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NEWS
MAY 10, 2013
Car vandals’ violent actions jar Gnilford commnnlty
BY KATY ANDREWS AND SYDNEY HAWKINS
STAfiPWRITBlS
A shattered windshield. Glass everywhere. A mason jar
filled with ping-pong balls. What could it all mean?
For some students these absurd circumstances became
a harsh reality when they saw that their cars had been
broken into while parked on campus.
There have been recent reports of someone smashing in
car windows with mason jars. These jars have been filled
with either ping-pong balls or liquid and appear to be
thrown through the cars' front or back windshields.
"I found out my car was vandalized (when) a public
safety officer knock(ed) on my door and inform(ed) me
very early in the morning/' said senior Justin Bradley. "I
was shocked and highly upset and did not want to believe
it was mine."
Other students have also discovered these incidents in
disbelief.
"Last Saturday night, I was with two others in the Bryan
parking lot, and we noticed a car's back windshield that
had a huge hole smashed through it," said junior Grier
Cross. "We inspected the inside and noticed a mason
jar full of water and, oddly, ping-pong balls with glass
around (them)."
While these strange instances of vandalism have only
happened a few times, even one incident is enough to
raise community concern.
"We noticed this has been happening to newer cars,"
said Cross. "We are not sure who is doing it... or if certain
people are being targeted."
These disturbances have raised alarm and cause many
to question campus safety.
Some students wonder what will be done about the
vandalism, as it has been a recurring issue all year.
"Well, nothing has happened either time afterwards,"
said junior Michael MacVane, a victim of the latest car
vandalism. "I have filed a report both times and nothing
was done about it. There is no way to prevent it unless we
get cameras in the parking lot."
Installing cameras in the parking lots is appealing to
MacVane, especially after these recent incidents.
"Yes, there should be cameras installed in the parking
lots," said MacVane. "It's ridiculous that this can happen
and nothing can be done, especially since other students
have had their cars keyed and bike tires slashed."
Bradley, who filed a report with a CSI unit, also thinks
installing cameras could help prevent such crimes in the
future.
"Car vandalism has been occurring throughout the
entire school year," said Bradley. "It is virtually impossible
for our public safety officers to patrol every area all the
time, and it leaves a huge window of opportunity for
vandalism. RAs patrol residence halls. Public Safety
does generally everywhere else, but the parking lots are
neglected."
Students ar$* hopeful that public safety will find out
who is responsible for these bizarre crimes and look into
potential security devices like the cameras to prevent
further property damage.
CONFERENCE
WGSS shows women’s issues belong to all of us
Continued from Page I
1
Student Committee Coordinator Hanna
Christianson. "We've worked really hard to
make this an inclusive conference."
Associate Professor of Sociology and
Anthropology Julie Winterich described the
conference as a great opportunity to bring
the community together and highlight the
important issues that relate to WGSS.
"I (was) excited about Michele Berger's
keynote (speech)," said Winterich.
Berger is an associate professor of
Women's and Gender Studies at the
University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill who argues that Women's and Gender
Studies students are highly prepared for
jobs and possess sophisticated, practical
skills for the real world.
Berger appealed to the committee
because of her recent book, which explains
how Women's Studies have transformed
academia and the world.
"I know that (being employable) is a
very important topic to the seniors on the
committee as we start to freak out about
finding a job post-grad," said Christianson
Parker Hurley, LGBTQA coordinator,
presented "Safe(r)- Zone Training," which
Hurley described as an anti-heterosexism
and anti-sexism training.
Hurley hoped that participants would
"engage in conversations of what the word
'safe' means (and learn) to read the world in
a more queer way."
For Hurley, presenting at the conference
was a natural collaboration between
the WGSS and Multicultural Education
Departments. Hurley hoped his presentation
would cater to those interested in multi
issue social justice organizing.
"(My presentation) will help unearth
a history that has been made invisible to
us," said Hurley. "Queer people didn't just
hatch. We didn't just come out of nowhere."
First-year Katie Fullerton, also a presenter,
hoped the conference sparked conversation
about women's issues that relate to everyone
but are often ignored. Fullerton says it has
been eye-opening to discover that feminist
causes are everyone's causes.
"I feel like Women's and Gender Studies
aren't really talked about enough or valued
enough in academic circles," said Fullerton.
"It's easy to just lump it in with all the
'isms' and not talk about all the different
dimensions of these issues," said Fullerton.
"We need to be thinking outside the box and
taking in other perspectives other than the
dominant perspective."
Senior Lydia Rain, who presented on
"Complicating Prevention," researched
rape prevention methods that appeal to
traditional gender roles. She hoped people
came to the conference excited to learn
and left with new information and fresh
perspectives.
"I think that examining inequalities
is important for all people," said Rain.
"Feminist studies work to do that. I also
think that supporting fellow students
and sharing the work that we do builds
community."
Including students, faculty and members
of the community was key in making this
conference a success.
"I would like everybody to know about
(the conference) and feel welcomed and
invited," said Winterich. "It's really great to
come out and support each other."
Front: (top) Attendees observed the WGSS Conference presentations from noon to 5 p.m. on Wed.
May 8. (Bottom) CCE s^enior EmUy CurHe gives her presentation, entitled “Beauty for Ashes.”
"I feel like Women's and Gender Studies aren't really talked
about enough or valued enough in academic circles."
Katie Fullerton, first-year