Newspaper Page Text
PAGE *-THE CLUSTER, APRIL 22, lm/Opinwns
t
Opinion
Letter: protest participants embarrassing to university
To tht editor: Last Friday, the
Mercer Board of Trustees voted to
scale down the liberal arts pro
grams of Mercer Atlanta in order
for that school to concentrate
primarily on a trade-oriented cur
riculum. The focus of liberal arts
is to be shifted primarily to the
main campus here in Macon. Thus,
the trustees have taken a major step
toward actually defining Mercer’s
priorities—something\that has
needed to be done for qurte a long
time. But, as usual, there'ts con
troversy surrounding this decision
and. as usual, it is being stirred up
by a small but vocal minority of
people who act without thinking
and pervert the truth while wrap
ping themselves under the cloak of
"academic freedom.”
As the trustees were arriving on
campus last Friday morning, a
small group of students was
distributing and posting hand
written flyers proclaiming that the
trustees were voting to “kill”
liberal arts on the Atlanta campus.
Then, at 1:00 in the afternoon,
these left-wing leftovers from the
sixties marched to the medical
school and set up camp on the lawn
with their bongo drums and guitars
in an afternoon-long "death vigil.”
All this was going on, mind you,
in the presence of the trustees,
those distinguished men and
women who run this institution.
Any freedom can be abused.
Academic freedom is no exception.
When a group of students engages
in activity that is cmbarassu.j to the
university, it is clearly time for the
administration to draw the line, as
they did in removing and confis
cating the flyers distributed by the
protesting students.
There arc civilized ways of ad
dressing student concerns to the
Board of Trustees. In fact." the
trustees invited these students to
attend their meeting. But they
chose to sit outside and play
Woodstock. Such behavior does
not leave a good impression on the
trustees. It merely serves to make
the participants look like'Tools and
embara^s the whole student body.
Respectfully submitted.
Jai Gibson
Living in Oz
By KAREN JACOBS
Editor-In-Chief
I have often been asked how it
feels to be a black student in a
leadership position at Mercer. It’s
an issue that I’ve been at times
hesitatnt to address due to mixed
feelings. However, there’s been
much talk about racism this week,
and I’m going to communicate
some of my feelings on the subject.
I feel it’s important for me to
point out that the "Mercer system”
is predominantly white. One need
only look at the campus to see this
is true. Just over 10 percent of
students on thb campus are black,
and the number of blacks cnrpllcd
seems to fall each quarter:
Having blacks and other
minorities at Mercer is. important,
for they can do well) at such a.
university. I have enjoyed my
academic and extracurricular life
here. The admissions office needs
to make a stronger effort to pull
blacks tojhis campus. One wjy to
do so might be to have a black
member of the admissions staff,
someone black high school students
could relate to. There has not been
a consistent effort to recruit black
students or faculty at Mercer, and
the low numbers of the black
population does minimize the voice
the group can have here.
As for blacks who -are
Mcrcerians. I feel they should get
, involved. Too many times com
plaints are heard about ways in
which needs arep’t being met and
yet no one takes steps to see that
concents are voiced. The best way
for a black strident here to affect
change is to get involved in
organizations. It is important to
have blacks on the Senate, it is im
portant to have Mack Ambassadors,
it b important to have black resi
dent advisors and Judicial Council
members, it is important to have a
black editor-in-chief of the Cluster.
Blacks should seek membership in
groups other than the organization
of Black Students, which 1 feel can
be a viable organization with the
proper leadership. That’s the only *
way a difference can be made,
that’s the only way to help bridge
the gaps that many blacks perceive
to exist on campus in many
contents.
Racism does exist here as white
versus black but also as black ver
sus white. Just as there are white
students here who don’t seek to
bridge the gap in communication
with blacks, there arc black
students who also reinforce that
separation. I feel that racism is
wrong, no matter how it is
manifested. Both blacks and whites
need to take the initiative to talk
about the issue.
To be a true non-racist demands
the recognition that all students are
the same and that no one is
superior. Can we make that
recognition in our minds?
In with both feet
By RUBY FOWLER
Ax a result of a series of
editorials winter quarter, I ant
usually perceived u ami-SGA.
However, criticism ia not a
necessary corollary of dislike or
disgust.
In fact, caring involves
understanding, and understanding
often means recognizing limits and
inadequacies, potentiality and
strengths.
I care about SGA because I care
about Mercer. I have a vision of
.what SGA can become. But 23
cannot accotppiista this goal alone.
Good citizenship is the Itey.
because SGA will not be In top
form until all of us are.
We must understand the issues
clearly and vote intelligently. We
must maintain contact with our
representatives, whether or not
they were our personal dances. We
must hold them accountable for
thdr actions in and out of the senate
V/c should be rrkotlcss in our ef
forts to improve student govern
ment. We need to elect those who
wBl he strong and work, not
necessarily for people we like the
most. And we should not re-elect
senators who are inactive or
incompetent. /
Of course, the senate itself
should work to be politically “fit."
Integrity, competence, and accoun
tability are not too much to ask.
The senate needs to evaluate its
own progress (or lack of it) more
often, and get rid of “dead
weight."
Yes, I care about SGA. 1 love its
potential and the viaion that 1 have.
-Let's be "SGA Brood!" .,
-Jl
faS&lwkr?)
Hit
ilrrter® Cluster
Editor-In-Chief Karen Jacobs
Associate Editor Ruby Fowler
Sports Editor Cheryl Jones
Features Editor Susannah Vass
Business Manager Brad Wilson
Adviser Dr. Harlan Stensaas
Technical Consultant David Tucker
Chier Photographer Lewis Singer
Columnists David Clark and Sarah McPherson
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Paul ( ho, Rob Moon, Rafael Pinzon
Staff Writers
Lewis Vaughn, Art Tennille, Eddie Sanford,
Leigh Wansley, Donna Itzoe, and Robbie Titrnky
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Todd Adams, Lynn Bowman and Billy Walker
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Member, Associated Collegiate Press
Address: Box A, Mercer. Office located on third Boor ol
the Student Center. 744-2871.
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