CAMPUS/AREA
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Monday, January 22, 1996
New Miss Black Kansas crowned
Winner is student at Emporia State
By Susanna Lööf
Kansan staff writer
The Miss Black Kansas Pageant 1996 was different from many other beauty competitions. Instead of looking for outer beauty, the judges were looking for inner beauty among the contestants.
The four judges, three representing the University of Kansas and one representing the Man of Color calendar company, selected Lashawna Rochelle Thomas, a senior at Emporia State University, Miss Black Kansas 1996.
The festivities at the Kansas Union Ballroom on Saturday night ended Anna Butler's reign as Miss Black Kansas.
Butler, a Kansas City, Kan, senior handed the sparkling tiara to Thomas as the finale of the almost two-hour long program.
A majority of the 100 audience members were KU students.
Justin Vanoy, Kansas City, Kan., freshman, said he thought Thomas had answered questions nicely and had presented herself well.
Thomas will represent Kansas in the national competition in Washington, D.C., next month. She will compete for scholarships based on community service, academics, leadership and fine arts.
Thomas said she was relieved after the pageant.
"It was nerve-wracking." she said.
"I didn't know what to expect."
KU students Diamond Shanee
Williams, Kansas City, Mo., junior and Freda Warren, Coweta, Okla, freshman, were first and second runners-up in the competition.
The contestants showcased their talents and personalities in several events. In one event, they answered questions concerning young African-American women in today's society.
Williams was asked to point out a serious problem on campus and present a solution to it.
"I am the last black female in my field," the architecture senior said. To solve the problem, she said, she would go back to her high school and encourage African-American females to go into architecture.
Williams, Warren and Thomas were the only contestants Saturday. The Black Student Union, which sponsored the pageant, sent invitations to high school seniors and university students statewide in November.
"I learned a lot about myself," she said. "I developed mentally, physically and spiritually."
At first, 15 women wanted to participate. But 12 of them dropped out for different reasons, said Butler, who was a member of the organizing committee.
Butler said her year as Miss Black Kansas had been a learning experience.
Butler said she did not plan to participate in any more pageants. However, she said, she plans to help organize more competitions in the future.
"Pageants are an opportunity for young ladies to show their talents," she said.
Lashauna Rochelle Thomas, Emporia State University senior, was selected Miss Black Kansas 1996. The Black Student Union sponsored the pageant.
Classic tragic hero returns to theatre in Othello movie
Shakespearian drama comes recommended by English professor
By Jason Strait
Kansan staff writer
Shakespeare is back on the big screen, and a KU literature professor gave the film a qualified thumbs up.
Othello, which opened last Friday at Liberty Hall, 642 Massachusetts St., centers on Othello, played by Laurence Fishburne, and his relationship with Iago, his falsely-trusted aide, played by Kenneth Branagh.
Othello, a Moor warrior,
defies social mores of the time
by marrying a white noble-
woman named Desdemona,
played by Irene Jacob. Through
a series of lies and manipula-
tions, Iago convinces Othello
that his bride has been unfaith-ful.
The source of Iago's malice, which is debatable, makes the story transcend time and appeal
Enraged, Othello seeks vengeance on his bride and her lover by smothering her in bed, tragically killing his wife in an act of misunderstanding rather than revenge.
to audiences of the 20th century, said Dennis Quinn, professor of English.
"I suppose one of the most important issues is the terrible malice of lago," Quinn said. "This kind of malice is the one place in Shakespeare where such evil is present. That kind of evil is stunning and rare in the world."
Mary Davidson, lecturer in English, said that the film suggested that Iago's homosexual desire for Othello may have fueled his actions.
"That might explain the extreme desire to ruin Othello," she said.
Until now, the screen version of Othello had represented another kind of injustice. In prior movies, the character of Othello had been portrayed by white actors. Fishburne is the first black actor to play the role.
"I don't think it's quite faithful to the text," she said. "But as a movie I did like it, and it's quite moving visually."
"He did a good job of looking and playing the part," Davidson said. "He really looked as if he were suffering dammation."
However, Davidson said that during the monologues, it sometimes looked if Fishburne was reading from a teleprompter.
