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Wednesday, March 30, 1994
OPINION
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
77777
The commissioners should stop neglecting discrimination as if it were a minor issue and amend the ordinance. The world is changing quickly, and the city must follow in that same pace if Lawrence wants to continue being a tolerant, caring community.
VIEWPOINT
City Commission needs discrimination safeguard
The City of Lawrence lacks legislation to prevent people from being fired or denied housing on the basis of their sexual orientation. The City Commission should have amended the City's Human Relations Ordinance a long time ago.
The issue is in the spotlight now because Simply Equal, an activist coalition, is planning to petition the City Commission to make the proper amendments. The Lawrence chapter of Amnesty International, St. Lawrence Catholic Campus Center and Student Senate already have endorsed the proposal. The City Commission, however, has not discussed the inclusion of sexual orientation in the city codes since the proposal last came up - six years ago.
Although zoning city areas and taxing businesses do take time and demand a lot of work from the city commissioners, protecting people from bigotry in a time when it is abundant should be one of the commissioners' top priorities.
The law is the only refuge against discrimination, and when the City Commission does not realize that, or worse, when it underestimates the importance of anti-discrimination laws, citizens should worry.
Philadelphia is not in Kansas, but the movie named after the city can give commissioners a good idea about the world beyond zoning and taxing. In that world, our world, people are fired because they are gay and have AIDS.
GERALDO SAMOR FOR THE EDITORIAL BOARD
Bob Ramsey, a teacher at Johnson County Community College, is facing the threat of disciplinary action. The threat is absurd considering that the college is supposed to be a place for the free exchange of ideas.
Religious remark does not merit punishment
Ramsey's problems stem from a comment he made in class. His comment was not negative. It did not degrade anyone. He merely said that he was a Christian and the sponsor of a Christian group on campus.
A couple of students in his class took offense and approached the American Civil Liberties Union. The students claim that the teacher violated their First Amendment right to separation of church and state by mentioning his religious beliefs. How does introducing oneself as a Christian violate others' rights to believe what they want, especially in a college algebra class?
Kim Beck, ACLU member, said the problem with Ramsey's statement was that he had implied that Christianity should be as important to the students as it was to him.
Other students in the class, however, did not catch this implication.
"He was just giving us a background of himself. He wasn't selling anything whatsoever or pushing it (Christianity) down our throats," one student said
What if instead of the teacher saying he was a Christian, he told the class he was a homosexual and the sponsor of the homosexual group on campus? Would the administration of JCCC even be considering disciplinary action if someone had complained?
In order for the school to remain a place for the free exchange of ideas, JCCC should not take any disciplinary action against Ramsey.
DAVID ZIMMERMAN FOR THE EDITORIAL BOARD
KANSAN STAFF
BEN GROVE, Editor
LISA COSMILLO, Managing editor
TOM EBLEN General manager, news adviser
JUSTIN GARBERG Business manager
BILL SKEET, Systems coordinator
JENNIFER BLOWEY Retail sales manager
Editors
JEANNE HINES Sales and marketing adviser
Editors
Aast Managing Editor...Dan England
Assistant to the editor...J.R. Clarbone
News...Kristi Foger, Katie Greenwald
Todd Selfert
Editorial...Colleen Davidson
Nathan Dixon
Campus...Jean DeHaven
Sports...Dorian Dovey
Photo...Doug Hesse
Features...Sara Bennett
Wire...Allison Lippert
Fireland...Christine Laue
Business Staff
Campus sales mgr...Jason Eberly
Regional Sales mgr...Troy Tawater
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Special Sections mgr...Shelley McConnell
Production mgrs...Laura Guth
Gretchen Kootterlehirk
Marketing director mgr...John Carton
Creative director...John Carton
Classified mgr...Kelly Conneys
Tearsheet mgr...Wing Chan
Letters should be typed, double-spaced and fewer than 200 words. They must include the writer's signature, name, address and telephone number. Writers affiliated with the University of Texas at Austin are required to submit these letters.
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the Kansan reserves the right to reject or edit letters, guest columns and cartoons. They can be mailed or brought to the Kansan newsroom, 111 Stauffer Flint Hall.
