Life is a Dream
...p. 2
m GUILFORDIAN m
Vol. 73 No. 11
Guilford Gay and Lesbian
Group Chooses Low Profile
by Michael Jack
The Guilford Gay and
Lesbian Awareness and Support
Group, after a year of high
visibility, is pausing to redefine
its identity.
The purpose of the group,
according to president Jeff
Kingsley, is "to support each
other and to keep Guilford
supportive [of gay rights]."
Formed unofficially during the
1986-87 school year, the
GGLASG was not officially
recognized by the Community
Senate until the end of that year.
Last year the group, led by
several enthusiastic students,
enjoyed a busy and active
schedule. The highlight was a
19-person trip to Washington,
D. C. on October 11th to
participate in the National March
for Human Rights.
The group is keeping a
lower profile this year for
several reasons. Kingsley
considers last year's high
visibility to have been a
necessary step "to keep our
Friends Meeting Harbors
Refugees
by Maria Smith
In response to the United
States' low acceptance rates for
Central American refugees,
churches and synagogues all
across the country have started a
protest movement that has
brought religious leaders and
others involved in direct
confrontation with the U.S.
government.
The movement is called
Sanctuary, and it offers asylum
to refugees who have fled their
homelands for fear of
imprisonment or death due to
activities that threaten human
rights. Sanctuary grew out of a
frustration with the Immigration
and Naturalization Service's
inablility to protect human
rights activists from their own
governments.
There are roughly 200
churches in the U.S. right now
that have declared Sanctuary.
One of these is Friendship
Friends Meeting, across from
Guilford College, which first
declared itself a sanctuary ihree
years ago and now, with the
support of the American Friends
Service Committee, harbors four
Guatemalan refugees.
Between June 1983 and
September 1986, 1,475
Guilford College, Greensboro, N.C.
personal respect, which was
being compromised." Although
there have been occasional
problems with student attitudes
toward the group, Kingsley
mentioned that there has been "a
great deal of support from the
adminstration."
Kingsley said the group is
"very different this year,"
attributing the change of pace to
the difference between last year's
leadership and his own. While
"much of last year's action was
due to the leaders," Kingsley
feels that this year "the action
has to come from the group."
The GGLASG members have
been attempting to come up with
activities that will involve the
entire campus. One member
arranged for the group to
distribute lavender armbands on
October 11th. These were worn
by students to commemorate the
one-year anniversary of the
march on Washington. The
group also held a booth in the
Organizational Fair, which was
approached by "a few very brave
Guatemalans applied to the U.S.
for legal asylum. Fourteen of
them were allowed to remain in
the country.
The remaining 91% of the
applicants were sent back to
Central America, to a country
where student activists, labor
unionists and a substantial
Indian population have been the
targets of persecution by armed
forces and civil patrols despite
the newly-elected civilian
president.
Refugees that apply for
asylum and are denied will
almost immediately be deported.
Because most Central American
refugees in the U.S. fear death
upon returning to their own
countries, they are hesitant to
apply for this legal refugee
status which would almost
assuredly return them to the
danger they had hoped to flee.
The sanctuary movement has
provided shelter for these
thousands of refugees who would
likely be turned away from this
country if legal options were
employed.
According to Damon
Hickey, former convener of the
Sanctuary Committee at
Friendship Meeting, sanctuary
is a "combined ministry and
Want to Go Sky High?
...p.3
students."
In the future, the group
hopes to co-sponsor a campus
wide Minority Awareness Week
with the help of the Women's
Support Group, Hillel, Quaker
Concerns, and the AACS, all of
whom have previously joined the
GGLASG in various group
endeavors.
The infrequency of this
year's meetings--an average of
one per month--is primarily due
to clashing schedules. As
membership is confidential,
group news travels byway of the
mailing list or, when time is
short, by word of mouth. The
group numbers approximately 23
students at present, including
four or five heterosexuals, and
the mailing list includes 10
members of the faculty and
administration, as well as
alumni.
All prospective members are
interviewed by a group leader.
Only one person has been denied
(cont'd, on p. 6)
haven for the Guatemalans - it
satisfies their physical needs and
provides them with the
opportunity to witness to others
about their experiences." The
movement has also "helped the
refugees reach a point of
stability and independence that
they haven't had" since they left
Guatemala, says Hickey.
Terry Soßelle, Director of
the A.F.S.C. in Greensboro, has
arranged for the refugees to
speak to groups all over the
Carolinas, including a talk at
Guilford last spring, because it is
"important for them to tell their
story."
The main goal of sanctuary
is to help the refugees become
independent as soon as possible,
and to adapt to this culture,
explains Soßelle. However, this
is no easy task, since there is
"resistance to the U.S. culture
and language. These people
don't want to be Americans -
they want to go home." It is the
commitment of the sanctuary
movement to aid the refugees in
thier struggle as much as
possible.
There are four refugees
living in Greensboro now,
Arturo, Omar, his wife Soledad,
(cont'd, on p. 6)
Rugby Goes Division I
...p.7
ijL,
Vic Johnson, singing an original composition, takes
[first prize at the Choir Talent Show on Saturday,
[November 12. photo by Eric Buck
Scholarships Provide
Source of Tuition Aid
by Linda Kreem
Looking for a way to beat
the high cost of getting
educated? With tuition
increasing more than ten percent
over the past two years, Guilford
students may be looking for
additional sources of funds,
including scholarships.
Presidential Grants, ranging
from SSOO to 53,000, are the
newest awards offered at Guilford.
They were created this year as a
step toward providing money to
students who take on roles of
leadership among their fellow
students. These scholarships will
be awarded to student athletes,
who cannot receive athletic
scholarships under NCAA rules,
and to other student leaders.
Anthony Gurley, Director of
Student Financial Assistance and
Planning, estimates that between
fifteen and twenty of these
renewable grants will be awarded
annually.
Honors Scholarships are
merit-based scholarships which
November 21, 1988
range from one-fourth to full
tuition and are renewable,
provided the student maintains
an overall grade-point average of
3.0 or higher.
Charles A. Dana
Scholarships are available to
Guilford students with at least a
3.25 cumulative G.P.A. Selection
is based on academic merit and
leadership, and the amount of the
individual award is based on
need. Awards range from Sioo to
half-tuition. Applicants are
reconsidered each year.
The George A. Alden
Excellence Scholarship is a
52.500 scholarship awarded to a
rising junior on the basis of
merit.
Dorothy and Stanley Frank
Scholarships are renewable
scholarships ranging from
5i,500 to half-tuition. A
committee selects about six
students each year who, through
an essay and interview,
(cont'd, on p. 7)