4A
Tuesday, April 2, 1996
OPINION
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
VIEWPOINT
Potential for recycling is all around the house
Every day, a student can walk into any classroom and see newspapers and soda cans lying on the floor. At first glance it may appear that these students don't seem interested in recycling. But the average student actually has a conscience for this task. So what can we do to promote recycling?
It is hard to start a trend in a school where you don't see much recycling. Computer labs in Dole Human Development Center and in Stauffer-Flint Hall have mounds of paper crammed into small boxes which have yet to be recycled.
Show some interest
Perhaps if students started showing interest in recycling, KU officials would realize that the University of Kansas needs to catch up with the Save the Environment campaign and see how many resources they are wasting.
However, there is a potential glimmer of light showing above the horizon. Most residence halls and scholarship halls have begun recycling programs.
Hashinger and Corbin halls have recycling bins for newspapers in their lobbies.
A lot of resident assistants also have started programs for their own floors.
Students may not realize the potential of their own resources, and they could do a better job of recycling. Most students will recycle if the means are available but will not go out of their way.
In addition, organized living units should be better at recycling since they already have an internal structure with leadership.
Most fraternity and sorority houses recycle on an individual basis. But
THE ISSUE:
Recycling
Organized living groups have the structure and potential to lead the way in recycling with University of Kansas students
scholarship halls and residence halls are starting to make a positive change because they are taking the individual concept further and have started working as a team to recycle.
Greeks should lead
If this campus is to become environmentally aware, the greeks should follow the example of the scholarship and residence halls. Since they have a core group already formed, they certainly could do a better job of recycling. They already have the strength and commitment to accomplish the task.
About one-sixth of the total undergraduates at the University are greek. That is more than 4,000 students. Imagine the possibilities if greek houses started working together to recycle.
There are six different listings under "recycling centers" in the Yellow Pages, so anyone who wishes to recycle has many places to do so.
But if it still is too difficult, two of those centers, Conservation Resource Recycling and Eco Services, will pick up recyclables at a residence for a minimum charge.
The students at the University of Kansas need to make recycling happen on a large scale in this community. The students have the living structures and energy to effectively recycle, and should lead the way.
DOUG WEINSTEIN FOR THE EDITORIAL BOARD
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And the loser is?
Jesse Jackson means well. That is why he decided to challenge Hollywood and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences last week for not nominating
By Donna Davis
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more Black artists for their prestigious Academy Awards.
But there was something odd about this protest that deserves consideration: Not every Black in Hollywood hopped on Jackson's bandwagon. In fact, some were actually mad at him for causing such a fuss. Whoopi Goldberg, the host of the ceremonies, said in her opening monologue that she had something to say to Jesse, but that since he wasn't watching, "Why bother?" And Oprah Winfrey's visible presence as the official Oscar welcomer did little to boost Jackson's cause.
Illustration by Ross Sit
Then, Quincy Jones made sure there was Black representation in the show, even dragging tap dancer Savion Glover to the lectern to do nothing more than take a bow. None of the Caucasian dancers did this. Jones also spotlighted supermodels Veronica Webb, Naomi Campbell, and Tyra Banks in the opening fashion show. Take Six and Vanessa Williams also were on hand, and with Sidney Poitier, Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne presenting, it was very difficult for Jackson to say to all of Caucasian America that these artists felt snubbed.
It seemed almost sad to see poor Jackson ranting about a problem, only to have those he wished to help give him a very chilly, "Thanks, but no thanks" in return. I am sure he expected more from these people — at the very least, he didn't think they'd show up in glamorous gowns and tuxedos, grinning and having a blast with their so-called oppressors. But that is what happened. In Donna Karan dresses and Versace suits, the elite Black artists went along with the Academy's tradition of honoring the best in the motion picture industry — and they went to fabulous par-
22222
So what happened? Why wasn't there tremendous rallying behind this cause? How come so few in Hollywood saw things the way Jackson did? Is it that actually there was no snubbing? Have we really "overcome?"
That is the issue with the Academy Awards as well. While it was nice to see
However, Horowitz misses the point. First, to say that this country is not racist because it is willing to allow Blacks to participate in athletic activities is just plain dumb. If the owners of those same NBA teams were Black as well, then he'd have a point. But they aren't. And that is the problem.
Perhaps the problem was that these artists, since they have enjoyed tremendous success, really do feel a part of the insiders' club in Hollywood. It is kind of hard to tell Sidney Poitier that he deserves more respect — and even harder to convince Oprah that she shouldn't help out her parent company — ABC — that has been so good to her. But were these artists, by not supporting Jackson, denying that there really is a problem with the way things are done in Hollywood?
so many Blacks entertain at the ceremony, the bottom line is they weren't really accepted this year by the Academy. Singing and dancing for Caucasian audiences, and making touchdowns and slam dunks always have been ways for Blacks to be successful.
ties afterward too.
The problem is that Blacks have not been allowed to fully participate at the decision-making level in the sports or entertainment industry. With that in mind, Jackson had a legitimate beef.
People magazine reported that only one of the 166 Oscar nominees was Black, and that of the 5,043 Academy members, only 3.9 percent are Black.
But back to the protest, and why it didn't work. Commentator David Horowitz, who also was a guest on Both Sides, said Jackson had no real girape because "America [was] not a racist country. Americans have shown that they will support athletes who are Black; the NBA is 90 percent Black, and the paying audience is 80 percent white."
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On CNN's Both Sides with Jesse Jackson, actor Eriq LaSalle of NBC's ER noted that indeed there was racism in Hollywood, saying the industry reflects this society. He also discussed how hard it is for Black actors to go on auditions and get important projects done because most often, someone Caucasian will do the evaluating. This is correct. According to the article in People, Blacks make up only 2.3 percent of the Director's Guild and 2.6 percent of the Writer's Guild. Also, very few of Hollywood's top executives are Black. Thus, with so few Blacks in power positions, films which feature positive Black characters don't stand much of a chance.
Secondly, the real argument should be with Warner Brothers, Sony, Paramount and other production companies that won't hire enough Black workers or promote Black projects. If he had placed more of his focus there, perhaps he would have gotten more support. Why worry about an awards show that also skipped past Ron Howard in the director's category for Apollo 13? By linking very real concerns to an awards show, he came out looking like nothing more than a party-pooper.
So what if Don Cheadle didn't win Best Supporting Actor for his work in Devil in a Blue Dress? Does that make his performance less significant? Of course not. He does not need a small, homogeneous group of Academy members to tell him he is good. It is almost dangerous to start looking for others to tell us we're doing a good job. And that is the message Jackson should have been touting. Instead, it looks like he was just trying to get his name in the papers. And he did.
So why didn't anybody listen?
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Donna Davis is an Overland Park graduate student in education.
First of all, the Oscars ceremony is hardly the place to start a meaningful debate with political ramifications. It is a party. And anybody, Black or Caucasian, who gets invited is going to want to go. So Jackson already had a battle just trying to tell people they shouldn't have fun.
Also, fundamentally there is something wrong with begging for outside approval and recognition to validate one's existence.
HUBIE
By Greg Hardin
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