monday, february 12, 1979
page 4
daily nebraskan
(mm
(S)rs)fM(p)m
New admission policies
needed to relieve burden
In the past few years the trend in
education has been the "hack to
basics" approach. l.dueators began
to realize that more and more stu
dents were entering colleges and uni
versities with serious reading, writing
and mathematics deficiencies.
University-level teachers found
themselves confronted by freshman
students who read on a junior high
school level. Often the students
spend most of their freshman year
trying to learn what they should
have been taught years before. Re
medial courses began taking up so
much time for both teacher and stu
dent that the whole purpose of uni
versity education was perverted.
The fault was at the secondary
education level, for a variety of well
meant, noble reasons, including the
philosophy of affirmative action for
minorities.
Thus the burden was placed on
the shoulders of the colleges and uni
versities to remedy the deficiencies
of those students they had accepted
for enrollment.
As long as the universities
accepted the students there was no
reason for the secondary-level
schools to change their educational
philosophies. There was little pres
sure on the secondary school
teachers because the prevailing belief
wib that despite their students'
deficiencies, some universtiy would
accept them anyway.
Land-grant and state universities
traditionally have had the lowest en
trance standards and therefore have
had to carry the greatest burden of
remedial education.
But the burden now is being
returned to where it always should
have been. More colleges and uni
versities are revamping their admis
sions policies, which in turn reawak
ens secondary-level educators to
their responsibilities.
The University of Nebraska has an
obligation to the students who may
someday attend it, as well as to the
students already here. The only way
to fulfill that obligation is to formu
late an admissions policy which puts
pressure on Nebraska's secondary
education system. The university
must relieve itself of a burden it
has carried much too long.
v, j i S I I 11 I I I '
Television fails to reflect reality for black Americans
By Clyde Stearns
Recently I have been more and more disgusted with
the portrayal of black people on television. Television is a
very powerful media and influences millions of people
daily. Therefore, 1 find it distasteful that people find this
technological destruction of the black family humorous.
Personally, I fail to see any relevance to any of these, so
called, programs which depict black people as merely
someone to laugh at. Furthermore, these programs Jo not
Jepict a part of black life in America, they depict what we
refer to in social circles thoughout the ghetto as, "Whities
Black America". This means that black people on televi-
opinion
sion are not characterized as real people, but merely as the
result of an overly active and, if I might add. limited ima
gination. Let's take a look at how black people exist in
thi minds of white America.
No good times
Goo J Times is another program which depicts the
mother or head of the house as an Aunt Jemima-type
figure. Very seldom are black women presented in series
as the beautiful, it seems that they are also characterized
with minds of six year olds. Obviously, the writers of
these programs have a very distorted view of black people
as they exist in America and in the world for that matter.
The Jeffersons, one of the few programs with a nuclear
family unit, also holds true to most of the technological
stereotypes the television networks perpetuate through
their weekly programming. The large, well-rounded body
of the leading lady is standard, along with a loud -mouthed,
lazy, gossiping maid, and finally one of the very few
fathers in a black family on prime time television this sea
son. But, in order to hold true to their regular patterns of
destroying the positive image of the black male, the net
work develops George Jefferson as Archie Bunker's darker
brother. This leads me to believe that maybe individuals
are projecting their own feelings that successful business
men are basically bigots, which is obviously what Ameri
cans want to see since several of these programs are long
running and regular. These programs are seducing the
minds of our children and should not be allowed on tele
vision .
New trend
Now, there seems to be a new trend in television pro
gramming with ihe recent Bakke reverse discrimination
decision setting the tone. Since the Bakke decision, there
has been a decline in the attempt by white America to
rectify the setbacks inflicted on black people during
slavery, Reconstruction and even the '60s. All of these
were problems which developed as a result of the ignorant
individuals of those prospective times (eras). Since the
laws that have assisted in rectifying the problems that e
merged as a result of these perspective time periods have,
in so many words, been reversed, the television industry
seemed to have found it necessary to develop programs
which were geared toward leading the American people to
believe that the rectification process is on going and thus
relieving white America of their guilt feelings. This recent
trend of programs involve white people helping less for
tunate black people.
