North Carolina Newspapers

ailg fer Gerry Cohen politics imiDortant at NC Opinions of The DaDy Ttr Hed art expressed on its editorial page. All unsigDed editorials art (he opinions of the editor. Letters and columns represent only the opinions of the individual contributors. Harry Bryan, Editor Wednesday, September 2, 1971 If administrators istenecL housim crises would end The housing crisis that hit the L'N'C campus in the fall semester of was at that time termed the worst residence shortage at this University since World War If. UNC was o v ere n rolled by approximately 350 students, and many were either crowded into basements and social rooms or packed three to a room in two man rooms. 'I he Ollice of Admissions and the Office of Student Affairs had obviously made a terrible error, but most administrators seemed to think solved would even those problems would be and that no overcrowding take place this semester after they were warned by various members of the body that they were student making another mistake. As usual, the administration did not listen to the students, and this year shortage is even worse. The University is overenrolled by approximately 450 students and because of the administration's refusal to drop the sophomore housing requirement until the absolute last minute - when it was obviously too late for sophomores to find other housing even more students are being forced to live under deplorable conditions. Many students are once again living in social rooms and (iJIje Saily ular tttrrl 7S Years of I'ditorial freedom Harry Hryan, Editor Mike Parnell Managing Ed. Glenn Brunk News Editor Lou Bonds Associate Ed. Lana Starnes .... Associate Ed. Mark Whicker Sports Ed. Ken Ripley .... Feature Editor Bob Chapman . . Nail. News Ed. Bob Wilson Business Mgr. Patti Hughes Adv. Mgr. Steve Saunders .NC loo many people are too quick to gloss over I lie mistakes that the administration made last year that led to I lie current crowded conditions on campus. I he Ott ice of Undergraduate J missions demonstrated a lack of perspective that is frightening. I hat office did not consider the rising eost ol private institutions and the tcccssion in I he economy factors thai vitally concern admissions. I hey did not rcalie tlul many more people would want to come to a relatively inexpensive, y el very good, slate-suppoi led university. dmissions consequently used percentages developed tioin p. isi experience to calculate how many ol the people llicy accepted would actually enioll. I hey vvcic shocked to luul that these peicentages wete no longct good and that ihey had accepted too many s tidcnlv Utulcigiadualc Admissions .md the Division ol Student Allans together made another grave mistake. By the end ot Match it was known that a minimum ol one hundted lieslimen mote than expected in the ongiii.il planning lor housing and classes would mall k ulate i that poml an eailut ciil-oll date lot llie continuation ol ad cplan. cs shoidd h ive ' mimmimaJmwmmmmHum ' ' iiiJ HJilt,.i.nn ' w -JlM iM i. i nil mi liiii.iiini m, , n h,,i i i, hiiiiWhiiiiMni1bW l)IL l . L, , . , B ' " ' I , . -u - , , - m , i ii" ' m n H" r- basements that have been equipped with beds and dressers while many rooms with only two closets and dressers are being used by three students. At present some residence advisors have more than 100 students under them - and cannot possibly find the time to counsel the numerous freshmen who will need help during the year. And according to several students who work with residence life everyday, the atmosphere in some of the overcrowded dormitories is becoming tense and could become very serious. One student said four fights had erupted on one floor as a direct result of overcrowding, and the situation, he said, is getting worse. The crisis could have been averted if any of several things had been done. If the Office of Admissions had learned from its mistakes last year and had changed its admissions policies concerning how many applications to accept in order to get the right amount of incoming freshmen and transfers, there would be no overenrollment at all. And even if this had not been done, the shortage could have been eliminated if the Office of Student Affairs had dropped the sophomore housing requirement early in the spring when students asked it to, rather than waiting until it was too late for sophomores who did not wish to live in University residence halls to find an apartment. The notice waiving the sophomore housing requirement was mailed May 17 when students were taking exams. During exams, few, if any, sophomores had the time to look for another place to stay in Chapel Hill after residence halls closed to begin a search for a place to sleep. Student leaders asked the administration to make the needed changes in its admissions policies and housing requirements early last year, but the administration refused. Now those requests. No one administration we are repeating knows will listen if the this time sure the or not. But we do feel University would do