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‘Circus of faith’ manifests debate in Quad Diverse student body reacts to religious groupʼs recent visit By KIM ORR and NICOLE M. SMITH Daily Titan Staff
JAMES CARROLL/Daily Titan
GABRIEL FENOY/For the Daily Titan
OLIVIA PORTUGAL/Daily Titan
Top: Protest groups clash in an argument in the Quad Thursday morning. Left: Jeremy Sonnier warns CSUF students that “God will judge you,” parading a 6-foot-tall banner warning liberals, homosexuals, unsubmissive wives and Muslims –among others– of their doomed fate. Right: Courtney Prather argues with fellow Christian John Franklin. Members of the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Association stand firm in the background.
Signs and moral values collided as a “circus of faith” paraded through the Quad on Thursday, pitting anti-abortion and religious activists against angry students. The demonstration started as a composed dialogue between representatives of the anti-abortion group, Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust and a few passing students. Five-foot signs containing bloody images of aborted babies provoked enthusiastic debate among some while others walked away in disgust. “These pictures are gross because abortion is gross,” Director of Campus Life for Survivors Keith Mason said. “I believe these images will remove any façade people might have about abortion.” “This is kind of like the heavy artillery,” said Jason Storms, a Survivor member and born-again Christian. “Images [are] what bring the point home.” Survivor members shouted from the tops of planters, preaching about intrinsic moral values, abstinence and abortion. The 26-year-old Storms, who did not accept Christianity until he was 19, defended his convictions, saying he hoped for open discussion about abortion and encouraged people to think about their own morals. “I was a thief, a liar and a manipulator,” Storms said. “Nobody got in my face [about morality]. I wish someone had.” The Survivor group, which visits over 200 university campuses each year, estimates that nearly 50 million babies have been aborted since 1973, according to the groupʼs Web site. “We as Americans, if we call ourselves patriots, need to stand up for the weak and innocent,” said Survivor member Aaron Beay. As students looked on, many questioned the graphic nature and the outspoken manner of Survivorʼs
message. “What gives them the right to judge? Itʼs not up to [the Survivors], only God can judge,” said Eric Segura, an undeclared sophomore. Once the 11:30 a.m. classes let out, the Quad erupted into a fierce dispute about religion and homosexuality, leaving a wake of verbal debris. Adding to the chaos was the arrival of several independent protestors, holding signs denouncing various individuals including liberals, non-Christian religious groups and homosexuals. In response, students representing the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Alliance and fellow supporters faced off against the sign holders; parading with make shift signs and a rainbow-colored flag. The debate became philosophical when sign holder and Cal State Fullerton alumnus Douglas Bennet approached students as they expressed conflicting arguments amongst themselves. “Iʼm not so much interested in conflict as I am in thought,” Bennet said. “You get all kinds of reactions, anywhere from hostility to extreme appreciation.” Students were willing to openly discuss opposing views about religion and homosexuality until the arrival of Bennetʼs “colleague,” John Franklin. “Homosexuality is a capital crime in the Bible, which includes righteousness and excludes ʻwrongnessʼ,” said Franklin. After enduring name-calling, insults and condemnation by Franklin, irate students responded with their own quips. “Iʼd rather be in Hell with my loved ones than up in Heaven with people like you,” said senior kinesiology major, Alex Faris. Student reactions varied from shouts of anger and tears of frustration to laughter. Freshman business major and Christian, Courtney Prather was so infuriated, her hands were shaking because Franklin called her stupid directly to her face. “I was absolutely astonished,” Prather said of Franklinʼs behavior. “I would never affiliate with someone who calls people names. RALLY 4
Former chancellor Controversy surrounds poet’s presence Intifada ignites focuses on education Audio discussion, sparks Reynoldʼs helped end use of welfare labor, worked towards parity By MARK MEYERS Daily Titan Staff
The importance of higher education formed the heart of a lecture given by former California State University Chancellor W. Ann Reynolds at the Pollak Library Thursday. Although the event was organized in conjunction with Womenʼs History Month, Reynoldsʼ message of the importance of education crossed both gender and ethnic lines. Reynolds, who served as CSU chancellor from 1982 to 1990, was quick to point out the quality of higher education in the United States. “American higher education continues to be the best in the world on all measures,” she said. “ … One of the reasons for it is our governance system,” she added. Rather than having elected officials, normal citizens serve on the governance board; a system that was a source of the excellence within the CSU operations, Reynolds said.
