M O N D AY APRIL 19, 2004 Vol. 125, No. 74
Chance of showers 78°/ 56° w w w. s t u d l i f e . c o m
STUDENT LIFE T H E I N D E P E N D E N T N E W S PA P E R O F WA S H I N G T O N U N I V E R S I T Y I N S T. L O U I S S I N C E 1 8 7 8
INSIDE Scholarship changes cast shadow COEN BROS. CRAZINESS
Celebrations Weekend takes on new tone as fallout from Ervin revisions continues By Michael Parks q News Editor
Matt Simonton takes a look at some Coen Brothers classics, Melissa Langdon previews All Student Theater’s production of “Cabaret,” and Travis Peterson catches Bunnygrunt and determines they rise above their silly name.
PAGE 5 SAGARTZ UP TO 12-0
Ace pitcher Laurel Sagartz improved her record to 12-0, the softball team notched another important victory over Chicago, and 20 Questions with a baseball-playing duo.
PAGE 7 STUDENT SNAPSHOT Carnival is this Q: Thurtene weekend. Will you attend? A. 33% B. 18% C. 44% D. 6%
I love Thurtene: A: A.theAbsolutely. fattening midway food, screaming children, and the best part of all—Greeks attempting to do musical theater.
YU ARAKI | STUDENT LIFE
Freshman Teddy Purnomo serves a duck and rice dish during Saturday night’s Night Market festivities. The recently disclosed changes to the Ervin Scholarship program influenced parts of Celebration Weekend, although a consortium of multicultural student groups issued a statement supporting the University’s decision and commitment to diversity on campus.
By David Tabor q Staff Reporter The students and staff of Washington University’s George Warren Brown School of Social Work celebrated the diversity of their student body with a cultural festival on Friday. “International Festival 2004: Citizens of the World in Celebration” featured ethnic food sampling, informational presentations and a cultural show of songs, dances and music. “The International Festival is one of the signature events of the school,” said Shanti Khinduka, dean of the School of Social Work. “The international students take a strong lead in its preparation, and their contribution adds to the community’s cultural richness.” According to Khinduka, the International Festival gives the school’s large international graduate student population an opportunity to share its cultures in an entertaining and exciting format. Khinduka also said he believes that the entire University community benefits from the distribution of cultural knowledge, since the International Festival is both a cultural celebration and an educational event. “[The International Festival] is an event that everyone looks forward to: faculty, students and administrators,” said Khinduka. The festival opened with a food-tasting event where attendees were able to sample traditional ethnic foods representative of 24 different countries. During this time, informational exhibitions taught visitors about the culture of each country. The cultural show that followed included tra-
ditional dances from India, Azerbaijan, Nepal and Ghana; music from the Caribbean, Vietnam, Korea and Israel; and a “Colors of the World” parade that showcased traditional clothing and regalia from around the globe. According to Srijana Mukhiva, co-chair of the Festival, sharing the experiences of their extraordinarily diverse backgrounds has given the students a new perspective. He hopes that international students at the school will be able to return to their native countries with an understanding of other cultures that will help them as they pursue careers in social work. Festival Co-Chair Vu Le said that this year’s festival carried special significance because it marked the final year of Khinduka’s service as dean of the School of Social Work. “We wanted to provide him with something to remember to thank him for his leadership and service,” said Le. According to Le, a tremendous amount of preparation went in to making the festival a success. As a precursor to Friday’s events, the International Festival also held a forum discussion on Monday during which Andrew Mertha, an assistant professor of political science, spoke on the topic of globalization. Following the forum, the floor was opened to students from the School of Social work who wanted to share their own experiences and backgrounds. Responsibility for individual elements of the festival was delegated to coordinators, each of whom managed relevant staff. Mukhiya and Le held week-
See FESTIVAL, page 2
D. I cannot comment. The secret society forbids it, and if I disobey, they’ll come to my dorm room and “reeducate” me. Results are unscientific, based on 104 votes cast.
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DAVID SWANSON | KRT CAMPUS
Corpsmen carry a wounded Marine to a helicopter for medivac. The deployment of U.S. troops in multiple countries, as well as the recent extension of troops’ stay in Iraq, have led to rumors about a potential military draft.
New rumors of a military draft have some concerned By Liz Neukirch q Senior News Editor
C. No. I’m boycotting Thurtene because it doesn’t give enough of its profits to charity. Unless you consider brand new North Face jackets a charity—then they are wonderfully philanthropic.
Cadenza Forum Calendar Sports
See SCHOLARSHIPS, page 2
Colors of the world on display at GWB festival
B. Maybe. It’s something to do, and nothing beats a good funnel cake. On the other hand, it’s a lot of money to spend on something that doesn’t involve alcohol, and I’m not sure my delicate nerves can handle a Phi Delt dancing.
INDEX
Washington University held its annual Multicultural Celebrations Weekend Friday and Saturday. Recently admitted students were flown in by the University to stay with host students and participate in activities ranging from water balloon fights to multicultural student group meetings to the Asian Student Association’s (ASA) Night Market. Looming over this year’s events was the recent announcement that the University’s John B. Ervin Scholarships for African Americans will, due to increasing legal pressure, be open to students of all races in the future. Monica O’Malley, president-elect of the Association of Latin-American Students (ALAS), said that although the prospective students on campus for the weekend asked few questions about the fate of race-conscious scholarships at the University, it was an issue that the various multicultural groups involved with the weekend actively addressed. “We didn’t have so many questions asked about the scholarships, as we tried to address what was happening with them,” said O’Malley. “A lot of the groups contributed to a single statement about our position on the matter. In our ALAS meeting, we also gave out information about various Supreme Court cases and how they have affected what Wash
JONATHAN LANE | STUDENT LIFE
Two students prepare and serve food during this weekend’s International Festival at the George Warren Brown School of Social Work. Ethnic foods from 24 different countries were represented at the festival.
The seemingly thin-spread deployment of U.S. troops in foreign countries, increasing casualties in the war in Iraq and recent extensions of U.S. troops’ duties in Iraq have begun to fuel rumors on the Internet and within college campuses that the government might consider reinstating the military draft. According to a statement on the Selective Service Web site, college students would no longer be protected from being drafted if a draft were reinstated. “Before Congress reformed the draft in 1971, a man could qualify for a student deferment if he could show he was a full-time student making satisfactory progress in virtually any field of study… [but] under the new draft law, a college student could have his induction postponed only until the end of the current semester. A senior could be postponed until the end of the full academic year,” the statement said. Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader warned students of this potentiality in a “Message to America’s Students” on his Web site, www.votenader.org. “Today enlistments in the Reserves and National Guard are declining,” Nader said. “The Pentagon is quietly recruiting new members to fill local draft boards, as the machinery for drafting a new generation of young Americans is being quietly put in place.’’ An announcement on the Selective Service Web site, however, contests Nader’s statement. “Notwithstanding recent stories in the news media and on the Internet, Selective Service is not getting ready to conduct a draft for the U.S. Armed Forces -- either with a special skills or regular draft,” the announcement said. It went on to say that the Agency remains “prepared to manage a draft if and when the President and Congress so direct,” noting that the policy is not new and has been ongoing since 1980, when President Jimmy
See DRAFT, page 2
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