1
EDITOR
Paula Lavigne
OPINION
EDITOR
Jessica Kennedy
EDITORIAL
BOARD
Erin Gibson
Joshua Gillin
Jeff Randall
Julie Sobczyk
Ryan Soderlin
Our
VIEW
Standing
down
f
Administration needs
to announce new policy
On Saturday, two Daily Nebraskan
reporters walked through the stands of South
Stadium and talked to fans about the new
policy requesting fans stand in the footwells,
rather ihqn on the bleachers of Memorial
Stadiums
And although they tound most students
obeyed the policy, and most non-stucfents
was thrilled over students’ compliance, some
fans in section 12 were still causing a prob
lem for the non-students seated above them.
In fact, that handful of non-students were
downright livid that, although most students
obeyed the new policy, the few who still sit in
the little sliver called section 12 were so
intent on inconveniencing the fans above
them.
But when the reporter asked the first ones
standing on section 12 bleachers why they
were causing the most problematic chain
reaction of bleacher-standing, those fans said
they were visiting from Norfolk and knew
nothing of the “stand down” policy.
Unfortunately, because these visiting
fans sat in the student section, they made stu
dents appear responsible for causing the
bleacher-standing inconvenience that could
result in students losing their seats.
But can these Norfolk fans be blamed?
No. They didn’t know of the new policy,
not because they were ignorant, but because
they had never been told by an authority.
To fault the Athletic Department, the pol
icy has never been announced at a football
game, and only students have received
“stand down” warnings with their tickets.
ii s enougn 10 maxe students wonder n
the goal is to keep non-students in the dark
about the policy and cause student seats to
move to the top of South Stadium.
If student seats do move because of a lack
of information and enforcement of the poli
cy, the punishment must fit the crime.
That crime was limited to the bottom,
east side of section 12. Those students who
now sit below these fans could be moved to
the few seats they inconvenience.
According to non-students sitting in sec
tions 13,14 and 15, students below stand in
the footwells of their rows and do not
obstruct their view of the playing field.
Therefore, if the Athletic Department
decides to move all student seats next fall
without ever announcing the “stand down”
policy at a football game, the move will be
both unnecessary and unfair.
How ironic from an Athletic Department
that displays its commitment to fairness in an
inscription on the northwest wall of
Memorial Stadium:
“Courage; Generosity; Fairness; Honor;
In these are the true rewards of manly sport.”
Editorial Policy
Unsigned editorials are the opinions of
the Fafl 1997 Daily Nebraskan. They do
not necessarily reflect the views of toe
University of Nebraska-Lincoln, its
employees, its student body or the
University of Nebraska Board of Regents.
A column is solely the opinion of its author.
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Haney’s
VIEW
HL, Vlg'Vc fcorTHKi
k«u> iN*r 6ewMtf SPifs
IMS TURN OUR. ATtOJTiflN
ISUt* TO THAT “ CUBAN
1 stIp^^R 1W Ri««ans
‘ IMVfcWfc 1H6 MIDWEST^
Breaking the silence
Women, men must take night back
i-mm™—
ALEXIA SCOTT is a
senior biological sciences
major and a Daily
Nebraskan columnist.
Wednesday night I invite you to
join in breaking the silence of
Lincoln’s streets. I encourage you to
join in chorus with the voices of
women who are tired of being told
that they must live in fear. These
voices will ring strong and proud as
the Take Back the Night march and
candlelight vigil lights up the steps
of the Capitol.
This annual occurrence causes
me to think about the parameters
my femaleness places upon how I
live my life. I have been trained not
to be out alone at night, always to
be aware of who is around me, to be
alert for ways to escape a situation,
not to trust the smile of a stranger.
In essence, I have been repeatedly
told that I am not capable of taking
care of myself because I am a
woman.
Amid all the messages that
women are sent, the lesson of
silence has always been stressed.
This muting of the female voice
results in only a frightening 10 per
cent of campus sexual assaults
■ being reported. Why? Because
women are told to withstand their
pain and suffering, or endure the
endless questioning of they; actions
and character, which may have led
to their assault. Take Back the 0
Night is about women voicing their ?
anger, frustration and sfcengths,
Why do we as a socifcty allow
for half our population) be impris
oned by the dangers that tne^aai-',
ness of night brings? Why do we
not speak up to protect the very *
people who bring life into this
Why do we as a society allow for half our
population to be imprisoned by the dangers
that the darkness of night brings? ”
world? When will we stand in uni
son and declare that it is not accept
able for women and children to be
beaten, raped, threatened and
humiliated?
You have all heard the statistics:
One in four college students will be
the victim of a rape or an attempted
rape. Most of these women will be
assaulted by someone whom they
know, and often trust, like a date, a
friend, or even a partner. They will
face the trauma of medical testing
for HIV, pregnancy and numerous
sexually transmitted diseases. They
will agonize over decisions involv
ing the morning-after pill and abor
tion. And they will do it in the con
fidence of an advocate from
theRape/Spouse Abuse Crisis
Center and a close friend, if they are
fortunate.
1 mmc tor a moment about what
these statistics really mean. In real
numbers, it means that of the
13,703 women at UNL last year,
3,426 will face a rapist in their life
times. That means 343 cases will be
reported, but only seven of those
cases will ever be prosecuted —
leaving 3,419 Women to suffer
without relief, and that many
attackers out on the street waiting
for another victim. Look around
your lecture room, your residence
hall floor, and your pledge class
with the knowledge that the lives of
. many of the women you see will be
touched by this violence in the
upcoming years.
Sexual assault is only the b^in
\ ning of the violence that women
r face in otir society. Between 1995
and 1996 there were 3,844 new
‘ cases of domestic violence reported
in Nebraska. That is an average of
10.5 new cases every day in
Nebraska alone. These reports
encompass violence that can occur
over a period of years on a monthly,
weekly, or all too often, daily basis.
The women who suffer at the hands
of this violence are cut, bruised,
burned and shot — but more impor
tantly, they are humiliated and
devalued. Frequently, their children
watch and live in this violence,
often becoming part of the abuse
themselves. And society turns its
head, giving unspoken approval to
the shattering of these women.
Take Back the Night is as much
about men as it is about women. It
is about men who are strong enough
to stand up for their wives, mothers,
friends and daughters. Men who
embrace their responsibility to the
women that they respect, honor and
love, and boldly say that violence
against women is not acceptable. To
declare that women are valued in
our world and that to abuse them is
to not be a man.
So, with all the numbers staring
us in the face, what do we do?
Marching to the Capitol to take
back the night is a beginning. From
today on we need to make a pledge,
woman to woman, that we will not
live our lives in fear. We will not
stand by while our sisters are tor
tured, tormented and killed. We will
stop our children from witnessing
this violence, and thus prevent its
perpetuation. We will hold our
police and courts accountable for
the protection that we do and do not
receive. And we will find the
strength to do more than just sur
vive within each other. We will not
shroud ourselves in silent suffering.
Take Back the Night begins at 7
p.m. Wednesday outside the union.
I will be looking forward to seeing
and hearing you there.