Reynolds went on to say her greatest success as CSU chancellor was achieving parity in the budget with the UC system. During the ʼ70s, the UC system budget was skyrocketing even though there were fewer students and fewer campuses, but now both systems increase at the same percentage because of the lobbying during her tenure, Reynolds said. Jack W. Bedell, a CSUF sociology professor who introduced Reynolds, credited her with making a difference in the CSU system that todayʼs students still feel. “A state assemblyman wanted to mandate internships for all graduates, she fought that legislative intrusion,” Bedell said. Not being able to get Ph.D. status in the CSU system was her biggest failure because she thinks CSU teachers and students are on par with Ph.D. requirements, Reynolds said. After her stint as CSU chancellor, Reynolds moved on to the City Universities of New York. She served as chancellor of CUNY until 1997 and had a run in with New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. “I realize he is a national hero, but he is no hero of mine,” she REYNOLDS 4
debate among audience By SHANNON HEWKIN Daily Titan Staff
Spoken-word poet and hip-hop artist Mark Gonzalesʼ performance at Audio Intifada Thursday night existed in much the same spirit as the discussion that led up to the decision to fund the event — amidst debate and controversy. The event, sponsored by the Middle Eastern Student Society, the Muslim Student Association and Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan and was funded by the Association for Inter-Cultural Awareness, featured hip-hop artists, spoken-word poets and a disc jockey in an evening of “hip-hop, language and resistance,” according to the eventʼs flyer. Gonzales performed and took questions in between pieces, while DJ unDfind spun on the turntables. Audience members in the nearly full Titan Student Union Pavilion C asked Gonzales questions about his views on terrorism, Zionism and disengagement of troops and offered their own opinions as well. “When I hear peace, I hear you want me to stop resisting oppression,” Gonzales said in response to a question. “So when I hear disengagement, I hear weʼll pull some
troops out, but we canʼt go home.” One audience member asked Gonzales about his views on terrorism, to which he spoke about the importance of the definition of the word, alluding to the United Statesʼ actions amounting to terrorism, but not actually being defined as such. The audience member asked his question again, saying Gonzales didnʼt answer his question fully, but Gonzales again said the context of the word didnʼt allow him to answer definitively. While Gonzalesʼ answers were met with loud cheering and clapping by many, and with further and more probing questions by others, it was the debate between a few very vocal people in the audience that sparked the most controversy at Audio Intifada. Audience members took their turns with the cordless microphone, speaking of their experience and opinions and one person even cited a United Nations policy. MESS president Rashad Aldabbagh said he received positive feedback from the audience and from many AICA members who attended Audio Intifada. “The event was a success,” Aldabbagh said. “It was a creative way of raising awareness about the Palestinian issue to the campus community. His ability to respond to questions raised by the audience in a civilized manner gave him and his performance additional respect.” Mark Gonzalesʼ presence at Audio
JAMES CARROLL/Daily Titan
Mark Gonzales, a spoken word/hip hop artist performs at the Audio Intifada event in the Titan Student Union on Thursday evening. Intifada was a concern for some members of AICA, particularly the Jewish student group Hillel, which opposed Gonzalesʼ performance being funded by AICA because of the politically charged nature of his lyrics. Hillel co-president Matt Gross
said the group did Internet research to find Gonzalesʼ lyrics, which the group then copied, cited and distributed at an AICA meeting so other members could read them. Gross found many lyrics to be not only AUDIO 3