Papa, don’t preach
Wrangled
‘Cats sweep Cowboys in three-game series/Sports/Page 10
Bunnies, brooms & Ashton What do these things have in common? They make you laugh/Amusements/Page 7
Pledge of Allegience, 1st Amendment don’t meet parchment to parchment/Opinions/Page 5
TUESDAY
VOLUME 93, ISSUE 67 www.universitystar.com
MARCH 30, 2004
BUILDING THE COMMUNITY T E X A S
S T A T E
U N I V E R S I T Y - S A N
M A R C O S
ASG practices at question
Students, residents work together to clean up San Marcos
Student dismayed about ASL classes, public forum policy
D
By David Michael Cohen Special to The Star
By Amelia Jackson News Reporter
efying an ominous sky of steel-gray clouds, more than 1,000 Texas State students crowded the Bobcat Village Apartments parking lot at 8:30 a.m. Saturday to build a better San Marcos. Dainon Deviney, Student Volunteer Connection’s graduate adviser, estimates about 1,500 students volunteered to participate in the second annual Bobcat Build. The event, a community service day in which students worked at 49 job sites around San Marcos, brought out about twice as many volunteers as last year. SVC members, who helped organize the event, distributed free refreshments and T-shirts during a pre-event rally that included a disc jockey and speeches by Mayor Robert Habingreither, state District 45 Rep. Patrick Rose and Texas State football coach David Bailiff. The volunteers, often grouped by student organizations, offered services such as painting the dining room and washing the minibus at the Merrill Gardens Assisted Living retirement community and soliciting donations door-to-door for the Oak Heights Neighborhood Food Drive. “I think it’s a tremendous turnout,” Rose said. “It’s a testament to our great university and the students who are here, and how much they’re involved in the community.” He said the food pantry-related work done by students was especially close to his heart. “This economy that we have right now underscores the need for folks outside of government to get involved too, as these students are doing,” he said. Habingreither, who is the Texas State technology department chair, told the crowd of volunteers that by participating in Bobcat Build they were solidifying the relationship between g See BUILD, page 4
Andrew Nenque/Star photo
International Festival exposes university to diverse cultures By Jehan Emara Special to The Star
The desire to create a mutual bond between peoples of different continents and cultures is the motivation behind an event today that features belly dancers and salsa troupes. The International Student Association’s annual International Festival takes place at 6 p.m. at the LBJ Student Center Ballroom. There will be activities such as Henna tattoo-
ing, belly and salsa dancing and a fashion show showcasing clothing from various countries. “People seldom have the chance to experience other cultures at the same time,” said Misa Oshima, association treasurer and accounting junior. “The festival is a chance to travel all around the world in just a few hours and become more aware that there is an increasing number of international students of different nationalities and religions on campus who harbor
Izabel Wills, above, picks through shrubs in The Quad and finds several cigarette butts to fill her bucket. Left, Allison Elliott of the Student Diatetic Association assists with cleaning out flower beds at River Springs Retirement Center on Thorpe Lane.
