OPINIONS DEAN GERRY RIPOSA
M
r. Morel y Cruz’s letter to the editor (March 19, 2008, V. 62, Iss. 08) concerning a political poster in my office was laced with uninformed, inconsistent, and ad hominem remarks. I appreciate the Union providing me the opportunity to respond and I will keep this brief. First, Mr. Morel y Cruz , you should be aware that since the 1960’s the U.S. Supreme Court, whether in a liberal or conservative cycle, has consistently supported freedom of pure speech and symbolic speech, especially in cases involving political statements and symbols. My poster of Che easily fits the Court’s criteria of strict scrutiny. Therefore, you do not have the right to dictate what political expression goes on anyone’s wall, including mine. Second, your uniformed description of my supposed motivations for displaying a poster of Che Guevara is presumptive. You know nothing about my social and philosophical reasons for hanging the poster. Pretending you do, regardless of your inflated rhetoric, does not infuse validity into your half-baked remarks. Third, your characterization of Che Guevara is one-dimensional. Ernesto Che Guevara could have chosen a much easier path in life. He could have pursued his career in medicine anywhere, enjoying an elite lifestyle. Instead, he worked with and acted on behalf of the poor. He also chose to actively fight against European and US imperialism that backed a string of brutal dictators and fed the oppression that kept thousands in Latin America and the Caribbean in abject poverty. While Che had a darker side of aggressiveness that prompted his words that to be a successful guerrilla
EMPTY POCKETS AND A WORTHLESS DEGREE WHY BEING THIS HUNGRY ALL THE TIME JUST ISN’T WORTH IT ERIN HICKEY
A hunger for knowledge is what drove me to college, but it’s a much more literal hunger that has me considering taking the bus to soup kitchens these days. In fact the only thing stopping me from doing just that is the ninety-cent bus fare. Yeah, I’ve considered donning old-lady makeup to get the senior citizen rate, but I can’t afford the new wardrobe, or the makeup for that matter. It’s no secret that college is expensive—we go to one of the cheapest options there is, but still most of our wallets are filled with cartoon moths. Budget school my ass. I’ve had to sit through countless professors rambling on about how the Cal State system is “the best bang for your buck.” Is there a regulated phrasebook full of alliterated dribble that all professors must memorize before teaching their first GE? Well I’m not buying it (alright, in fairness, I’m not buying much of anything these days, but still). College has always been expensive, but ten years ago a college degree actually meant something. A college education guaranteed you a high-paying job upon graduation. Now a college degree doesn’t mean jack shit. It’s the equivalent of having your GED. A
friend of mine had her job application turned down by Jamba Juice because several people with college degrees had applied for the same position. So basically, you need a college degree to work a minimum wage job. Awesome. Even scarier than that is the fact that college graduates are applying for these minimum wage jobs—it means there’s nothing else out there. If a Bachelor’s degree won’t get you a livable wage, it seems your only option is graduate school. Great. Not only will you be forced to pay even more money for yet another degree, but chances are that by the time you graduate, a Master’s degree will be just as obsolete as a Bachelor’s. But don’t worry—waste only a few more years of your life and tens of thousands of dollars and you can have a Doctorate! Of course, by then those will be worthless too. Go figure. Up until the mid ‘80s, when you graduated high school, people would ask, “Are you going to college?” Now the question is, “What college are you going to?” Pretty soon it will be, “What field do you plan to get your PhD in?” I blame the high school counselors. One day, twenty years ago, some
high school counselor decided it would be a good idea to encourage all students to go to college instead of just the promising ones. Other high schools caught wind of this and picked up the practice. Not going to college was no longer an option, college degrees became common, and here we are. As children, we were the future. The future’s here and now we’re just screwed. Oh, you believe in me, high school counselor? You think that every single one of my classmates and I can and should go to college? Yeah, well thanks a fucking lot. Teachers, counselors and parents often justify the cost of college with the high-paying jobs your degree will open the doors to. “Once you get your dream job, you’ll be able to pay off all those loans you took out and then some,” they parrot back to us. Of my fifteen friends who have graduated, two have pretty decent jobs, six work jobs that just barely pay the bills, three work jobs that don’t pay the bills, and four are unemployed. None of these friends got their “dream jobs.” I don’t like those odds. I’m not asking for six figures, just a steady job that allows me to live at a reasonably comfortable level. Doesn’t seem like too much to ask of a college degree, but apparently it is. Heck, I’d even settle for not being on welfare. If only the government would start building fewer universities and more soup kitchens. UNION WEEKLY
9 APRIL 2008
ANDREW WILSON
A RESPONSE TO GERARD MOREL Y CRUZ’S “WHAT HAS CHE DONE FOR YOU” (3/19)
revolutionary one had to become “an efficient and selective” killing machine, he also had the capacity for great compassion and respect for human life, even for a vanquished enemy solider. His role in the over throw of Cuba’s dictator Batista is undisputable, but Che saw this victory as only one step in the larger fight again imperialism that sucked the resources out of developing nations. This drive would cost him his life in Bolivia where he was wounded, captured, and later murdered by the US-backed Barrientos dictatorship. Since his death in 1967, he has become an international symbol for taking action— not necessarily violence—to eradicate class oppression. More than simply pop art, as you suggest, Che also symbolizes for many the courage to engage in seemingly overwhelming social, economic and political challenges. No one who seriously looks at Che’s life will find the perfect revolutionary; yet, they will find a person who blended realism with idealism in his endeavor to change the world. But perhaps his charisma, his continued attraction especially for the young, is best summed by a quote written in the mid-1960’s: “Neither will President Johnson, our senators, our policemen, our school administrators and most of our teachers. That is why they cannot communicate with our youth. But Che can. He did and will continue to do so. He was a romantic. He lived and died for others—for a better world, a world where people can really love, instead of just ‘coming to terms,’ just compromising. That is why Che is so popular among young America. That is why he is not dead (Gerassi, 1968).” While we disagree, Mr. Morel Y Cruz, I do want to thank you for motivating me to review a number of materials covering the actions and speeches of Che. For a broader understanding of Che Guevara and his contributions to social change, I recommend that you register for a course this fall, Radical Social Analysis, to be taught in Anthropology.
Illustrations
UNDERSTANDING CHE GUEVARA