Maroon

              THE MAROON ESTABLISHED 1923 VOL. 74 NO. 15 Loyola University New Orleans FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 1996 Firm tied to Kuwait, Turkey By STEPHEN STUART Managing Editor The public relations firm Hill & Knowlton, recently hired by Loyola to search for potential candidates for the environmental communications chair, has attempted to respond to criticisms that it acted unethically in representing clients like Turkey and Indonesia, totalitarian governments that have records of oppression and human rights abuses. Some members of the Loyola Board of Trustees, including the Rev. Bernard Knoth, S.J., have supported the decision to hire the company, citing in part the university's relationship with Hill & Knowlton Vice President Gary Hymel, who also acts as the chairman of the communications visiting committee. But others feel that the firm, since it does not specialize in academic matters, lacks the expertise necessary to assemble a suitable pool of candidates. Shortly after Iraqi troops invaded Kuwait in August 1990, Hill & Knowlton gained attention by accepting $5.6 million from the Kuwaiti government for a public relations campaign to bolster its country's image in the United States. As part of the campaign, a Kuwaiti girl testified before a congressional Human Rights Caucus. "Nayirah" (only her first name was given) told the congressmen how Iraqi troops entered the hospital where she volunteered and took babies out of incubators, leaving them on the floor to die. But after the Gulf War ended, several reports emerged alleging that the story Alumni not giving to university By ROSE FRENCH Staff writer Young Loyola alumni are not giving much back to their alma mater, according to information distributed in a University Senate meeting on Dec. 7. In a list issued by the Council for Aid to Education for the 1993-94 fiscal year, Loyola ranked 23 out of 28 Jesuit universities in undergraduate alumni giving. Schools such as the College of the Holy Cross and Spring Hill College ranked first and eighth. "I find this very disturbing," said Joseph Mansfield, vice president for Institutional Advancement. "Loyola has not had a strong alumni program in years. For whatever reason, it just does not engage its alumni." Mansfield noted in the faculty senate meeting the university's ownership of WWL for a number of years gave Loyola a "false sense of security." Receiving profits from the station meant the university could not seek out other income sources or active participation from alumni. Radio and television affiliate income began to decline. "We had all of our eggs in one basket," Mansfield said. "Now we've diversified our endowment and are out in the world of stocks, bonds and foreign markets." However, this investing alone cannot support university expenses, Mansfield stressed in the meeting. He said that other avenues must be found to raise money. One such avenue is Loyola's "silent" phase of the capital campaign. This means major benefactors are being sought for FORMER H&K CLIENTS ) Tobacco industry — ended account in mid-19605; set up Council for Tobacco Research ) National Conference of Catholic Bishops — antiabortion account in 1990 ) Kuwait — publicity after invasion in August 1990 D Indonesia — government ended account in 1994 ) Turkey — represented for alleged abuses two years ago University Senate upholds academic freedom By NEAL FALGOUST News Editor The University Senate voted on Feb. 1 to join the Rev. Bernard Knoth, S.J., university president, in affirming the university's policy on academic freedom. The final amended version of Religious Studies Professor Vernon Gregson's original motion states that the senate will stand by Knoth in supporting academic and political freedom. Gregson, in a prepared statement to the senate, that the failure of the administration to participate in the forum on Freeport-McMoßan closed the door to dialogue on campus. "The disinviting by the administration of Freeport-McMoßan to participate in the LUCAP forum, however clumsily the forum was arranged, closed the university campus to dialogue with Freeport and opened up the streets to the advantage and credit of no one," he said. Gregson continued, stating that the university's apology to Jim Bob Moffett, Freeport's CEO, and its decision not to affirm the rights of students caused some to question Loyola's dedication to academic freedom. Julian Wasserman, English professor, expressed concern over alleged death threats made to members of the Loyola University Community Action Program. He said that the threats were written on a "Warm Hands" letterhead, a program supported, in part, by LUCAP. "I do not train students in this university to write so that they can use those words on anonymous notes," he said. In response to Gregson's statement, James Baskett, business administration professor, called for ail who have alleged that Freeport-McMoßan has killed people to apologize to those who find that statement offensive. Baskett said that he is not standing up for Freeport-McMoßan, but that a mistake of that magnitude should be corrected. "I would call upon all those who participated in this to realize that what they did is not within academic freedom, they were not representing this university, and when they misrepresent the university, they harm me," he said. Baskett hypothesized that if the protester had chanted a slogan attacking Freeport's pollution record instead of chanting "Jim Bob Moffett kills for profit," there might not have been any misrepresentation. Jerrol Seaman, associate sociology professor, responded to Baskett's statement by saying that Freeport's pollution does ultimately lead to killing. "One consequence of polluting in the area we are talking about is rain forest destruction and species desination and fish kills on a massive scale," he said. "I call that killing." By IMA GARMENDIA Members of the University Senate vote to approve a motion reaffirming academic freedom. 'Blade' found in Orleans Room meal By PETER REICHARD Editor in Chief On Jan. 25, Erin Keyser sat down in her room in Biever Hall to eat a take-out meal from the Orleans Room. After taking two bites of pasta marinara, she noticed a flash of silver among the noodles. Keyser, a psychology sophomore, at first identified the piece of metal as a razor blade. She said her roommate inspected it and called it an "exacto" blade. "It shook me up," Keyser said. "I just kept thinking what could have happened if I had put it in my mouth." Keyser immediately returned to the Orleans Room and brought the metal object to the supervisor of the Orleans Room, Donald Banks. She said Banks apologized, reimbursed her meal on her cash card and took the object from her. Since then, Marriott employees misplaced it, according to Jim Fisher, senior food services director for Marriott. Fisher said he doesn't know if the object was a blade, referring to it as "the piece." "The piece is missing," he said. "I don't know what it was. Speaking to an exacto knife, I have no idea. There are none around here that I know of. I have no idea." Fisher said that when he heard about the incident, he started an investigation. The fact that the object was lost, he said, hampered his efforts. "It would have been easier if we could have located a piece of metal and say this is definitely an exacto knife or something else," he said. "We looked for everything — for every possibility." Keyser drew a picture of the object; her rendering showed an inch-long rectangle with slanted, pointed edges on both ends. According to Fisher, Banks described it as "a quarter-inch square piece of metal." Banks declined to comment. Keyser said she wondered if the object had been placed in her food maliciously. She said she went directly to her room from the Orleans Room after getting her meal, and that no one else touched it. Fisher said there is no hostility in the kitchen. Based on his investigation, he said, he does not believe the object came from the kitchen, and that he will probably never find the source of the object. "At this point, realistically, it doesn't seem likely. It's not a matter of anything we've forgotten. We went and inspected all the machinery that we use to mix food See FIRM, Pg. 4 See CAMPAIGN, Pg. 4 See MARRIOTT, Pg. 5 ereŕt