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Panel discusses MalcolmX’s life
Leader challenged
Americans to face
racism, teacher says
By Mindy L. Leiter
Staff Reporter _
Spike Lee’s long-awaiicd film “X” is a
salute to Malcolm X’s legacy, panel
members said Sunday night during a
discussion on the black-nationalist leader in the
Nebraska Union Ballroom.
Keith Parker, an assistant professor of soci
ology at the University of Ncbraska-Lincoln,
said the five panel members were there to
discuss the meaning of Malcolm X and his life.
“Some of us arc loo young to remember,
some of us are loo old to forget what he meant
to us and what he continues to mean to us,”
Parker said. “But there arc those of us who are
active enough to know what the X symbolizes.”
Malcolm X gained prominence as a nation
alist leader in the Nation of Islam church under
the Honorable Elijah Muhammcd.
Thomas Christie, who teaches sociology
and African-American literature at Lincoln
High School, credited Malcolm X and Lee’s
movie with challenging people’s perceptions.
“A reporter asked me a question about the'
movie,” he said. “She asked, ‘If it were pro
duced by a European American, would it be
different?’
“I said, ‘Yeah, it would be the same if “Gone
With the Wind” had been produced by an
African American. It’s a matter of different
perceptions.’”
A problem today, he said, is that people
consistently refuse to confront racist attitudes
in themselves and others.
“Malcolm X made an attempt at honest
confrontation,” Christie said. “There were Eu
ropca/£^mericans who feared Malcolm, but 1
think they respected his commitment.”
Brother Adham Jabir Bahir, a UNL student
and Sunni Muslim, said Malcolm X profoundly
affected his life.
Bahir said his own study of Malcolm X and
his experiences as a Muslim countered stereo
types of Malcolm X as a “hate teacher.” J,
“For me, he is a symbol of love: love of self,
love of one God and protector of women,” he
said. “He taught me how to be a black man,”
i --—!
Malcolm X later broke with the Nation of
Islam and converted to orthodox Islam. He
changed his name to El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz
shortly before he was assassinated in 1965.
The sponsors of the panel discussion in
cluded the African-American Male Support
Group, The Racial Pluralism Action Team, the
Office of Multi-Cultural Affairs and the Is
lamic Foundation of Lincoln.
David Iaquinta, an associate professor of
sociology at Nebraska Wesleyan University,
said the reason Malcolm X was such a contro
versial figure was because he challenged people.
“He challenged the conception that we arc
good and charitable people,” he said. “The
history of the United Slates tells us different.”
By holding a position of privilege in this
country, Iaquinta said, people arc able lochoose
when they deal with the problems created by
racism — something Malcolm X chose to
address.
“It’s a privilege we extend to people when
they can choose to deal with racism and choose
when not to deal with it,” he said. “Here was a
man that didn’t give in.
“If you were in his presence, he made you
deal with racism.”
Scott Maurer/DN
Knock'n down the needles jui,aMikdajcik/DN
Charles MacLean, owner of MacLean’s Plnecrest Christmas Tree Farm in Blue Springs, cuts down a tree for a customer who
is getting an early start on Christmas decorating..
Regent upset,
calls meeting
‘clandestine’
By Susie Arth
Senior Reporter
NU Regent Rosemary Skrupa
of Omaha said she was disap
pointed with four regents for
meeting with University of Nebraska
President Martin Massengale last S un
day.
“I’m only upset in that half of the
board of regents was meeting in a
clandestine way,”
Skrupa said. “I
don’t think they
were playing
poker.”
Regent Charles
Wilson ofLincoln
said Massengale
and Regents John Payne of Kearney,
Don Blank of McCook and Nancy
Hoch of Nebraska City met at his
home to discuss Masscngalc’s up
coming April evaluation.
“I sec nothing wrong with that,”
Wilson said. “It is one of the ways the
board keeps itself informed.”
Payne, chairman of the board, said
the gathering dealt with university
personnel and was a private matter.
“Wediscussed university business,
which falls under personnel matters,”
Payne said.
Wilson said the meeting evolved
from a scries of one-on-one convcrsa
See REGENTS on 3
UNL makes4best values’ grade in top 101 list
By Chuck Green
Senior Reporter
he University of Ncbraska-Lincoln’s
inclusion in a recent listing of the
country’s top colleges and universities
will give a small boost to the university’s
national image, an official said.
But that compliment could be withdrawn
quickly if massive budget cuts are forced on
UNL, said Mike Mulnix, executive director of
university relations.
“We have to be able to back up what they say
about us on these lists,” he said. “That’s hard to
do if we can’t have reliable, sustained funding.”
UNL was included inalwok titled” 101 Best
Values in America’s Colleges and Universi
ties,” published by the Center for College En
rollment and Tuition Issues in Bridgewater,
Mass.
The center, which also publishes a newslet
ter for high school guidance counselors nation
Bubble may soon burst, official says
wide, compiles the book annually.
UNL also was included in last year’s book.
The “Best Values” book lists the 101 best
values of colleges and universities. Only 20-25
slate universities arc included in the list.
Creighton University is the only other Ne
braska college included in this year’s edition.
Lists including UNL as one of the country’s
lop institutions ol higher learning are important
to the school’s success, Mulnix said, but other
factors — such as money — are more impor
tant.
Slate Sen. Scott Moore of Seward, chairman
of the Nebraska Legislature’s Appropriations
Committee, said UNL could be facing across
the-board cuts of as much as 10 percent.
Such cuts would be disastrous for UNL’s
image, Mulnix said.
“There’s no question about it,” he said.
“Any time you make budget cuts of this mag
nitude, you make news just by taking the cuts,
and it hurts your image both nationally and
internationally.
“Any time you start tinkering and toying
with the budget, sooner or later, it’s going to
affect the way people look at you."
Herb Howe, associate to the chancellor, said
UNL’s appearance on such lists “can’t help but
be positive” for the university, particularly in
recruiting new students.
“There’s no question about it,” Howe said.
“High school students these days arc more
aggressive in checking out institutions, particu
larly when they’re from out of state.”
In September, however, UNL was included
in a U.S. News & World Report publication
tilled “America’s Best Colleges.” In that re
port, UNL was placed in the third quartile,
somewhere between 103 and 153 out of the
country’s 204 “national universities.”
“In the U.S. News & World Reports list, wc
were in the third category, which made us not
look as good as wc wanted to,” Mulnix said. “I
know that’s their best-selling issue of the year,
so a lot of people sec it, and it has a lot to do with
their perception of us.”
However, the “Best Values” book is not a
major seller at newsstands, Mulnix said, and it
probably won’t have much of an impact on
UNL’s national perception.
“(The “ Best Val ucs” book) isn ’ t goi ng to sel 1
a lot of issues, because it isn’t very widely
known," Mulnix said. “It’s nice to be in it, but
it really doesn’t do much for us.”
