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Monday, November 16, 1987/The Battalion/Page 3
State and Local
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f'Dr. Ruth’ praises condom distribution atA&M
Dr. Ruth Westheimer autographs books in the MSC Patio Bookstore Friday afternoon.
By Elisa Hutchins
Staff Writer
Sex therapist Dr. Ruth
Westheimer made her first appear
ance at Texas A&M Friday for her
lecture called “Sexually Speaking,”
but one thing about this particular
visit was new to her — condoms.
Though Westheimer lectures at
colleges across the country, not one
has ever passed out condoms before
her visit.
“The first thing I received when I
arrived was a condom,” Westheimer
said. “And you know, I think it’s ter
rific!”
Last week, MSC Great Issues and
MSC Political Forum passed out the
condoms, which were donated by
Planned Parenthood. The condoms
were distributed to coincide with
Westheimer’s visit and an AIDS sym
posium scheduled for Wednesday,
said MSC Great Issues chairman
Michelle DeVoe.
Westheimer spoke on such topics
as sexual relationships and contra
ception to about 1,500 students in
Rudder Auditorium.
“I bet the walls of this auditorium
have never heard such language as
we will talk about today,” she said.
The author and syndicated radio
talk show host’s height, 4 feet 7
inches, drew some laughter from the
hundreds of people who attended.
But while the atmosphere was light
at the beginning of the lecture,
Westheimer seemed to get her mes
sage through by the end of the show.
“I came to Texas because our so
ciety needs to be more sexually liter
ate,” Westheimer said. “Sex is part of
a broad picture. People have differ
ent backgrounds and religions, but
they need to understand and com
municate with each other if they are
going to have a good sexual relation
ship.”
She talked about contraception as
the responsible way to have an active
sexual relationship.
“Any sexually active woman
should carry condoms, they
shouldn’t just leave it up to the
man,” she said. “And men, the con
doms you’ve been carrying in your
jean pockets since you were 14 are
not any good.”
She said we have the most ad
vanced forms of technology, but do
not yet have a good form of birth
control.
Westheimer also tried to dispel
the many myths our society has cre
ated while trying to inform children
and young adults about sex.
“Young girls think they won’t get
pregnant the first time they have
sexual intercourse, and this is just
not true,” she said. “Many of the 1.5
million unwanted pregnancies last
year could have been prevented, but
it is the ignorance and pressure that
is getting our children into trouble.”
On the subject of abortion, West
heimer said she is not a politician but
an educator, and that abortion
should remain legal.
“I am against using abortion as a
form of contraception,” Westheimer
said. “But I remember how it was in
New York before abortion was legal
ized in 1970. Only rich women could
afford to fly to Mexico and have an
abortion. The other women had to
rely on untrained doctors or their
own methods.”
After the lecture, A&M Professor
Robert Hurley who teaches Health
Education 342, a human sexuality
class, read anonymous questions sub
mitted to Westheimer by the audi
ence.
Because she is not a medical doc
tor, Westheimer refrained from an
swering any medical-related ques
tions. She has a master’s in
psychology and a doctorate in inter
disciplinary family study from Co
lumbia University.
Hurley said there was some hesi
tation among students about attend
ing the lecture, but once they came
into the auditorium, he said, it was a
different story.
Gustavo “Goose” Arteaga, a se
nior engineering technology major,
said he attended the lecture with the
attitude that it would be more for
mal, but he thought it was a comfort
able atmosphere to talk about sex.
Doctor tells B-CS residents he supports mandatory testing for AIDS
By Clark Miller
Staff Writer
Dr. James “Red” Duke, the noted
surgeon and television medical re
porter, told about 30 Brazos County
residents at an AIDS awareness
meeting that he is in favor of manda
tory testing for acquired immune de
ficiency syndrome.
f The Saturday morning meeting
held at the College Station Commu
nity Center was sponsored by U.S.
Rep. Joe Barton, who said he wanted
to find out what action Brazos
County constituents want to take in
fighting AIDS.
The meeting also provided people
an opportunity to ask Duke ques
tions about the disease. Most of the
people at the meeting asked ques
tions concerning the ways in which
the disease can be transmitted and
what efforts are being taken to find a
cure for AIDS.
Duke, a 1950 graduate of Texas
A&M, said he supports mandatory
testing for AIDS. He also said that
he thought testing should include a
test before applying for a marrige li
cense.
“That will blow some people’s
skirts up, but so what,” Duke said.
Duke said he thinks testing for
AIDS before getting married is im
portant because a pregnant woman
can pass the disease to her unborn
child.
Duke said he is concerned about
AIDS because of his work in the
trauma center of the Hermann Hos
pital in Houston. Because he works
with people who may have been in
jured in car wrecks or fights, he said
there is always a chance of contract
ing AIDS through the patient’s
blood.
However, Duke said that it is diffi
cult to contract AIDS except
through blood, semen and vaginal
fluids.
“There are only a few ways to get
AIDS,” he said. “You’re not going to
Suite
dreams
for
Christmas.
The MSC Opera and Performing Arts
Society presents the Nutcracker Ballet
on Wednesday, December 2 at 7 p.m.
in Rudder Auditorium.
One of Tchaikovsky's most famous
works, this enduring holiday fantasy is
a treat for young and old alike. The
Oakland Ballet will perform these
delightful dances with the Brazos
Valley Symphony Orchestra, Franz
Anton Krager, music director and
conductor.
There will only be one performance of
the Nutcracker and a reception will be
held at 6 p.m. in Rudder Exhibit Hall
prior to the show. All seats will be sold
on a first come, first served basis.
Don't miss the chance to bring suite
dreams to your family's Christmas.
MSC Box Office • 845-1234
Dillards Ticketron
VISA and MasterCard accepted.
MSC Opera and Performing Arts Society
Memorial Student tenter • Te\as VxM l imersits • box I I • College smbon l\ 77844 uoKI
get it from mosquito bites or from
drinking out of the same glass as
someone with AIDS.”
“Fortunately, AIDS is a fragile vi
rus. It’s not like the flu virus that is
spread through coughing or snee
zing.”
Duke also told the audience that
the AIDS virus isn’t the direct cause
of death to its victims. He said the vi
rus prevents the body from resisting
other diseases.
“Diseases that don’t affect you and
me are problems to AIDS victims,”
he said.
Duke said that there is still no cure
for the virus although researchers
are continually working toward a so
lution for combating the AIDS virus.
“Nobody knows if we will ever
have a totally positive cure for AIDS
like we do for smallpox,” Duke said.
“We’re playing catch-up with the
AIDS virus because the virus keeps
changing,” he said.
After Duke concluded his presen
tation, Barton passed questionnaires
around the room to determine peo
ple’s attitudes about the disease.
Barton said most people in his dis
trict were extremely worried about
AIDS. But when he asked the people
in the room to describe their level of
concern about the virus, most indi
cated, by a show of hands, that they
were not worried about the disease.
Correction
Two photos in Friday’s Battal
ion were inadvertently switched,
leaving a photo of Madagascar
cockroaches accompanying a
front-page story on infant nutri
tion, and a photo of Dr. Kather
ine Dettwyler, an A&M professor
of anthropology, accompanying a
page-three story on cockroach
research.
fly/Zsouthwest
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