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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 3, 1977)
Page 2 THE BATTALION THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1977 Opinion/Commentary/Letters Black citizens want to be heard By ROSETTA KEATON It has been apparent for almost a year now that being elected to serve as a City Council person also gives that person the power to dictate to the electorate. This is truly a revelation to those of us who had taken pride in a sys tem of government that will not tol erate any shape, form or fashion of dictatorship. Representative de mocracy is a farce in College Sta tion. Perhaps that statement deserves reexamination. Texas A&M Univer sity is well represented, the profes sional community is represented, business is certainly represented, Anglo women are represented and the senior members of our commu nity are finally making their pres ence felt. The community which remains unrepresented is the Black Community. This is reflected by the im provements in the peripheral areas of the Black Community that never penetrate to the core. If im provements are initiated, the Community invariably has to make substantial concessions. This situa tion has many undesirable manifes tations for which a great concern has mounted in the Black Community. It is our constitutional right to be represented, and, most impor tantly, it is our constitutional right to have a voice in decisions that di rectly affect the vitality, safety and integrity of the communities in which we live. These rights precede any local charter or any local tradi tion. Non-representation of the Black Community has lent itself to the systematic neglect of the duties and responsibilities of the local govern ment to the Black people in every aspect of living within the bound- Readers* forum aries of the College Station Charter. Non-representation of Blacks has lent itself to the imposition of values that have no cognitive relevance for the community. Also, non representation of Blacks has aided in perpetrating misinformation and misconceptions about the Black people. This brings us closer to the case at hand. Some months ago, meetings were held in locations throughout the City to discuss the spending of Community Development funds. The farce was convincing enough to mislead citizens into thinking that their input was pertinent and im portant to the decisions concerning the spending of Community De velopment funds for improving existing streets in College Station. Neighbors living in the Sterling Street area soon came to the realiza tion they had unknowingly sac rificed the peace and quiet they had known. The automobiles are no longer just bringing weary laborers home. nor are filled with children return ing home from school, but rather, the automobiles are transporting people through this family residen tial neighborhood to pay telephone bills, as well as those who support the operation of a telephone com pany, including the people who drive the many maintenance trucks. Presently, neighbors in the Southland Street area are facing the same impositions. It is not too late for them, because the nightmare of the bulldozer has not yet sunk its destructive edge into the soil. It has not yet been allowed to destroy the quality of life which should be of vital concern to those residents of College Station who wish to see the town not only grow, but see it grow in a constructive rather than de structive manner. We, the neighbors of Southland Street, joined in stating that the sac rifice is more than what we are will ing to make or even tolerate. We joined in making the initial request that a cul-de-sac could be con structed at the end of Southland Street. We joined in requesting that Southland Street not become a thru-way, and we expressed our reservations about this possibility. At the time we seemed to have been in agreement with those in power, but since that time, each and every request which we have put forth has been ignored. If this is indicative of representative democ racy and our “for the people” gov ernment at work, then many of us have certainly been misinformed. Now that we all know that the entire plan for Southland Street is not just to improve the existing street but also to construct a new street that will connect to existing Southland Street, we all should be informed by our City Council as to what funds will be used to finance this new construction. We all know that the Community Development funds will finance improvements to the existing streets. Now, we all should be informed by Council members and City em ployees as to when allocations were encumbered to finance the new construction, where these funds came from originally, and how much was allocated. We all should know that a bridge will be needed to complete the new construction. If Community Development funds are not being spent to build the bridge, our tax dollars are being