Maroon

              THE MAROON ESTABLISHED 1923 VOL. 73 NO. 12 Loyola University New Orleans FRIDAY, DECEMEBER 2, 1994 Male cheerleaders cheer no more By ELIZABETH KEENAN Assistant News Editor Don't expect to see any men cheerleading at the basketball games this year—the Loyola cheerleading squad is now for women only. The cheerleading coaches, Sal Bertolino and Dodi Anderson, along with cheerleading adviser Michelle Andrews, decided not to have men on the squad about a week before the opening basketball game against Xavier on Nov. 9, Andrews said. "It took us a long time to come to this decision," she said. "But we wanted to make a good one." According to Bertolino and Anderson, there was not enough interest to keep the men on the team. "The interest has decreased over the past two years. T\vo years ago, we had six guys on the team, and they did well," Anderson said. "But unfortunately, we've never had a good turnout since. It's not for lack of trying, though." Anderson said that the men trying out for the squad knew that it was not a definite position."We told them all along that there probably would not be males on the squad. We need more interest in order to build a foundation," she said. Bertolino agreed that there was a lack of interest. He added that there was an image problem with men who did want to be on the team. 'It's easy to recruit athletes with a winningteam. If guys at the game see one or two guys cheering who are not viewed in a cool perspective, it doesn't do a whole lot for cheerleading," Bertolino said. According to Andrews, the purpose of having men on the squad was to perform stunts. The cheerleading squad could not do stunts with the few men who were interested, Andrews said. COURTESY OF JERRY JUDD The 1992-93 Loyola Cheerleaders consisted of men and women until the men were cut in November. My Lai recalls tragedy of Vietnam By MARTIN S. GINSBERG Contributing writer It happened a generation ago: an American trauma. And as is often seen in trauma cases, silence seemed expected and even desired by many. It was achieved at a cost that is still being paid today. The official end of the Vietnam War in 1975 did not produce any big celebrations, parades or speeches. America's longest, second most costly and most divisive war since the Civil War left many deep and painful wounds. And for many, the worst of these wounds is the one that came to be called the My Lai Massacre. No single event of the time was more notorious or disturbing than the one that occurred in March of 1968 in the My Lai and My Khe Vietnamese villages. In memory of this, Tulane University is hosting a conference titled, "My Lai 25 Years After: Facing the Darkness, Healing the Wounds" from Dec. I through Dec. 3. "Finally," said Randy Fertel, Tulane professor and co-director of the conference, "after all these years, we try to hear one another." In 1968 America's war in Vietnam was entering another long year and quickly looked to be the worst one yet. On Jan. 31, the Vietnamese New Year holiday railed Tel began with a massive, audacious assault by the Viet Cong forces against nearly all its major targets across the land. This came to be called theTet Offensive, and increased the casualty rate. Soon roughly4oo U.S. soldiers died each week in the fighting. The Army 11th Light Infantry Brigade Platoons of Charlie Company and Bravo Company were ordered to send troops to locate and destroy the 48th Viet Cong Local Force Battalion. Believed to be in "Pinkville," (the color-coded military map's pink-colored area) plans were made for a combat assault into this Quang Ngai Province, located nearly in the middle of the Eastern Vietnam coastline along the South China Sea The search for weapons turned up one rifle. The Viet Cong forces were not there, yet before our troops left that day, nearly 500 Vietnamese men, women and children in the villages of My Lai and My Khe were dead. AmfMiran t\tDn Hugh Thompson, a 24-year-old warrant officer, was there flying reconnaissance in his helicopter. He protested with his commanding officer, chaplain and brigade commander. But the subsequent investigation was quickly concluded and the mission officially declared a success. In 1969, Ron Ridenhour, former Vietnam G. 1., sent a letter to the U.S. Congress and the Pentagon. In the letter, he explained what he had learned from buddies he had trained with who were present at the Mar. 16 massacres. By TODD CARROLL This poster is featured in the My Lai exhibit at Tulane University. Campus Secure trial system to enhance current student security programs By SHARAVAY MAYS and SONYA WILDMON Staff writers Starting in January, the Loyola community will participate in a 90-day trial program to test the Campus Secure system, a new technology in personal security and crime prevention. The system uses a personal alarm device that can be easily attached to a participant's key ring or clothing. When police protection or medical attention is needed, the participant can press a buttonbutton on the pad, which sends a 911 signal to Public Safety. Within two seconds, a computer screen will show officers the person's exact location on campus, personal profile and picture. "It gives the community members an opportunity to notify us immediately in the instance of an emergency," said Patrick Bailey, director of Public Safety. Bailey said the system will partially cover the campus during the trial period. The device will work in the Music/Communications Complex, Monroe Hall and the parking garage. The system will also cover the parking lots of Miller, Monroe and Buddig. Roger Pinac, Public Safety investigator, said the trial zone was chosen based on the high amount of pedestrian and vehicular traffic in these areas. If the complete system is implemented, it will cover all of the main campus and the Broadway campus. Two hundred students, mostly residents, and 100 faculty and staff members will participate in the pilot program for free. After the trial period, however, students may participate in the program for about $75 per semester. Bailey said. He emphasized that Loyola will not gain revenues from the security system. Bailey also said that Loyola is fortunate to be in the pilot program because there is no cost for installation. Loyola is the first university in the southern region of the United States to install the Campus Secure system. Currently, there are only four universities using the new program. They are the University of Scranton, the University of Bridgeport, Sarkeys College at the University of Oklahoma and the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. Public Safety is currently having 10 emergency box phones with blue flashing lights installed on the main campus. Three phones are already installed on the Broadway campus. During an emergency, an individual can press a red call button which activates a strobe light and connects the caller to Public Safety's 911 line. "It's not because we have a high crime rate on campus," Bailey said. "We're always looking for innovative ideas to enhance our crime prevention programs." See MEN, Pg. 6 See MY LAI, Pg. 6 sfdfgŝgd dgďgesgdg M Christmas Ritual Trapped in Paradise opens today — first of many holiday films. PjMI