North Carolina Newspapers

Pasre 2 THE DAILY TAR HEEL In Our Op Questions Surrounding Paull Controversey Need Answering Letters To The Editor Pamll Cae GonM'Biiies To Brew What is the real issue concern ing the removal of Michael Paull from his classroom? Or maybe we should say issues. Or, how many issues? Here are some questions we wish everybody on campus from . the Chancellor to "Fang" the ball j playing dog would seriously think about: ; J How big a part did publicity, specifically WRAL - TV's broad Cast, play in Paull's removal? i If' it did play a major role, is the University right in yielding to such pressure? If it did not play a major ; role, why was Paull removed in such hasty fashion, and why did )the Chancellor become involved in what ordinarily would have been i a matter of departmental process ing? What threats, if any, does this action pose to the freedom of the professors in the future to con duct their courses within reason ! able boundaries with immunity : from the non-academic world? What, in fact, are the "rea sonable bounds" we just mention ed? i.e. If the assignment had been made, point blank, to write a theme on seduction or, more generally, sex, would this have been proper? If a teacher deals with sex in his course, should he ' be removed from teaching duties? 1 The whole issue has become a matter of public interest. The Daily Tar Heel and the president of the student body have made o Why can they not see the compo sitions to determine if, in their opin ion, they are "of an objectionable nature?" In his statement last week, Chancellor Sitterson said Paull V i - v. -A was removed from teaching duties because the "normal student -teacher relationship" has been dis turbed. What, if there is one, is the "normal student - teacher re lationship"? Who decided, and on what grounds, that this relationship had been impaired? How could any one know if a student - teacher re lationship had been harmed with out first talking to the students? The administration has given final authority to reverse this de cision to the English department. Thus, in effect, they have said there is a possiblity that Paull will be reinstated as a graduate in structor. However, until such time as this controllhg group can be convinced of Paull's innocence in the matter, the punishment his removal from the classroom will remain in effect. Is this not an application of guilty until proven innocent? Finally, we wonder about the preparedness of graduate teaching assistants as a group to teach. Why was Paull's assignment mis understood? How many other TAs are misunderstood daily in t h e i r classrooms? Is there not more to teaching than simply having a tho rough knowledge of the subject matter? Does the University make an effort to insure that TAs are capable of teaching as well as learning? We raise these questions be cause we don't think they have been answered clearly yet. We feel this is an issue of more than pass ing importance, and we hope it will not be shurgged off until these questions, and possibly many oth ers that we have not mentioned, have been analyzed and agreed upon. " w lse Action Concerning Chase We are always pleased to see a sticky situation settled for the best of all parties involved. When we first heard of the da mage done to Chase Cafeteria dur ing last Saturday's South Campus Weekend dance, we were afraid the doors to Chase might be lock ed to use by student groups in the future. But Dean Long, who headed an investigation of the matter, look ed beyond the broken tiles and stained draperies to the real prob lem at hand no one had ever conceived that too many people would turn out for the event, and no one was by any means prepar ed to cope with the huge crowd The residence college leaders, in turn, accepted their responsibil ity to make payment for the da maged property. A guideline was set up for fu ture social event in Chase most significantly, limiting the number of participants and the manage- From Back Issues (Issues that made the news in The Daily Tar Heel on this date five, 10, and 15 years ago.) Oct. 26, 19S1 Carolina will carry the "Torch of Ed ucation" from Winston - Salem to Dur ham, a distance of 90 miles in the 700 mile marathon Oct. 31 to Nov. 3. The race is designed to dramatize the needs of colleges in North Carolina for capital improvements included in the $81.5 million bon delection Nov. 7. Oct. 2S, 1956 , The Student Legislature last night de feated a bill calling for establishment of a committee to investigate the ex penditures of UNC Debate Council. It was decided that the student Au dit Board should do the investigating of how the Council spends its money. Oct. 28, 1S51 Ground breaking ceremonies were held yesterday morning for the final unit of the University's gigantic medi cal center now under construction. This unit will be the Gravely. Sanatorium, a 100 bed chest disease unit. It will be named after the man whose efforts were largely responsible for the pro motion of the unit, L. Lee Gravely, chair man of the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Sanatoria. ment expressed its willingness to cooperate with student groups in housing such events. Certainly all those involved re gret the embarrassment that stem med from the event. But, forget ting the unpleasant side for a mo ment, we think it is encouraging to see a residence college - sponsor ed social function pack Chase to the seam - breaking level. And now that the bad has come the leaders will know better how to plan for such functions in the fu ture. It all makes' for a better social program for the students through the residence college system. We think someone definitely made the best of a bad situation. SatUj ar f 74 Years of Editorial Freedom Fred Thomas, Editor Tom Clark, Business Manager Scott Goodfellow, Managing Ed. John Greenbacker . .. Assoc. Ed Kerry Sipe .. Feature Editor Bill Amlong ... ........ News Editor Ernest Robl .. Asst. News Editor Sandy Treadwell .. Sports Editor Bob Orr . Asst. Sports Editor Jock Lauterer Photo Editor Chuck Benner ... .... Night Editor Steve Bennett, Lytt Stamps, Lynn Harvel, Judy Sipe, Don Campbell, Cindy Borden - Staff Writers Drummond Bell, Owen Davis Bill Hass, Joey Leigh ' - Sports Writers Jeff MacNelly ..Sports Cartoonist Bruce Strauch .... Ed. Cartoonist John Askew Ad. Mgr. The Daily Tar Heel is the official news publication of the University of North Carolina and is published by students daily except Mondays, ex amination periods and vacations. p?S2 SS P08 paid at th Post Office in Chapel Hill N C Subscription rates: $4.50 per semes ter; $3 per year. Printed by the Chapel Hill Publishing Co., Ini, 501 W. Franklin St., Chapel Hfll, N. C. Greenbacker9 s Blunder Editor, The Daily Tar Heel: " "These are the times that try men's souls." I would hazard the guess that many souls have been tried by the DTH editorial "In Defense of the Chancellor." An inquisition of two hours in South Building, on the morning after the Helmsman' expose, using what are ad mitted to be 'not the usual channels,' which renders a verdict in terms of disturbed student - teacher relations without consulting even one of the students involved and apparently based on the one incident rather than the over all performance of the in- " structor. does not strike me as a decision devoid of the element of outside pressure, or one where due considera tion was given to the actual facts of the case. With regards to the Eng lish department, if a point is to be made it is not that they did not handle the case, but to ask why the case was not entirely handled by that .; department. As to whether this question is a matter of policy and not ' one of academic freedom, I must confess myself to be " completely lost in fathoming out the reasoning. May I ask, under what ver sion of a university can a policy decision to remove ah instructor from his class- room be made without taking ; into account of academic -freedom? This might seem a silly question, but it is based on the assumption that Jesse Helms has not been appoint ed Chancellor in a surprise ' and secret move of which I am unaware. More extraordinary is the assertion that 'there is little . indication that this unfortunate incident will mar his (Paull's) : future at all.' Language fails to properly describe the in sensitivity denoted by so call- ' ous a remark. Central to the point of the whole editorial, I understand ' the Chancellor accepted a de cision formulated by others, but this cannot be a reason v : why the legitimate ire (in my opinion) should not be di- ? rected in principle to his of fice. ' ' ':" ' ; ' If the Chancellor is not-re- : sponsible for the goings on -iff South Building,- arid enjoys a-7 sanctuary in his office, who-; pray, may we hold responsi- ' ble? We are all it appears, un informed with the exception of the writer himself and those ' whose actions he apparently 1 agrees with. To whom, may I ask, is this state of affairs due? If we are to be denied ac cess to South Building, as the writer implies that we should, are we not then entitled to at least a minimal explanation of a situation that affects us" all? Surely, the release issued by Mr. Ivey is inadequate to deal with the situation created and the issues it raises. This unfortunately, is par for the course, for administra tors and higher ranking offi cials seem unable to resist the temptation to keep climb ing the high mountain of their own assumed prerogatives. From these dizzy heights they almost inevitably adopt the unseemly posture of stuffed-shirt authoritarians, claim ing that their actions do not require explanation, and far less to be the subject of judgement by those whom their arbitrary decrees affect. Finally, if any apologies are owed at this time, it is by you, Mr. Greenbacker, for grossly defaming the academ ic community in which you -c oitudieu, due whose spirit and principle you do not seem to share. . . Richard French Editorial Ignorance Etor. The Daily Tar Heel: Mr. John Greenbacker's ed itorial "In Defense Of The Chancellor" was an exercise in ignorance. This is truly amazing be cause Mr. Greenbacker attend, ed at least the first part of the meeting in Gerrard Hall Apparently, however, he did IL llf rn anythmS whUe he was there and did not deem 2 r ??rtant t0 listen t0 "the cf ei? ?ry 01 an uninformed student body." Greenbacker says: piniif removal of Michael Paull "from his teaching du nes was in many wasy a well reasoned one." 2. This "is a matter of po licy," which refers to the proceedure used in Mr. Paull's reassignment, if I am not mis taken. 