Opinion
Kansan
Published daily since 1912
4A
Julele Wood, Editor Brandi Byram, Business manager Laura Roddy, Managing editor Shauntae Blue, Retail sales manager Cory Graham, Managing editor Dan Simon, Sales and marketing adviser Tom Eblen, General manager, news adviser Scott Valler, Technology coordinator
Thursday, November 4, 1999
Jordan Martens / KANSAN
Editorials
New hate crime legislation unfairly places more value on minority life
Intolerance and hatred are two of the biggest problems our society is facing, but new federal hate crime legislation would do little to stop either of them. Legislation designed to deter "hate crimes" through tougher sentencing and more rigorous prosecution is vain political rhetoric and will not solve the problem. What we need are efforts that address tolerance and protect all members of society equally.
The new hate crime legislation is unfair and puts an unequal value on life in society. If someone commits a capital crime, such as murder, against any member of society, he should be held accountable for it regardless of who they are. For our laws to be legitimate, all members of society must be treated equally.
Is a violent act only hateful when it is committed against a marginal group?
Under the new hate crime bill, that is not the case. If someone with an ethnic minority background, religious preference or alternative sexual lifestyle is the victim of a capital offense, his or her predators can be more vigorously prosecuted and sentenced. This is unjust because it places a higher value on the lives of minorities and assumes that the crimes committed against them are inherently worse.
The legislation would give the federal government the right to prosecute
hate crimes separately from the prosecution of the state. This means an alleged criminal essentially could be tried twice for the same crime in two different courts.
We have an obligation to protect those members of society who are targeted for violence. But what is a hate crime? Is a violent act only hateful when it is committed against a marginal group? A violent act is inherently a hate crime; therefore, we need to protect society across the board. We should not hold up one or two particular groups as worthy of protection. We should take steps through education to instill tolerance and prevent violence and hate crimes against any member of society.
Brett Watson for the editorial board
Football parking causes headaches
When thousands of football fans descend on the Hill for home games, the situation can be best described as organized chaos.
Despite obvious strains on parking resources, which are limited, there are a few game-day issues that can be addressed.
A section of the Hill is transformed into a parking lot for football-goers. Although the Parking Department only allows permit-holders to park on the grass when conditions are dry, damage can occur under any conditions. It is ridiculous that a school that prides itself on aesthetic beauty would jeopardize the Hill's natural beauty for a few extra parking
Allowing parking on the Hill during games jeopardizes its famed natural beauty
spaces.
Game-day parking also inconveniences students, particularly those who live in scholarship halls. In order to assure alumni parking spots near the chancellor's home for pregame parties, the Parking Department blocks Lilac Lane as early as 6 a.m.
and in lots near Gertrude Sellards Pearson-Corbin Hall on game days. Students' lives do not stop for a football game, and illegally parked cars can be a significant hassle for students who paid $75 to park in those lots.
This problem is compounded by a flood of cars without proper permits parking in Alumni Place parking lots
The Parking Department's manpower and resources are spread thin during football games. Everyone should expect some minor hassles with parking and traffic. At the same time, it's time that the Parking Department and University remember, when accommodating the alumni and visitors who flood campus, that this University is about students, and their needs should be considered.
Kursten Phelps for the editorial board
Kansan staff
Chad Bettes ... Editorial
Seth Hoffman ... Associate editorial
Carl Kaminski ... Neues
Juan H. Heath ... Online
Chris Fickett ... Sports
Brad Hallier ... Associate sports
Nadia Mustafa ... Campus
Heather Woodward ... Campus
Steph Brewer ... Features
Dan Curry ... Associate features
Matt Daugherty ... Photo
Kristi Elliott ... Design, graphics
T.J. Johnson ... Wire
Melody Ard ... Special sections
News editors
Advertising managers
Becky LaBranch . *Special sections*
Thad Crane . *Campus*
Will Baxter . *Regional*
Jon Schlitt . *National*
Danny Pumpelly . *Online sales*
Micah Kaftiz . *Marketing*
Emily Knowles . *Production*
Jenny Weaver . *Production*
Matt Thomas . *Creative*
Kelly Heffernan . *Classified*
Juliana Moreira . *Zone*
Chad Hale . *Zone*
Brad Bolyard . *Zone*
Amy Miller . *Zone*
Advertising managers
Broaden your mind: Today's quote
"We've got to pause and ask ourselves: How much clean air do we need?"