The ploy to divert the minds of America for living up
to its creed of giving all people an equal chance is evident
in two programs during prime time television this season.
These two programs are Different Strokes and The White
ShaJow. Both of these programs depict white Americans
dedicating themselves exclusively to the needs of their
darker constituents.
Intelligence insulted
Though Different Strokes is offensive, the greatest in
sult to our intelligence in found in the program The White
ShaJow. Hie White ShaJow is a program about a very
promising basketball player who. in so many words, gives
up his career in basketball to become a coach at Carver
High. Carver High, from what I could see. is
almost all black. The overwhelming majority of the stu
dents are black . the teaching staff is almost all black, even
the administration is black.. But Tlie White ShaJow, a
white man is characterized as the only individual at Carver
High School that can solve the problems that his players
may encounter during any given program. He not only
solves all the problems of his players at school, he also
solves them at home and in the streets too. As a matter of
fact, he is depicted as the only one who even cares what
happens to his players, family included. To top it all off.
the black staff and administration are characterized as the
individuals that constantly disrupt and eradicate the lives
of their own little brothers and sisters with total discon
cern for what happens to them ever. This program is a in
sult to me because we know that Jesus Christ died a long
time ago.
Perpetuating bad black
Programs such as the aforementioned ones are sublim
inally seducing the minds of ourselves and our children.
These programs are along with everything else in this so
ciety, perpetuating the bad attitude toward blacks, only
now there is a lot more involved than just the bad guy be
ing dressed in black, black magic evil, even the black
Continued on page 9
to the editor
As the peoples history shows, there will be no duration
for any government which does not belong to its people,
because it can't obviously satisfy people's need.
The shah's facist regime, which came into power by
the American arms and CIA coup in 1953, imprisoned and
tortured our people, and at last murdered them. But our
people who were living under a very bad condition for
years, showed how they could be successful in their
struggle for that many years, to send the treacherous shah
away on Jan. 16. 1979. The shah, who was very much
afraid of the people gaining power over him, fled from
Iran. But as a last hope, he arranged a meeting of the high
rank army officers on his last days to make some decisions
and tactics to bring him into power again . The following is
his speech which has been tape-recorded by one of his
army opponents:
"This is not the first time, during my reign, as you
know, that the recent incidents happen and still going on.
We have been confronted with the similar events, such as
the formation of democratic sect in Aarbyjan and
Kurdistan, coming to power of Mossadegh government,
people's struggle to nationalize oil industries and people's
saviour movement and fightings but by the help of my
father's experience and sincere cooperation of American
government, we had the ability to suppress all those
mentioned rebellions and stubbornesses done by the
people in order to overthrow the imperial constitution.
In spite of all these facts, the present situation is differ
ent from what we have so far experienced. Now we are
facing a much more immense and aware mass and this has
been approved by the absence of victory of our various
attempts and tactics executed for their suppression to re
turn back to the previous situation. As unfortunately
there have been revealed some hypocrisies and gaps inside
of the army, which is the only power to protect and
support the Imperial Constitution's constancy and benefit
and as I, afraid of not be able to reorganize it, so neces
sarily I arranged this meeting so that we can make some
policies and decisions for the continuation of my reign
and sovereignty in this country, which is tightly related to
the army 's support and protection.
As a matter of fact, there has been increase in the
number of the fugitive and revolutionary soldiers in gar -risons
and army areas and as the days pass, more high rank
army officers are murdered by the revolutionary people.
As a matter of fact, because of lack of confidence in the
arm . we asked for the help of local tribes to suppress the
rebellion of the people. Of course we had to give them
some concessions (vou know what they were) such as
giving them complete freedom to import smuggled goods
from the south and west of Iran, and also paving them a
l" "I rn..iie What do a these represent .' These" indicate
the scaltciing of the army on whom we spent huge
amounts of money for so many years to ask for their help
under the present circumstance's. But now we have to
revise it and purge it later, so that the armv has no more
dissatisfied members.
Continued on page 5