4A the university daily kansan
opinion
thursday,may 13,2004
Zach Newton for The University Daily Kansas
Free for All
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School is done in approximately two weeks. Can we have waited any longer to do the construction?
My mommy would be so proud of me. I spent last night in front of the Lied Center sleeping so I could see Bill Clinton.
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Milo was the dog.
See page 5A
For the last day of the semester the opinion page is continued on the next page to include as many voices as possible. To look at the editorial cartoons from the semester, go to the Web site, www.kansan.com.
PERSPECTIVE
Sharing opinions makes change happen
"...used to feel I should be silent. I was scared to do this song. But I want everyone aware of what is going on."
Murs, "And This Is For..." from the 2004 album, Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition.
COMMENTARY
This is about the hope inspired by the Justice Department's recent interest in resuming the investigation into his death.
Cornelius Minor opinion@kansan.com
This is for Emmett Till whose 1955 murder in Mississippi never saw justice because the America of Thomas Jefferson's dreams has yet to become the America of our shared experience.
In a country where the beginning of a long-fought victory for freedom at home comes at the same time as the world beholds the human rights abuses that have been committed in the name of freedom abroad, this semester's column has been an attempt to ease the thorn of reasoned skepticism from the side of my battered optimism.
On the phone the other evening a
friend of mine read me the opening words to Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. She could not have been more on target. It is indeed the best of times, and in the same moments we are suffering through time at its very worst.
When I cannot cry, when it is inappropriate to scowl, or when laughing would be out of place, I was fortunate this semester, because I could always write.
That writing gave me the freedom to do so much more.
This semester I rediscovered my sincere love for friends who have been in my life forever. What's more revolutionary is
that I nurtured the ability to love the random people that I meet every day.
I'm not a journalist. At times that was obvious, but I have no apologies. I spent the semester working to tell my own story, because as I have found the freedom to do that, I have acquired the vision to see others who are engaged in similar struggles to think, to create and to change.
Ultimately, I have developed the sensitivity to feel and to know that free people — any people — unite in ways that popular notions of diversity can't even begin to explain.
Simply stated, underneath all these words, there is an individual who is trying to be the best he can be. I hope that there are scores of us who, underneath everything we do, have a desire to make the todays in our lives consistently better than the yesterday.
This has been a semester-long tribute to you — those who read me all semester, those who just picked me up today and those who send me those thoughtful critiques. This is for the hundreds of comments that I receive.
This is for my father who has given his life to the struggle, and for my mother whose sleeplessly red eyes are surrounded by wrinkles that tell the stories of an eternity of women who built nations upon their love for justice.
This is for the Amanda Crosses, Tony Danielses, Ernesto Cruzes, Halima Adamses of the world — those countless schoolmates, University officials, and friends who have the strength and the humility to live the lives that many of my heroes — bell hooks, Paul Robeson, Fannie Lou Hamer — envisioned. To those who live the ideals to which I aspire.
This is because I'm staring at the end of the semester, and I've got a whole lot left to say. This is knowing that I don't have to say it, because the rest is up to you and you and...
Minor is an Atlanta graduate student in American studies. He is also co-host of Voice Activated on KJHK at 7 p.m. on Thursdays.
EDITORIAL BOARD
Firings abridge students' free press
At Kansas State University and Barton County Community College, administrators are abridging freedom of press.
Last week, officials at Barton County Community College didn't renew the newspaper adviser's contract. Monday, at KState, Ron Johnson was relieved of his duties at the recommendation of the journalism school director.
Officials at K-State and the community college both refuse to comment, but student staff members at both newspapers say it is recent discussions about student-controlled content that have caused the dismissals.
At K-State, members of its Black Student Union had been demanding Johnson's resignation, saying the paper was insensitive to multicultural issues. At the community college, officials have taken issue with recent articles exposing problems within the athletics department.
At both of these campuses, the student newspapers operate independently, just like The University Daily Kansan. And for good reason. A campus newspaper serves as an outside perspective that can comment independently of the school administration. When an adviser, who has no control over editorial content, can be fired over what students in a newsroom do, it sets a dangerous precedent.
The constitution of The University Daily Kansan states that the "editor bears full responsibility for the editorial content" of the newspaper. The adviser should never be blamed for the mistakes of the student editor and his or her staff. These two dismissals may bring us further from the ideals of studentrun publications. School officials should not place restrictions on their student journalists.