3 "This is not a matter of academic freedom." It was clearly stated at the Ml meeting that except for one misinterpreted assignment tneir was no reason whatso ever for his removal. If this -were standard proceedure the entire student body would be engaged in tree study. Also, Bob Powell stated that the Chancellor was apparently unsure of the correctness of his decision, so possibly the defendent doesn't agree with the defense counsel. This matter was not carried out in the department as is normally done so this is not a usual matter of policy. Any time an administrator takes it upon himself to dic tate to a department which teachers are qualified to teach a subject because of the pres sure placed on him by reac tionary elements within the state there is a definite ques tion of academic freedom. Joe Cowan Fulminations Editor; The Daily Tar Heel: The journalistic fairness and objectivity of the DTH front page articles on the Paull incident are almost completely- undermined by the equi vocal responses on the edi toral page. In the past week's editorial section we read and viewed first, a polemic and cartoon criticizing Jesse Helms' inter ference in university affairs, then a moderate apologia for the Chancellor's hasty deci sion, and finally an intempe rate fulmination and cartoon impugning the motives of the more vocal participants in Thursday evening's CFI meet ing. This group of committed in dividuals issue seekers'," you. labelled them are not so extreme in their demands nor unvisionary in their thinking as you pictured them to be. For they have clearly grasp ed what apparently eludes your myopic vision, i.e., the exceptional gravity of the pre sent controversy. Contrary to your opinion, there is an issue involved in the current clash an issue so vital and so fundamental to the "idea of a university" that it justifies passionate espousal and equally emotional defense. That issue revolves around the- right to academic free dom presently denied graduat students in general and teach-, if)g assistants in particular., Concommitantly, " it concerns tie obligation of the? UNC. adc a ministrators to -foster such'" rights ' What makes the current con flict so serious is the cavalier manner in which this matter was disposed of. To the most casual spectator it was evident that those officials responsible for this travesty sought to pa cify, and to quell outside cri ticism instead of defending and promoting student rights. Baldly put, the future stand ing of this university as a major institution of learning is riding on the final resolu tion of this dispute. Compro mise to "outside agitators" will bring in its wake dire costs and consequences to Chapel Hill. First, such an action would only fortify the zeal of the modern-day witch hunters ana book burners in their quest to make this institution lay upon their Procrustean bed ; of conformity. Second, the toll from the exodus of some of the univer- sity's brightest talent (under- graduate and graduate stu- l dents, as well as new faculty members) cannot be calcula ted in its damage to Chapel Hill's image and academic standing. Third, the capacity to lure I more topflight professors, al ready lessened by the speak er ban controversy, would be ' further impaired. As a minor . postscript, let me say in all sincerity that, in the event the major tenets of spirit of learning are dilut ed, my own status as a gradu ate student in political science would become subject to pain ful reappraisal. Ernest J. Yanarella Anyway, keep up the good work. Frank O'Donnell UNC Betrayed Editor, The Daily Tar Heel: Chancellor Sitterson's deci sion Tuesday to reas SIG Michael Paull was ex tremely tragic but not at all surprising. Since becoming our chancel lor last year, he has not ex actly been a champion of free speech and academic freedom, particularly in the case of the speaker ban controversy and now, in this recent incident. I must confess that I didn't realize the full implications of the trustees when they ex pressed joy at having a "North Carolina boy" as chancellor. They seemed to feel as though being a "North Caro lina boy" was an asset and an honor, but if being a "North Carolina boy" means that one lacks the personal integrity and loyality to the University to stand and defend the basic principles of a university and the basic principles that our forefathers (all North Carolina boys) insisted be added to the Constitution of the United States one hundred and eighty years ago, then I wouldn't consider it an honor to be a "North Carolina boy," but ra ther a polite way of saying, "He's a good Uncle Tom. He won't give us any trou ble because he knows his place." My own first impression of the news was a visual image of our chancellor at the knees of Jesse Helms saying, "Yes sir, Mr. Helms; right away sir; very good, sir; that's right, sir." Whether or not many North Carolinians realize it, the Uni versity of North Carolina has received a very high academic rating throughout the nation. UNC and Duke rank as the two best universities in the South, our graduate school rates as one of the biggest and best in the nation, and our professional schools, on both the graduate and the under graduate levels, are among this country's best. Yet, those who would have the University close its doors to out-of-state students and be, come a very North Carolina-" Jorieriated ' school do not have; the best interests of the school at heart. They have done great da mage to our reputation with the passage and enforcement of the speaker ban law, and now they seek to do further damage, whether consiously or unconsciously. We cannot allow this damage to be done. Chancellor Sitterson's actions were disgraceful. From the DTH account of the story, I received the impression that Chancellor Sitterson realized that the instructor was not to blame, that he was follow ing a syllabus, and that a stu dent misinterpreted the as signment. If so, then why was the instructor punished? H, when Jesse Helms decided to shoot off his mouth about what a perverted school we have here, Chancellor