Volume 124 Issue 24
kansan.com
Friday, September 23, 2011
BIG 12 COMMISSIONER DAN BEEBE GONE
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BASKETBALL LEGENDS PAGE 6
The Big 12 seemingly escaped yet another apparent collapse, but this time the conference will continue under new leadership.
According to a statement from the conference, the Big 12 Board of Directors and Commissioner Dan Beebe have reached a "mutual agreement" for him to step down from the position immediately.
"I put all my effort into doing what was best for the Big 12 great fondness, I wish the Conference a long an future," Beebe said.
CLAIRE HOWARD/KANSAN
JUST DANCE
THEY'VE OUT
Beebes's interim replacement will be former Big Eight Conference Commissioner Chuck Neinas; he will start working immediately. Neinas served as Big Eight commissioner from 1971 to 1980. Neinas currently runs his own consulting firm, Neinas Sports Services, out of
EVERYONE FLOCK TO THE FEATHERS
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WHAT YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT THE POPULAR HAIR FEATHER TREND
You've probably seen them intertwined and peeking out of the locks of many women on campus. The latest hair craze, hair feather extensions, became popular last winter and are still selling out in salons today. Celebrities from Selena Gomez to Ke$ha have been sporting the trend and salons are ordering hair feathers in bulk to keep customers satisfied.
What many customers of the stylish hair trend don't know is that the feathers are real feathers from roosters. Mainly used for the flyfisherman business, rooster feathers have recently been largely sought after by hair stylists and salons in order to keep customer demand. The feathers come from "saddle feathers," the longer feathers located on the bird's back.
According to a New York Daily News article, the roosters are genetically bred for the plucking of their saddle feathers, which take years to grow and they usually don't survive the pluck. Many roosters end up being killed.
The fly-fishing industry has seen a substantial peak in business because of the salons and hairstylists flocking to fly-fishing stores to buy
feathers, according to a Seattle Times article. Fly fishermen are annoyed and angry because saddle feathers are harder to find.
Ronn Johnson, owner of Yager Fly Shop in Lawrence says that the saddle feathers and other feathers the store sells have been backordered for months.
AMANDA GAGE
"It's been tough on the whole industry because hair salons will order them in bulk," Johnson says. "I've sold up to $500 in one order of feathers." Yager Fly Shop has an online business as well and Johnsons says he's been successful on the web selling the feathers to places all over the country. He says that the fad will eventually die.
Parendi Birdie, a junior from Lawrence and president of the Compassion for All Animals club, says that any kind of exploitation of
The primary producers of the fly-fishermen feathers is Whiting Farms in Delta, Colo. The Seattle Times article says that 1,500 roosters are harvested per week for their feathers and they're still having trouble keeping up with the fast-selling demand.
animals is still exploitation.
"Exploitation of labor in sweatshops to the exploitation animals face in the clothing, food, entertainment industries is wrong," Birdie says. "Might does not make right. I find it so sad that we are so disconnected from ourselves as animals that we can't see that roosters, like all animals, from dogs, to cows, to humans, feel pain."
Birdie says that generating awareness about this issue is what's needed to inform people of the animals' lives that are lost.
Meris Barnes, senior from Lawrence, is one of many girls on campus sporting the trend, except she is doing it differently. She has five feathers in her hair and has enjoyed ordering them offline with DIY kits. She says she likes them because they're easy to put in and take out and they don't damage your hair like other extensions do.
Barnes says she didn't realize how much harm was being done to the birds and that people should be more aware of the negative side effects and consider switching to synthetic.
"I'm a vegetarian and feel the use of real feathers for hair decoration is as bad as wearing fur," Barnes says. "The ones I got, luckily, are synthetic. I think they're better in many ways. They can be heat styled, are more flexible and no animals are harmed to make them."
At Salon Hawk in the Kansas Union, the feathers are from "safe suppliers." Emily Willis, owner of Salon Hawk, says that these suppliers don't harvest feathers or remove them painfully by plucking. Also, proceeds from the extensions are donated to a charity called "Feathers for Cass."
"Cassidy Taylor Moore was my cousin who passed away this spring from committing suicide," Willis says. The money raised is donated to Headquarters, a free service that offers 24/7 suicide prevention.
DIY SYNTHETIC HAIR FEATHER KITS
DIY synthetic hair feather kits are easy to come by like this one available on eBay for $19.99. The kit includes metal pliers to clamp the beads and feather into the hair, a wooden hair pulling hook to section off hair to insert the beads and feather, silicone-lined micro black beads to attach the feather with and 11 different colored synthetic hair extensions. The synthetic printed fiber strands are made to look just like the popular grizzly rooster feathers. They can be washed, cut and styled. The ad includes pictured instructions on how to insert a feather. Meris Barnes, a senior from Lawrence, has ordered kits just like this one off of
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Miguel Camacho, president of the Hispanic American Leadership Organization (HALO), said these events on campus are important to bring exposure to HALO and the Hispanic community.
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HALO kicked off Hispanic Heritage Month Sept. 16 by showcasing Hispanic dance and music, two things Camacho said are very important to the Hispanic culture.
GROWING UP HISPANIC
Velasco knows all about the importance of these traditions, having
grant parent.
"Being the new student and being the minority student as well, I kind of tried to blend in as much as I could since I am lighter skinned," Velasco said. "Rather than just trying to challenge them and make them see the real side of being Hispanic, I didn't want to stand out
Once Velasco and his family moved to Wamego when he was 15, that all changed. As one of three non-white kids at his new school, Velasco, for the first time, felt ashamed of his culture.
"Coming to KU it was really great to see not just Mexicans, but people from other Hispanic countries fully embracing their heritage," Velasco said. "It was really easy for me to accept my own culture when I saw so many people celebrating it and people I could identify with."
help of Hispanic Heritage Month activities.
The unity of the Hispanic culture on campus is evident to non-Hispanic students as well. Sarah Stern, a junior from Lawrence, was vice president of HALO last year but now
"When you say Hispanic or Latino, there is so many different cultures within that from each country" Stern said. "Each one has its own really rich tradition and it's really important to recognize and distinguish between those different cultures and not just lump them all together as Hispanic."
Edited by Sarah Champ
for immigrant rights, such values spending time with the Hispanic community on campus and in Lawrence and she wants every student to see how important this culture is.
After several preliminary donations, including a $62,000 gift from Rock Chalk Review, the United Way is well on its
CLASSIFIEDS 11 CRYPTOQUIPS 3 SPORTS 12
CROSSWORD 3 OPIGNION 4 SUDOKU 3
University students tossed footballs and donated money outside the Kansas Union yesterday afternoon as part of the United Way of Douglas County's fundraising kickoff event.
Kellen Bolt, a senior from Iola and co-director of the University Center for Community Outreach, encouraged students to contribute to the United Way's efforts in supporting Lawrence non-profit organizations.
"I don't think many stu-
munity — I really didn't until I started getting involved" he said. "I don't think they realize how much the United Way does and helps to make the Lawrence community as strong as it is. It's here making the city a more attractive place to live."
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2011 The University Daily Kansan
SEE UNITED WAY 12
The Legends of the Phog basketball game is this Saturday.
Today's weather
1.
Forecasts done by University students. For a more detailed forecast, see page 2A.
HI: 72
LO: 50
Nice fall weather.