Maroon

              The MAROON Vol. 64, No. 19 Loyola University, New Orleans, Louisiana 70118 March 21,1986 SGA requests new look at athletics By Mary Caffrey Assistant News Editor A resolution asking the university to study the feasibility of bringing intercollegiate athletics back to Loyola was passed unanimously by the Student Government Association Tuesday. The study would examine the advantages of Loyola's participation in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, Arts and Sciences representative David Kramer, the resolution's author, said the study would examine five areas: student support for the idea, cost, community support, alumni support and where to play. The Rev. James C. Carter, S.J., university president, will be asked to form a committee of students, faculty members and administrators to conduct the study, Kramer said. A committee formed by Carter would be given more attention than one composed of only students, he said. Kramer said the return of intercollegiate athletics would help boost student morale, which he said is lacking on Loyola's campus. He said he has talked to several students and while a few are against the idea, many are in favor of bringing back a sports program. Arts and Sciences representative Chris Laßauve, however, questioned whether an apathetic student body would bother coming to games. Kramer said Carter is in favor of looking into restoring an athletic program, but students will have to show they are committed to it before it is implemented. The lack of student support was the main reason Loyola's sports program was dropped in 1972, Kramer said. That season only about 30 to 40 students attended the basketball games, he said. Loyola's sports program declined at a time when most universities were experiencing a decline in student interest in athletics, Kramer said. "We weren't as committed to it so it didn't survive. Students are more conservativeconservative now, and unless we become anti-institutional again, I think there's a place for it," he said. Kramer said participation in NAIA athletics would cost approximately $85,000 a year. "Even if this was supported solely by students it would only cost $25 per student," he said. But Kramer said he thinks alumni support for intercollegiate athletics would be strong. "The people we're targeting are in their 50s and 605," he said. "They attended Loyola when we had a firm tradition in athletics." Earlier, at the debate between SGA presidential candidates, candidate Steve Roppolo said the vice president for Business and Finance [John Eckholdt] had called the return of intercollegiate athletics a "pipe dream." This was brought up at the meeting. Business representative John Deveney said even if members of Congress were not in favor of an athletic program, they should support having the study. "It is our duty to do the study," he said. "If it is a pipe dream, prove that by having the study." Ball in students' court By Rene Sanchez Editor in Chief BRINGING BACK THE PACK? "There is no doubt that intercollegiate athletics foster a real feeling, a spirit on campus, and contribute greatly to campus life." —The Rev. James C. Carter, S.J. 1974 Students were asked by The Maroon in 1975, three years after the funeral, to speak up, to prove that the death of intercollegiate athletics on campus was a mistake. None replied. They were asked again in 1977, in a formal poll by a special university committee exploring the wisdom of the 1972 decision that made Wolfpack a name of the past. Four responded. Again, in 1982, their pulse was checked by the administration and the prognosis seemed obvious. Dead. "I don't think it's completely closed, but it would take a very compelling case," Charles Young, vice president for Institutional Advancement, said. The case for restoring an athletic program at Loyola has been placed on the campus agenda again. The rumblings have returned, but this time are they sincere? The Student Government Association Tuesday unanimously approved a resolution asking the administration to study the feasibility of bringing sports back to Loyola. Calero voices position of Nicaraguan contras By Jeannie Marendt Assistant News Editor The United States must help its neighbors wipe the Western Hemisphere clean of communist infiltration, Mario Calero, official representative of the Nicaraguan contras to the United States, said on campus last week. Calero addressed a lively crowd March 13 in Nunemaker Hall. Calero's appearance, sponsored by the College Republicans of Loyola, coincided with current congressional debate in Washington on President Ronald Reagan's $100 million aid package to the contras, or freedom fighters. "Today, we of those small countries beseech you, our closest good neighbor . . . not for your blood, [but] for the material wherewithal to clean out this hemisphere, to send communism back where the hell it belongs," Calero said. "That is the only way we will regain our liberty, our life, our God." Calero, who came to the United States at age 10 and has served in the U.S. Marines, is the brother of Adolfo Calero, a leader of the United Nicaraguan Opposition. Calero described the leaders of Nicaragua's Sandinista government as criminals and travesties of men. "The destructive terroristic thugs who have brought pestilence and death to Nicaragua have made her into a haven, a country club for terrorists," Calero said. He described the directorate of the United Nicaraguan Opposition — Arturo Cruz, Adolfo Calero and Alfonso Robelo — as well-educated, successful and committed to bringing democracy to Central America. "These three men don't ask what to do, they know what to do for our country," Calero said. "They are  ones who are leading our efforts, they are the ones who have seen to it that there are no human rights violations, these are the men who are seeking the backing of the United States." Human rights violations are now a central issue in Congress' debate over aid to the contras. Opponents claim that the contras are murderering and torturing Nicaraguans and should not be aided by U.S. money. A different picture was painted by "Can You See the Stumps of the Coconut Trees?" — a 25-minute videotape that portrayed the plight of See Calero/page 9 See Sports/page 7 SGA campaign preview, seepage 4 . 'The Maroon* will not publish March 28 because of Easter holidays. Publication will resume April 4.