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Wednesday February 17,1993 Vol. CXIX, No. 23
Weather :Q:
4 I
An umbrella will come in handy today. Rain is expected and will continue for the rest of the week. The high should reach 66 degrees and the low will drop to 57 degrees.
Inside
Men win vs. OSU minus Haskin
The USC men's basketball team got Oregon State center Scott Haskin into foul trouble, then cruised to a 69-60 win Saturday at the Sports Arena to put USC over .500 in Pac-10 play.
Sports, page 20
Cast ready for Evening of Soul
USC's annual
'Evening of
ng
Soul," an original student production, opens Friday night at Bovard auditorium and promises to be an exciting night of hip-hop and fun.
Diversions, page 7
Campus appears unfit for students
After experiences with muggings and theft, student believes the only way to deal with local crime is to leave the USC area or step up security on and off campus.
Viewpoint, page 4
F.Y.I.
OSA presents leadership series
The Office of Student Affairs will present "A Menu for Your Future," an annual development series.
The first seminar will be held on Feb. 23 at noon in TSC 206. The program entitled "Lighting the Candle at Both Ends," offers lunch for all participants.
The second seminar, titled "Who Am I?", will be held on Feb. 24, from .2 p.m.- 3 p.m. in TSC 206.
Ail the programs are free but registration is required. The deadline is Feb. 22.
For more information contact Judi Biggs Garbuio at STU 202 or call at 740-5693.
Newspaper of the University of Southern California
Marvin Cobb trial begins today in Superior Court
One man concert
By Mike Carlson
Assistant City Editor
The civil case of Marvin Cobb vs. USC is scheduled to go to trial this morning and promises to be a showdown between the former assistant athletic director who felt he had to blow the whistle on the treatment of black athletes at the university and an institution trying to refute Cobb's accusations and cast more than a reasonable doubt on the man who said them.
Cobb, who is black, sued the university for racial discrimination in Nov. 1990. He charged that USC denied him a promised promotion to associate athletic director because of his well-publicized remarks criticizing the university's lack of academic commitment to its black athletes.
The case is being tried in Los Angeles County Superior Court ana is expected to last about a month with jury selection beginning today. Cobb's attorney is
Samuel Reese, who won a wrongful termination suit against USC last September. Reese had no comment on the trial.
Cobb's controversy drew national attention in August 1991 when Sports Illustrated did a story — "Exploitation or Opportunity?" — on Cobb's dilemma as part of its "The Black Athlete Revisited" series. The Los Angeles Times, L.A. Weekly and the Los Angeles Sentinel have also published stories on Cobb's case.
Cobb told Sports Illustrated that USC exploits its black athletes: " 'USC, like many schools, is a virtual black-athlete factory running on quarter speed. They go out and sell these Kids on the Trojan family, that a USC degree will mean the world. Yet they don't have the proper resources to make it an even chance for the kids they recruit.' "
(See Cobb, page 5)
Isabella Chan / Daily Trojan
Sam Ferrer, mualc major, practices his cello under s stairwell.
A bad rap
Music group performance raises controversy during MEChA event
By Michelle Miller
Staff Writer
The rap band, Aztlan Underground, that performed in E.F. Hutton Park yesterday for about 4Q0 Mexican and Chicano high school and college students, outraged some listeners with its use of profane lyrics to send a political message to the youth.
The group performed songs that encourage Mexican-Americans to look at their "real" history and not what they are taught in school. In a song entitled "October 12, 1492 — Fuck That" the band used profane lyrics, such as "Fuckin' gringo," while describing how "whites" have historically oppressed Mexicans.
Yaoto, the lead singer of the band described the group as a Chicano revolutionary
rap group, and said their message is aimed at young Mexican-Americans.
"The purpose is to implement motivation to youths towards self-determination, decolonization and interracial problems," Yaoto said.
But others involved in the conference sponsored by the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan, a campus organization, thought the band sent a negative message.
A program specialist from the Bassett Unified School District, said he brought 14 and 15-year-old students to USC for the conference and was "appalled" that MEChA and the university allowed the band to perform.
"(The students) were exposed to the most outrageous vulgarities and very poor role models, and I feel that the represents
USC . . . I've never seen anything this low class," he said.
He said the band promoted a message of gang violence and went against everything he was trying to teach his students.
"They were sending a hate message towards Europeans, towards Spanish, towards people who are white...we are trying to teach our kids tolerance and respect for other cultures, not hatred," he said.
Adriana Chavarin, internal coordinator for MEChA, said she had heard the band perform before the conference and was aware of the language used in their music, but believed their message outweighed the profanity.
(See MEChA, page 3)
County-USC safety plans announced
ohn Y. Kim
Writer
Additional safety police and bulletproof glass are among the improvements either implemented or planned by County-USC Medical Center after last week's shooting that injured three physicians.
Public Relations Director Harvey Kern announced the plans at a press conference Tuesday morning.
"Our objective is to provide a safe environment for staff, patients, and visitors," Kern said. Among the features being discussed are walk-through metal detectors and 35 additional safety police officers, along with
several added 24-hour police posts throughout the Medical Center grounds.
The total cost is estimated at $1.9 million, with $100,000 going to install the bulletproof glass wall in the Emergency Ambulatory Clinic in Room 1050 where the shootings occured. It is hoped that the modifications will be completed by week's end.
Kem also announced a plan to replace the existing Medical Center with a new facility east of the General Hospital. Plans were recently approved and construction is scheduled to begin as early as 1996, with estimated time of completion
scheduled for the year 2000.
The new 950-bed facility will cover 1.9 million square feet at an estimated cost of around $1.2 billion, and will include a general hospital, trauma center and out-patient clinic.
"The new facility will be constructed with safety and security in mind and will be one of the largest hospital construction projects in the country," Kem said. The current center will be converted into doctors' offices, laboratories, and medical student housing, Kem said.
In the meantime, Kem said the center has been receiving a lot of support and sympathy from other hospitals across the
country in forms of cards, letters and faxes.
The center received a fax from a Texas hospital with the signatures of about 200 physicians and staff, wishing good luck and a speedy recovery for the victims.
One of the victims, Dr. Richard May, is still in intensive care and listed in critical condition, yet is improving daily and is responding well to conversation, Kem said.
The man who was credited with saving his life, registered nurse Tim Dufelmeier, was called a "hero" by Kem and was honored by the County Board of (See Safety, page 6)