Sitterson should have defended the instructor on two grounds; one, that the instructor was not wrong; and two, on the basic issue of academic freedom, one that probably wouldn't mean much to Helms. But, our Chancellor' failed us; he failed the University, the principles of academic freedom and free thought, and he failed himself. It's as though our chancellor was ad mitting that Helms and every other radical reactionary was right. But even worse, the im plications of the action are that our chancellor is subser vient to Jesse Helms. When a university leader can be controlld and be the errand boy of any group, whe ther that group be the faculty, students, trustees, General As sembly, or a television sta tion, his effectiveness as an educator is severely weakened, if not eliminated. No, I don't think that it is in the "best interests of the educational function of the Un iversity" for our chancellor to sacrifice the basic principles of academic freedom and to deprive an individual of his rights merely because some student misinterpreted an as signment and some sensationally-minded student became offended. Since when has it been the role of a university not to of fend some people; free thought has a characteristic of offend ing some people who aren't prepared for it But the role of a university is to introduce free thought rather than merely to reflect upon already introduced thought. Does this incident mean that the job security of every uni versity professor is now sub ject to the scrutiny of Jesse Helms and his flock of "North Carolina boys?" I wonder if this action or any action would be taken had Michael Paull been a Ph.D. and a professor rather than a graduate student with a teaching assistantship. In the name of "decency" would Jesse Helms bar D. H. Lawrence, James Joyce, Jean 2 Paul Sartre, -Edward JUbee, , and others from our Univer sity. (I feel sure that heiWOUld , f bar Arthur Miller from even speaking here.) Jesse Helms and his followers must be stopped before they succeed in ruining higher , education in North Carolina. It amazes me that Jesse Helms hasn't pressed for the dismissal of all faculty mem bers opposed to President Johnson's war in Viet Nam and of those faculty members who are outspoken for civil rights. It wouldn't surprise me if he succeeded. Bruce Burchett Editorial Untrue Editor, The Daily Tar Heel: In our opinion, your opinion of the plight of the Carolina coed is wrong. The situation as stated Li the editorial is true, but se veral important facts have been omitted. It is not so easy to get a date here; or a date that is good that is. By good we mean a girl that has all the qualities listed in the editorial. Of times I have asked a Carolina coed with whom . I was not entirely unacquainted for a date. In variably, I was brushed off with a phrase such as "No," or "I already have a date." After five years of this here at the University, I would tend to think that all the Carolina coeds have a date all the time. Therefore, I import decent girls from elsewhere. If 45 to 50 per cent of the coeds have to stay in the dorm of a weekend, I think it is not a tragedy, but a comedy. I think that these girls have brought this ironic situation on themselves by their very haughtiness and assumed su periority over us fellows. I recommend that all Caro lina gentlemen hot hogtiedto any Carolina coeds seek other girls even if from abroad. John Moe Local Discrimination Editor, The Daily Tar Heel: It is indeed important that we, as persons soon to be leaders in our various profes sional communities, be in formed as to what is going on around us. The DTH is to be compli mented for the role it is tak ing in presenting the deeper aspects of topic ssuch as the reorganization' of the Span ish Department and the Paull case. . During the past week, we here at UNC have been hon ored by the visit of six uni versity, student leaders from various parts of Spain. These students were chosen by the U.S. State Department as influencial persons in their own communities; economists, political scientists, and news papermen, and awarded an expense paid tour of several U.S. universities. It is interesting to note the -impressions of these gentle men, realizing that these im pressions will be carried back to their country and spread, as their awards imply, by newspaper articles and pub lic discussions. One impression stood out particularly about UNC that none of us who talked with the Spanish students could an ser. Why is it that we UNC students sit back and observe when, as we walk through the food line at Lenoir Hall, re ceiving service from negro persons, yet always hand our money to a non-negro? As one of our visitors point ted out so well, it is only the "in group" that can peaceful ly lower a barrier. The "out group" can only break it. Steve Ayala School of Public Health Dear Jesse Editor, The Daily Tar Heel: i Dear Jesse Helms, ? Thank you for pandering to my prurient interest with your editorial about the "Sex Men ace" at the University of North Carolina. , I love those good dirty edi torials! I ordered five copies of your speech myself and constantly reread it; those words and innuendos just make me tingle all over, though not as much as when I watched your eyes sparkle with indig nation. . I took the other four copies of your editorial and sold them to little girls in my neighbor hood for a handsome profit. Sometimes all of us go mto my garage and read your speech together. You really ought to try your hand at writing dirty paper backs. You're a Natural!