Don Anders/Media Relations photo
different traditions.” Robert Habingreither, San Marcos mayor and technology chair, is expected to speak during the event and surprise the participants and the association with a special presentation. International students will wear clothing from their native countries that represent beliefs and traditions that grew throughout the centuries. “We will proudly wear our g See FESTIVAL, page 3
A disgruntled student articulated his dissatisfaction with the Associated Student Government and alleged impropriety by the cabinet during its Monday meeting. George Restivo, history senior, expressed his dismay that ASG has not been able to implement American Sign Language courses at Texas State. He also accused Justin McGarry, ASG vice president, of abusing his power in denying Restivo adequate time in which to address the Senate. “Starting next year, I am going to try to bring a sense of realism to student government,” Restivo said. “I have seen a lot of abuse, and only a few Senators serve through the full year.” He said he would be contacting the Equity Office after the election in regards to the issues with which he sees problems. Restivo is upset with the policies of the Senate that limit students to five minutes to speak during its public forum, with a two-minute rebuttal. He said he has been attending ASG meetings since October and does not feel he has been given fair time to share his views and ideas with the Senate. Senators expressed anger at Restivo’s comments and encouraged him to become involved with ASG instead of merely
Martin Luther King Jr.’s name is often considered synonymous with the Civil Rights movement, but not everybody knows the name of the man who led the fight for MexicanAmericans civil liberties. Cesar Chavez is arguably one of the most influential people to Mexican-American culture, using many of the same non-violent tactics that Martin Luther King Jr. used, but he remains a lesser-known figure, despite all he achieved. The Texas State community honors his legacy this week with Cesar Chavez Week, hosted by the Multicultural Student
Affairs office, the Latino Coalition, the Underrepresented Student Advisory Council and the Multicultural Programming Committee. The week features events to celebrate diversity on campus and encourage awareness of Chavez and his accomplishments. “It’s to celebrate and commemorate Cesar Chavez’s life but to also remember the role that he played in fighting for farm workers’ rights and creating a voice for them,” said Stella Silva, MSA assistant director. “He worked on the rights in terms of pay and better working conditions.” The week officially began Monday with a ceremony in the LBJ Student Center Amphi-
theater, sponsored by the Association of Mexican American Students. Tuesday will include an exhibit on the third floor of the LBJSC about the United Farm Workers Union and will include photographs of workers in the fields. The exhibit runs through the end of the week, hosted by the Alkek Library’s Special Collections. At 7 p.m. guest speaker Martha Cortera, one of the first Chicana activists of the 1960s, will give a presentation about Chavez and his accomplishments in the LBJSC Teaching Theater. Cortera knew Chavez personally, and she still serves g See CHAVEZ, page 4
g See ASG, page 3
Ethical journalism focus of lecture By Ryan Coggin News Reporter A once-plagiarized staff writer for the San Antonio Express-News emphasized the importance of accuracy and respect in journalism during a speech titled “The Ethics of Writing and The New York Times” on Wednesday. More than 70 students listened to Macarena Hernandez as she spoke about the value of “humanizing” people when writing their stories, and described a recent incident in which Jayson Blair, a New York Times reporter, plagiarized her
writing. Her lecture was part of Mass Communication Week 2004. “If you leave with anything today, it’s about respecting the people you write about,” Hernandez told the audience, which included visiting high school students from the Vidal M. Treviño School of Communications and Fine Arts in Laredo. The La Joya, Texas, native who began studying law at Baylor University, said she found her calling while working for the school’s yearbook.
WORD
g See ETHICAL, page 3
I N S I D E
Amusements....................7 Classifieds........................8
Texas State hosts Cesar Chavez Week to honor his civil rights activism By Jennifer Warner Senior Reporter
attending meetings. “It’s a lot easier to criticize a leader than to be one,” said Mikaila Bell, geography senior. McGarry said he was very concerned by Restivo’s accusations. This years’ ASG has been the first in many years to institute a public forum, McGarry said. In addition to the public forum at the meetings, he pointed out the opendoor policy and availability of the ASG president and vice president. “My responsibility as vice president is to run Senate meetings with order and take care of student business,” McGarry said. “I’ve missed class to have the opportunity to meet with students (during office hours), but the Senate meetings are formal business.” He also said the Senate has been willing to work with Restivo and they have brought his concerns to President Denise Trauth and her cabinet. In an e-mail before the meeting, Restivo further alleged Ernie Dominguez, ASG president, provided presidential candidate and Senate clerk Jerry Parker with questions before the presidential debates and did not provide them to candidate Chris Fields. After the meeting, Dominguez denied providing Parker with the debate questions and clarified that he did not even show the questions to McGarry before the debate began. Dominguez also said he faced similar accusations from his opponent last year, and they were unfounded then as well. He said he would be open to having the debates conducted by an outside
Comics/Crossword........7 News.............................2-4 Opinions...........................5
Sports...........................9,10 Trends...............................6
Today’s Weather
High: 80 Lo w : 53
AM Clouds/PM Sun
Andrew Nenque/Star photo Greg Williams and Chris Lynch test their sound equipment before their band The Word Association opens at Lucy’s on The Square Thursday. See Trends page 6 for more.
Wind: From SE at 5 mph Precipitation: 0% Max. Humidity: 74% UV Index: 9 High
Wednesday’s Forecast Partly cloudy 78/59