Fired Stevenson Worker Sparks Debate

Stevenson employee Dontez Jackson was fired March 14, sparking debate regarding campus safety and inciting students to protest Thursday. First-year Emily Venizelos invited Jackson to visit her African-Heritage House dorm room March 11, but proving unable to find the correct dorm, he fell asleep in a South Hall lounge. On finding Jackson, Security officers asked him to produce an Oberlin validine. When he couldn't, they reported him to his manager and to the Department of Residential Life and Services, after which he was fired.

Reacting to what they view as the suppression of workers' rights, a small but angry group of students and members of People Before Profits at Campus Dining Service (CDS) protested in front of Cox Thursday, hoping to attract the attention of administrators. Holding brightly colored signs with phrases such as "Job Security for Workers" and "OC = Bad Labor Policies," the protesters created a picket line and urged other angry activists to bombard the president's office with telephone and e-mail complaints.

Signs, Signs, Everywhere Signs: Students protest the firing of Dontez Jackson from his position as a temporary worker in Stevenson. (photo by Andrea Kamins)

Junior Ty Moore urged the crowd to display their indignation to the administration over what they see as negligent policies with CDS workers for the ultimate result of their own profit. Moore also expressed anger over the lack of protection for temporary workers like Jackson, who fill voids in dining service positions. Senior Peter Olson summed up the group's immediate goal, saying, "Our priority is to get Jackson's job back."

Twenty-eight students met with President Nancy Dye Wednesday to express their concern over Jackson's firing. Moore asserted his anger over Dye's alleged statement, "It's a security threat for workers to mix with students in dorms." For her part, Dye said, "Students and employees mix all the time - they work together. People are free to mix all they wish." However, Associate Director of Residential Life and Services Yeworkwha Belachew asserted that students must act responsibly in hosting guests in order to retain a safe campus environment. "I find this instance concerning because when a guest is sleeping in a lounge, it puts her/himself at risk," she said. Belachew said she found the situation particularly disturbing because Jackson did not even know where Venezelos lived. "The situation was too chaotic and suspicious," she said.

In a development which will only heighten suspicion directed toward Jones, Belachew reported that Jackson faces a pre-trial this week at the Lorain County Court of Common Pleas for charges of burglary and receiving stolen property.

Dean of Students Peter Goldsmith emphasized the heightened scrutiny of guests due to recent assaults directed at students. "It would not be surprising in the wake of the arrest and conviction of DeLucas Lucas if the College were not particularly sensitive about the dependability - in all meanings of the word - of employees that work around and for students," he said.

Belachew met with Venizelos and Jackson last week to explain her concerns. "We need for hosts to be responsible," she said. "We don't wish to have guests just wandering around without their hosts or without the community having any knowledge of their presence." She stressed that the administration supports interaction between College employees and students, but only if undertaken in a responsible manner.

The root of Belachew's suspicion of Jackson lay in his refusal to provide her with his home address because he was allegedly in trouble with the law in his home state of Kentucky. "There's always a concern when one doesn't tell you where they reside," Belachew said. However, she said that Jackson may be allowed to return on the premise of good behavior. "If there are no further incidents, and we do a background check, we will consider him for rehire."