WAKE UP!
As student journalists at the University of Kansas, we request that school administrators stay out of the newsroom at our University and at other institutions of higher education. Allow us to operate with a free press and only hold us accountable.
Michelle Rombek, Kansan editor, for the editorial board.
Columnist's last request: Keep eye on world news
The semester has finally come to an end and I must say that I have thoroughly enjoyed writing for The University Daily Kansan.
I would like to thank everyone at the Kansan that gave me this wonderful opportunity to voice my opinion on a weekly basis about topics that I felt should be important to KU students.
Secondly, I would like to thank any readers who took the time to read just one of my articles — whether you liked it I still appreciate you.
Lastly, I would like to thank instructors and faculty such as Dr. Bill Tuttle, Professors Rose Greaves and Mark Joslyn and Tony Daniels who have helped me grow intellectually during my tenure at the University. Their classes and encouragements made me think and act on a larger scale and I am a better-informed man because of them.
COMMENTARY
Brandon Gay opinion@kansan.com
Because this is my last article and my last semester at the University, I will briefly list some topics and issues to look out for in the near future.
The U.S. presidential election is getting closer. It is only six months away and Bush v. Kerry is sure to be a campaign filled with negative attack advertisements and plenty of finger pointing.
whoever wins the election has a tough
road in the presidency ahead of them. Furthermore, the next president has the potential to choose up to three new Supreme Court Justices. This is important because the Supreme Court interprets Americans' everyday laws, freedoms and liberties and any newly appointed Justices' politics might play a determining role in its rulings.
The Middle East is surely a region to watch closely. So many events are going on over there that it is anyone's guess when peace and stability will truly exist in the war-torn region. Israel v. Palestine is always a pressing issue in world politics. Now there is an increasing amount of political pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon from his Likud political party over his pull-out plan in Gaza, not to mention the growing tension and resentment from other Arab countries that detest Israel's existence.
The United States' relationships with Jordan, Pakistan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia will be under the microscope as those countries deal with internal terrorism and increasing popularity of American and Western hatred. It will be interesting to see how U.S. foreign policy may shift because of the changing Middle Eastern climate.
Osama bin Laden is still at large and the U.S. government wants to get its hands on him soon, but I think capturing him will have little effect on those who follow his message just as capturing Saddam did little to deter violence against U.S. troops in Iraq.
Please continue to support U.S. troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. I hope that they all have a safe return back home and that U.S. government will speed up the process in returning them. Close to 850 soldiers have died in Iraqi
Do not let Africa become a forgotten continent. I am ashamed that I do not know more about the mass genocides and injustices to humanity that take place in Africa. I plan to learn more about the beautiful continent in the future. I hope there will be a stop to the AIDS epidemic and the ethnic cleansing taking place in countries such as Sudan
Once again I thank everyone who has made my collegiate career at the University a memorable one. Even though I am graduating, this will not be the last you hear of Brandon Cobb, I promise you that.
Peace.
KANSAN
Michelle Rombec
editor
864-4854 or mburhenn@kanean.com
and Afghan military operations and the number is sure to rise with the amount of ambushes and guerrilla warfare.
Andrew Vaupel managing editor 864-4854 or vaupel@kansan.com
Cobb is a Kansas City, Ken., senior in political science.
Meghan Brune and Johanna M. Maska opinion editors 864-4924 or opinion@kansan.com
Danielle Bose
business manager
864-4358 or addirector@kansan.com
Stephanie Graham
retail sales manager
864-4358 or adsales@kansan.com
Matt Fisher
sales and marketing adviser
864-7868 or mflauser@kansan.com
Makcolm Gibson
general manager and news adviser
864-7667 or mgibson@kansan.com
Editorial Board Members
Kendall Dix I肥 Lynnée Ford LLaure Francoviglia Amy Hemmontree Kally Hollowell Teresa Loa Mindy Osborne Ryan Scarrow Elizabeth Willy Wiley Whitpomme Zach Stinson Zach Newton Wes Benson Sara Behunke Kevin Flaherty Brandon Gay Zack Hemmway Alex Hoffman K Kevin Kampowit Amly Kelly Cameron Koelling Courtney Kuhen Brandi Matheisen Travis Metcalf Mike Norris Jonathan Reeder Rinff Irifey Ales Smith Kari Zimmerman