spent to build a bridge in our community that we do not find in the least de sirable. Also the point should be made that the costs to taxpayers for the building of this bridge and its maintenance will greatly exceed the costs of a cul-de-sac. In the past months, Council members have heard from our community. Once again we are presenting you with our message. Your response will not be ignored. Southland Street will stand as a tes timony to either the Council’s rep resentativeness of the people or the Council’s dictatorial practices. questi< family Will Legett remain a lents, All are dent’s It c Editor: I wish to protest the Board of Re gent’s consideration of converting Legett Hall into an office building. I honestly cannot understand why they would decrease dormitory space at a time when 6,000 students are on waiting lists, unless for some unknown reason they wish to aid apartment complex owners. Perhaps they should consider the following three points more serious- ly: Not only will entering students want rooms in the dorms, but pres ent off-campus students are asking to move on campus. In my opinion. the Board should find out what the students want, and not readily ac cept a University official’s remarks (in last year’s Battalion) that the na tional trend is to live off campus. Why be concerned with national trends when there are Texas Aggies who want to live on campus? The conversion of Legett will rid the University of another lower rent dormitory. I hope the Board realizes that there are some stu dents who cannot and/or do not want to pay the prices of a more ex pensive dorm. The students who now occupy prospective offices in Legett will dent ^ atte Pen the bi A C only add to the number o( wanting dorms. Where wil fees, i if they want to remain ona an d tr I certainly encourage ttf to spend money on the d( — why, even my cozy room Hall has highway yellowp; ling off the walls, a heater it views when cut off, and consider)! tile than floor. B ut if the money is gou used to provide someonewi educa fice instead of a place to please keep the money ai the Campus Wall maroon. —Casey Zesch, ’79 Strays a problem; Shelter lacks suppor SCONA offers opportunity to learn BY KYLE CREWS 1977 promises to offer vast educa tional and thought-provoking op portunities for those of us living in an academic environment, such as we have at Texas A&M. February 16-19 are the dates set for an excellent example of such an opportunity: the 22nd annual Stu dent Conference on National Af fairs. The topic for SCONA 22 is “The Expression of Individuality in American Society.” The criteria in volved in choosing this topic is the realization that we are inhabitants of a highly specialized and sophisti cated culture. As such, it is essential that we make periodic evaluations of precisely how we, as individuals, contribute to or conflict with the other portions of society. Readers' forum Guest viewpoints, in addi tion to Letters to the Editor, are welcome. All pieces sub mitted to Readers’ forum should be: • Typed triple space • Limited to 60 characters per line • Limited to 100 lines Submit articles to Reed McDonald 217, College Sta tion, Texas, 77843. Author’s name and phone number must accompany all submissions. Battalion sarily those of the University administration or the , Uni,e< J Press In ] ter "at.onal is entitled exclusively to hoard of Regents The Battalion is a non-profit, self- the " se for reproduction of all news dispatches cred- supporting enterprise operated by students as a uni- i ‘ ed to il - R 'S h ‘ s °f reproduction ol all other matter versity and , onununity newspaper. Editorial policy is herein reserved. Second-Class postage paid at College determined by the editor Station, Texas. LETTERS POLICY „ MEMBER loiters to the editor should not exceed 300 words „ exas ress ssociat on and are subject to being cut to that length or less if Southwest Journalism Congress longer. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit Editor Jerry Needham such letters and does not guarantee to publish any Managing Editor James Aitken letter. Each letter must be signed, show the address of Assignments Editor Rusty Cawley the writer and list a telephone number for verification. Features Editor Lisa Junod Address correspondence to Letters to the Editor, News Editor Debby Krenek The Battalion, Room 216, Reed McDonald Building, News Assistant Carol Meyer College Station, Texas 77843. Photography Director Kevin Venner Represented nationally by National Educational ^f X)rtS JF' 1 .