something to stop the overcrowding if administrators had to live in overcrowded dorms, if they had to go through the same hell many students will experience until the crisis is over. administration err again been picked. Accept ees should have been notified that they had only a limited time to respond to their acceptances. Instead. Student Affairs and Undergraduate Admissions decided that the University should simply try to house all of the students who would eventually enroll. As a result, in July and August long after the residence lulls were intolerably crowded the Office of Residence I ife was still getting names of people who had Hist enrolled and who needed to be housed. I he Division of Student Affairs made another error that is impossible to understand. A new required residency policy had been adopted that would have gone into I ul I cl to. I tins tall. I his policy rcqiurcN.il lieslimen. sophomores, and Iransiers to live in University housing. I he Uosulcncc ( oliege I ederation. the Committee on University Residence I ite and the utnior class oll'cvis attacked this policy with no s(Ucv"ss In early ptil it became obvious thai this icquircd reside lit v was not otiU mil .nt but would also have dis.isitous ies;ilis Students .md even some idrn'MisI; i!,is mi so 1. 1, ,, i . i n ! . -, Thanks to the passage of the ZUh amendment, lowering the voting age to 18, state and national politics u-J3 become important issues on this campus. With the North Carolina presidential primary set for May 2. 1972, 2r.d with primaries the same day for U.S. Senator, Governor, Congressman, and General Assemblyman, this campus will become a magnet for campaigning politicos. Over 18,00 students are enrolled at UNC here, and their registering to vote can cause deep changes m local and state governments. For years, state politicians have used this University as a whipping boy, to garner reactionary votes around the state. Now state leaders have to reckon with the 135.000 students attending college in this state, and the 64,000 high school seniors who will be eligible to vote in the 1972 primaries. North Carolina law sets the minimum age to vote in the primary at 1 7Vi. If students can register to vote m Chapel Hill, they will constitute 60 per cent of the electorate in the town, and 40 per cent in the county. More importantly, students will constitute 40 per cent of the jury lists for the Superior Court, meaning a whole different system of criminal justice. No longer will students be tried Daisy Junge GPSF plans cornin The Graduate and Professional Student Federation (GPSF) is planning for its first full year. As the representative organization for graduate and professional students, it must take action on a wide range of interests and issues. The Senate of the GPSF meets in mid-September, bringing together representatives from graduate departments and the professional schools. Foremost in discussion will undoubtedly be renewed efforts by the GPSF to achieve full recognition as a separate graduate government and prolems created by the new tuition hike. The senate will out that, with the already apparent over-enrollment, the residence halls were not big enough to hold all the people that either wanted to live on campus or were required to. The facts clearly showed that this was the case. In one office in Student Affairs this information was neither acted upon nor passed on to higher authorities. The highest officials in the University were actually not aware of the increasing possibility of overcrowding. Had this information been presented to the highest administrators, action might well have been taken to change the required residency policy to lessen the crowding. But this did not happen. One bottleneck in the bureaucracy oi the Universiu one official who did nothing when decisive action was necessary made the problem many limes worse. In tnv opinion this lack ot action is the most inexcusable case ot ail mi nisi i a I iv e ineptitude on ih's campus m several y eat s. In pril. Robert Wilson, assistant to I he president ol the student body, and I presented Dean oi Student Xtt.r.fs ( (). ( aihey directly with the likelihood that ' we are lacing a crisis o! overcrowd. ne in the residence hills" We wcie lo'd ili.it by a jury of peers consisting of 12 white rr.iddle-aged non-student males. As cne Chap-el Hill lawyer has said, "my cher.is won't all have to plead guilty anymore, out of fear of a jury which does net understand them." Perhaps there will be fewer midnight r3ids without warrants, when the county sheriff realizes who his constituents are. So what is the catch? It all sounds too good to be true. The problem of course, is that there is much resistance to students registering in college towns, out of fear the students are irresponsible, pay no taxes, and don't care. What those people are afraid of is democracy . Students live here nine to twelve months a year and 60 per cent ove off campus and pay property taxes. Everyone pays a one per cent local sales tax. Students are just as