FREE PRESS FOR ALL

STAFF EDITORIAL

A couple of weeks ago, a teacher was suspended for allowing a student to write about acceptance and tolerance in an opinion piece about homosexuality in their school newspaper.

In the column titled: “Is it so wrong? Is homosexuality really such a bad thing?” the student wrote, “I think it is so wrong to look down on those people, or to make fun of them, just because they have a different sexuality than you.”

But her column was too controversial for the administration and her school did not like that it was printed and distributed to students. So, they suspended her adviser.
One can only imagine how many things The Guardsman’s adviser would get suspended for.

We have written about the f-word (the three-letter one, not the four-letter one) and the n-word, smoking marijuana on campus, dogging social online networks and celebrity bigots. And that’s just the opinion section.

Our columnists have also hit on “sensitive” issues, such as alcoholism, relationships (and lack thereof) and schizophrenia. But isn’t that what the columns are for, to speak our minds?

We, in California, are lucky because of laws that protect the student press and forbid administrations to step in and censor what we write about. As long as we are accurate and constantly checking our facts, we are allowed to write what we want.

But then again, that’s California. Woodburn, Ind. where this incident took place, is a conservative town where obviously the idea of speaking about accepting people is considered insane and uncalled for. Imagine that.

e-mail: editorial@theguardsman.com

PUTTING OUT FIRE WITH GASOLINE
BY MARTHA VALLEJO
STAFF WRITER

MICHAEL MORGAN / GUARDSMAN

In 1994 Senators Dianne Feinstein and Byron Dorgan introduced legislation for a “zero-tolerance” policy to keep America’s schools gun free. The idea was to create a safer environment for students.

Since then, three events have marked America. The Colum-bine High School shooting in 1999, the Amish school-house shooting in 2006 and the latest, the Virginia Tech massacre.

The Gun Free Schools Act, signed into law in 1994 was meant to protect students from gun violence by banning guns from schools. Despite the best intentions and the best use of legislation, school shootings have continued.

The pros and cons of having schools gun free are complicated. The idea of keeping guns out of schools is to give a sense of control and security. And to a degree it keeps students and teachers safer. Not having guns keeps the danger away in situations that could get out of hand and develop into tragedy.

It is a general belief that police officers are trained and have deeper awareness about the use of guns. So shall we differentiate between police and the rest of the campus population when it comes to guns?

It is not easy to come up with the right answer. It depends on how each of us views the pros and cons of allowing guns at schools. We all want to be safe and live in peace. Certainly the world would be better free of guns and other destructive weapons. But we unfortunate mortals have not achieved the mind-set to overcome our flaws yet.

To keep guns away from schools still seems the civilized option. But after the recent tragedies perhaps campus police should be allowed to carry guns providing we trust their judgment.

Peace and non-violence shall always be the first choice, but until the day we are truly developed in a deeper intellectual and spiritual way we might have to continue with our barbaric ways to defend ourselves.

e-mail:mvallejo@theguardsman.com

IF HIP-HOP JUMPED OFF A CLIFF, DON IMUS WOULD FOLLOW
BY LARRY SIMPSON

STAFF WRITER

COURTESY OF MTC CAMPUS

Anyone coming of age in the hip-hop generation has most likely been on both sides of the decades-old debate on misogyny in lyrics.  It’s not so much a matter of having contradicting views on women’s rights as it is a resistance to blatant attacks from holier-than-thou critics with no understanding of the culture.

I am disgusted lately with the media's attempt to attack hip-hop on the grounds that a white man was held accountable for comments that demean black women.  These arguments are shortsighted with regards to the diverse voices that constitute the culture of hip-hop, but also ignore the historical relation of white men to black women.

Quiet as it’s kept, hip-hop has been battling its own issues of misogyny internally for decades through vehemently opposing lyrical styles. For every Snoop Dog calling a woman a hoe, there’s a Common Sense dubbed a sista' queen; it has always been that way. As time went by it was corporate interest in hip-hop that poured money into the “pimps up, hoes down” aesthetic, without concern for the damage done to the community.

When Don Imus called the women of the Rutgers basketball team a bunch of “nappy-headed hoes,” it recalled a long history of the dehumanization of black women specifically. It was once a white man’s privilege not only to call any black woman he pleased a hoe, but to use her as one would a hoe without consequence.

Put it all together and you have black artistry being betrayed by white corporate ownership, and then served up by the white corporate media for the sake of one white radio host. It's clear to me the real nappy-headed hoe, in the eyes of the media, is hip-hop.

e-mail:lsimpson@theguardsman.com

ON THE RECORD

Do you think that Don Imus is right to blame Hip-hop music for his use of language?

Marciano Pimentel

"Don Imus is known for saying crazy stuff. He makes these sorts of comments all the time; I don't know why he got fired for it. And people blame him because he's white –– so what? Granted, his comments were pretty bad. I thought that they were hilarious myself, but if you are going to go after Imus, why not go after stand-up comics too?"

Nicole Murillo

"No, not at all. Just from the history of our country, and the dominance of white males, it was really racist for him to say something of that nature, especially since he is a public figure. Hip-hop music has nothing to do with it. Music is a form of artistic expression, and Imus is just a talk radio guy. It's completely out of context."

Mariana Pereira

"No, absolutely not. It's never alright to use those words, no matter who says them. He had no right to say things like that on the radio. I am not African-American, and even I was offended. I couldn't believe he would say something so racist!"

Shaveka Thomas

"No. Hip-hop is a culture of music, it's not for someone to use in a classroom, or use it to justify an excuse. It's music, you can't use music as an excuse for any behavior."

Dan Powell

"I think that anytime you censor free speech, it's not free speech. People should be able to say what they want, regardless."

Charity Bermudez

"No, I don't think so, it's in a different context. When you use language in lyrics, it's more poetic expression, rather than someone saying something that is just hurtful, or mean. I think that it is a cop-out to blame hip-hop."

A TEAL-COLORED HEART

BY VANESSA SERPAS

For the most part my column has been for the ladies, so for my last column I’ve deci

ded to dedicate to the fellas. Now I know finding the right girl can be difficult, so I’m going to give you a few pointers and let you know what kind of women to avoid.

If you go out with the guys and come home to find her waiting in her car outside your house - she is psycho, you need to start running.

If during sexual encounters she, as my friend says, “lays there like a log” - go searching for a more active girl.

If you’re not ballin’ and she’s high maintenance - let her go because like Kanye West says, “she ain’t messin’ with no broke. . .”

If you’re on your sixth date and she tells you that she loves you - excuse yourself and don’t come back.

If flatulence becomes an issue in the first week - hand her some Gas X and walk out the door.

If every time you’re watching a game she wants to cuddle - we all know she most definitely has got to go.

Now these are just a few tips to get you by and yes, I’m sure there are many more, but coming across the right girl is difficult, so be wise about the ones you choose to date and try not to let her booty. . .I mean, her beauty cloud your judgment.

e-mail:opinioneditor@theguardsman.com