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Provost
Search Set
To Resume
The search committee is
looking for a candidate in
line with the ideals laid out
by the chancellor-elect.
By Katy Nelson
Staff Writer
Administrative wheels have been
turning to revitalize the search for
UNC’s next provost, a task that tops
Chancellor-elect James Moeser’s
agenda.
Provost Search Committee
Chairman Jeffrey Houpt said the com
mittee would reconvene in early May
after an almost yearlong hiatus.
The late
Chancellor
Michael Hooker
created the com
mittee last April
after current
Provost Dick
Richardson
announced plans
to step down this
June.
The committee
will discuss the
search’s new time
line and whether
C
H of the
A
It
GUARD
previously considered candidates fit
Moeser’s vision for a provost.
Houpt said an Atlanta search firm
was in the process of informing past
candidates of the resumed search and
identifying candidates who were still
interested in the position.
The search has been on hold since
last summer, after the committee decid
ed that a permanent chancellor’s input
in the provost selection process was cru
cial.
“We knew that an incoming chancel
lor would want to name his own team,”
said committee member Jane Stine.
Moeser will have many opportunities to
restructure his administration with input
into other top appointments, such as
vice chancellor for finance.
Moeser told the DTH last week he
relished the opportunity to build his
own team by having input in the
provost selection process.
He said he wanted a scientist at the
academic top of his administration to
balance his knowledge of the arts.
“All things being equal, I would prefer
someone who is a scientist since I am an
artist. I don’t want to rule out a human
ist, but I want someone who comple
ments my perspective,” Moeser said.
He said the interview process could
resume in early June. If a replacement
for Richardson is not found byjune 30,
an interim provost will be named.
Richardson has served as provost
since April 1996, after having worked as
interim provost since June 21,1995.
See PROVOST, Page 13
TORBUSH VERSUS VIOLENCE
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Carl Torbush, UNC's football coach, spoke in the Pit on Wednesday in support of the White Ribbon Campaign.
The weeklong campaign calls for the prevention of violence against women. Torbush also talked of the
dangers of alcohol abuse acting as a cause for physical abuse against women. See story Page 9.
UNC Discrimination Case Pending
By Harmony Johnson
Staff Writer
A judge will decide in either May or
June whether a discrimination lawsuit
against UNC Hospitals will go to trial,
attorneys involved in the lawsuit said
Wednesday.
The sixth and final day of a hearing
included closing statements by both
attorneys in the case of hospital employ
ee Robin Smith, who filed suit against
UNC Hospitals in October 1999 claim
ing race, sex and age discrimination.
Smith, a 44-year-old black woman,
was denied a promotion last June when
anew supervisory position as a Level 3
medical lab technologist opened in the
LI VI N<j with FEAß
Generation Y Grows Up With Gunshots and Gore
As Society Buckles Down in the Face of Violence
By Kaitlin Gurney
Senior Writer
When most college students were beginning their elementary
school days in the 1980s, violence was a far-off concept revolving
around inner-city crack cocaine battles and downtown Los Angeles
gang wars between the Crips and the Bloods.
Today, though, violence is the routine subject of video games, rap
music, movies, television and nightly news shows that highlight
high-profile shootings in small
towns from Jonesboro, Ark., to
Littleton, Colo.
Violence has seeped into
today’s culture slowly yet dra
matically, triggering national
attention on an American public
many say has become immune
to the bloodshed.
And looking for someone or
something to blame, Americans
are voting for strengthened gun
control laws and speaking out
against a perceived emphasis on
violence in the media.
But belying the gore-laden
culture, the streets are actually
becoming safer.
In 1999, the Justice
Department’s National Crime Victimization Survey found the low
est crime rates since the survey began in 1973.
After a fourfold jump in violent crimes like rape, robbery and
assault in the 1970 sand 1980s, the crime rate stabilized and has fall
en in the late 19905.
Since 1993, the year Durham had the dubious distinction of
being the murder capital of North Carolina, the murder rate has
dropped 34 percent nationally, rape has decreased 17 percent and
robbery has declined 35 percent.
But the drops in numbers haven’t eradicated a widespread
American fear and a national desire to protect against the worst.
Seven out of 10 Americans think a school shooting could happen
in their communities, the Justice Policy Institute reported last week.
Keep violence in the mind where it belongs.
Brian Aldiss
histology laboratory where she worked,
a lab which deals with the study of tissue
samples.
Smith has served as a hospital
employee for more than 23 years. She
continues to hold her current position as
a Level 2 medical lab technologist.
Civil rights attorney Alan McSurely,
who represents Smith in the case,
accused Administrative Director of
Surgical Pathology Howard Parker of
discriminating against her when he gave
the job to Alberto Basabe, a 39-year-old
man ofjapanese and Central American
descent.
McSurely claimed the friendship
between Basabe and Parker, both Apex
residents, was also a factor in the pro
Part seven of a 10-part series
examining the issues that
will face our generation
in the coming millennium.
Thursday, April 20, 2000
Volume 108, Issue 37
motion decision.
But hospital attorney Kathryn
Thomas claimed Basabe was promoted
over Smith only because he was more
qualified for the position.
“There was a legitimate, nondiscrim
inatory basis for (UNC Hospitals’) deci
sion,” she said in her closing statement.
