AIN’T NO THANG hi
60° |
lo
MONDAY
47°
may 2, 2011
t h e i n de pe n de n t s t u de n t n e w spa pe r of s y r acuse , n e w yor k
INSIDE NEWS
Running wild Habitat for
Humanity and OrangeAID raise more than $1,000 for charity in the second May Day 5K run. Page 3
Obama confirms bin Laden’s death; campus reacts By Jon Harris ASST. NEWS EDITOR
Osama bin Laden, the longtime leader of al-Qaeda behind the 9/11 attacks, was killed in a firefight during an operation inside Pakistan, President Barack Obama announced in a press conference late Sunday. Obama said U.S. officials were in possession of bin Laden’s body. A small team of U.S. operatives launched a “targeted operation” Sunday under Obama’s direction, on a compound
in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad, where bin Laden was hiding, Obama said. Bin Laden was killed after the firefight, and the troops then took custody of his body, Obama said. Bin Laden’s death comes nearly a decade after al-Qaeda coordinated attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, which killed almost 3,000 U.S. citizens. Sunday’s news would “bring justice” to bin Laden, Obama said. “The American people did not choose
INSIDE OPINION
this fight,” he said. “It came to our shores and started with the senseless slaughter of our citizens.” The death brings closure to what the military has fought for, said Sean Galloway, president of the Student Veterans Club at Syracuse University. Galloway fought in Iraq for eight months in 2005. “We put our lives on the line to defend this country, to defend what happened in New York City, and the bad guy’s gone,” said Galloway, a junior manage-
Orange Editorial Board calls for a greater effort to involve students in SA’s smokefree campus initiative. Page 5
By Liz Sawyer and Debbie Truong
INSIDE PULP
THE DAILY ORANGE
Out of sync Although this
year’s musical acts were popular, Block Party dragged on for audience members. Page 9
lauren murphy | staff photographer Students cram against the barriers in the MayFest celebration in Walnut Park during The Cataracs performance Friday. More than 4,000 students attended the second university-sanctioned event during the course of the day.
All that remains The Syracuse
men’s soccer team went through spring practice with a roster of just 17 players. Page 24
SEE BIN LADEN PAGE 6
MAYFEST 2011 Event at Walnut Park becomes more accepted
Smoke and mirrors The Daily
INSIDE SPORTS
ment major. Galloway woke up right before Obama’s announcement and described the news as “awesome.” He said bin Laden’s death was the whole point of going to war. “It’s not going to stop now, but we got him,” he said. Sara Bittar, a master’s student studying public administration from Lebanon, said U.S. citizens needed the news of bin Laden’s death because he was behind the
Student participation increased at the second university-sanctioned MayFest in Walnut Park Friday, reflecting how the event is becoming more of a Syracuse University tradition. Even with temperatures in the mid-50s and spurts of light rain, students were not deterred from Walnut. Students reported going to Walnut to see entertainment acts or going to the park before heading to Euclid Avenue, where the MayFest block party has traditionally been held independent of SU. MayFest began at 1 p.m. and Student Association President Neal Casey said he saw more students present within the
SEE WALNUT PAGE 8
Cold weather tames Euclid crowds By Laurence Leveille and Dara McBride THE DAILY ORANGE
With scattered showers and highs in the low 50s, this year’s MayFest celebration on Euclid Avenue was smaller and tamer than it was in the past. “This is 1 percent of what happened last year,” said Syracuse Police Department officer Al Thompson, who was patrolling the 600 block of Euclid at 2:30 p.m. Students stayed mostly on porches or walked in groups, and there were no problems with pedestrian and vehicle traffic. More students also reported going to Walnut Park, where the university-sanctioned MayFest was happening for the second year. By 7 p.m. people were moving inside
or getting ready for the Block Party concert. SPD officers were stationed between the 200 and 700 blocks of Euclid starting at 10 a.m., Thompson said. No roads were blocked off. Due to the weather, crowds in the afternoon were not nearly what they were by 10 a.m. in 2010, he said. Thompson said he did not think the universitysanctioned MayFest on Walnut Park affected the crowds on Euclid. He said he had only dealt with small incidents, such as people straying from lawn parties with open containers or playing music too loudly. But had the weather improved, the situation on Euclid could have gotten worse, he said. Students were informed Thursday that police
SEE EUCLID PAGE 8
brandon weight | photo editor DREW FITZGERALD, a Syracuse city resident, calls out to students walking down Euclid Avenue on Friday. Nine open container violations were given during the activities on Euclid.