Page 4- The Michigan Daily - Friday, February 8,1991
abl £ibrgau izI
420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
Edited and Managed
by Students at the
University of Michigan
ANDREW GOTTESMAN
Editor in Chief
STEPHEN HENDERSON
DANIEL POUX
Opinion Editors
Unsigned editorials represent a majority of the Daily's Editorial Board.
All other cartoons, signed articles, and letters do not necessarily represent the opinion of the Daily.
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I n what is being considered a dramatic move,
South African President F.W. De Klerk called
last week for the removal of the "cornerstones" of
apartheid.
De Klerk announced that legislation would
soonbe introduced inthe SouthAfricanParliament
to repeal several discriminatory laws including the
Land Acts, the Group Areas Act and the Black
Communities Act.
In addition, President De Klerk mentioned the
possible abolition of the Population Registration
Act which classifies South Africans into four racial
groups: Blacks, whites, people ofmixed color, and
Asians.
Though the reforms suggested by De Klerk are
encouraging, and move South Africa one small
step toward equality, President Bush should con-
tinue to enforce economic sanctions, and not allow
these actions to greatly affect U.S. policy.
The anti-apartheid law enacted by Congress in
1986 calls for the lifting of sanctions when the
South African government repeals rule by decree,
legalizes political parties, repeals the Group Areas
and Population Registration Acts, and enters into
good faith negotiations with the Black majority.
The law also permits the president to modify
sanctions once three of these criteria have been
met. The proposed reforms could possibly satisfy
this stipulation, and Bush should be wary of taking
any action at this point.
South African law has deprived Blacks of their
most basic civil rights for generations, and these
surface changes hardly merit overzealous Ameri-
can applause.
The harsh reality for South Africa's Black ma-
jority is one in which they are victims of a white
minority willing to make minor constitutional
changes, but stalling at any genuine reform. Blacks
remain unable to vote, are denied the right to
participate in the government and Pretoria also
continues to hold many Blacks as political prisoners.
It is unlikely that new laws will effectively elimi-
nate the racial inequalities and hostilities which
dominate South African society.
If the laws alluded to last week are passed,
Blacks would be permitted by law to live in white
neighborhoods and to own land in previously
designated white areas. But in reality, few Blacks
would be able to afford such housing because of
the economic and social barriers that still exist in
the country. Thus, the laws would make little real
progress toward a just society.
U.S. sanctions have proved their effectiveness
by eliciting the reforms requested by President De
Klerk; clearly, he would not have made this move
without them. But a change in U.S. policy now
would send the wrong message to the SouthAfrican
government, and more extensive reforms would
perhaps never be instituted.
In order to ensure the definitive end of apartheid
- on the books, and in practice - the United
States must hold strong in its position, and keep
sanctions on.
A
Hollywood revisited
Bush's inflated speech demonstrates sorry state of the Union
Draft edit was
too controversial
To the Daily:
As a student at the University
of South Florida and a worried
American who sees the war in the
Gulf as a travesty, I feel com-
pelled to inform the Daily that its
editorial supporting the reinstate-
ment of the draft is idealistic
foolishness on a grandiose scale.
As I contemplate the words I
wish I could say - but fail to be
able to issue forth - I can only
think of the lives already lost in
this horrible conflict. I wonder if
the Daily realizes how its editorial
can serve as fuel for the pro-draft
fire that has, until now, remained
on the back burner. Are any of the
Daily staff willing to give their
lives, should they be drafted in
this terrible war? Has the Daily
staff given any thought to how
that editorial may affect the lives
of thousands of classmates and
friends?
I, for one, wish the Daily had
left this stone unturned and hope
that the Daily staff thinks twice
before writing another controver-
sial editorial.
Joseph Prager
senior,
University of South Florida
Daily improves
To the Daily:
I would like to commend the
Daily for the improvements in its
opinion page during the past year.
The Daily's analysis of the
Gulf crisis has been excellent.
Editorials have been thoughtful,
well researched, and compelling
to read. Columns and letters have
been pleasantly diverse, providing
a spectrum of opinions from a
spectrum of perspectives.
