EDITOR Paula Lavigne OPINION EDITOR Matthew Waite EDITORIAL BOARD Erin Gibson Joshua Gillin Jeff Randall Julie Sobczyk Ryan Soderlin Our VIEW Relay race Only cooperation can defeat racism This Sunday, more than 100 communi ty leaders gathered at the First United Methodist Church to discuss perhaps the most uncomfortable topic of 1997. It wasn’t murder. It wasn’t assault. And it wasn’t the death penalty. But it is equally harmful to millions in the United States. The community leaders of every race, culture, religion and age gathered at the church for a conference held to discuss racism in Lincoln. They found, through three hours of dis cussion, that racism continues to thrive on our campus and in our community. And many people at the conference found they had been its perpetrators. White people in Nebraska have been subject to certain sweeping advantages, par ticipants realized - unfair advantages, like institutional racism, that judge those of the “wrong” color before a word leaves their mouths. Before their ideas are heard. Before they are hired. Before they are promoted. But the conference wasn’t designed by people of color to curse or blame white people. Leaders of all colors helped organize the conference, including ASUN President Curt Ruwe, Chancellor James Moeser and Associate Dean of Graduate Studies Ricardo Garcia. Those leaders designed the conference iths about racism imo ^op^jj&disi £ ^ * :T s * i&nd, W of therday, participants presented concrete plans to combat racism - plans that, if followed by everyone, would eliminate racism before the next cross could be burned or the next racial slur could leave a person’s lips. Plans such as: ■ Support affirmative action, which allows all races to share an equal opportu nity for success. ■ Speak when a friend or an acquain tance throws a racial epithet into a conver sation or tells a racist joke. ■ Invite other cultures to participate in the activities of your family, group or faith. ■ Bring churches of predominantly different races together for community service projects or events. The plans are simple. Most take no time or extra effort, only a desire to respect fellow humans. The willingness of conference leaders to represent the whole community, not just the community of those threatened by racism, was heartening. White leaders finally realized and admitted racism wasn’t a black problem. It wasn’t a red problem or a brown problem. Racism is everyone’s problem. And it will take the sweat of all races to end it. unionai rQiicy /an r am to TOrigBtom aril zi am l .iuj wsfcjneaegBotofsarame topmns of». the Fall 1997 Daily Nebraskan. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the 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. The Board of Regents serves as publisher of the Daily Nebraskan; policy is set by the Daily Nebraskan Editorial Board. The UNL Publications Board, established by the regents, supervises the production of the paper. According to policy set by the regents, responsibility for the editorial content of the newspaper lies solely in the hands of its student employees. QjjuJSjKtf^Sf^Sfnuvv aiUOC O: ♦.The JjaityNebraskan welcomes brief letters to the editor and guest columns, but does not guarantee their publication. The Daily Nebraskan retains the right to edit or reject any material submitted. Submitted material becomes property of toe Daily Nebraskan and cannot be returned. Anonymous submissions will not be published. Those who submit letters must identify themselves ty name, year in school, major and/or group affiliation, if any. Submit material to: Daly Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St. Lincoln, NE. 68588-0448. E-mail: letters@unlinto.unl.edu. : ■ I Haney’s VIEW i Hissy fit Cats in apartment no worse than kids CLIFF HICKS is a junior news-editorial and English major and a Daily Nebraskan columnist. “There’s no difference between a baby and a cat!” the long-haired young man says to his landlady. “There is too.” “OK, the cat doesn’t color on the walls.” “You’re not going to get us to budge.” “It says right here on the lease,” he says to her. “You may not have a pet in the apartment unless you get the management’s permission.” “Which we’re not going to grant to you.” “And you still can’t tell me why.” “I most certainly can,” says the woman who manages his apartment. “Cats leave bad odors.” “Have you ever smelled baby?” “Well, cats piss on the _A. W vaipw'i. “Can you say that D babies don’t do that?” “Rarely.” / IjX 5. Cats are qui- / ft ^ eter tnan children are.” II ft “Not cats in heat.” j Tne-cat be spayed of r r rS neutered. Children I hf scream and howl at II all hours of the _ night.” “But they’re sup- — posed to do that.” “And that justifies anything? They also run up and down the stairs early in the morning. I tell you that the neighbor kids wake me up incredibly early can’t _, I 1 quiet.” “Oh, a lot of good that’ll do. The parents will yell at us then.” “So ask diem politely.” “I did. They won’t listen.” “Well the point is that cats make a bigger mess than children do.” “I can tell that you haven’t been around kids.” “Look, you can have a pet in the apartment only if you have it in a cage.” “Does the same apply to chil dren?” “That’s inhumane,” she says to him. “It’s easier to scold a cat than it would be to scold a kid.” “How so?” “Do you honestly think I could get away with swatting a kid on the nose with a rolled up newspaper?” “Cats claw up fUmiture.” “So? It’s my furniture!” “But pieces of it get into our carpet.” “Look, you have a deposit from me that includes car- y/ / pet cleaning.” c i “Sir, I’m sorry but it really isn’t i an option.” “Why can’t you just charge a bit' more for our deposit so we can have one?” “There’s no guarantee,if y^did that it could cover the-damages your cat could inflict.” “Again, the same goes for kids.” “Ah, but there is no real way we could justify evicting someone on the basis of them having a child, codld we?” “So instead you have to aVfril yourself to attacking my cat.” “It says we have the right to do so in the contract.” “Remind me to see hoW many apartments smell of kids”, “Not as many as sihell of cats:” I ib i >o ■' 4\:$3 Aaron 9teckelber(VDN