciplines will apparent-
ly have to deal with Kresge
(needed for corporate law
research) being closed the
*aturday and Sunday of our
reading period, with shortened
hours during our exams. There
are also shortened hours at the
Harlan Hatcher Graduate
Library (used for'criminal law,
international law and public
policy research). And at the
Shapiro Undergraduate
Library. We must also deal
with the Angell Hall
Computing Site going from
eing open twenty-four hours
o closing before midnight,
even before our last day of
classes.
Apparently the University
doesn't believe that exercise is
necessary to reduce exam
stress because both the Central
Campus Recreational Building
and North Campus
, Secreational Building are
closed during our reading days sity" on campus.
and the Intermural Building, Such a tribalistic approach
which is the closest facility to to race relations only makes
the law school, is closed dur- them worse. The white racist
ing our whole exam period. lawyer's desire to be proud of
Nor may we get sick during his race is made legitimate not
exams because the University only by independent groups
Health Services summer hours and the University, but, most
kick in before we even start importantly, by its affirmative
exams. action policy. Why? Because
I guess only having the law once race is accepted as a valid
school academic calendar post- concept, there is no turning
ed on-line for a year didn't back. These groups and the
give these divisions enough University no longer make the
time to find staff at the end of debate about whether or not
the semester. racism is wrong, but which
MAURY BRICKS racism shall prevail. Such an
LAW SCHOOL absurd and, might I add,
immoral position can never
hope to achieve any of its
Racial goals because it makes the
same mistakes as the enemy it
fights. Though the racist
preferences lawyer clearly has a malicious
harm society agenda behind his "ethnic
pride," the University and any-
TO THE DAILY: one who accepts race as a valid
Recently onE NN ea concept are guilty of the same
Recently, on CNN Headline mistake.
News, I saw a news story ther
about a white man applying for The recent poll conducted
abt a hitn applyins.gHewa for shows that the majority of stu-
the bar in Illinois. He was detoncmuwuldojs
denied by a Federal Judge dents on campus would do just
because he was "openly that. While 50 percent of those
racist." This man was the polled were ignorant as to how
leader and founder of a self- admissions works, the fact
described "white supremacy remains that they were
church." When asked to defend opposed to using race in
his beliefs, he asked the ques- admissions. That was the ques-
tion "why is it wrong to be tion asked and the question
proud I am white?" they answered. This is a posi-
Indeed, this seems a valid tive sign. It shows that the
question in light of today's majority of people believe that
political culture that advocates race is worthless, as they
"ethnicity" and encourages should. If the University wants
people to be proud of their to achieve diversity on campus,
"ethnic culture." Our let them devote more than one
University is constantly sup- or two points to the essay, the
porting such ideas. Around only place an individual can
campus there are African- express him or herself. If they
American and Asian lounges, want to defeat racial hatred in
countless ethnic councils and this country, let them teach not
organizations, as well as a "acceptance" of ethnicity, but
number of other ethnic or race total rejection of it.
related activities, offices, and
classes, all of which help to GEOFFREY T. STANTON
create the all important "diver- LSA FIRST-YEAR STUDENT
Tuesday, May 4, 1999 - The Michigan Daily - 5
Financial privilege and affirmative action
D o you support affirmative action? Maybe country of equal opportunity, injustices due to
rnot. e . economic status, often affecting minorities, are
The Daily's recent survey on the issue found ingrained in our culture. If affirmative action was
that over half the student body opposes using based on socioeconomic status, it would justly
race as a factor in the admissions process. The target the racial groups admissions office desires,
survey was sparked by the University's two cur- as well as disadvantaged whites.
rent lawsuits which have thrust us into the nation- Take for example, many of the students at the
al spotlight, as other schools watch all-white Leslie County High School in
and wait for what may be a landmark Hyden, Kentucky who don't graduate,
decision. Like many students, I have Hyden the kind of town where the hospi-
been examining my own views on tal's prenatal nurses go out for smoke on
affirmative action. I'm liberal, I vote their break, preachers have gun racks on
straight-down-the-ticket Democrat, I the back of their trucks and a copy of the
"slam it to the left"... Ten Commandments hangs in every
But do I support affirmative action? classroom. The high school has no col-
Maybe not. lege advisor, no high-tech computer lab,
Affirmative action was founded on no AP classes, no student activist
the right idea - giving an advantage groups.
