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APRIL 4, 2007
WEDNESDAY
VOLUME 96, ISSUE 72
Lecture explores Jesus’ role in Islam By Molly Berkenhoff The University Star
Monty Marion/Star photo JESUS TALK: Siraj Wahaj, leader of the Al-Taqwa mosque in Brooklyn, speaks to a standing room-only lecture hall Tuesday in Evans Liberal Arts about the legacy of Jesus and Muslim viewpoints of him.
Students packed into a standing-room only lecture hall Tuesday to attend the Muslim Student Association’s event “Jesus: What did he actually say?” featuring guest speaker Imam Siraj Wahaj. “Our purpose tonight is not to argue or debate,” said Wahaj at the beginning of his lecture. “It is not to say that Christians are wrong or anything like that at all. Our purpose is to give the Islamic perspective of the great Jesus.” Wahaj, a prominent Islamic activist, devoted much of his lecture emphasizing Jesus is well loved and respected in Islamic faith. Much of the information provided in the Bible as to the life of Jesus, Wahaj said, is mentioned in very similar terms in the Quran. Wahaj cited several references to Jesus and miracles he performed during his lifetime in the Quran that the Bible does not mention. Raised as a Baptist in New York, Wahaj said the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. affected him deeply in his decision to convert to Islam. Wahaj was a See ISLAM, page 4
Darfur refugees speak out By Ashley Gwilliam The University Star Caesar Ricci was seen as a hero as he walked through the Gaga refugee camp of 2,000 people. Mothers assumed he was a doctor and handed him their children so he could heal them. Women invited him into their tents to offer him what little to drink they had. Smiling children curiously crowded around him to run their fingers through his hair and to say hello. He said he felt guilty knowing the world was doing very little to help the Darfurians and all he could do was take their pictures. Interfaith Darfur Coalition member Ricci chronicled his two weeks spent in Eastern Chad at the Gaga refugee camp Tuesday at the LBJ Teaching Theater. He discussed the Darfurian’s ongoing genocide at the Common Experience event “Speaking Out About the Darfur Genocide.” Ricci said his concern started in 1998 as a freshman in college. “Right now I am 28,” he said. “Af-
ter way too long I was able to make the trip to Eastern Chad.” Ricci said he sought out refugees living in the area to get first-hand accounts of what was really happening. “What we read about on the news seems so far away,” he said. “You feel bad, but you have a lot of stuff going on in your life.” The Darfurians have been targeted in an ethnic cleansing campaign by the Sudanese government since 2003, in cooperation with the Janjaweed Arab militia. The Janjaweed is made up of nomadic Arab groups hired by the government to kill the Darfurian men and boys, rape wives and mothers, throw children in fires and burn villages. Ricci said for some reason, Arab groups who immigrated to the area came up with the idea they were superior and had a right to the land. “They initially lived in the desert and have slowly been trying to acquire southern land,” he said. Ricci said the conflicts used to be individually resolved, but the Sudanese government eventually sided
with the Arabs and began supporting the attacks and providing the Arab groups with weapons. Eventually, the Darfurians attacked the Sudanese government and instead of making negotiations, the government responded with the ethnic cleansing campaign. “I should tell you the Darfurian people are 100 percent Muslim,” he said. “They pray five times a day and practice all the Muslim rituals. They are being attacked by a government, which also identifies itself as being Muslim. They feel like they have been abandoned by the Muslim world.” Ricci showed the refugees have the same human wants and needs as Americans do with a slideshow featuring pictures of the refugees he met. He narrated photographs of refugee children with glazed over and blinding eyes, with severe burns left untreated and with paralyzed Jon Clark/Star photo legs due to the unavailability of PoDARFUR AWARENESS: African refugees James Dogale lio vaccines. See DARFUR, page 4
(left) and Mustafa Abbarar speak Tuesday in the LBJ Teaching Theater about the conditions in the Darfur region.
