4B
Tuesday, May 1, 1990 / University Daily Kansan
Perspectives
Stacy Burtin
Black Panhellenic
Stacy Burin, chairman of Black Panhellenic, said the campus community was more aware of racial tensions because of recent events.
"It is forcing the University to take a stand toward the racial incident
Burtin
Burtin said
and cultural diversity as a whole," said Burtin, who also is vice president of Black Student Union. "It should make the University improve the racial climate."
that as BSU vice president she was faced with situations of discrimination people had experienced on campus.
"None of the incidents in the past received any press," she said. "They were just swep under the carpet. No longer are minority issues swept under the rug."
Burtin said she saw changes in the future.
She said the recent events had affected her friends and colleagues differently.
"My younger sister may come to KU," she said. "I don't see her as having to experience those problems."
"Some people feel like, the events are forcing the University to take a stance," Burin said. "The University is responsible for us and our safety."
Black Panhellenic, Interfraternity Council and Panhellenic have formed Greeks for Responsible Education Enhancing Cultural Sensitivity. The group will try to diversify the Greek crowd and raise awareness, Burkin said.
"There's a lot of ignorance out there," she said. "We can get rid of the problems together through various activities."
Aaron Andes
Some of Burtin's colleagues are angry and tired, she said.
SCAD
Aaron Andes, member of Students Concerned About Discrimination, said that although some people were working hard to change the campus climate, others were willing to put recent events out of their minds.
Andes
"It's so difficult to keep an exciting incident in people's minds for a long period of time," he said. "You are probably ready to put the incident out of their minds with
out changing the climate. However, there are those people who recognize that this is an ongoing problem — those people will continue to work with the administration to change the climate."
Andes said recent events had
raised the consciousness of some people who did not know things like that could happen. He said the events were making some people question whether fraternities were inherently racist, prejudice and sexist.
"It should also cause the administration to go beyond words, to move into some serious actions that are going to make conservative people nervous," he said. "It should promote a new feeling that students are changing and are going to continue to change this campus. Students are going to continue to fight to stop oppression of all kinds."
Andes said that speaking in front of the crowd at the protest April 11 at Strong Hall was empowering. He said it was exciting to speak in front of such a powerful leader and be recognized as a part of the strong coalition of students causing change.
Tom Cartmell
Intersaturnity Corp.
Interfraternity Council
"The University is implementing a
Tom Cartmell, Interfraternity Council president, said it was unfortunate that it took recent racial incidents to derail the university aware of racism on campus.
review board to review incidents like these," Cartmell said. "It will also take a look at regional racial incidents and how to prevent them in the future."
The events have had a significant effect on Cartmell personally because of his position as IFC president, he said.
Cartmell said the events should challenge people to do their own investigating instead of listening to rumors.
"The IFC has the role of representing fraternities and implementing programs to prevent these types of incidents from happening." Carey says that racial sensitivity. It's said to say, but if something like this had hap-
opened, I probably would have remained somewhat ignorant to the issue."
Cartmel said he hoped that all 2,000 members of the KU fraternities would become more aware of the racial climate.
"If you went to each of the 24 fraternities," he said. "You would find some form of racism. But if you went to any living group on campus, there also would be some form of racism."
He said that he would try to encourage the fraternities to be more aware of racism in the recruiting process and to address the issue of racial members with racist attitudes.
"Most have sensitivity to what has been going on," he said. "The people who have increased awareness were affected in a positive way, and the people who had been blown out of proportion have been affected in a negative way."
Carmelil said the recent events had affected his friends and colleagues in different ways depending on their attitudes.
"We need to ask people their beliefs on minority issues and be upfront," he said.
'I believe recent events will only improve campus relations because our concerns have been well-publicized and brought to the forefront. No one, not even the University officials, can plead ignorance now.'
- Angela Cervantes
Hispanic American Leadership Organization president
Angela Cervantes
'We must not return to business as usual. We should not wait for an event to open up the lines of communication. We must not wait for something to happen as public as the SAE incident.'