How to submit letters and guest columns
Letterers: Should be double-spaced typed and fewer than 200 words. Letters must include the author's signature, name, address and telephone number plus class and hometown if a university student. Faculty or staff must identify their positions.
Lee Jacocca
**Guest columns:** Should be double-
spaced typed with fewer than 700 words.
The writer must be willing to be photo-
raphed for the column to run.
All letters and guest columns should be submitted to the Kansan newsroom, 111 Stauffer-Flint Hall. The Kansan reserves the right to edit, cut to length or reject all submissions. For any questions, call Chad Bettes or Seth Hoffman at 864-4924. If you have general questions or comments, e-mail the page staff [iaismon@kansan.com] or call 864-4924.
Perspective
Love no reason to stay in abusive relationships
One of the few things I've purchased from Priscilla's, the lingerie shop on 23rd Street, is a button that reads "I know if I'm attracted to you, you're probably not good for me."
for me.
My friends insisted I buy the button because
My friends insisted I buy it seemed perfect for me. For some reason, I'm attracted to men capable of bad romantic relationships. I used to think I'd be immune to such issues because a vast majority of my friends are men. I thought I'd be better than most at choosing romances. Not true.
Jen Barlow columnist opinion@kansan.com
My friends and family have even gone so far as to take me aside and warn me that I easily could fall into more troubled relationships. So many stupid
things are done in the name of love. I'm getting wiser, though — heartbreak does that to a person.
I used to get easily frustrated with silly girls who stayed in troubled relationships because the were "in love." That is, I thought they were silly until I landed in the same situation.
Remember, though, that physical abuse is not the only factor in relationship problems. Certain actions and specific words often can be more piercing to the soul than physical harm.
Any rational person simply could think that those who are truly in love do not do harmful things to each other. However, love is not a logical force. Those who have been in love before can attest that love is an overwhelming feeling that cannot truly be understood. (Don't even attempt to give me some physiological explanation. I won't buy it.)
I chose to break off a past relationship when I realized I could no longer be proud of my lover. I became unable to brag about how beautiful, artistic or intelligent he was because I stopped
seeing him that way. I was too caught up in trying to appear more desirable than the other girl (to whom he's now engaged). This started a jealous war of ownership rather then us actually caring for each other.
A different relationship taught me that although it's right to love someone unconditionally, it's wrong to completely ignore yourself in the process. His words could fill me with pleasure and then swiftly become unimaginably cruel. Eventually, my bitterness toward him dulled his poetic lyrics, and I moved on.
I have no doubt that I really loved both of these men through it all; it was just that the relationship wasn't healthy.
Actually, my ex's flaws seem benign in comparison to the situation of my friend. I try not to use the word "hate" because it is too powerful of an explanation in most circumstances — most, but not in this case. I hate this guy. I hate anyone who lays a finger on any of friends or family.
The last thing I deserve to be is some poster child for troubled relationships. Not one of my ex-boyfriends was necessarily the spawn of Satan; in fact some of them were great guys. I'm not a feminist or out to bash men. I like men, a lot, and this topic relates to anyone regardless of gender or sexual preference.
However, she's "in love." Unfortunately, I've loved enough to know that I don't have the ability to do a whole lot to get her away from him. That's her job. I'll do everything in my power to help her, but she must decide to leave and then follow through with her choice. She's strong enough to leave; she just needs to be reminded.
Leaving the person you love is perhaps one of the most difficult decisions in life. It becomes more heart-wrenching if the relationship exists on different levels, such as physical proximity and emotional, psychological and physical closeness.
But it can be done.
Barlow is a Cherokee, Iowa, junior in Russian and Eastern European studies.
