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The Battalion
(USPS 045 360)
Member of
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Conference
The Battalion Editorial Board
Cathie Anderson, Editor
Kirsten Dietz, Managing Editor
Loren Steffy, Opinion Page Editor
Frank Smith, City Editor
Sue Krenek, News Editor
Ken Sury, Sports Editor
Editorial Policy
The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting newspaper oper-
ited as a community service to Texas A&M and Bryan-College Sta
tion.
Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the editorial
ard or the author, and do not necessarily represent the opinions
of Texas A&M administrators, faculty or the Board of Regents.
The Battalion also serves as a laboratory newspaper for students
in reporting, editing and photography classes within the Depart
ment of Journalism.
The Battalion is published Monday through Friday during
Texas A&M regular semesters, except for holiday and examination
periods.
Mail subscriptions are $17.44 per semester, $34.62 per school
ar and S36.44 per full year. Advertising rates furnished on re-
est.
Our address: The Battalion, 216 Reed McDonald Building,
Texas A&M University, College Station, I X 77843.
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POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Battalion, 216
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77843.
Dollars over sense
For a brief moment, it looked as if the student body of Texas
A&M might muster up enough of a social conscience to condemn
University investments in South Africa. But the Student Senate, sup
posedly the representative of this group, voted 42-14 Wednesday
night against a resolution calling for the divestment of $5.5 million
held by the Texas A&M University System.
The arguments both for and against divestment were presented
to the Senate. But in the end, the senators chose, by a pitifully wide
margin, money over morality — the argument of lost revenue for the
University won out over concerns for funding racism.
The theory for continued investment in apartheid claims that
only through maintaining financial influence can we institute a
change in government policy and dismantle the racist regime in
power. But increasing investment in the South African economy
only supports the white elite in power. As long as the minority rules,
its racist policies will remain. And the minority will rule as long as
outside investors continue to send it a lifeline of money.
Dr. Morgan Reynolds, an economics professor, told the Senate
that increased capitalism in South Africa is the key to apartheid’s
eradication. Reynolds said economic restrictions against blacks had
been relaxed because of international pressure on the South African
government.
But the “international pressure” South Africa is feeling comes
from economic sanctions, not increased investment. Many countries,
including the United States, have divested. Private companies also
have divested, including the recent pullouts by such American firms
as Coca-Cola, General Motors and IBM. Warner Communications
and Honeywell Inc. also are considering divestment.
The Senate’s action not only takes the line of least resistance, it is
inconsistent with a previous resolution declaring apartheid morally
repugnant.
As pointed out by Larry Yarak in Wednesday’s Battalion, lost in
vestments could be redirected to prevent a substantial loss. True,
scholarships, gifts and grants also might be sacrificed, but do we
really want to accept gifts and scholarships stained with the blood of
apartheid victims?
Many student associations throughout the United States have
supported divestment proposals at their schools. But when our stu
dent voice had a chance to speak out against apartheid, all it could
utter was a whisper of disapproval. Instead, the University’s money
did the talking.
Red Tide
Enlarged view of
micr o -org*anism3
responsible for
nasty aromas
Payii
of life f
pie rea
jor pn
could I
fraud e
U.S. employs Soviet-style tactics
for visitors with ‘dangerous’ ideas
When I arrived
in the Soviet
Union, a book I
was carrying,
“Russia,” was
seized at the air
port. 1 was d e -
layed while a host
of officials pe
rused the danger
ous book, until,
stripped of it, I
was sent on my
way. With some indignation, and not a
little amusement, I wrote a column
about the incident. This is the way
things sometimes go in a Godless
dictatorship.
Richard Cohen
And this is the way things go in God
fearing America. Patricia Lara, a re
porter for the Colombian newspaper, El
Tiempo, Hew into Kennedy Interna
tional Airport in New York last week to
attend an awards ceremony at Columbia
University. Unceremoniously, she was
seized by immigration officials and her
visa later revoked. In short order, or
due course or something like that, she
was jailed and later transferred to a
Black musicians sadly absent
from A&M scene — until now
“All black peo
ple got rhythm.”
if
If you’re black,
you’re white or
biblical passages, but the effect is of pa
tient, profound melancholy, although
the condition of slavery seldom is re
ferred to.
perhaps just if
you’re American,
it’s a statement
you’ll hear at least
once in one form
or another before
you die. Though
it’s not true, the
generalization
does say something about the role
Cathie
Anderson
Both spirituals and vocal blues music
directly are related to sorrow songs sung
by slaves. The lyrics of vocal blues re
flect the concern blacks had with the ba
sic human problems of love and sex,
poverty and death.
inate in the United States, jazz was first
played in the United States during the
1800s. Black jazz musicians who helped
mold the nation’s popular culture in
cluded Louis Armstrong and Duke El
lington.