Peltier's innocence still questionable
Two groups support him after his 20 years in prison
By David Teska
Kansan staff writer
Gary Hawke, general manager of KJHK, keeps busy by spending his time in the new KJHK news studio. Hawke was a friend of one of the FBI agents killed by Pettier.
Jack Colar and Ronald Williams were two FBI agents whose deaths remain controversial in Lawrence and on the KU campus even though 20 years have passed since the incident occurred.
Brian Flink / KANSAN
Colar and Williams were shot on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota during a shootout with members of the American Indian Movement on June 26, 1975.
Two years later, Leonard Peltier was convicted and sentenced for the murders. He is
serving his sentence at the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth.
Since the shooting, the line between those who think Peltier is guilty and those who believe he served as the government's scapegoat has become clearly drawn.
Like Hiatt, Lisa Faroulo, Lawrence resident, first heard of Peltier's case while in college. She became convinced of Peltier's innocence and now helps operate the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee, 2201-B W. 25th St., which spearheads the cause of Peltier.
Faroulo said that Peltier was hopeful, but that he didn't expect to get out of prison anytime soon.
"The more I read, the more it became obvious he's innocent," said Todd Hiatt, Lawrence senior, who first became interested in the Peltier case after reading about it four years ago.
Now Hiatt is president of the Leonard Pelletier Support Group on campus. Formed last summer, the group works to increase awareness among students of the case.
"He stays very cautiously optimistic."
Faroulo said.
But not everyone at the University thinks Pelier should be freed.
"I consider it cold-blooded murder," said Garv Hawke, general manager of JKH.
However, Hawke admitted he had a personal view of the events of that day. He and Colar attended Long Beach State University together in the late 1960s and both were in the same chapter of Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
After graduating, Hawke said he and Colar lost touch. In fact, Hawke said he didn't know that Colar had gone into the FBI until he saw Colar's picture in the paper after the shooting.
Hawke said his memories of Colar conflicted with how the agents had been portrayed, but that he also understood the anger felt by Native Americans during that volatile period.
Reflecting on the loss of his friend, Hawke said the greatest loss was to the family and friends of Colar and Williams.
"At least Leonard Peltier can eat and write letters. These guys can't," Hawke said.
Natural food stores of differing styles are popular among students
By Adam Ward
Kansan staff writer
There are two natural food stores in town, and their approaches are as different as organic apples and organic oranges are.
Wild Oats Community Market, 1040 Vermont St. is, part of a chain.
"We can be competitive with conventional grocery stores because we have the buying power of 20 stores," said Tony Warren, the general manager of Wild Oats.
This enables them to buy warehouse goods and also large quantities at the lowest price, he said.
Wild Oats is not comparable with conventional grocery stores because most grocery stores do not carry organically grown products.
Warren said a lot of the people that shopred at Wild Oats were students. He said that they tended to care more about the environment, and that they were more open to natural food products.
"We just got a five-percent discount approved for students, faculty and staff everyday." he said.
Wild Oats opened three years ago in Lawrence.
Community Mercantile Co-op, 901 Mississippi St., however, has been doing business in Lawrence for more than 21 years.
"I think the Mercantile and Wild Oats have fairly comparable prices across the board," said Nancy O'Connor, nutritionist and manager at the Mercantile.
The main differences are that the Mercantile is not as profit-driven and has more of a commitment to the community, O'Connor said.
"Because we are a co-op, our customers have more of a chance to get involved and actively change something they don't like," she said.
An example of community involvement of the Mercantile took place Saturday.
The store had a fund-raiser for Rose Naughtin, a 4-year-old girl who received a heart transplant that day. O'Connor said.
Rose's parents are members of the co-op and are known by many people in the community, so a lot of people volunteered their time, she said.
O'Connor said that more than 1,510 was raised from the Mercantile donating 5 percent of all they earned and from individual donations.
Some KU students seem enthusiastic to support natural food stores.
"I shop at Community Mercantile because they are a co-op, and they are having financial difficulties because of competition with Wild Oats," said Andrea Repinsky, Olata freshman.
She said one reason she shopped there was because she could find a lot of things there that she could not find at a regular grocery store.
Hannah Bennett, Marion sophomore, said, "I shop at natural food stores because although things are a little more expensive, they have less environmental impact which makes them cheaper in the long run."
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