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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY, 25 • THE MAROON TIGER • PAGE 7
CAMPUS
A Candid Conversation With Dr. Keith
By Samuel Adams
Reclining comfortably in a chair,
he reflected upon his champion
ship years as a member of the
Morehouse Tiger Sharks. At that
moment, it was quite apparent that
he was reliving those times once
again in his mind. Presently, this
former athlete, Morehouse Man,
Morehouse College President,
husband, and father was taking a
few moments from his schedule to
have a candid conversation about
his presidency.
"The pressures of being Presi
dent of Morehouse College are
immense," Dr. Keith said. As he
spoke of the dichotomy of being
the President of Morehouse Col
lege, his tone became very serious
and sincere. "I'd love to have a
greater interaction with the stu
dent body, but I understand the
necessity of increasing our endow
ment for the betterment of the in
stitution. I've attempted to create
a balance between the two and it
has and continues to be an ex
tremely challenging balancing act.
Being the President of Morehouse
College is an around the clock
job, every day of the year. Be
sides answering the call of each
obligation, I have a wife and a
fourteen year old daughter, who
require a husband and a father."
As the conversation continued,
he began to speak about his lTLOSt
frightening moment as
Photo Courtesy of Morehouse College
Morehouse's president and the
future of the institution. On April
29, 1992, the Rodney King Ver
dict was rendered. All four offic
ers involved in the beating of King
were acquitted. The students in
the A.U.C. voiced their protests
loudly. "Without a doubt, the most
frightening moment during my six
year presidency was when student
protestors and the Atlanta Red Dog
Police Squad were on the verge of
clashing in front of King Chapel.
The situation had the potential of
being very tragic for the safety of
the student protestors and for the
reputable name of our institution.
I realized the anger that the stu
dents felt after the verdict. I en
courage and support any positive
student action that will bring about
positive and effective results."
From the reminiscence of that
moment, the conversation moved
to the future of Morehouse Col
lege. The state of the black man
in present day society is daily be
coming more dismal. Therefore,
Morehouse College's place in so
ciety is more a necessity than ever.
"Morehouse College has a job to
prepare African-American men to
successfully live and excel in a
society that has presented many
difficulties for the African-Ameri
can male. By strengthening the
faculty, increasing the endow
ment, and attaining a more Afro
centric perspective in education,
Morehouse will be at the fore
front of liberal arts colleges." He
2>cx seminar
By Ed Blakemore
On February 18, a workshop,
sponsored by Forbes and Graves
Hall addressed the topic of safer
sex as it relates to the African
American male. The two speak
ers included Morris Franklin from
the SCLC (Southern Christian
Leadership Conference) and
Archie Franklin from the Depart
ment of Human Resources.
"HIV has no respect for persons,"
Morris Franklin said.
Mr. Franklin spoke of how the
SCLC has been involved with in
formative workshops on AIDS
since its inception. He made it
clear that "HIV is the virus that
causes AIDS" (Acquired Immune
Deficiency Syndrome). When
individuals have HIV they infect
others with the virus unknowingly
whereas a person with AIDS will
suffer from symptoms like diar
rhea, night sweats, and swollen
lymph nodes.
The panelists spoke of the three
ways in which the virus is most
commonly contracted. These
ways include: sexual intercourse
(vaginal, oral, and anal), injected
drug use, and blood transfusions.
Archie Franklin attempted to dis
pel some the myths about AIDS.
For instance, he said the only way
that a person with a cut can ac
quire the virus is by rubbing two
fresh open wounds together,
at cuts are a rare source of AIDS
infection. "It is a very opportu
nistic virus," said the Department
of Human Resources spokesman.
Several good questions were
asked by students.
One of them asked about the
chances of a man getting AIDS
from a female who was perform
ing oral sex on him. Mr. Franklin
said the chance was "almost 0 per
cent, but your chance of getting
other sexually transmitted dis
eases is increased.”
Another student asked how long
the virus had been in existence.
The panelists believed that it has
been in existence since 1956.
The panelists utilized the remain
der of the program to educate the
audience about the realities con
cerning the AIDS epidemic. -
"African-Americans make of
30% of those who have HIV," said
a panelists.
They urged the listeners not to
use skin (lamb, sheep) based
condoms during sex because they
are composed of membranous tis
sue which is highly porous. When
An Easy Guide to Some of theMost Common
Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Description
Symptoms
Treatment
AIDS: Nature equipped you
with an immune system to
fight off infection and dis
ease. THe AIDS virus
doesn’t just attack your
body, it destroys that im
mune system so that your
body is more prone to de
velop diseases like pneu
monia or cancer.
Swollen glands in
neck, groin or arm-
pit. Night sweats.
Unexpected tired
ness, and/or weight
loss. Persistent di
arrhea.
Symptoms can be
treated, but to date no
cure exists for the
AIDS virus itself. At
the present time, once
AIDS is established,
it is 100% fatal.
CHLAMYDIA: Chlamydia
(an infection of the urinary
tract and/or vagina) is the
most common STD in the
U.S. This is because it has
few or no symptons. As a
result, it's possible to have
the disease for some time
without knowing it.
General Symptoms
Unusal amount, odor,
or color of
discharge from
penis, vagina, or
rectum
•
Burning or pain
when urinating
Chlaymdia can be
cured with antibiot
ics from your doctor.
GENITAL WARTS (HPV):
More than 60 different
kinds of Genital Warts are
associated with the Human
Papilloma virus (HPV).
Since they can be passed on
easily, and in some cases
have been linked to cancer
of the reproductive system,
you should have them
treated as soon as possible.
Females should have yearly
Pap tests.
Burning or itching
around vagina,tip of
penis,or rectum.
•
Skin rash or sores
on or around the sex
organs or mouth
•
Swollen glands
•
Pain in lower
abdomen
Even though warts
can be removed by
chemicals,
cryotherapy (freez
ing), or laser treat
ment, the virus- can
stay with you for life.
a person is selecting latex
condoms, it's important to look at
the expiration date. If the pack
age of condoms does not have one,
then they suggest not to purchase
them.
Mr. Franklin also told the audi
ence that sex being better without
a condom "is primarily psycho
logical."
The speakers also tried to give a
few helpful hints to assist the au
dience in its future sexual encoun
ters.
One of them included leaving a
condom open and nearby during a
potential sexual encounter. Such
a practice would eliminate the
frantic confusion of looking for
and fumbling with a condom later.
Also in an attempt to make oral
sex performed on a female more
safe, a rubber glove can be cut to
protect the tongue during this prac
tice.