While Ted Koppel, The New
York Times, and the rest of the
establishment media have
confirmed that they are little more
than the government's "Ministry
of Information," the Daily's
breadth of information and ideas
has provided an important
alternative.
Taylor Lincoln
LSA senior
To the Daily:
I was deeply troubled when I
read in the Daily that a group of
students had torn down an anti-
war piece that had been set up on
the Diag. I was not upset because
I am an anti-war activist. I'm mad
because people are starting to use
the war as an excuse to trample
free speech rights.
The First Amendment was
written to protect citizens from
the tyranny of the majority. Every
view, no matter how unsavory,
unsettling or ludicrous can be
expressed without reservation
thanks to the
foresight of the
Constitution's
authors.
The world is
far from perfect
and the govern-
ment often
oversteps its
boundaries.
Times of
distress seem to
have a polariz-
ing effect on
this country.
Calls are made
to silence those
critical of the 9
status quo for
various reasons.
They are
divisive. The The anti-war M
list goes on, and unidentified van(
the government well as the Sup
acts on the destroyed two w
imposing sedition laws, and
emergency censorship.
It.is this ignorance and
intolerance that has no place in a
major university community. The
destruction of the anti-war
Memorial Wall only shows how
weak and feeble the resolve of the
"pro-war" effort has become,
fearful of all who question their
beliefs, and bent on squashing
that dissent.
Justin Walcott
Engineering senior
4-,
:
Listen to dissenting opinions
01
President Bush's State of the Union address last
Tuesday - in the tried and true manner of
Bush's Hollywood predecessor - said little and
offered less at a time when the country confronts
the triple crises of a costly war, an equally costly
savings and loans bailout, and what could be the
worst economic slump since the 1930s.
These three crises are connected in countless
ways; Bush's speech
missed all of them. The
Gulf war was a god-
send for a president
who admits openly that
he neitherunderstands
nor cares for domestic ,
policy as much as for-
eign policy. Since Au-
gust, Bush's procla-
mations about defend-
ing"theAmerican way
of life" in the Saudi
sands effectively bur-
ied news of the eco-
nomic crises at home
which are increasingly
tearing our country Bush
apart.
Consequently, this year's State of the Union
address was primarily about beating the war drums
and rallying around the flag. Bush's precious few
paragraphs on domestic policy combined rhetori-
cal shibboleths and outright lies - in the time-
honored tradition of Reagan and Bush's own
previous addresses. Last year, Bush made prom-
ises involving more money and imagination for
education, the homeless, anti-drug policies, and
the environment. He delivered on none of them.
This year's assembled crowd cheered duti-
fully as Bush called for a "budget that promotes
America's future - in children, education, in-
frastructure, space and high technology." This
provided a good soundbite for the newscasts,
but bore almost no correlation to the economic
realities of Bush's proposed 1992 budget, which
slashes most of these programs.
Under the five-year budget deal Bush rail-
roaded through Congress last fall, funding for
education will barely keep pace with inflation.
The already limited money forhousing programs
will be cut even further. And money for AIDS
research is being eliminated altogether- even
as Bush proposes hefty increases in money for
Star Wars research.
Not surprisingly, Bush's stunning callous-
ness toward this country's poor was outdone
only by his astounding ignorance of the deep-
ening recession. Though he insisted bravely that
"we will get this recession behind us and return
to growth soon," Bush offered no programs or
policies that might help accomplish this task.
In fact, as the second half of his term gets
underway, it is becoming clear that Bush offers
nothing at all beyond the phrase-mongering he
passes off as domestic policy.
emorial Wall lies demolished by
idals on the Diag. This display, as
pport Our Soldiers" shanty, was
veeks ago.
groundswell,
Personal Librarians
serves community
To the Daily:
It is necessary to correct a
misapprehension regarding the
Personal Librarians service which
was expressed in a letter to the
Daily ("Is 'U' ethical?" 2/6/91).
Personal Librarians is a group
of professional librarians that
searches databases for members
of the University community:
faculty, graduate students, and
undergraduates.
