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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 28, 1988)
Profile of a protester: What does it take? by Staci Finch When it comes to social protest, some people just don’t want to get involved. Perhaps, as one person against so many, they don’t think they can accomplish anything. Perhaps there is social pressure to conform. Whatever the reason, many people in the 80s don’t speak out on social issues. However, there are'those who can’t stand back and do nothing. Whether it’s picketing on the streets in protest of a pay cut or drawing up contracts confirming divestment in oppressed countries, some people want to get involved. Susan Vint, a member of Students Against Apartheid at Texas A&M, says she is one of those who can’t simply stand back and watch. “There was something inside me that told me this situation was wrong,” she says. “I saw people around me arguing against apartheid, but not doing anything about it. I just wanted to do something and quit talking about it.” Vint, a sophomore biomedical science major, says her involvement boils down to a response to hyprocrisy. “I see people who talk about a problem, but don’t do anything about it, as hypocritical,” she says. “It’s important to me not to be hypocritical, and I wanted to get involved. ” A former member of the A&M soccer team, Vint says she joined SAA her freshman year, because of her strong interest in foreign politics, but states vehemently that she was not involved in a social protest group to further her career. “I’m not out for myself, but for a cause, ” she says. “A lot of people today are living for the here and now, and only want to know how they can help themselves. ” Vint says a lot of people like to go through the si v of being in a social protest group, but when it comes down to really committing themselves for action, they disappear. “Sure, a lot of people will come to marches and get out and protest, ” she says, “but at the next meeting they aren’t there. That’s always frustrating.” Intelligent and forthright, Vint says there are several frustating aspects of her social protest involvement. “People often give protest groups a hard time, especially people who are very conservative and don’t want radical change,” she says. “Sometimes people don’t take the group seriously. “But the worst thing is the apathy. Some people are so apathetic that they don’t even know what is going on, and that is really frustrating when you are trying to change a situation. ” However, Vint says she doesn’t push people into joining a social protest group. “It’s their own free will to do what they want,” she says. “I always encourage people to get involved, because I think it’s important, but I don’t push them.” Vint says if she had been in college during the rebellious days of the 60s, she would have been right there in the sit-ins and protests. “I have always considered myself a child of the 60s,” she says. “I’m the kind of person who gets things done. When I see something I think is wrong going on, I want to change it. ” Vint says she always tries to be very prepared and informed about issues she protests against. “People who don’t know what they are talking about only make an organization look bad,” she says. “It’s really important to see the other side of an argument so you know what you are up against, and can see where they are coming from. “Being narrow-minded and one sided won’t get you anywhere. You just have to be strong enough to show the strength of your argument. ” Vint says she gets a lot of inner satisfaction from her involvment in a social protest group. “It makes me feel good, ” she says. “I think I am becoming a better leader, and I also think I am better able to stand up for what I believe in. Vint says although there are times when she feels inadequate to change anything, she looks up to great leaders as examples. “I admire the greats,” she says. “Martin Luther King really changed a “When I see something I think is wrong going on, I want to change it.” — Susan Vint, a member of Students Against Apartheid. lot, and Biko in South Africa did a lot of good. Even Hitler, although I don’t agree with what he advocated, had a lot of people believing in him. ” Vint says she plans on keeping up her social protest involvement after college. “I am very interested in the Peace Corps, which to me is involvement and a means of change,” she says. “I don’t know after that, but I will always be aware of social problems, and try to work to change them. ” Do you think the student press should be censored? by Staci Finch Censorship. It’s an issue every form of the media faces at one time or another. Cases between the media and those desiring to control the media have come before courts of law time and again. The Hazelwood case recently revived the discussion of how much freedom of speech student-run newspapers are allowed. Students at Texas A&M have varied opinions of the outcome of the case. Most people who considered the question of censorship think that high school newspapers shouldn’t be subjected to outright censorship, but should have some supervision on the subjects they cover. Mary Zimmerman a senior speech communications major, says supervision might be a good idea. “Kids in high school don’t always have enough journalism experience to cover all subjects well.” she says. “But if the kids who aren’t experienced have a good teacher who can help them learn, then there shouldn’t be any censorship.” Barry Summerour, a senior agricultural economics major, agrees with Zimmerman. “Some high school students aren’t ready to handle sensitive topics and can get carried away,” he says. “They might need some supervision to make sure nothing wrong is printed. ” Matt Carter, a sophomore industrial education major, says high school students don’t always have a clear idea of good newspaper coverage. “High school students don’t always see some issues in an objective way, ” he says. “They might do more damage than good, which would serve no purpose.” Manuel Gonzalez, a junior marketing major, has the same idea. “High school kids are at the age where they don’t always behave responsibly,” he says, “and they might need to be told what to do in news stories.” However, students thought that while high school students might need some supervision to prevent mistakes borne of inexperience, outright supression of news is not a good idea. “Students are practicing in school what they are going to do in the real world, ” Joni Guthrie, a senior physical education major, says. “They won’t be censored later in life, so why should they be now?” Steve Noreyko, a sophomore chemistry major, agrees. “If students are willing to try to leam to be reporters, then they should be free to leam, ” he says. “They are preparing to live in the real world and should be treated as such. ” Bethany Beever, a senior business administration major, says censorship should not be used to cover up administrative scandals. “If there is something administration is hiding, it should be written about and not be able to be covered up, ” she says. Ted Poth, a sophomore accounting major, says high school reporters should be recognized for their work. “High school reporters put a lot of work into their stories, just like professional reporters do,” he says. “They shouldn’t have that work taken away from them. ” Most students, including Noreyko, think college newspapers shouldn’t be subject to any censorship at all. “It’s the college forum where you are being developed as a person, ” Noreyko says. “It’s a formative time of your life and if certain views are being suppressed, you will never be exposed to them.” Annie Tinnemeyer, a freshman psychology major, says college reporters should be treated the same as city reporters. “College students are usually given access to the same information as city newspapers,” she said. “Why should that information be censored just because the paper is run by collge students?” Summerour shared this view. “Freedom from censorship is the only way students will get any real experience,” he says. “Otherwise they will go out in the world unprepared to be good reporters. ” Beever says that college papers should be completely free from censorship. “No one has to read the paper, ” she says. “People make up their own minds about what to believe. I can’t think of a situation where a collge paper should be censored. ” But some people with more conservative views say censorship might not be a bad idea at times. Jill Volberding, a senior accounting major, says there should be broad outlines within which students should write. “I can see the administration’s side of it,” she says. “I think unlimited censorship might be a bad idea, especially for high school students. I don’t know that I would want a high school student to have free reign of the press, “1 think college students are more mature and should have more freedom, but 1 think there should be broad boundaries within which they could write whatever they wanted. ”
