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University Daily Kansan Thursday, Oct. 2, 1958
The ASC's New Toy
The All Student Council has set up the mechanics for a committee to investigate and work against racial discrimination in the KU area.
On the surface, this appears to be a desirable, reasonable step. The background, however, shows up some facts which could make this new committee worse than useless.
There is at present a campus group, the Group for the Improvement of Human Relations which has been working on the discrimination problem.
The GIHR is non-political. The members are simply people who have felt the need for this work and who have gone about doing it.
They have worked without publicity because they feel they will get quicker, better results working quietly. The Little Rock troubles affirm the idea that a ruckus only solidifies the opposition.
The ASC may, if it chooses, simply make the present group an official body of the Council. If this is done, and only in this case, no harm will be done.
The people actually doing the work now are concentrated in the GIHR. If they are removed, they must be replaced by others. The others would probably be selected by the usual ASC standards—equal distribution among the houses, good party members, and popular persons.
On the other hand, the Council could decide to encompass or even do away with the GIHR, replacing it with its own committee. This would be the worst possible course.
This method is just not conducive to effective work. The appointees would be obliged to the ASC, and would necessarily follow a policy on
political lines rather than one concerned with achieving the announced goals.
The GIHR has, with reservations, welcomed the ASC resolution. The ASC members who voted for the resolution were undoubtedly well-intentioned. They believed they were casting a vote for human equality, as one member put it.
They were not.
Rather, they were victims of a political move designed to bring glory to the political party that fatuously declared itself against discrimination.
No realistic campus party here would align itself with the discriminationists. This has become a political issue simply because one party hit upon it and decided it was controversial.
On this campus, discrimination is not controversial. In Lawrence, the problem exists, and it is there the work must be done.
A campus political group will have no more force in Lawrence than would the same number of independent students working on their own.
If the program is taken over by the ASC, several things will happen.
Anti-discrimination work will be slowed by falling into the hands of political hacks.
The only way the ASC can accomplish anything will be to appoint the present members of the GHIR to the Council's committee. This would simply give the present group an official status.
The inevitable publicity that attends the maneuvering of the Council will act in this case to defeat the purpose.
Any other course must weaken the campaign. The only gain would be political spoils for the originators of the plan.
Collegians Worst Offenders
Now that the campus cops have taken their poke on the chin, it is only right that we turn the ugly spotlight on student violators.
Yesterday we said the cops do not adequately enforce traffic infractions. This simply means that there are more apparent traffic violations among student motorists than the cops can possibly handle.
During the day, five men staff the campus police force. One officer answers calls in the squad car, another drives the University bus (couldn't they find something more appropriate for him to do, like performing police duties?) and the other three take care of directing traffic, checking parking zones, and the like.
College students consistently are the worst traffic offenders on record. Likewise, their violations are as consistently hard to enforce. The chronic know-it-alls, being comprised of nothing less than a mass of brain (so they like to believe), resent being told what to do by any unlettered individual, even a cop. Therefore, they don't hesitate at rebellion, either wilful or unthinking, when traffic rules are framed to regulate them.
Maybe the students are not rebels; maybe they do not diabolically hate police and break laws on purpose; maybe they are too immersed in their own thoughts to give much care to the hazards to which they subject themselves.
As long as students ignorantly persist in breaking traffic laws and endangering everybody's lives, the campus cops will still be powerless to arrest more than a small percentage of the offenders. There just are not enough cops.
The only solution to the current disregard for these laws is the complete elimination of the offenses. That will take a considerable amount of sympathetic understanding and cooperation from the students, something which is very hard to find. —John Husar
The light of Truth beamed on the statue of Eternity, as the latter spread its loving wings protectingly over the drama in a small southern town last night, and then suddenly and effectively was dimmed out.
The University Theatre, bounding off with a glorious initiation of the 1958-59 season, presented a highly acceptable rendition of Tennessee Williams' "Summer and Smoke." A powerful play, it was well supplied with the strong and believable acting it required.
Williams has always displayed a great knowledge of human beings and of the emotions that make them interesting. Agile at tinkering with these feelings. Williams has come up with an engrossing contrast between two characters, Alma and John.
"Summer and Smoke"
Both are desperately in need of love and a knowledge of truth. Lacking these necessities, their lives lie without purpose or meaning. Each realizes the effects of the other's presence, but never culminates this feeling because of the lack of physical interest in him or her, in addition to other superficial differences.
These differences are subject to change, however. The transition is caused by a tragic death of a parent, resulting in a shakeup of the couple's individual values. John then assumes Alma's thoughtfulness and stability, and Alma becomes gregarious, a la John.
Louis Lyda exhibited a fine sense of discretion and tact in his role of John, far exceeding any other actor. His choices of stage business and use of lines were truly attributable to the scope of his character.
Joyce Elliott's interpretation of the prim, proper and romanceless Alma was also very excellent. A good example of the quality and depth of her perception of the role is the methods she carefully used as she vented her frustrations upon her mentally-retarded and defenseless mother, creditably played by Phyllis Miller.
By John Husar
Other players who stood out with more than mentionable performances in minor roles were: Marvin Carlson, a pathetically humorous suitor; Jean Rustemeyer, with warm and pretty exuberance; Barbara Conroy, an interesting busy-body; Trudy Seperson, a well-accented sex-pot; Al Rossi, a drunken gun-man, and Steve Callahan, a green traveling salesman.
Dr. Jack Brooking's excellent staging seemed to use only the best of all possible devices to properly illustrate the story. Dick Borgen's lighting, Virgil Godfrey's set and Herbert L. Camburn's costumes complemented each other in a mighty exhibition of teamwork.
"Summer and Smoke" will continue a run through Saturday at 8 p.m. in the University Theatre. Good acting upon a colorful setting makes for the basis of a fine performance. Adding the beautiful and melodic Tennessee Williams lines, there was little chance of finding one dissenter in the audience.
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
Worship Services 11 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Roger Williams Fellowship Sunday 9:45 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.
801 KENTUCKY
M. C. Allen, Pastor Ernst E. Klein, University Pastor
LITTLE MAN ON CAMPUS
"I WISH ALL MY PLAYERS COULD HAVE A CLASS WITH PROFESSOR SNARF!"
Short Ones
From the news:
Did you know that frozen broccoli comes two ways, stalk-style and chopped? -Kansas City Star,
We really hadn't noticed.
We hope none of these quiz-show squealers talks until he's cashed the check from the sponsor.
We really hadn't noticed
Some wild steers in K. C. were shot full of tranquilizer the other day. Do you realize this opens up a whole new field for TV westerns?
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Engineers, Physicists Mathematicians NAA's On-Campus Interviews
OCTOBER 8
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