— Judith Ramaley executive vice chancellor
Bryce Petty
Sigma Alpha Epsilon president
'SAE does not condone such actions. I hope in the eyes of everyone out there that SAE doesn't get looked down upon.'
William Whitcomb Department of Justice
William Whitcomb, an official from the Department of Justice's Kansas City, Mo., bureau, said that his office was concerned about the latest racial tension at the University of Kansas.
"The prevention of racial tension should be the first priority of the University." he said.
Whitcom said
KU administra-
tion had
had to examine
institutional values and the way they were carried out by the University.
He said that any policy or action coming from the administration should strive to make minority students were not in a hostile environment.
Wombec, who works for the bureau's community relations service, visited the University on April 9 and met with the students of other students concerned about a
During that visit, Whitcomb said that he would help Black students organize their concerns to present to the administration. But he added that he would get involved only if the students wanted his help.
reported March 30 racial incident at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.
He said that he did not know whether students wanted him involved in the negotiations, although he knew that some student leaders wanted to avoid mediators by going directly to the administration.
Whitcomb said he was available to the University and to the students for consultation, mainly to assist in negotiating between both parties.
"I'll wait, and I won't push," he said.
Besides affecting the University, Whitcomb said recent events at KU also had affected people outside the University community.
He said that he had received several calls from the media, the school and UU students' parents who were concerned about the latest events at KU.
Carol Krekeler
Panhellenic
Carol Krekeler, president of Panhellenic, said the recent racial events had led many people to realize that racism exists at the University of Kansas.
"It has made people go out and be
keler said. "Changes will happen a lot faster on campus because people are becoming more active. The racial climate should improve. People are now
If there are enough programs within the University and more meetings between students and administrators, then a climate can be built that enhances cultural diversity and minority sensitivity, she said.
Krekeiler said the recent events had prompted her to be even more active than in the past.
more conscious about racial attitudes."
Krekeler
"I've always had deep feelings against racism and the exclusion of minorities at KU," she said. "All year long we've had the theme of including more minorities in the Greek system and being more culturally sensitive. But it was always an issue of money."
She said that the Interfraternity Council, Panhellenic and Black Panhellenic were coming together to form programs.
"We would now have the option to combine monetary resources and, therefore, have better programming," she said.
Those around Krekeler also have been prompted to do more than watch.
"Most of the people in my sorority have not only expressed their feeling of opposition to racism," she said. "They really want to get out there and do something about it."
"There is no room in the Greek system for racist feelings and never should be," she said.
David Katzman
Professor of history
David Katzman, professor of history, said he was hopeful that positive things would come out of recent events on campus.
"I think the student demonstrations have brought to notice the
campus," he said. "I hope they will lead to people committing themselves to work toward a multiracial, multicultural campus."
However. Katzman
However, Katzman Katzman said many people did not understand the recent events.
"They don't understand the minor-
ly problem on campus," he said.
key problems to campau. He said.
Katzman said recent events made him angry.
Darren Fulcher Black Men of Today
Katzman said some individuals in the University tried to cover up such events rather than identify the problems allowing people to work on them.
"I feel threatened by the failure of the University to act, but also to lend moral support to Ann Dean," he said.
"I have been a victim of anti-Semitism," he said. "I leaves me personally at risk. As someone who has worked with the University has acted properly."
"It left me with a sense of outrage that if one member of the University community is at risk, then every other member of the university community is at risk," he said.
Darren Fulcher, a member of Black Men of Today, said he thought that recent campus racial incidents had improved the racial climate at
Katzan said that although many people he knew were trying to change the situation, the University's response was inappropriate.
"Things are now beginning to sur-
trace that should help ease the tension" he said. "The communication lines will now be open."
He said that students who thought the incidences were over.
Fulcher
proliferated did not know all of the issues involved. The incidents affect each person differently, he said.
"A lot of students are confused about what we want," he said. "We want the lines of communications open so that people can talk to each other."