'Sex Respect' supporters should respect realities of teens' lives
Several billboards in Kansas City once proclaimed, "Sex Won't Save You." The message spoke volumes to the plight of inner-city teen-agents. It's novenough that teens have to worry about gang violence, drug abuse and broken homes. Sexually coming of age now has greater, possibly lethal, implications. Compounding this problem are proponents of a sex education curriculum called "Sex Respect." If supporters of this program have their way, teen-aggers would remain ignorant of the very knowledge that could save them.
Emerging from the nationwide debate over the content of sex education in America's public schools, "Sex Respect" teaches students abstinence only. Recently in the San Diego suburb of Vista, Calif., the school board approved "Sex Respect" after hours of heated public debate. The curriculum passed a 3-2 vote of the board, controlled by three conservative Christians.
This curriculum is nothing new, however. Schools throughout the Kansas City area have taught "Sex Respect" for years. The curriculum has come under fire as of late because of its one-sided approach to sex edu-
For many of the one in 15 teens in this country who get pregnant, having a child seems like one of the few productive things they can do in an economically depressed inner city. In some ways, it makes them feel needed, despite the cycle of poverty and risk of sexually transmitted diseases. It's in these situations, especially, where abstinence-only programs pose the greatest health risk to teenagers.
cation, choosing-not to include condoms, for example, as a means to protect against contracting HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
This country doesn't seem to have the wherewithal to be completely honest with teens about the risks and precautions of sexual activity. Sure,
oustinence is the safest way to protect against these things, but as we've seen with drugs, teens don't always listen. So where does "Sex Respect" leave the teens who have sex?
As a language arts tutor for one Kansas City teen-ager, I find this question the most worrisome. Once a week, I travel to the city to donate my time to a Christian family services center dedicated to fighting inner-city problems. When my student brings homework from school that deals with birth control, I'm obliged to deal with it vaguely. She said her mother talked to her about stuff like that, but at school the health teacher has avoided the subject. Last week we talked about Norplant, for example, because her English teacher assigned a newspaper article about it. My student summarized the article detailing the controversy of the contraceptive, and we moved on.
I don't think it's enough to just talk about birth control and STDs like they're some far removed topics. If such fundamental institutions as the school and the church avoid the topic, Mom and Dad will have to step in. But will they? Fortunately for my student, Mom plays an active role in her edu-
cation. Yet, I still worry. Does she know how to protect herself?
Thus, the ultimate contention is whether knowledge of and access to birth control promotes sexual activity among teen-agers. This contention has sparked bitter debate. Though knowledge is power, when it comes to giving teens the power of sexual knowledge, this country is mortified.
The problems with "Sex Respect" are the motives behind it. Though the curriculum is not overtly religious, most of the advocates of abstinence-only sex education rely heavily on religious dogma to defend its one-sidedness. This gives the appearance that they want to punish teen-agers who do not adhere to their moral practice of abstinence. Denying teen-agers access to complete sex education is, in effect, punishing them with ignorance.
Few would argue with the message of the "Sex Won't Save You" billboards, myself included. But the other side of the billboard should say, "Neither Will Ignorance."
Greg Thonen is a Kansas City, Kan., senior in Journalism.
" THESE NEW RESTRICTIONS ON SMOKING ARE SO CONSTRICTING! "
Mountain trip inspires spirituality
I have found a religion.
I visited Colorado, for the 25th time,
during Spring Break. And I have
accepted the mountains as my savi-
iors.
My dad is to blame for this. When I was 8, we took our first trip to Colorado. We have gone every year since then. He worships the mountains as well — when he dies, he wants his ashes released over a mountain ridge.
I followed my brother, Brian, to Colorado State University, where he goes to school. Now comfortable with his surroundings, he showed me a new place of worship.
COLUMNIST
We drove up a long, dusty road that twisted up a depressing, large hill covered in dead weeds. But I already was hypnotized. When you have to settle for Campanile hill, KU's finest excuse for a mountain, anything is better.
We made it over the last ridge and a shimmering jewel, surrounded by towering, rocky cliffs, greeted us. The lake took my breath away. It seemed strange that such a sight could be inside such an ugly surface.
But that is one of the wonders of the mountains. You never truly know what you are missing until you
explore, up close, the inside of the gods. The only way to do this is to climb them. If you don't, shimmering jewels and other natural treasures that can't be seen from a car window will pass you by.
I couldn't help it. I had to climb the rocks in front of me. Just like every summer for the past 14 years.