Jazz inspired such m u s i c a 1
movements as swing, boogie-woogie, be
bop or bop and “cooljazz.”
maximum-security cell. Her lawyer re
ports she spent part of the day in tears.
The government is silent on what
prompted it to treat Lara in this fashion.
It had her name in the so-called “Look
Out Book,” which lists the names of per
sons not to be admitted to the United
States. For all 1 know, she may well be
the most dangerous person alive, but
her real offense seems to lx* her leftist
associations. Nevertheless, she is a re
spected Colombian journalist, consid
ered that by her government, and the
author of a book about Colombian guer
rilla leaders. Her government, in addi
tion to protesting her treatment, says it
will guarantee her departure from the
country.
Lara may well he a dangerous leftie
whose ideas, not to mention writings,
could infect the innocent and pastoral
people of the United States, turning
each and every one of us into rabid
Marxists. It is to prevent that sort of
thing that the government, armed with
its “Look Out Book,” is ever on the
lookout for foreigners with dangerous
ideas who seek entry into the United
States. Under a provision of the McCar-
ran-Walter Immigration Act of 1952, a
vestige of McGarthy-era hysteria, Ga
briel Garcia Marquez, a Nobel laureate
for literature, has been banned from the
United States. His books — and marvel
ous ones they are — remain available,
though. We are a reasonable people.
Whatever the merits of the govern
ment’s case against Lara, it’s hard to
imagine that she posed such a danger to
the United States that incarceration in a
maximun-security cell was warranted.
Not only does that seem like overkill,
but it is precisely the sort of ham
handed action that gives the United
States a black eye abroad. It takes little
imagination to envision the headlines in
the Colombian newspapers. Think for a
moment of how we reacted when Nicho
las Daniloff was seized. Will Lara be
swapped for someone — possiblyac
caine dealet we are seeking to extraditi
Time and again, immigration n
customs officials, armed with then!
vant law, make a mockery of thesom
jH'ople we say we are. We claim tobti
open society, unafraid of all ideaj.cot.:
dent that criticism only can strenttk
us. Yet occasionally, notables of jit
acclaim are either barred fromenim
the country or forced toapplvforo
coptions to the McCarran-Walter k
in addition to Garcia Marquez,ttai
treated include Carlos Fuentes
equally acclaimed novelist, ande:
Farley Mowat, the Canadian writeta
naturalist. A visa also wasdeniedli
tensia Allende, the w idow of slain fr
ean President Salvador AllendeGos
She planned to speak at the Unims
of (’.alifornia. In effect, shewasahcl
and an audience deprived of her view
Most of those barred fromtntryi
leftists, maybe even communists.Ok
sionallv, someone on the rightisf«
whose record or reputation is sooi
that he. too, is denied a visa. Ont
those was Maj. Roberto d Aubuiss
the leader ot El Salvador's farrighiv
has been linked to the infamousde:
squads. But even the squalid littlei
was bent on nothing more than rate
with people and lecturing. He halt
posed .i danger to the United States.
It is both biased and silly tolibi
United States to the Soviet Union.li
legislation enabling our govemmetfi
ban certain foreigners because of tie
political views is an exception to A®
can practices and beliefs, not ink
mony with them. Yet by keepingii
provision of the McCarran-Walter A
on the books, and by implemeniiEj
from time to time, we behave no dfe
ently than the Russians. Theyseite:
hook from me because they feared"
ideas in it. Apparently, we seizepsf
for the same reason.
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c<
r
of
music in black culture.
American blacks, many of whom
were taken from West Africa, come
from a culture in which music is used in
almost every aspect of life. These peo
ples use both instrumental and vocal
music in religious ceremonies, festivals
and social rituals. Vocal music is also a
means of recording and remembering
history.
