Editorial: Commentary
What Is the favorite American pastime? We must certainly and safely say it Is not baseball.
No, It must be the fine, admirable art of argumentation. Nothing Is gained by it, but
disputations do pass the time.
The problems that exist in discussions between pacifists and bayonet-rattlers, students and
administrators, and parents and offspring are obvious. Permit us. In the noble tradition of
didactics, to name and explain them.
FVobably the first and largest difficulty in intelligble, not necessarily intelligent
communication, is inflexibility of position. It produces the posture defined so ably by Ambrose
Bierce, I.e. "positive-mistaken at the top of one's voice."
As a result, neither person is willing to listen to the other without the a priori assumption
that his opposite has nothing worthwhile to say. When one is so rigidly restricted to a position,
he is unwilling to concede anything to another, different point of view.
Out of inflexibility grows a second evil, intolerance. What so delights a person as the smug
conviction that he need have no forbearance for the specimen of ignorance he is talking to.
Naturally, when one's beliefs are greatly Pssifled, they are untouchable by new approaches
to the same subject.
Consequently, one is able to remain opaque against the hazard of any new light. Narrow-
mlndeness causes an incapacity for change, even though mutability Is the natural nature of
man. Witness the recent mission of Apollo 8. Further investigation into space may produce
more living space for residents of our rapidly crowding planet. Still, such exploration is
considered a wast by those bruised consciences who point to all the evil in evidence on this
sphere.
The Intelligentsia of the late fifteenth century believed the world was round. Only the
uneducated and foolish pictured it as flat. Ferdinand and Isabella may have been more
motivated by the promise of wealth than reason. But, poor motive sometimes produce excellent
results. The fact is there two rulers did heed the voices of the learned. It Is absurdly Idealistic
to maintain everyone has something of value to relate to us. If it please Eric Hoffer, let's give
equal time to the average man. A democratic society, ipso facto, should still pay heed to
Its " damned intellectuals. " Isn't that only fair, Mr. Hoffer?
Addendum
"Men marry because they are tired; women because they are curious; both are disappointed.
Oscar Wilde
I think that perhaps it is time
someone asked the Honor Court how it
justifies its inconsistency concerning
the problem of narcotics on our campus.
I fear that I might be a little old
fashioned, but I cannot understand how
anyone can suspend a student for
drinking a beer and turn right around
and merely spank the hand of a student
using narcotics. "They" say it's bad
for the reputation of the school to
drink beer. "They" say that a person
using narcotics needs "theraputic" help
so "they" take it upon themselves to
send them to a psychiatrist. Well
goodll I know "they" feel better.
"They" have just legalized narcotics.
I fail to see any justification in
such a decision. I can see me going
home and telling my parents I was
suspended for drinking a beer; yet,
anyone who wanted to throw a cheap
drunk could grab a little grass or pop
a pill, claim to see God, and get off
with just a little brown on his nose.
When I first brought up this issue,
I was told to keep my mouth shut because
I didn't know the facts. I need to
know only one fact. Narcotics existed
on this campus and the Honor Court
decisions in this matter showed
unjustifiable inconsistency when
compared to rulings on drinking
violations.
It strikes me as rather ironical
that Montreat, reputed to be rather
backwards, holds true to form and again
manages to do everything backwards.
Almost everywhere else beer is allowed
and possession of narcotics results in
immediate expulsion. Good ol' Montreat
expels you for consuming beer and feels
sorry for you if you indulge in
narcotics, which, I might add, is a
federal offense.
Thank you.
Tommy West
By ROGER RAPOPORT
College Press Service
DETROIT, Michigan—Ozell Bonds
walked into Room 2 of the Wayne State
University Education Building looking
much like any other student. But
instead of heading for a seat, he strode
up to the podium and put down his
lecture notes. Dressed in levis,
turtleneck, socks and tennis shoes, all
black, he looked down through his
sunglasses at a classroom full of
education school professors - men and
women more than twice his age.
Ozell's lecture was one of several
being offered by members of the Wayne
Association of Black Students in a
course on "Black Social Thought" for
Education faculty members. It is all
part of a burgeoning, yet peaceful,
black movement on this campus just a
few blocks from the 12th Street ghetto
where the 1967 Detroit riots began.
Black students at Wayne are busy
mapping a new black college that will
offer a full four-year curriculum as
well as courses for students and faculty
from other departments.
The Wayne developments, which are
moving ahead with moral and financial
support from the campus administration,
have turned many conventional educational
concepts inside out. Perhaps most
important is the idea that students have
as much, if not more, to contribute to
the educational process that teachers.
Not only can students skillfully
organize new curriculum by themselves -
they can also teach it impressively.
Lonnie Davis, head of the ABS at
Wayne, points out that the syllabus for
the "Black Social Thought" course
offered a reading list of no less than
45 books (from Baldwin to DuBois).
Some faculty were so astounded by the
reading list, they almost dropped the
course.
Graduate student Davis complains that
"It's obvious to us that most of the
teachers taking our course aren't reading
all their assignments. Many of them
come to class unprepared."
Still, they have had stimulating two-
hour weekly sessions on topics like
"Who is the Black Man," "Who is the
White Man to Us," "Black Music," and
"Third World Revolution." A discussion
of "White Woman, Black Man" was so
provocative that it was carried over
to a second session.
In one of Ozell's recent lectures,
he offered a terse 25-minute lecture
on the relationship of slavery to
present-day conditions in the South.
"The black man served in the house
during slavery so he had frequent
personal contact with whites. That's
part of why the southerner today can
associate freely with the black as long
as he stays in his place."
After the lecture ended, one teacher
launched into a lengthy argument with
Qzell about the use of violence in the
present-day civil rights struggle:
"I see all your agression and racism
as defensive violence. I see it as an
assertion of your humanity, pushing off
the oppressor instead of using a direct
hit. But the problem with using all
these threats is that you are scaring
away many whites who might otherwise
rally to your side."
Ozell replied: "I come here to
attack you verbally with words - to
call you racist honkies. People who
react with fear are too stupid to see
the truth because if we were going to
hurt you we would come with guns. Our
function is to make the whites move
into action to join with us to help
civilize a barbaric country."
In the end the teacher pleaded Uncle:
"It's really the white man's job to
change white racist attitudes - not the
black's,"
The ABS in currently planning to open
its Black College in September. The
group has already won $34,000 from the
Catholic Church and is working on the
Ford foundation for an additional grant.
"We hope to bring in top black teachers
from around the country to help staff
our college," says Lonnie Peaks, who
is studying for a masters degree in
Community Organization.
A four-year program will let students
work toward a degree in black studies.
"This make sense—after all, Wayne is
really our campus. It was built right
out of the ghetto," says Peaks.
Students from other departments will
be encouraged to enroll in Black College
courses. Already the economics, social
work, and education faculty have
tentatively agreed to push the black
courses. "We think courses on black
culture will be a real asset to
future teachers working in the ghetto,"
says Peaks.
So far the administration has been
cooperative in working out class space
for the new school: "Whenever they
balk at one of our proposals," says
Peaks, "We just say, 'Now look, you
guys just had a riot here and none of
us wants a new one, do we?'"
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