According to Basabe’s application for
the position, he had more than 10 years
histology experience prior to seeking the
job. He has worked at UNC Hospitals
since 1996.
Sandra Ratliff, a hospital administra
tive director who interviewed applicants
for the position, also testified that
Smith’s race was not a factor in the pro
motion decision.
President Clinton held a summit on youth violence after the
Columbine High School shootings, despite the 56 percent drop in
the youth homicide rate.
The rare but well-publicized massacres at school and at work
have increased the perception of violence, causing people to
ignore the drop in day-to-day crime statistics, said Jack
Richman, a professor in the School of Social Work and co
editor of an upcoming book titled “The Context of Violence:
Resilience, Risk and Protection” with fellow social work
Professor Mark Fraser.
“Columbine and Jonesboro have shown us that
violence isn’t an inner-city problem of the
Crips fighting the Bloods,” Richman said.
“The violence is in our own backyards, in
our suburbs and rural neighborhoods.
The context of violence has changed,
and we don’t feel safe anymore outside of
our own cul-de-sac communities.
“Even though there’s a lower violent
crime rate, there’s a greater fear level.”
But if kids and parents don’t feel safe,
regardless of low crime rates, the gov
ernment needs to address the prob
lem, said Joanne McDaniel, asso- -
ciate director of the Center for
the Prevention of School
Violence, based in Raleigh.
Schools are addressing the cli
mate of fear through physical
measures like more metal
detectors and an increased
police presence, she said, but
also through social measures
like encouraging parental
involvement in students’ lives.
Much of the greater perception of violence stems from the cul
ture of violence created by the media, McDaniel said.
“Rap, video games and movies create a vast matrix of violence
variables that most people aren’t affected by, but for others is the
making of a deadly combination,” she said. “Our lifestyles have
changed in the past few' decades, and the magnitude of violent mate-
Greek Houses Earn
Perfect Fire Scores
By Jamila Vernon
Staff Writer
UNC fraternities and sororities set a
new record when 11 houses received
perfect inspections by the Chapel Hill
Fire Department this spring.
The fire marshal inspected 33 houses
for violations of town fire codes before
Spring Break.
“It’s very difficult -most businesses
don’t even get a perfect score,” said Ron
Binder, director of Greek affairs.
Chapel Hill Fire Marshal Caprice
Melon said that for a house to attain a
perfect score, there cannot be any vio
lations of the fire code. “Some (exam
ples of code violations) would be exit
lights that are burned out, smoke detec
tors with no batteries and trash blocking
access to exits,” Melon said.
Binder said the average for each
house was three violations, an improve-
But Smith and another rebuttal wit
ness both claimed their race and sex
affected the decision.
Mary Parker, a 62-year-old black
woman who also works in the histology
lab, said she had considered applying
for the position but was told by Howard
Parker that she could not.
Mary Parker said she did not question
what Howard Parker told her.
“I did not want to push the issue too
much because I didn’t want to be con
sidered a troublemaker," she said.
Smith and Mary Parker both testified
that they had heard Howard Parker did
not want a woman supervising the lab.
In her closing statement, Thomas
argued that Basabe was simply more
and uore
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ment from the prior average of 10.
Melon said inspections were tvpical
ly completed twice a year, one each
semester. But in the meantime, each
house selects its ow'n in-house fire mar
shal, who makes sure the building meets
fire code standards.
Sophomore Jeremy Hill is the in
house marshal for Tau Epsilon Phi, one
fraternity to receive a perfect score.
“I have to make sure we’re ready for
inspections and are fire safety compli
ant,” Hill said. “I don’t have to do every
thing but I make sure everybody else
knows what’s going on. I also organize
drills and (self) inspections."
But while 22 houses did not meet
town fire codes, Binder said they were
not far off the mark. “Most of them were
pretty good -most had two violations,"
he said. “We’re trying to get everybody
See FIRE SAFETY, Page 13
qualified for the position.
But Smith disagreed.
“In general, the hospital has put on a
lot of lies - lying about the case and how
(the hiring) was done. They know it, and
I know it.”
To provide ample time for review of
court transcripts, both attorneys must
submit written arguments to the judge
by May 22. According to N.C. law, the
judge has 45 days after closing argu
ments are presented to review the evi
dence and make a decision.
Jason Arthurs and Geoff Wessel
contributed to this article.
The University Editor can be reached
at udesk@.unc.edu.
rial available is enormous. Kids can immerse themselves in bomb
making materials on the Internet 24 hours a day if they want to.”
Violence sells music, video games, movies and TV advertising.
Not only is the content of some rap music full of boasts and
See VIOLENCE, Page 13
Thursday
Let's Go to the Movies
Locals will soon have another option
for weekend entertainment with the
opening of anew theater. See Page 4.
Sangam's Next Wave
The South Asian cultural awareness
group selected five students to lead it
beginning in fall 2000. See Page 9.
Take Over, Reach Out
Do you want to take the helm of The
(Weekly) DTH this summer? How
about serving as a liaison between the
paper and the community? If you said
yes to either, then contact Editor-select
Matt Dees at mbdees@email.unc.edu
for more information on the summer
editor and ombudsman positions.
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