Fulcher said that although the University environment was supposed to encourage students to seek out knowledge, often students expected the knowledge to come to them.
He said that he had always been aware of little acts of discrimination but that other students had no idea discrimination existed.
"The discrimination hasn't really affected me, but it shows that we need to teach our peers," he said.
Wendy Griswolt Student Senate
However, she said the events had renewed her fire for making changes.
Wendy Griswold, a Fine Arts seni-
tor and member of Students Concerned About Discrimination, said she was more pessimistic than others because she was not expecting many changes to come out of recent events
"It's given me a lot of energy," she said.
Recent events.
though, have Griswold made people more aware of problems on campus, Griswold said.
David Ambler
Vice chancellor
"There are problems when only one culture's views and needs are represented," she said.
She said she hoped the events would create a positive avenue for change. However, she said that she hoped the changes had made any concrete changes.
"The events that happened should have caused the administration to realize that there are many people on campus who are sick of the administration not doing things, tired of their jobs, grindless at work." "Students also realize they have a definite role and responsibility to create a place where all people can feel comfortable and proud of who they are."
David Ambler, vice chancellor for student affairs, said the University was unalterably affected by recent events, but in a positive way.
"It raises a heightened sensitivity to the fact that we have not solved
"Ultimately,
the good exceeds
the bad. We can
know this."
those incidents, as
better institution because of it."
another said people needed to examine their values. He said if individual racism disappeared, so would institutional racism.
"These are not easy problems to resolve," he said. "They are only done through education and the change in people's values and attitudes. That's what the University is about."
Ambier said he had been spending so much time meeting with students and working on the issues that his staff and family felt neglected.
"There hasn't been a time in my schedule that doesn't get totally officiated," he said.
Black
Continued from p. 1b
tion and student leaders to take a sensitivity course from C.T. Vivian, a nationally known sensitivity expert.
"Sometimes I think their tactics aren't as appropriate as they should be and their information may not be as comprehensive as it ought to be," Jackson said. "It's frustrating for me to be caught in the middle." He would not comment on which tactics he disapproved of.
If the university does not initiate sensitivity training, Fulcher said, each greek house should. The group would be the university to disband the SAE house.
Marshall Jackson, interim director of the Office of Minority Affairs, said that the group's concerns were legitimated. The group was shared by the administration.
He said that the group had a right to protest and that the protest was healthy.
Matt Edge, Hutchinson junior, said he had been following Black Men of Today in the media.
"they get a lot of publicity, but no one really knows what they're talking about." Edge said. "The TV news never told the audience what the group's demands were."
Lemon of BSU said that the Black Men of Today demonstrations were good because they caused things to
change but that they also created a lot of negative effects.
"With all the publicity it looks like KU has more racism than we do." Lemon said.
Administration response
Edge said that it might have been a good idea for the Black Men of Today to accept the help offered by William Whitcomp of the U.S. Justice Department. Whitcomp came to KU after the March 30 incident and offered to act as mediator between the group and the KU administration.
Judith Ramaley, executive vice chancellor, said, "It has been a very positive opportunity for the students and faculty to discuss the lames."
"We don't need a mediator to mediate our problems," he said. "We want someone who will listen to us and not downplay our concerns."
Administration response
"It would have given them a very credible speechesperson," Edge said. Fulcher said Black Men of Today did not reflect Whitcomb.
Hamley said Black Men of Today had been meeting with Chico Herbison, assistant director of admissions, to develop a student recruitment plan. She said a plan reflecting the ideas of Black Men of Today and the Office of Admissions should be completed this week.
Ramaley said that some of the goals, such as Black faculty recruitment, were long-term. Anderson said students who
Protesters delivered a "get well" card to the SAE fraternity. They said the fraternity was sick.
Keith Thorpe/KANSAN
wanted to become involved could come to the Black Men of Today
meetings or go to the protests.
"We want to do a lot of educational
things to make campus life better, Anderson said.