Council raises alcohol abuse awareness through event By Ashley Gwilliam The University Star The Hays Caldwell Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse will offer free, anonymous screenings for alcohol-related disorders from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday at the San Marcos Library. The event is a part of National Alcohol Screening Day. It is an effort to help people recognize the signs of alcohol abuse and to offer treatment options. “National Alcohol Screening Day gives you the opportunity to look at your own drinking and how it might be affecting your life in a variety of ways,” said Sue Cohen, executive director of the Hays Caldwell Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. “Through education, awareness and understanding, you can make informed decisions about your drinking behavior.” According to the National Alcohol Screening Day Web site, efforts reached more than 100,000 individuals nationwide in 2006. Although the day is an annual event, this is the first year it will be recognized in San Marcos. Patti Wenk, prevention resource center coordinator, said the council wanted to participate in the past and that she was glad that Cohen and Carla Merritt, programs coordinator, came together and decided this was a resource San Marcos needed. Attendees will have the option of completing a brief written questionnaire that will ask them questions about their drinking habits and if they are on any type of medications. Cohen said many people are not aware of the dangers involved when mixing alcohol with certain medications. “(The questionnaire) is not necessarily to identify if people are alcoholics or not,” she said. “It’s to identify any problem or behavior that might be putting them at risk.” The screening staff will assess the questionnaires in order to see which individuals need additional assistance. Attendees will be able to talk privately with a healthcare professional about their results and, if necessary, take the necessary See AWARENESS, page 4
C-SPAN goes on national tour in news-oriented super bus By Scott Thomas The University Star The C-SPAN Campaign 2008 Bus came to San Marcos Tuesday, first making a stop at The Quad to take questions from students and then moving on to the San Marcos Activity Center later in the day. Students and other visitors were allowed on the bus and to ask any questions they had about politics, the media or running a 24-hour news network. “We really want to talk to students about the upcoming presidential election and help them understand that if they need to get the full picture of what each candidate is talking about or where they are they can always turn to C-SPAN,” said C-SPAN representative Rebecca Stewart. “We don’t always expect to be their first choice, but we certainly want them to know that we’re available to give them access to their government 24 hours a day, seven days a week without any
kind of commentary. (It’s) uncut, unbiased (and) completely raw.” Donna Hill, who works for Time Warner Cable in San Marcos and traveled with the bus to its two San Marcos locations, said the bus crew answered a variety of questions from more than 50 students while on campus. Time Warner Cable and Grande Communications sponsored the bus visit to San Marcos. “I actually came out here for a class,” said Megan Roper, public relations senior. “But it’s kind of cool too, it’s not every day that C-SPAN comes to San Marcos.” The bus is used by C-SPAN for community outreach and as a working mobile production studio where candidates and politicians can be interviewed. The bus has held many prominent figures in politics, including two presidents: George W. Bush, when he was governor of Texas, and Bill Clinton, while he was still in office. “January 17 we launched in Iowa,
Today’s Weather
Scattered T-Storms 72˚/55˚
Precipitation: 40% Humidity: 70% UV: 7 High Wind: NE 16 mph
and we’ve been in eight states since then,” Stewart said. “Every day we have at least two to three different stops.” With 15 different candidates competing for the 2008 presidency, and more expected to announce their bids, it is difficult for media outlets to give all candidates equal coverage. However, C-SPAN claims it will give all candidates equal coverage to the best of their abilities. “We are non-partisan and non-biased, so we don’t find it difficult (to give equal coverage) because it is part of our mission,” Stewart said. “It’s an exciting time, but it’s certainly a time where the decision to have an informed vote is the most important one to us.” With all the candidates running for the White House, viewers may Monty Marion/Star photo find it difficult to keep track of who is running in the primaries, espe- CROSS-COUNTRY TOUR: Doug Hemming, C-SPAN community relations representacially with more popular candidates tive, talks to a group of students Tuesday in the C-SPAN Campaign 2008 Bus in The
Two-day Forecast Thursday Mostly Cloudy Temp: 73°/ 53° Precip: 10%
Friday Isolated T-Storms Temp: 68°/ 53° Precip: 30%
See C-SPAN, page 4
Quad. Hemming answered questions from students on all aspects of the network from funding, to the quest for unbiased coverage and how to be a critical television viewer.
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