FAGE SIX
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
TUESDAY, DECE1'f 3ER 4, 1956
PAGE SIX THE MICHIGAN DAILY TUESDAY, DECEMEER 4, 1956
- I
BY COUNCIL'S ADAMS:
Text of SGC Letter
To Sigma Kappa
BY SORORITY'S BROWN
Text of Sigma Kappa Reply to SGC
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Following is thes
MUSKET TICKETS
now sold at
MICHIGAN THEATRE
Read and Use
Daily Classifieds
WILL
your Christmas gift
be remembered
in July? (See personal
section-classified)
complete text of the letter sent by
National Sigma Kappa President
Wava Brown to Student Government
Council President William H. Adams.)
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Following is the
complete text of the letter sent by
Student Government Council Presi-
dent William H. Adams to National
Sigma Kappa Secretary-Treasurer Mrs.
Margaret Taggart, Copies of the let-
ter were also sent to National Pan-
hellenic Conference, Mrs. Hogan; De-
troit City Panhellenic, Mrs. Boyle;
Sigma Kappa Province President,
Mrs. Otto; Ann ArborCityrPanhel-
lenic, Mrs. Hodgson; Alpha Mu Chap-
ter Sigma Kappa; Cornell Chapter;
Tufts Chapter; Dean Bacon; Vice-
President Lewis; Regent Baits; Uni-
versity Panhellenic President.)
I r
October 15, 1956
Dear Mrs. Taggart:
At a meeting of the Student
Government Council October 10,
the Council directed that the fol-
lowing statement be sent to the
National Council of Sigma Kappa:
"On December 5, 1956, the
Student Government Council
will make a decision on the
question of possible violation of
University regulations on the
part of Sigma Kappa. At that
time the Council will act on the
basis of all available informa-
tion. S t u d e n t Government
Council considers this statement
an official invitation to all inter-
ested parties to present all per-
tinent information which they
'desire."
Serious question is raised as to
the status of the Alpha Mu chap-
ter of Sigma Kappa because of the
"unexplained" suspension of
chapters of Sigma Kappa at Tufts
and Cornell. This has caused some
to assume that the suspensions
may suggest a restrictive mem-
bership policy on the part of
National Sigma Kappa. Student
Governmet Council wonders
whether similar action might be
taken in a similar situation were
it to arise at the University of
Michigan. Such an action would
clearly contradict the policies and
regulations of the' University of
Michigan under which Sigma
Kappa petitioned and received
reognition.
Petition for recognition was
made to Student Government
Council and recognition was
granted on March 18, 1955 with
the understanding by the peti-
tioning group and by the Student
Government Council that the na-
tional organization with which it
was to affiliate did not prohibit
membership in the organization
because of race, religion, or color.
For your information may I
clarify the jurisdictional responsi-
bility which rests with the Student
Government Council. To this end
I am enclosing the detailed story
of the development of the Council
as presented by Professor Lionel
H. Laing, chairman of the study
committee which recommended the
establishment of the Council.
From this statement you will
note that Student Government
Council replaces and assumes the
functions and responsibilities of
the former student government
body known as the Student Legis-
lature and of the Committee on
Student Affairs. Actions of the
Council are subject to, review by
the Board in Review, the compo-
sition of which is indicated in the
enclosed statement.
The Committee on Student Af-
fairs was a Senate Committee com-
posed of members of the faculty,
administration and students. The
area of its jurisdiction was stated
as follows in Regents' By-law 8:13:
"Full supervision and control
of all student activities other
than athletic activities and
those falling within the juris-
diction of the Committee on
Student Conduct, shall be vested
in this committee, and no such
activities shall be organized or
launched without first obtaining
permission from the committee."
