University Press (Beaumont, Tex.), Vol. 76, No. 29, Ed. 1 Friday, February 4, 2000 Page: 3 of 6
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Ufeditorial
University Press • Friday, February 4, 2000 • Page 3
University Press
Editor............................................Christina Bor deman
Managing Editor..........................Lori Gayle Lovelace
The opinions that appear in editorials are the official views of the
University Press student management as determined by the UP
Student Editorial Board. Opinions expressed elsewhere on this
page are the views of the writers only and are not necessarily
those of the University Press student management. Student opin-
ions are not necessarily those of the university administration.
Editorial
Rocker and the right
to free speech
S .. so it’s one, two, three strikes you’re out at the old ball
game.”
*■* John Rocker, however, only needed one strike.
* The Atlanta Braves relief pitcher was suspended from play-
ing baseball until May 1 by Bud Selig, the baseball commision-
pT.
In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Rocker, the “All-
American Boy” from Georgia, managed to insult everything
“American” about the people in this country.
Rocker, out of continued rivalry with New York fans, made
slandering comments about races, illnesses, personal appear-
ance, and sexual preferences.
America, “the great melting pot,” is known for its ethnic
and religious diversity. We, as Americans, pride ourselves on the
diversity that makes our country so dynamic and prosperous.
Our diversity continues to grow because of the rights and
freedoms we are alloted.
One of these rights is freedom of speech.
No matter how hateful and ridiculous Rocker’s statements
were, he had every right to say them.
The irony is that the right to have diversity, the diversity he
has ridiculed, is what allows him the right to ridicule.
As Voltaire, the French writer and social critic, said, “I dis-
approve of what you say, but I will defend to the death your
•right to say it.”
J What Rocker said was ignorant, in the true sense of the
word, insensitive and stupid, again using the words within their
true definitions, but, the fact is, he does have the right to say
these remarks,
w This is America.
University Press
©2000 University Press
| News
J Editor..................
Managing Editor
Copy Editor.......
Features Editor..
Sports Editor......
..........................Christina Bordeman
..........................Lori Gayle Lovelace
..........................................Raj Kanuri
......................................Ashley Salter
...........................................Josh Cobb
Staff Writers.......
........Natasha Dailey, Jennifer Ravey
Daisy Hargraves, Kuntal Kotnis
Rajesh Subramaniam, Shay Bayly,
Tylerr Ropp, R.J. Enard, Greg Hayes
Photography
Photographers....
..................................Rachel McCain,
Mukund Yallambalse,
Robert Alvarado, Martin Drott
Advertising
Assistants............
......................................Amber Willis
Let’s end the civil war now, please
WASHINGTON — I used to think the
Civil War was over. I was naive.
' I thought all of those Civil War “reenac-
tors” who journey many miles and spend
mucho bucks to participate in realistic battle
reenactments were just spirited weekend hob-
byists.
I thought William Faulkner was just
being colorful when he wrote that, in the
South, “The past is never dead. It’s not even
past.”
I was young, then. I didn’t know too
much about the South. After dealing with the
“white” and “colored” signs and sitting in the
back of the bus as a child in the 1950s, I was
not in a hurry to return, until the 1980s.
I have since traveled more and learned
better. I have lived in Maryland. I have had a
Civil War fort and a cemetery within five min-
utes of my home. I now share the sentiments
of a Maryland resident quoted in
“Confederates in the Attic,” by journalist
Tony Horowitz: “In school I remember learn-
ing that the Civil War ended a long time ago.
Folks here don’t always see it that way. They
think it’s still halftime.”
A complicated combination of pride, loss
and guilt causes some Southerners, particu-
larly white Southerners, to cling to their
myths about the past.
It would be an understatement to say that
black Americans, like my Alabama cousins,
tend to feel a might differently. Imagine how
most Americans would feel if Germany sud-
denly decided to fly the Nazi flag over today’s
Reichstag — as a tribute to their “heritage,”
of course, nothing to do with Jews or other
minorities — and you’ll get an idea of how
black folks feel about the current flag flap in
South Carolina.