Although the letter in question
raised questions about the nature
of our enterprise, the services that
Personal Librarians provides are
similar to the advice given patrons
in the University library system
by reference librarians. How we
differ is that we provide a
personal approach to the compila-
tion of research bibliographies.
By providing this service, we
contribute our skills to the
University in a manner which
strengthens the scholarship
performed here.
Robert Savage
President,
Personal Librarians
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Give them bread... and roses too
0
COLLEGE
ROUNDUP Rally for
Since the Gulf war began, members of the Columbia
University community have wasted no time in demon-
strating both for and against the conflict. Protests and
demonstrations by their very nature become more effec-
tive as they increase in size.
However, the anti-warrallies have been diminishing
in size lately. As various groups have jumped on the
soapbox with their individual causes, the rallies have
lost any purpose for people who are still tentative about
their position and trying to make a decision based on
their protest experience.
Cries against U.S. intervention in Nicaragua and El
Salvador, against fur coats, and against the management
of the New York Daily News should have no part in the
rallies against the war in the Persian Gulf. These dem-
onstrations are not the time or the place for militant
recommendations that the "corrupt, imperialistic" U.S.
government be overthrown.
focus
Adding peripheral issues to the protest agenda di-
lutes the original intent of the rallies and diffuses the
common outrage which many in the Columbia com-
munity feel towards the war. It also alienates the many
people who are still undecided in their feelings. In so
doing, the anti-war protestors are losing their power to
effect change.
We need peaceful, focused, organized rallies at
Columbia to provide outlets. for those who want to
express their feelings toward the war and bring about
change. Information sessions and teach-ins are a nec-
essary supplement to the rallies. The Persian Gulf war
isnotasimple issue. "No blood foroil" should not be the
only rallying cry; everyone must be aware of the com-
plexities in order to more knowledgeably reach their
own stance..
Jan. 23,1991, Columbia Daily Spectator.
Columbia University
Seventy-nine years ago this
winter, 10,000 men and women in
Lawrence, Mass., received pay
checks from the American Woolen
Company further reducing their
average
wage of
$8.76 a
week. Un-
able to feed
their fami-
lies and af- -
flicted by
mill condi-
tions that
killed36out Mike
ofevery100
workers, Fischer
the weavers
went on
strike the next day.
Until the 1950s, large strikes
like the one in Lawrence were com-
monplace throughout the United
States. More than 4.5 million work-
ers walked picket lines in 1946
alone. As late as 1952. there were
tablished a democratic council of
50 weavers to make all important
decisions. They organized soup
kitchens to feed 50,000 people.
Proudly and defiantly, they issued
their demands: not just higher
wages, but "bread and roses too"
- meaning all those other things:
education, affordable housing, and
public works projects which, the
IWW insisted, were part of a
worker's rights.
There are now 5 million home-
less workers; 37 million have no
health insurance. Precious few
workers enjoy paid child care, pa-
rental leave, affordable housing,
efficient transportation or decent
education.
The IWW understood that
unions had to fight for a broad,
inclusiveagenda- that wages alone
were not enough. Today's unions
often don't even ask for wage in-
creases.
Once, unions routinely de-
manded benefits for their commu-
Lawrence declared martial law.
People were forbidden to talk on
the street; two strikers were shot
and killed. When strikers tried to
send their children out of town to
stay with sympatheticfamilies, they
were clubbed by the police. One
pregnant woman was carried un-
conscious to the hospital and gave
birth there to a dead child. But the
strikers persevered. Two months
later, they won.
Few strikestoday havethedrama
of what becameknown as the Bread
and Roses Strike. The cops still beat
up strikers, as they did at Pittston in
1989. And the cops still murder
them, too, as they did during the
Greyhound strike last year. But
management today generally ac-
complishes the same ends through
more "subtle" means - hiring
permanent replacements, or threat-
ening to move jobs abroad.
Though the new boss is every
bit as nasty as the old boss, most of
today's unions are significantly
0
0
Nuts and Bolts
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50 .F.A.?
By Judd Winick
W HAT TODOEE
W~ANT TO SEE