Maybe. The mountains have a way of releasing your adult inhibitions, so only your childhood spirit can enjoy the sight in front of you. Parents, after seeing the mountains for the first time, usually only gasp a few "Wows" with their kids. Which is OK. "Wow" really is all you need to describe them.
"You're 12," my brother yells up at me.
Later that week, I visited my mecci
— Estes Park, Colo., where you can see the gods up close. You can explore. You can gaze. And you can worship.
Which is what I did. Our first stop, Glacier Gorge, provided me with a quiet place to walk along a snowpacked path with Sarah, my girlfriend, and think.
This is the only place where the grasp of humanity hasn't defaced the original canvas painted by Mother Nature. The crisp, cool smell of pine isn't wiped out by car exhaust. And in the early morning, the millions of stars in the sky aren't blocked out by street lamps.
A puffing man wearing a Coors hat and a jean jacket, what most people wear out here, passes me. You won't see any tanned, toned Malibu creatures out here. Anyone with a trailer, or a T-shirt, can enjoy the mountains. That's part of their charm.
We reach Alberta Falls, a favorite spot of mine. But the falls surprise them. They are frozen over. I usually go to Estes Park in August, and I am shocked at the amount of snow and ice still present in March. But that's
another thing about the mountains.
They always surprise you.
Our second stop, Bear Lake, surprises me even more. This huge jewel is solid ice blanketed by white snow. We walk out to the center of it. I am hypnotized once again.
We are surrounded by gods. Tiny rivers, fed by freshly melted snow, snake down their sides. The winds pick up and whistle through the pine trees, creating a natural symphony. Birds become the chorus with their synchronized chirping. Sunbeams cascade off of the shiny, wet rocks.
For me, this could be nothing less than a religious experience.
But as the gods slowly fade from my rearview mirror, I smile. Because in my heart, I know that someday I can give them two things that people true to their faith can give: the hope of a pilgrimage.
And a sad one. I don't know when I'll visit the mountains again. I'm graduating soon, and I'll probably have a job during the summer.
And the promise of a return.
Dan England is a Lenexa senior in Journalism.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Kansas should proofread or learn spelling skills
The March 9 University Daily Kansan had an advertisement for a local health spa urging students to "Loose [sic] to 10 pounds" before break. The March 10 Kansan featured a headline proclaiming that the [Lawrence Arts] "Center plans for expansion [sic]." I have two questions for you. 1) Do you have plans to hire a proofreader at any time in the near future? I don't believe that an award-winning newspaper should consider good proofreading an unnecessary luxury. 2) How are English teachers supposed to convince students that spelling correctly is important when
they are surrounded by advertisements for Donuts (I mean, of course, doughnuts), Krazy Glue, menswear (of course, it should be men's wear) and now issues of the revered campus newspaper flaunting its disregard for the simplest abecedarian distinctions in spelling? Please respond; the (academic) world waits anxiously.
Patrick Enright
Patrick Enright
Graduate Teaching Assistant
Department of English
Comparison of paper, crime is inappropriate
I would like to comment on the letter to the editor by Jack Lerner that ran March 18 called "Changes in
Lawrence concern students too.* Lerner refers to Lawrence as a special town, and he is right. But in his comments about Lawrence having skeletons in the closet is where his letter becomes inconsistent. The inconsistency lies in comparing the Gregg Sevier shooting to the Lawrence Journal-World. There is no comparison between the two. The Sevier shooting was a great loss. What does the Lawrence Journal-World have to do with that?
Lerner refers to the *Lawrence Journal-World* as a "shamefully bad city newspaper" right after listing gay-bashing incidents as skeletons in the closet of Lawrence. There is no comparison here either. Gay bashing is a terrible thing and I hope that things like that will stop some
day. The Lawrence Journal-World is just a newspaper.
I subscribe to the Lawrence Journal-World and enjoy reading it daily. The people there work very hard and work with what they can as a small-town newspaper. If you appreciate the small-town atmosphere of Lawrence, then you should appreciate its small-town newspaper. We do not live in New York, so Lerner shouldn't think that the Journal-World should be the New York Times. But somehow I think that is the only way he would be happy. Next time you are looking for humor in your articles you should consider the implication of meaningless statements.
Ken Doresky Lawrence senior