That’s why the NAACP has called for a
tourism boycott of South Carolina until the
state stops flying the Confederate battle flag
over its statehouse. That is also why thou-
sands of marchers marked Martin Luther
King Jr.’s birthday by marching on the State-
house carrying signs that said things like,
“Your heritage is my slavery.”
“Heritage,” not race, is the reason flag
defenders give for their devotion. Yet, the
Confederate battle flag did not reappear over
the South Carolina Statehouse until 1962.
Defenders of the flag say that the time mere-
ly coincided with the Civil War centennial.
Opponents note that the revival of the battle
flag across the South coincided with Southern
backlash against the federal government's
enforcement of desegregation laws and
Supreme Court rulings.
The issue recently entered the presiden-
tial race along predictable party lines. Both
Democratic front runners A1 Gore and Bill
Bradley have come out against the flag. Both
Republican front-runners would leave it
alone.
In one debate, George W. Bush called it
a “local issue” he did not want to intrude into.
John McCain called it “offensive,” then soft-
ened his comments in a one-hand-other-hand
way. “Some view it as a symbol of slavery,’’ he
said. “Others view it as a symbol of heritage.
Personally I see the battle flag as a symbol of
heritage.”
Right. But, whose heritage?
McCain said he had forefathers who
fought on the rebel side during the Civil War
and “they believed their service was honor-
able.”
I’ll take his word for that. He knows his
■!: i ly better than I do. I can only speak of my
ii ancc stors who were freed from chattel
■ry by those who fought just as honorably
oh the other side in that war.
I usually appreciate McCain’s candor.
This time he seems to be bending over too far
backward to please those who wrap them-
selves in the wrong flag.
Flag supporters say they resent the way
their feelings so often get ignored. I feel their
pain. Many of us flag opponents resent the
way our feelings got ignored, too.
That is why Gov. Jim Hodges, a
Democrat, deserves credit for urging state
lawmakers last week to take the flag “off the
statehouse dome, boycott or no boycott” and
move it “to a place of historical significance”
somewhere on the statehouse grounds;
It is a reasonable compromise. The
Confederate battle flag can be remembered
without disrespect and without flying it over
the state seat of government.
Still, Hodges’ move carries political risks.
Republican David Beasley was the last South
Carolina governor to call for moving the flag.
Flag defenders launched a counter move-
ment. “Keep the Flag, Ban Beasley” bumper
stickers showed up across the state. Beasley
was voted out of office, defeated by Jim
Hodges. SI
Until now, Hodges has tried to play down
the flag issue. Now he is betting that a major-
ity of South Carolinians want to end the civil
war that has broken out among the state’s cit-
izens.
I wish him luck. Whichever side you are
on, the flying of that flag over a seat of gov-
ernment is more divisive than it is worth.
rs
How c/8 y0U
you fcg.
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■the only one kicked
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Concerning the suspension of baseball player John Rocker, to what extent
should his freedom of speech be protected?
,“I think it is good for the
game — it makes it more
interesting to watch.”
— Terry Patrick
Kirbyville junior
“I don’t feel that it (his
comments) should have
affected his career.”
— Rosealie Johnson
Beaumont freshman
“I don’t really know much
about it. His freedom of
speech should be protect-
ed.”
— Corey Barnes
Kirbyville freshman
“In the first amendment it
says you have the right to
say what you want to say....”
— Dan Willson
Lake Jackson
freshman
“He shouldn’t take advan-
tage of his freedom of
speech, because people lis-
ten to him because of who
he is.”
— Valerie Smith
Beaumont freshman
“He should be able to say
whatever he wants to say,
but he should pay the price
for it.”
—Anthony Bell
Houston sophomore
Compiled by Amber Willis
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Bordeman, Christina. University Press (Beaumont, Tex.), Vol. 76, No. 29, Ed. 1 Friday, February 4, 2000, newspaper, February 4, 2000; Beaumont, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth500636/m1/3/?q=Lamar+University: accessed June 5, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Lamar University.