Personal conversation best way to learn diversity
Some weeks ago a group of guys were talking with my friends and me at Westport in Kansas City, Mo. They were treating us equally until one of them learned that I was from Brazil. After that, one of them quickly asked, "What the hell are you guys doing to the Amazon?"
Of course I got offended, especially because suddenly I came under attack by someone that I never asked to meet. We kept bumping into him and his friends at every bar we went to that night, and his questions became even more stereotypical. I ended up the conversation saying that I'm a Native-Brazilian tribal queen who was invited by
The University of Kansas provides several opportunities for people to learn more about each other and the diversity of the world. Recently I attended a lecture by graduate student Robert Rodriguez, titled the "Diversity of Latino." He explained that a Hispanic is defined by the Census Bureau as an American with
the U.S. government to give some speeches about our tribe's costumes. I wonder if some people would really think that this story is true.
Mariana
Paiva
guest columnist
opinion@kansas.com
Spanish, Portuguese or Latin American descent. For him, Hispanic and Latino can be used interchangeably, but not necessarily. "You can refer to someone that is Mexican-American as Latino and they may not appreciate that," he said.
Throughout the presentation he pointed out that we have to choose the name that we better identify with to describe ourselves. He gave several examples of famous Latinos/Hispanics ranging from the latest U.S. sex-symbol, Ricky Martin, to the new TV drama president of the United States, Martin Sheen, to depict the differences among all of us. Unfortunately, although his lecture was full, it was sad to see that the majority of the people that were interested to learn about this theme
where the ones already experiencing this diversity through their heritage.
This incident affected my self-esteem, but it made me realize how important is not to discriminate the ones who seem different than you. The University of Kansas has hundreds of international students, and the majority of them take regular courses. I've gotten to know several international students in my classes, parties and meetings; little by little I've reshaped my knowledge about history. The variety of minority groups on campus also helped me to develop a better understanding of the world. If people only could use the college environment to communicate more with each other, there would be no swastika burning in the residence halls, no homosexual students being beaten to death, no minorities being dragged by cars and fewer people assuming racial stereotypes.
There is another personal story that exemplifies how hard it is to be a stranger in the nest. One of the most traumatic experiences in my life occurred when I attended high school in Indiana for a year. I was the first international student to attend Northeastern High School in more than a decade. The school had more than 400 students and only one person besides me was considered a minority. So, being from a different country, I soon became the school's center of attention. My girlfriends used to tell me that so and so wanted to go out with me. Weeks passed, and no one had asked me out. When I wondered with my friends about those guys, they said that "because you are Brazilian they are afraid to be the first one to go out with you." It hurt me a lot to know that I was a stranger and that people were afraid to find out more who I really was.
I urge you all to approach people who look different from you in your classes or anywhere you are. We have a lot to share and even more to learn. I promise you that a simple friendly conversation can teach you more about diversity than any class that you may take during your college years.
Paira is a Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, senior in Latin American studies and journalism.
Feedback
Take small steps
If the United States Congress were to pass a bill to ban the right to bear arms, this could be a good start to end school violence and decrease the homicide rate - that is, if all the tens of millions of Americans who carry firearms are willing to comply.
Enforcing a law to ban firearms is not that simple at this time and age, especially since it's been over 200 years since the Second Amendment was passed. From that time, the use of guns and morality around them has changed how
they are integrated into our society. Many people consider possessing a gun a luxury just like being able to drive a vehicle because it makes them feel comfortable, rather than the privilege that it actually is. How many of the millions of gun owners are willing to relinquish their weapons if such a bill passes?
I'm sure many gun owners may comply and surrender their weapons. But new problems would certainly arise. For those who refuse to give up their weapon, they may react with violence, and riots might ensue. Possessing a handgun would become such a
rarity that it would only be available on the black market. Therefore, the majority of civilians who carry guns would be criminals, rendering ordinary citizens defenseless.
The only way to ultimately ban firearms is for the government to take smaller steps over a lengthy period of time. Taking smaller steps would better allow Americans' perspective on possessing guns to change. Passing an immediate bill may become part of the law, but won't change the views of the gun owners.
Andy Li
Lenexa sophomore
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