to the disadvantaged. It seems simple EMILY Snicker about "white trash" or
enough. There's no denying that ACHENBAUM Deliverance all you want, but who
racism is an unacceptable, intolerable DIAVMON IN knows what type of human potential is
and damaging part of society. Decades THE R UG HiI never accessed because the teachers
after the civil rights movement, racism - can't encourage their students to, say,
still lives on - be it in the form of David Duke write for a literary magazine that doesn't exist or
being taken seriously as a politician or suggest- try their hand at physics when the class isn't even
ing a minority's admission to the University was offered. The funding for these things just isn't
based solely on their skin color rather than their there. The school could have students smarter
merit. But I don't think anyone should be given and more talented than many of us - yet would
an admissions boost because of their ethnic back- never stand a shot at getting into Michigan.
ground alone. That doesn't address the real prob- Money and opportunity are directly related. To
lem: The greatest source of discrimination in a certain extent, a high school student's knowl-
education is not black or white - it's green. edge and experience - in the form of SAT prep
Take a look at the bigger picture. Minorities are classes or foreign language club trips - can be
statistically more likely to live in poorer areas bought. If universities choose to use special priv-
and less likely to have health insurance. Racism ileging in its admissions process, they should
and poverty both contribute to a vicious cycle give it to students from poorer parts of the nation
which is difficult to break out of. Class mobility - not because they may be minorities, but
and education go hand in hand - it's the stuff because racism and socioeconomic class are
sociology classes are made of. Society is institu- impossibly entwined.
tionally discriminatory against people whose - Emily Achenbaum can be reached over e-
only "fault" is being poor. Although we live in a mail at emilysa@umich.edu.
News should not invoke Pre-millennium tension
t is the best of times, itsis the worst of times past decades will reveal plenty of problems that
and some say it could be the end of times. You have since been corrected or at least eased over
don't have to be an avid viewer of the "700 Club" the years:
to have a serious case of pre-millennium tension The thirties and forties - Here's a tough one:
anymore, especially in the wake of something as Nazism, the Holocaust, Black Monday,
terrible as the Columbine High School shootings Hiroshima...
two weeks ago. The fifties - McCarthyism, Hollywood black-
As the events in Littleton unfolded fisting, the Iron Curtain, the Nuclear age,
before the nation on television, the segregation...
Internet, and even newspapers, people The sixties - Hmm... Vietnam?
absorbed the fact that two teenagers The seventies - Pol Pot, Watergate,
had decided to mow down 12 of their Urban Decay, Jonestown, Disco...
classmates and one teacher before The eighties - Reagan, Crack, Iran
turning their guns on themselves. Contra, the beginning of the War on
Almost everyone sadly shook their drugs, Reagan...
heads and asked in one form or anoth- And then we come to the nineties:
er: "What's going on?" Desert Storm? O.J.? Kosovo? Monica
Marvin Gaye asked the question in Lewinsky? If that is the worst this
the seventies as sixties idealism slipped NICK decade can throw, the apocalyptic sce-
through the western world's collective wOOMER narios begin to look sillier and sillier.
fingers, but before that, before even the BACK TO The media takes a lot of heat from
dawn of history, people have been ask- TH U 1 UW OM social critics who think the world's
ing this most fundamental of questions. problems lie buried within a decadent
By now the familiar pattern should becoming culture. Sorry, but I would take shock-jock
apparent. Howard Stern over famous depression-era radio
But it hasn't. anti-semite Father Coughlin any day.
Every generation has had one reason or anoth- No, the world is far from perfect, chronic
er to think that society is going down the toilet. racism remains omnipresent, the threat of
Surely, the twentieth century has had its share of nuclear annihilation, while not immediate, still
horror-from the Lindbergh baby to Sharon Tate exists and the environment could use plenty of
to the Columbine massacre, not to mention the help. Still, I'll venture to say that I do believe
wars, mass suicides and technological develop- it's getting better: The economy is going strong,
ments that have been interspersed between the large cities like New York are limping back
years. Certainly, the last ten decades have offered towards greatness, homophobia is becoming
a lot for a human psyche to digest. less acceptable and the world in general is a
But despite this, I won't be hiding in a bunker whole lot more peaceful than it was fifty years
or praying for forgiveness eight months from ago. Multi-ethnic children may not be holding
now. I, just like anyone else who is willing to hands and singing hymns of peace, but smile,
admit it, have my share of irrational apprehen- things are still looking up.
sion about the future of society in the coming - Nick Womer can be reached over e-mail
millennium. Just the same, a cursory glance at at nwoomer)umich.edu.
FRNK LOE B * e a e MUROCK*EVELTI
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