properly residents of Chapel Hill as anyone. The Orange County Elections Board is more lenient than most, and is allowing many students to register. A U.S. Supreme Court ruling, which will decide the issue of student residency one way or another, is expected in November. Why should students register to vote m Chapel Hill? There are several sound Gone with the wind also elect a new Executive Board of seven members, including a new GPSF president and vice-president. The Executive Board will fill five major committee: Housing, Graduate and Teaching Assistants, Educational Planning and Curriculum, Financial Assistance and Admissions, and Student Life. The Student Life committee, to be headed by the new vice president of the GPSF, will work through subcommittees on student fees, infirmary, orientation, and consumer affairs. Any graduate student may join a committee by applying to a member of the Executive Board. would be no crowding. Dean believed this: he did not know administrators lower in Student there Cathey what Affairs knew. In April, the residency rule tor transfer students had already -been dropped for U7b 2. Finally, during the spring exam the Chancellor and the Dean of period. Stndnt Affairs realized the situation and acted immediately, waiving the policy for sophomores. Bui this was too little too late. At this point students had already reserved dormitory rooms; the apartment shortage in town made it almost impossible br the new ty-hherated students to find rooms oft campus. And U was during tmal exams and people s.r'MiK did nit have time to hunt tor apaii reside: cms. mi uie uroppi:;g oi oie o reiiuireinent . an action thai r .1. i. ... .1.. student leaders had worked for all year. ca me It 4 ?a ! e ! d anv l 'd I hese mistakes are history now c ! charge I he situation. But I think ,t is essential that the students can Ilia: I jMcdv 'call ! hv the administrative Mii-taKis who and what n.nk the :He situation n whuh they are i. live. :''d I s nvifc!y h -H' thai ri'PiOrji'on can le.it n H"mi tbor ! . i c e i 'he a stakes and n. ! make ! I M'i. T-"TIQN T1-5! reasons. To begn w;:h. i: is physically easier to register m Chapel Hill. If you have Lved in Chape! Hill for 30 days, and m North Carolina for one year, you can register at the Chapel Hill town hall from to 5 every Thursday, assuming you are I S. Also, there are no absentee ballots in the primary. If you register at home, you wul have to go home to vote next May 2. The catch? May 2 is an exam day. tying most students to their books and to Chapel y.j. If you register in Chapel Hill, your noting place would probably be the Fire Station or Woollen Gym. an ea place to get to even on an exam day. One of the most important reasons to register in Chapel Hill is that if we al! do so. students will hav? a decisive vote in the politics of this town, county, and region. If the 18 year old vote means anything, it must mean we gam a voice m the control of our own lives. Joining together on primary day can help insure that happening. Skeptical? It's at least worth a try. For many years, students have had to take a minor role m politics, licking envelopes, running errands, and doing the duty work. Now politicians will be aware that we can hold the power to vote them 8 ear A special committee, Carolina Against Tuition, is already investigating possible legal opposition to the new tuition hike. Chaired by Jerry Harder, the committee is studying effects of the House Bill of July 13 which created the hike. The committee is also encouraging joint action within departments to alleviate the effects of the bill. In cooperation with Joe Stallings, the group will help plan and administer a questionnaire to analyze the impacet of the tuition hike on students' educational plans and financial needs. The GPSF continues to press for recognition as a government separate from and independent of Student Government. At a planning meeting last October, representative of almost twenty departments passed a resolution agreeing on certain desirable principles of government. Included were thorough communication, "an active and flexible committee structure," access of all graduate departments to the decision-making process, and recognition of departmental organizations "as the primary basis" of any constituency. Perhaps the most emphasized was the assertion that a graduate government was to be "rooted in the principle that the best government is that which governs least." The GPSF constitution, j.eepted by a ufV; favorable vote in a referendum which almost one-third oi all graduate and professional students voted in. demonstrated overwhelming continued support ol these principles. ( 'hancellor Siilerson has not yet extended tul! independent recognition b the GPSI-. claiming that he prefers to abide by established d cmo.f at i . processes." e.g.. a constitutional amendment passed b I he entire sfud.nf body. Joe SlaUmgs has pledged to fieh! the concept of w governments. I he (.I'SI has appealed to the Bo.;rJ -i rusiees and wilt be initiating a petition ! r a constitutional amendment eariy m the fall. Members of the I xccutive Board tiU hope thai long-rar.ee c. petition h. i ween GI'Sl and Studc-t (.oivrnment wl! uilu-t itcb. be possd !e Bat the prcsen' situation is. as one er.itbiaie studenl rem.i'kcd. somewhat I Ac ask ire I n -land's Parliament ! ccn the ), i.'i I :'d. pi nd-. ik e. ir. and out of office. Previously moribund institutions such is Student Govr.r.er.t. the Young Democrats, Y o u r. g Republicans, and other political organizations can now have importa-.t ro.es fcK using student opinion. I: important to become politically actr.?. for gripirag against Nixon won't get bum out of office. Only repsterir.g. J.