Like the Negro spirituals, American
gospel music also originated because of
the West Africans’ conversion to Chris
tianity. This music partly evolved from
the songs that slaves sang on planta
tions, work songs and the “field holler”
and from the hymns they learned from
whites.
Rock music also takes elements of
jazz, black rhythm and blues and gospel
music. Influential performers of black
rock ’n’ roll included Chuck Berry,
Little Richard and Sam Cooke. The
Beatles merged the musical styles of
Berry and Elvis Presley, a country blues
performer, and the Rolling Stones bor
rowed from the black blues tradition.
In the United States, the African
slaves used music to help them through
their daily lives. West African rhythms
echoed throughout “the land of the
free” in worksongs, spirituals and gos
pel.
But gospel music didn’t come as
much from these hymns as did Ameri
can Negro spirituals. This emotional
and jubilant music started with the call
and response singing between preacher
and congregation, which became com
mon in slave churches.
Though the music originated by
blacks has spawned major movements
and is itself enjoyed by blacks and whites
alike, black performers rarely appear at
Texas A&M. I usually travel to Houston
for my cultural sustenance, but all this
may change.
In adopting the Christian faith, Afri
cans gained the promise of a spiritual
reward. It was also possible for them to
maintain the belief that music served as
a link with the spirit world since hymns
were used to praise God.
Singers such as Mahalia Jackson, the
Rev. James Cleveland, The Mighty
Clouds of Joy and Sister Rosetta Tharpe
popularized gospel music. And many
black performers of popular music to
day — Aretha Franklin, Whitney Hous
ton, Ashford & Simpson — had their
beginnings in religious music.
Ironically, black gospel music also
inspired white gospel music to a large
degree.
The Memorial Student Center’s
Black Awareness Committee, which his
torically has brought speakers, films and
art exhibits, now will be adding small
concerts to its store of goodies. The
committee already brings to A&M Gos-
pelfest and Springfest, religious music
concerts. But with the addition of con
certs, the group can offer programming
that the 780 black students at the Uni
versity have had logo elsewhere for.
G.P. Jackson, whose research is noted
in the World Book Encyclopedia, says
the American Negro spiritual, an emo
tional song, was adapted from or
inspired by white spirituals and origi
nated through the slaves’ blending of
the white religious songs and African
music.
Blacks also incorporated both of
these musical forms — gospel and spiri
tuals — into jazz. Jazz uses rhythms
from West African harmony and from
European classical music; religious mu
sic, including gospel songs and spiritu
als; work songs dating back to slavery
days and minstrel shows.
The spirituals often are related to Often called the only art form to orig-
BAC will be bringing its first concert
to A&M Nov. 7 with Kirk Whalum, a
black jazz artist with large followings in
Houston and Austin. And for me, this
date must be something of a Juneteenth
— a day to celebrate black culture, black
history, black people — at A&M.
Cathie Anderson is a senior journalism
major and editor forThe Battalion.
Mail Call
Improving relations
EDITOR:
On behalf of the Corps of Cadets, I would like to thank the residentsof
Law, Hart, Puryear, Davis-Gary, Moore and Crocker halls for acceptingow
invitation to run and eat with us on two occasions. These were excelleni
opportunities for cadets to meet other students in a relaxed atmosphere.
The door for better student-cadet relations has been opened and perbu
in the near future we will become more unified despite our differences.
Many of us seniors finally have realized how unfortunate it is we only have
four or five short years here at Texas A&M — there are so many exciting
aspects of student life we would all like to see and belong to as Aggies.
Therefore, I think it is important to respect all student groups as Aggies,ai
attempt to experience as many as possible.
Again, I would like to praise the cooperation and enthusiasm of the
students and their residence hall presidents.
Cadet Lt. Colonel Gregory W. Keith ’87
Coir
Freedom to read
EDITOR:
Now that Robert Farrell has alerted the University community to the
presence in our library of The Advocate, what do you bet it will be removed
from the shelves of the Current Periodicals Department — and scattered
across tables and couches by library patrons!
Periodicals such as The Plain Truth, The Sure Word and Potentialare
also available — in the Memorial Student Center hallway. It’s heedoraoftfe
press — equal time for opposing viewpoints. We live in America, and this is 1
world-class university — remember?
Mary Beth Butler ’87
Our :
ment
Senio
are si
Senio
And
suppe
surro
If yoi
pleasi
caring
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