Jurisdiction relating to recogni-
tion or withdrawal of recognition
of student organizations is de-
fined in the following statements
from UNIVERSITY REGULA-
TIONS CONCERNING STUDENT
AFFAIRS, CONDUCT AND DIS-
CIPLINE, an official publication:
p. 3 "No student organization is
allowed to use University fa-
cilities or to function as a
University student organiza-
tion until it has been offi-
cially recognized by the
Committee on Student Af-<
fairs." (now Student Gov-
ernment Council)
p. 5 "In order to remain offici-
ally recognized, it is required
that the organization (1)
continue to meet the condi-
tions for initial recognition
previously listed (2) the or-
ganization act in good faith
with the spirit of the regula-
tions for recognized organ-
izations ..-"
Relating specifically to mem-
bership in student organizations,
the Council's jurisdictions are de-
fined in the following regulation:
p.3 "Recognition will not be
granted any organization
which prohibits membership
in the organization because
of race, religion, or color."
(Committee on Student Af-
fairs, May 3, 1949)
p.6 "Action directed toward
withdrawal of official recog-
nition may be instituted di-
rectly by the Committee on
Student Affairs (now Stu-
dent Government Council)
or through the committee on
the request of the President
of the University. In either
instance, immediate respon-
sibility for investigation will
be taken by the committee
(Council.) If the action to
withdraw recognition is
based solely or principally
upon failure of the organiza-
tion to meet the require-
ments for the maintenance
of recognition the Committee
on Student Affairs (now
Student Government Coun-
cil) will assume final judg-
ment. After review of uhe
evidence obtainable, officers
of the organization concerned
will be heard by the com-
mittee (Council). If recog-
nition is subsequently with-
drawn by the committee
(Council) the reasons there-
fore will be publicly stated
by the chairman of the
committee (Council.)
We are confident that National
Sigma Kappa shares our pride in
the Alpha Mu chapter which has
made such an excellent record for
itself on our campus since March
18, 1955 when it became a full
member of the University com-
munity. We sincerely hope to have
your cooperation in clarifying the
status of Alpha Mu chapter at the
University of Michigan and look
forward to hearing from you at
an early date.
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Beginning this June, recipients
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such as TVA or a city or state
government and will continue
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The fellowships grant $1500 a
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Completion of the twelve
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fellows to a certificate in public
administration.
Information about the program
may be obtained by writing to the
Educational Director, Southern
Regional Training Program in
Public Administration, University
of Alabama. The deadline for sub-
mitting applications is March 9.,
WILL
your Christmas gift
be remembered
in July? (See personal
section-classified)
Dear Mr. Adams:
Your letter of October 15, 1956,
addressed to the National Council
of gigma Kappa, recites the fol-
lowing:j
"Serious question is raised as
to the status of the Alpha Mu
chapter of Sigma Kappa because
of the 'unexplained' suspension
of chapters of Sigma Kappa at
Tufts and Cornell. This has
caused some to assume that the
suspensions may suggest a re-
strictive membership policy on
the part of National Sigma Kap-
pa." (emphasis supplied)
Reduced to simple form and
based on what some have "as-
sumed," the charge against the
Alpha Mu chapter can be para-1
phrased thus:
The status of Alpha Mu chapter
of Sigma Kappa at the University
of Michigan is now being threat-
ened, not because of anything the
Chapter or its membership have
done, but because someone "as-
sumes" that its parent has vio-'
lated, at other colleges, rules1
which have been adopted for the
University of Michigan campus.
It has been fundamental in the
United States that:
(a) Each be charged with his
own offense in definitive and spe-
cific language,
(b) He is presumed innocent
until proven guilty; and
(c) The burden of proving guilt
November 30, 1956!
lies with him who makes the
charge.
Your letter makes no charge
against the Alpha Mu chapter. On
the contrary, you specifically state:
"We are confident that Na-
tional Sigma Kappa shares our
pride in the Alpha Mu Chapter
which has made an excellent re-
cord for itself on our campus since
March 1st, 1955 when it became a
full member of the University
community." (emphasis supplied)
In addition we submit the fol-
lowing for consideration:.