-i-g political work, and otmg him out of power can get nd of him and his cohorts for good. You don't have time not to er: involved. In the coming months, candidates and organisations will hegm to appear on campus. If you want to see what you believe :n happen, get out and lend . hand The Daily Tar Heel, through its reus and editorial columns, will try to keep students abreast of developments in kxa! and area politics, an arena possiKv just j important to our daily lives as who :h next President will be. If you want fair rents, good housing, a strong university system, and pervril freedom, sitting on your hands will ge: none of these. Whether we get or keep any of these may be decided at the hallo! box. Letter Columnist racist, too To the Fditor: I would like to address this letter to Charles Jeffries concerning his column in the Aug. 31 issue of the Tar Heel. Dear Mr. Jeffries: After reading your guide to UNC racism I became just slightly more embittered towards y ou and your kind of person. For the last two years or so I have watched the emergence of what I can only express to you as black racism. I have begun to feel the dislike you project towards me and I have felt the uneasiness that comes with being a target of black people's collective dislike. Yes. you have begun to instill that same fear that you or older blacks must have felt before, and I do hope you feel some measure of pride now, because it really works. In my high school I was at times the "minority" when would sit in fhe cafeteria and that side would suddenly fill with blacks or when some blacks would cut in the lines and there's nothing I can do about it because there's three of them and they are a hell of a lot bigger anyway. I've been scared to walk down a hallway with a group of blacks at the end because I usually get hassled. I've even been shoved aside by spade chicks who didn't give a damn if I was in the way or not. In short, I am now discriminated against by blacks and while it may not affect my life so much in terms of jobs, housing, etc. it still hurts, because I hjte racists just as much as you do. I have seen the whole thing the grouping together of blacks on one side of any gathering, not because they've been put there because they're niggers, to use a quaint term, but because they want it that way. And then to get to your article. I'm sure glad you alerted all the black freshmen to the white man's tricks because I wouldn't want to anyone to be hurt. I don't know which white roommates you were talking about in your article, but if they are real people and all those things really happened, why are you alerting black freshmen to them anyway? Because of sophisticated racism'' Those kind of people are either pure racists or just simply assholes and everyone is on the lookout for them anyway. These next points aren't worth arguing about but since you made such an issue of them anyway, I will. That same guy who didn't punch your elevator button didn't punch mine a few times cither. ! have also been absent from clvs before and showed up the next day only to find it gone and nobody told me either. Sitterson may not know how many Macks are enrolled in school by looking at applications but he could sure find out by looking at the little yellow cards that everyone was filling out today at freshman regroiration because there was past such a question about the students' race. And then all those little discourtesies you refer to. Man, everyone gets that kind oi crap. Granted you may get more of it because you are black, but those are white racists I don't like being lumped together with them when it comes time f'r you to take out your d ishV.c. Jeffries man. you jui don't give me a chance at all or thousands of other whites on this campus or in this country. You may not realize it or maybe you just choose to ignore st. but there are whites who don't give d damn whether you are Mack or not. And Believe me, they are getting bitter, just like rne. every time they get the kind of crap like your article shoved down their throats. The longer you persist in the black power thing, whether in what you write or say or just m interacting with people, the more you are losing me and others. There are a few basic human rights I believe in and I don't mind working for them but don't force me tt man. Work together. Dave ( arlton 4 H James i