Letters

Housing decision unfair to residents

I am the mother of a first-year student residing in Dykstra
Hall. I am writing to voice my disappointment and anger at the UCLA
Housing Office.

My son’s two roommates decided to leave Dykstra for the
newly-opened De Neve Plaza dorm. My son was then informed by the
UCLA Housing staff that if he chose to stay in his room, it would
cost us an additional, exorbitant housing fee for the remaining
quarter. His only other alternative was to pack up all of his
belongings during Finals Week and move into another three-person
room. So, UCLA Housing demanded that the students relocate instead
of studying for finals.

We send our children to UCLA for a better education; however,
the only lessons that they’re learning right now are in
“Greed, Insensitivity and Inflexibility 101,” taught by
the people at UCLA Housing.

Gail Fasi

Laramie Project is not propaganda

In response to Andrew Jones’ column,
“”˜Laramie Project’ only leftist
propaganda” (Viewpoint, March 14):

Someone needs to tell Jones to get a clue and learn to express
his criticism of anything homosexual without his closed-mindedness
preventing him from making a decent point.

Jones says that “the horrific murder of an innocent gay
man has been manipulated into a leftist showpiece calling for
“hate crimes legislation.” I would hesitate to say the
case was manipulated by the leftist population. If anything, the
case serves as a catalyst for making people realize lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender people are still at risk of verbal and
physical attacks every day.

Would he say the same thing about the lynching of black men that
predated their inclusion into several hate crimes policies across
the United States? No, this would make him seem racist. So he
attacks the population that is the easiest (and apparently the
safest) to attack: the LGBT community.

Does Jones actually have the capacity for free thought or is he
telepathically linked with Fred Phelps? For once, Jones needs to
figure out how to create his own informed opinion rather than
continually spreading the misinformed opinion that is the
stereotype of the conservative right.

Jones may have a point, but it is bogged down in offensive
slander and homophobia. If anything, Jones’ column makes me
realize we have many more steps to take before it is not considered
a crime ““ in this country of the free ““ to be a member
of the LGBT community. At least he made me realize something.

Teresa Mae Lassak Fifth-year Geology

Separatist politics exercised by right wing,
too

Andrew Jones nicely highlights the possibility that hate crimes
legislation may serve what he calls the “totalitarian
leftist” separatist agenda and in the long run have the
negative effect of further separating gays and lesbians from the
rest of society in his article ““˜Laramie
Project’ only leftist propaganda“ (Viewpoint, March
14).

I agree that hate crimes legislation may do exactly that by
allowing many to use the oft-cited plea that gays and lesbians want
“special rights” in other matters of social justice. I
also agree with Jones’ assertion that the Matthew Shepard
case does not necessarily support the need for such
legislation. In fact, justice was done in this instance
without any hate crimes legislation to guide the outcome.

And of course I agree with Jones’ sage and compassionate
statement that “we need less separatism, not more.” In
fact I applaud Jones’ passionate stance for less divisiveness
and greater inclusion.

I feel fortunate to now know a man of such moral conviction. Our
gay and lesbian brothers and sisters are lucky to have such an
advocate who will certainly attack the institutional separatism
current laws force them to experience on a daily basis, largely at
the hands of the far right, once he has successfully derailed the
“divisive” separatist hate crimes legislation. Indeed,
I look forward to the zeal with which Jones will speak out about
current laws that keep gays and lesbians from basic rights that the
rest of society enjoys such as marriage, freedom from
discrimination in the workplace, the ability to openly serve the
country in the military, and partner benefits.

If Jones is about anything other than perpetuating his own
political agenda by tearing down what he terms the
“totalitarian left” perhaps we can expect to hear
impassioned pleas from him in future articles that deride the
shameful separation gays and lesbians are forced to experience due
to current federal and state legislation. 

Unfortunately, something tells me that I would be well advised
not to hold my breath while scouring upcoming editions of The
Bruin.

And shame on you, Jones, for your own transparent attempt at
propaganda embodied in your snide and trite question,
“Isn’t every crime a hate crime?” There are two
responses to this. First, certainly not. And second, this
supposedly rhetorical question trivializes the experience of all
too many gay people. Shame on you indeed.

Geoff Twitchell, Ph.D. Postdoctoral fellow UCLA
Integrated Substance Abuse Program