1. We have filed our by-laws
and constitution with the appro-
priate University officials and will
keep them advised of any changes.
2. The scope of the proceeding
instituted by the Student Govern-
ment Council is so broad and un-
limited that it constitutes, in our
view, a dangerous precedent not
only with respect to Sigma Kappa
but in the entire American way
of life.
(a) There is no evidence what-
soever of any misconduct by us
or our chapter at the University
of Michigan.
(b) The Student Government
Council is inquiring into the rea-
sons for Sigma Kappa decisions
made with respect to our own in-
ternal affairs in areas other than
the University of Michigan cam-
pus. We believe that under the
University regulations the geo-
graphical scope of the Council's'
authority is intended to ipe and is
limited to the University of Michi-
gan campus. This too is founda-
mental in the traditions of our
country.
Our position is not peculiar to
Sigma Kappa; no national organi-
zation similarly situated, includ-
ing churches, colleges, lodges, or
universities, could acquiesce in an
inquiry of this scope because ac-
quiescence would result in others
insisting on similar information
from the -national organization
whenever anybody questioned the
propriety of its action elsewhere.
3. The Student Government
Council is asserting power over
the Alpha Mu chapter which, in
a very real sense, can be treated
as a hostage on the Michigan cam-
pus. However, in this country,
hostages are neither taken nor
punished. Sigma Kappa and the
Student Government Council may
differ with respect to the scope
of each other's rights, but it is un-
just that the Alpha Mu chapter
and its individual members,
against neither of whom are any
charges made, suffer because of
such disagreement.
We regard these matters to be
of great moment with respect not
only to Sigma Kappa but also to
all fraternities and sororities on
the University of Michigan cam-
pus. We cannot bring ourselves
to believe that the Student Gov-
ernment Council nor the student
body of the University of Michi-
gan would condone the violation
of the American principles against
punishment without evidence of
wrongdoing and punishment with-
out responsibility.
We shall await the decision of
the Student Government Council
with confidence.
SGC To Consider Possible Violation
(Continued from Page 1)
Most campus controversy at
that time centered around writ-
ten clauses, which were reportedly
in effect then in three sororities
and 22 fraternities.
Daily and editorial comment at
the time was limited strictly to
implications for the clauses.
The regulation was accompa-
nied by another calling for all
recognized organizations to sub-
mit their constitutions to the Of-
fice of Student Affairs.
Wording Broad
On the other hand, the word-
ing of the regulation is quite
broad, applying to all organiza-
zations which "prohibit mem-
bership" on racial and religious
grounds. And on at least one oc-
casion - Trigon's tentative re-
quest in 1952 for permission to
affiliate with Pi Kappa Alpha Na-
tional, which restricted member-
ship to "white" men - no-writ-
ten agreements were made an is-
sue.
The broad nature of the regula-
tion is supported by a further!
University rule providing that
maintenance of recognition is de-!
pendent on continued meeting of
"the conditions for initial recog-
nition" and on the organization's
acting "in good faith with the
spirit of the regulations for recog-
nized organizations."
No Statement Anywhere
At the time of its reactivation
last year, Sigma Kappa's, nation-
al constitution was submitted to
Dean of Women Deborah Bacon.
Dean Bacon yesterday denied
that her statement contained nol
reference to race or religion that
could be construed as cer-
tifying Sigma Kappa's compli-
ance with the 1949 membershipI
regulation. "I simply certified to
a written document," she ex-
plained, adding that she could ilot
possibly attest to the intentions$
of Sigma Kappa's officers to "act
in good faith with the spirit of
the regulations-"
The third point of contention-is
wthethire national's action-i
it in fact was an attempt to re-
strict membership-has bearing on
the situation. In other words, was
the local or the national granted
recognition in 1955 and required
to keep open membership policies,
and if only the local branch, is it
governed by national membership?