^ or Advertising Services, Inc., New York City. Chicago 9°^ Ed,tor St< T e ' l i .. Xn^eles * Reporters George Maselh, Paul — McGrath, Lynn Rossi, John Tynes, Lee Roy Leschper sub liptions are $16.75 per semester; $33.25 Jr., Mary He sal road, Jan Bailey pei bool year S35.00 per full year. All subscriptions Asst Photo Editors Tracie Nordheim, subjec t to 5% sales tax, Advertising rates furnished on Mike Willy The major contributors to the Conference will be student dele gates from all over the United States as well as Canada and Mexico. Helping direct the student debate will be various guests who will serve in the capacity of co-chairmen of the discussion groups. Experts in various fields of sociol ogy, education, and business will speak on subjects directly related to the overall topic. These include: Dr. Nathaniel Branden, Executive Director of the Los Angeles Biocen tric Institute; Dr. Stanley Milgram, City University of New York; and Lynn Ashby, editorial columnist of the Houston Post. All interested students and fac ulty are invited and urged to be a part of SCONA by attending the presentations of these and other notable speakers. only take with him a diploma, he will be leavinq with something much more valuable—an education. —Kyle Crews, ’78 Editor: The problem of abandoned or stray animals in Bryan-College Sta tion has recently come to my atten tion. The apartment complex where I live has become the “home” of several unfortunate cats, where they hope to find a few scraps and a warm spot to sleep. The tenants are not allowed to Slouch by Jim Earle SCONA 22 will be the culmina tion of a year-long effort by many people to produce a high-caliber meeting. Although it will not at tempt to solve the many uncertain ties associated with individual ex pression in today’s society, it will provoke the questions needed to find the answers to these problems. The student in 1977 who does no more than attend classes and pass exams will someday leave this Uni versity with a degree. The student who takes advantage of oppor tunities such as SCONA 22 will not “AT LEAST WE THINK IT IS; THERE MAY BE A BOWL GAME THAT WE DON’T KNOW ABOUT!” have pets, and there is no place to take these animals where they will have a chance for a home. Neither the City of Bryan nor the City of College Station have any facilities for cats. The Brazos County Humane Society cannot get enough support to start a shelter, where cats as well as dogs could be neutered and given homes. The A&M School of Veterinary Medicine will not take them for educational purposes, but will euthanize them for $5. This might help solve the problem, but with as many strays as there are it would place an undue burden on any indi vidual. If residents of this community don’t care what happens animals, they should at aware that the strays conk riers of disease that will their own pets. They becoa sances and mar the appeal residential areas. Individually, weeando by considering the respone of caring for a pet before one. Also, think twice before ing out a grown cat or a cute, cuddly kitten or pup ] ll more. Please remember tie who are free to breed andn bringing their offspring same bleak fate that theylao Linda Norn Women s P.E. choices limitec Editor: After yawning my way through a doubtful, yet mandatory semester of Concepts, I looked forward to tak ing my first “real” Physical Educa tion course. What I hadn’t planned on though, was the scarcity of P.E. classes geared especially for women. Dancing, a popular choice for lots of girls, was closed. Later I was told that there is only one full-time and one part-time instructor for all the dance classes combined. Hardly adequate for a university of this size. Figure control? By Tuesday af ternoon you couldn’t have bribed them with a piece of chocolate cake to help you take off a few pounds. Then there was always wrestling Be sh ^Let Our Musical ^Figurines Zsay £ “I Love You Feb. 14 The most wonderful thing about Love — Plays Theme from “Love Story". You're my kind of" people — Plays "We’ve Only Justl Begun.” You’ve Captured My Heart “The Shadow Of Your Smile”. We Also Have A Large Selection of Music Boxes l % Happy Cottage Nights In White Satin” SOPHOMORE CLASS BALL February 5, 1977 Zachry Engineering Center Eight p.m. - Midnight Under Nen> Management and weight lifting, but not!) musclebound women’s lil cided to pass. Reluctantly I traded slippers in for a golf club I think it’s time the P E ment started expanding then to satisfy the interests and the women at Texas A&M Not only is it necessary more classes in the presentfl but to open up new knows? Maybe a martial arts! a course in self-defense for might turn out successful. If students must meet ments for P.E., I think thef partment is obligated to quirements for the students Until then—Jack Nicklaui out! —Jeannie Henkk th( Th $5.00 per couple — MSC Box Office music by: foxriver This Week Only Specials! 12.95 One Group of Men’s Shirts (Values 15.95-21.95) Special Group Ladies Blouses (Values to 19.95) Qbc) INTERSTATE > SILVER STREERI-f > Fri,sAt AT MtbNlTE 'led~"ZPrOT 1 ~5 SONG REMAINS THE SAME'* $1.25, 'TH E IS The NEwesi PiNKesi panThffi of all! _ DCTCO QPII EPQ PETER SELLERSn "THE PINK PANTHER STRIKES AGAIN" (Oi'.A C. —GEOFFREY PGlfMBrou.GUBAHgSUGGgra NOW PLAYING! 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