Letters

Tolerance should be extended to all

I was very pleased to read Jonah Lalas’ column, “Don’t succumb to wave of
hate” (Daily Bruin, Viewpoint, Sept. 14). I have also
seen and heard on the news and talk shows irrational statements,
made by “well-meaning” people, directed against Muslim
Americans.

As an African American and a Christian, I am still surprised at
the reactions of many Americans toward Arab Americans. Anger is
definitely understandable and expected given the magnitude of last
week’s attack. But should we direct our anger at our own
citizens?

We should all realize that many Muslims were born in the United
States and, therefore, are first and foremost Americans. We did not
see this type of “racial profiling” after the Oklahoma
City bombing, and we should not tolerate it now.

I suggest that all students this fall make it a point to welcome
their fellow students who happen to be Muslim. We still live in a
land that promotes freedom of religion, and I would hate to see
that ideal succumb to fear and bigotry.

Victoria E. Nelson Chemistry/Materials
Science

Students need to grow up, share city

Did the writers of the editorial, “Students dumped in construction
process” (Daily Bruin, Viewpoint, Oct. 2) think about
what the overall effects would be if the trucks went down Sunset
Boulevard?

Although I’m not currently at UCLA, it appears, from the
description of your article, that you would prefer Sunset Blvd.
being backed up and significant overflow from Sunset diverted
through the UCLA campus. 

Would the increased congestion of motor vehicle traffic really
be so desirable as to outweigh the benefits the current policy
gives to the city of Los Angeles?

When students and the Daily Bruin editors realize that being a
student is not the be-all, end-all of the world, but rather one
part of a much larger community, then maybe people will take your
editorials seriously.

Ethan Greene Class of 1999

Media shouldn’t baby audiences

Regarding “Terrorism
in movies puts profit before sense” (Daily Bruin,
Viewpoint, Sept. 28). I wholeheartedly agree with the author. I
think we should stop making movies with violence. 

After all, we are all mindless automatons. People
can’t think for themselves, and we should protect them from
their base instincts. For that matter, we should also stop
making music with suggestive lyrics. Songs having to do with sex or
violence just lead to people having sex or doing violence.

We should all stop watching sports, also. Football is just
about men bashing each other. Too much violence of this type
hurts our children. Baseball, too: have you ever seen those
awful collisions at home plate?

OK, so no more “Saving Private Ryan,”
“Braveheart,” Britney Spears, Aerosmith, UCLA football
or the Dodgers. We can now only watch Disney movies like
“Beauty and the Beast.”Â Oops, wasn’t there
this whole thing about kidnapping in that movie?

Damn, maybe we should all just sit at home without a television,
stereo or books sucking our thumbs.

Cory G. Lee Class of 1996

Zero week respectful, not illegal

Your recent editorial (“Loss of Zero Week Detrimental to
All,” Daily Bruin, Viewpoint Sept. 27) was very
disappointing in that it was poorly ““ if at all ““
researched, and clearly did not strive to give the readership a
balanced opinion.

I do agree that certain students might feel that they have been
imposed upon by the University while it was trying to accommodate
Jewish students. However, I disagree with your arguments concerning
the role of the university in promoting and protecting basic
freedoms and diversity on campus.

Your editorial fails to take into consideration the fact that to
achieve diversity and equality among all peoples is not a one-way
street, but rather it requires concessions on all sides.

Certainly, some students were adversely affected by the change
in schedule caused by this year’s Yom Kippur services.

However, this is not grounds for charging the University with
violating the separation between church and state. Such an action
would be futile, as it would open the door to countless claims
against the university, and other institutions, for what could be
labeled as forced religious indoctrination and/or
discrimination.

Take, for instance, our official school breaks. It is no mere
coincidence that winter vacation falls at the same time as
Christmas. Businesses and schools, to name a few, have long
realized that to make Christian employees work on one of their most
sacred holidays would be an undue burden.

This is not to say that it is an endorsement of Christmas or the
Christian religion to close down on December 25th; rather, it is a
concession which recognizes the needs of certain groups of
people.

The same goes for the tradition of not working on Saturday or
Sunday, in order to respect the religious rights of various
religions that celebrate a weekly Sabbath.

Furthermore, we have occasions such as Memorial Day, which is
not religious at all but rather is meant to recognize our soldiers.
Yet one does not have to be a soldier or know someone who has
served to appreciate the significance of the event and adjust their
schedule accordingly.

I was not part of the group that decided to shorten zero week
because of Yom Kippur. However, I can probably guess as to what
their motives were.

First, every group has the right to express itself, as
guaranteed by the Constitution. So, the university could not tell
Jewish students and faculty to skip services on the most important
day of the year in order to go to work or school.

Second, since the University could not control the right of
Jewish Bruins to worship, and knew that the majority would not be
in attendance on Yom Kippur, they moved the first day of classes to
Tuesday to minimize the negative effect on everyone involved.

For Jewish Students, this means that they were able to go to the
first class and find out how the course is run, as well as be
counted as being present on the roll sheet.

This is important for all students, but especially first-year
students who are already under stress during their transition to
college. Jewish faculty benefited as well, because they were able
to go to their first class, assess their students, and start their
courses on the first instruction day.

The point which I am trying to make is that, as Americans, we
are very lucky to be able to express ourselves freely. Yet to be
able to express ourselves, we must respect each other enough to
allow each voice to be heard.

Freedom of expression, as defined by our founding fathers, is a
give-and-take relationship. There is no such thing as diversity
where one group is not revered and respected by the others, nor is
there such a thing as freedom where the will of the majority
controls the affairs of the minority.

Howard I. Chernin Third-year
Spanish/Linguistics Internal Vice President, UCLA Jewish Student
Union