Homophobic nature of an assault was not reported in Review  article

To the Editor:

We are disappointed in the Review 's poor coverage of the verbal assault of an Oberlin student on September 22 ["Student Safety Source of Concern"]. Your failure to report on the homophobic basis of the threats is a clear example of the heterosexist ideology embraced by the Review  staff and so many other Oberlin students.

Our recent phone call with Campus Security revealed that as an Oberlin student was walking on South Main Street, the driver of a brown pick-up truck pulled alongside him and yelled, "This one's for you, you fucking faggot." As the student began to walk faster along College Street, the pick-up stopped and one of the passengers yelled to the student, "I'm gonna kill you. I'm gonna beat your head in till I kill you." The student then ran into the Java Zone where he called the police.

The Review  article made no mention of such blatantly homophobic remarks. Instead, it mentioned the assault only peripherally, as if the homophobic nature of the attack was unimportant. The Review  staff should realize that for a significant percentage of the Oberlin population, homophobic threats like these are much more serious than simple breaches of security.

People who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered are to often subjected to violent homophobic attacks which are simply brushed aside by the mainstream. If Oberlin is to address the concerns of L/G/B/T students, the Review  needs to report the full extent of the homophobia involved in such incidents.

-OUTRAGE/oberlin

Christians offer support to members of Hillel

To the Editor:

We were shocked and dismayed when we heard that funding for Shabbat was cut. It seems without reason, particularly because the student activity fee was increased this year and particularly considering the large Jewish student population at Oberlin. "We" are not Jewish but Christians, writing not on behalf of any one Christian group but on our own behalfs, because we feel strongly that something is wrong here. The Jewish students on campus should be permitted and encuraged to honor God in the way that has been handed down to them. Cutting funding for the Sabbath celebration will effectively forbid them from doing so, as they are dependent on the college to provide that support. It is frightening when funding for religious programs is cut so severely with so little notice and for poorly supported reasons. This move can do nothing but increase racial and religious tensions on campus and create feelings of persecution. Why can't the Jewish students have dinner together to serve God and have fellowship with one another? This appears to be an issue of discriminiation against which we must speak out. We pray that President Dye would reconsider giving emergency funding to Hillel and that SFC would restore the original budget for Shabbat. We realize that we don't know the whole story, but we would appreciate some explanations from the people involved. We also offer our support to the members of Hillel, who should feel free to call on any one of us for whatever kind of support is needed.

-Sarah Clemmens, Double-degree junior and some members of the Oberlin Christian Fellowship, Ecumenical Christians of Oberlin, Agape and the Oberlin Christian Athletes

Is animal medical experimentation necessary to halt human suffering?

To the Editor:

Live animal experimentation is a complex issue that can be argued from various angles. The following argument is simply one possible viewpoint. I speak only for myself.

I believe it is necessary for students in introductory neuroscience laboratories to use live animals in order to learn experimentation skills.

No, the introductory laboratories sponsored by the college's Neuroscience Department may not participate in medical research, but many Oberlin graduates will go on to do so. The sooner these students acquire experimentation skills, the more they can attribute to research findings in their field of interest.

I am a Sociology major, not a natural sciences student. So why do I argue on behalf of Neuroscience students? About a month ago, my mother - my only surviving parent, my best friend - was diagnosed with lung cancer, which has metasized her brain. She is extremely ill. My mother is a strong woman; it breaks my heart to watch her suffer, knowing there is nothing I can do to ease her pain. If by experimenting on live animals, a researcher could discover a cure for my mother's illness, I would do nothing to impede his or her progress. In fact, I would encourage further research.

To the members of Oberlin Animals Rights, particularly those who participated in Tuesday's protest in front of Mudd Library, I ask the following question: If the person you loved the most fell deathly ill, and the only hope to save that person would be live animal experimentation, would you still fight for the animal's right to live free from medical experimentation rather than a human being's right to live free form unnecessary suffering?

-Patricia M. Hehir, College junior

Wake up Oberlin and let's make a real difference right now

To the Editor:

When asked to register to vote in Ohio, many Obies respond that they simply don't know enough about Ohio politics to make it worthwhile. While I respect the desire to make informed decisions, I fear that apathy, and not an impulse to avoid mis-stepping, motivates inaction. We are transients in Oberlin. It's easy for us to retreat into an academic bubble, avoiding responsibility to the outside world. To this impulse I say "Wake up Oberlin!" There is a whole world out there and it affects us, and we can make a difference right now.

I know, I know, you're too busy to put in hours and hours of time. That's okay. A coalition of your colleagues and friends have been putting in the time to make your life easier. Local Community Environmental Action (LCEA), Students United for Reproductive Freedom (SURF), Ohio Public Information Resource Group (OPIRG), the OC Democrats, along with Socialist groups, have been hard at work in the past few weeks registering people to vote and educating the campus about what's at stake. This year is an off year for many states, but not Ohio. If you declined to register to vote in Ohio because you are already registered in your home state, consider registering for this November's election. You can always re-register at home next year. There is nothing illegal or unethical about it, and your vote can really make a difference here in Ohio.

On the ballot this November are many local issues that affect Oberlin students. Oberlin City Council has influence over so much that affects us. They legislate and enforce safety regulations for rooming houses in which many of us reside. They are currently looking at such issues as utilizing renewable energy for the city; dealing with urban sprawl and land use; the Oberlin Farm Market. The City of Oberlin Municipal Light and Power, in collaboration with the College Environmental Studies Center, is working on helping to conserve energy through a program to install energy saving devices in local buildings. All seven seats on the council are decided this November. Sarah Kotok, an Oberlin student, is running for city council. Looking ahead, Lee Fisher, an Oberlin alum, is running for governor. Fisher, from his stint as Ohio Attorney General, has a strong record as an activist for victims of domestic violence, law enforcement sensitivity, and other important issues.

Still don't care about local politics? How about the state of labor relations in the nation? Ohio's Senate Bill 45 (Issue 2) is perhaps the most important election issue in the country right now. On par with the recent immigration propositions in California, Ohio's Issue 2 is being watched by the whole nation as a precedent for workers' rights. Issue 2 is a measure which, if passed, would roll back workers' compensation in Ohio. The Ohio State AFL-CIO says of Senate Bill 45: it "was written by a handful of Ohio businesses and passed by politicians who believe it's your tough luck if you get hurt on the job." If big business wins this issue in Ohio we can expect to see similar attacks on workers' rights in other states. If labor wins, it may curtail assaults on workers' compensation in other states. Oberlin prides itself on being a socially minded institution; on having a stronger social conscience than comparable institutions. We do tackle important issues around the world; we can't neglect our own backyard. We have an opportunity to make a difference, and all we need do is vote. It takes 30 seconds to register, and only a few minutes to vote. Do it.

If you still think that your vote doesn't count, check this out: in Connecticut in 1994, Sam Gedjenson won a seat in the US House of Representatives by twenty-one votes. Twenty-one votes among hundreds of thousands cast! Locally, Kate Walsh, a progressive Democrat, lost her seat by twelve votes to a conservative Republican. Lee Fisher, the gubernatorial candidate, won his attorney general office in 1990 with 1,234 votes: slightly more than a third of Oberlin's enrollment. Your vote counts. Monday is the last day to register in time for November's election.

-Tracie Guy, College senior, Oberlin College Democrats