Sigma Kappa local President
Barbara Busch, '57Ed, has said
that the local chapter has "no
indication that the national would
take any action" were the local
to pledge a Negro'woman, con-
tending it had "no knowledge of
the nature of its sister chapter's
differences with the national sor-
ority."
The question of "dual" recogni-
tion was considered by the SAC
in 1954, when it granted the Stu-
dent League for Industrial Democ-
racy recognition as a reactivated
local group.
Loosely Tied
Assured that the local was only
"loosely tied" to the national Stu-
dent League for Industrial Democ-
racy and the League for Industrial
Democracy, SAC granted only
tentative recognition on the basis
of examining just the local SLID
constitution.
Full recognition was not granted
until both the national SLID and
LID constitutions had been ex-
amined for conformity to Univer-
sity regulations and approved.
Dean Bacon yesterday con-
strued SAC or SGC recognition
of a local affiliated group as con-
stituting recognition "of the na-
tional organization as one suitedf
for this campus. If the national{
is recognized, a group of persons
may be its local representatives."
Dean Bacon said that "very
clearly" rules governing campus
organizations "refer to nationals
as well as to locals."
There has been no suggestion by
Sigma Kappa local that it has a
separate constitution fromn its' na-
tionai.
In the efforts to affiliate with
Pi Kappa Alpha, on the basis of
local omission of a bias clause
contained in the national consti-
tution, provided that the national
fraternity approved the omission
and that there existed no agree-
ment with the national concerning K CUL AK LAlIKIK iNI31 U t UVN KtUUt31.
restrictions.
The SAC action approving a
dual standard was never tested, 23c EACH ADDITIONAL
because of Trigon's later with-
drawal of its offer to affiliate.
And whatever the implications
of the Tufts and Cornell suspen- All PrcsLess 10%' Ior CASH and CARRY
sions, Gloria Tennant, '57Ed, afe v t a
former active of the local, has
charged that Sigma Kappa's na-
tional imposed racial membership r
restrictions on the local even be-
fore the two suspensions occurred. E. Liberty St.
The fourth question is SGC's & Fifth Ave.
jurisdiction, which is based on a
section of the regulations which PHONE
says "Action directed toward with- NO 2-3123
drawal of official recognition may
be instituted directly by the Com-
mittee on Student Affairs ... In Use Our Convenient Drive-In Service
either instance, immediate respon-
sibility for investigation' will be
taken by the Committee ...
Under the SGC plan, approved
by the Regents two years ago, SGC
and the Board of Review "replace"
the SAC and the Student Legisla-
ture.
--
Dos Du Pont,
4
h irle mle n whflo
h ave d efin ie
-military .7
I .....:.
4
1
commitments?
I
Oran A. Ritter, Jr., expects to receive his B.S. in chemical engineer-
ing from Louisiana State University in June 1957. He's now editor-
in-chief of the "L.S.U. Engineer," local president of Tau Beta Pi, and
senior member of the Honor Council of his university. Oran's ques-
tion is on the minds of many men planning a technical career.
'S ?"IIIG Ule
~'I 44t,I
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They just came in' Too late to sketch, but in
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'4
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an R.O.T.C. commission. He was hired by Du Pont's plant at
Victoria, Texas. After two years in the service, Don returned to
his.career in engineering, and is now doing plant-assistance work
in the technical section at Victoria.
YES, Oran, we certainly do! We've employed quite a
number of college graduates with definite military
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more than a few weeks before reporting for duty. Take
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month's salary. When he's entitled to a vacation but
doesn't have time to take it before leaving, Du Pont
gives him equivalent pay instead.
Even if present employment is impossible, Oran, we
definitely recommend your talking with Du Pont's repre-
sentatives as well as those of other companies. The very
least you'll gain will be valuable background and some
contacts of real benefit to you when you leave military
servict.
I WANT TO KNO~fW MORE about xum.1in, with fDu Pont?9
the much wanted colors
charcool brown,
heather green, maize, jade green and peach . .
m sizes 36 to 40. The quantity is small, so
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