Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (April 15, 1998)
SPORTS_ Looking for pancakes Center Josh Heskew, who recorded 116 pancake blocks last season, is the only returning starter on the Husker offensive line. PAGE 9 A&E Holding back Local punk-rock trio the Manics will probably be a little more reserved than usual when they per form tonight at Knickerbockers. PAGE 11 WEDN ;s: AY April 15, 1998 Taxing Conditions Blustery, chance of rain, high 60. Windy tonight, low 35. VOL. 97 COVERING THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN SINCE 1901 NO. 140 Session ends in a flurry By Todd Anderson Assignment Reporter Facing the last day of this year's legislative session Tuesday, senators passed 32 bills, including Gov. Ben Nelson's tax-cut package and a con troversial school-spending bill. It marked the end of the 95th leg islative session, one that Nelson called a success. He and senators said they were proud of the w ork the Legislature completed this year. Despite his criticism of the spending increases passed by the Legislature this year, the governor praised the Legislature in a press conference late Tuesday afternoon. "T he Legislature gets high marks when it comes to tax cutting." Nelson said. i_>ui men mdiK^ aicn i iiilhi un the spending side," he said. Speaker Doug Kristensen of Minden also commended senators for their hard work and dedication. “Don't let anyone criticize you.” Kristensen said. “It's easy to sit in the coffee shops and the board rooms and be a Monday quarterback. But you sat here and listened to the debate and voted w ithout the luxury of second-guessing." Among the many bills passed Tuesday were two that w'ill decrease both state income and sales taxes. LB 1028, which passed 45-2, will make permanent the 5 percent income tax reduction that was origi nally designed to last only two years. In addition, measures allowing taxpayers to add an extra S10 to their income tax deductions and permit taxpayers who are self-employed to deduct 100 percent of their health insurance costs were extended indef initely. The bill also includes an increase in the child care income tax credit. Please see ADJOURN on 7 MASA president leads way Editor's note: In honor of Chicano Aw areness Week, the Daily Nebraskan w ill profile three Chicano leaders at the university and in the community who want to make a difference for the people, for the future. By Lindsay Young Assignment Reporter Ciabrielle Dalton hasn't had to j deal with the racism many of her friends in the Mexican American Student Association hav e. Because she doesn't look like a minority. Dalton, who is Mexican and white, said she doesn't usually experi ence "all the political correctness that people put on when in front of minori ties and take off when they are not.” "This is what makes me unique. 1 am biracial,” said Dalton, president of MASA. one ndb d ueninu-ine-beencb pubi tion - she said she hears the things white people wouldn't normally say if an obvious minority were in the room. “I hear a lot of the closet racism,'' she said. “People don't realize I'm Mexican.” Because she hasn't been affected personally by racism, Dalton, 22, said this may be the reason she has been more outspoken when talking about issues minorities face at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Dalton has been involved exten sively with working toward better recruitment and retention techniques in her job at the UNL Office of Admissions and her college, the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. Please see DALTON on 7 Daniel Luedert/DN GABRIELLE DALTON LISTENS to Gov. Ben Nelson discuss filling positions to represent Nebraska’s Hispanic population needs. Dalton is shadowing Cecilia Olivarez Huerta, executive director of Lincoln’s Mexican American Commission, for a class project, and meetings with the governor are part of her week. Meeting to bring racial problems to light By Brad Davis Senior Reporter UNL students say only a no-holds barred conversation with federal offi cials examining the campus racial cli mate this week will produce positive change. Gabrielle Dalton, president of the Mexican American Student Association, said she would indeed tell all in her meeting with the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights today. “It’s really a chance for us to get our perceptions out,” she said. “We're going to be as helpful as we can be as far as helping them understand what is going on.” Past incidents that contributed to the deterioration of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's racial climate have caused the federal government to step in this week, officials said. But a spokesman from OCR said his group’s meetings with UNL offi cials and students were meant to shine positive light on several negative situa tions. Rodger Murphey, a spokesman from the U.S. Department of Education, said three representatives from the civil rights office are examin ing UNL’s policies for handling racial complaints. Highly publicized incidents that some people interpreted as racist were part of what caused the group to review UNL’s racial climate, Murphey said. Events that have been called racist in the past include Sigma Chi’s cross burning during a fraternity ritual in spring 1997 and English Professor David Hibler’s e-mail that included the word “nigga” earlier this semester. Unofficial complaints that were filed in Murphey s office by unidenti fied people associated writh UNL also contributed to the review, he said. “We got some information from people who contacted us yet did not file a formal complaint,” Murphey said. UNL is not the only university involved in a racial climate review. Murphey said the University of Vermont also has federal officials on campus. The University of Nebraska at Omaha will undergo a review within the next few months. Though the federal government’s civil rights office evaluates schools on a regular basis, Murphey said, this review is one that was triggered by past racial incidents. This is the first time UNL has been Please see REVIEW on 8 Read the Daily Nebraskan on the World Wide Web at http://www.unl.edu/DailyNeb figure r;i El Fuliir<»