NEWS IN BRIEF
Student pleads not guilty to sex crime
Benjamin McAlister, the 21-year-old USC undergraduate student charged with attempted lewd acts with a minor pleaded not guilty Wednesday morning in Newport Beach, Calif., officials from the Orange County District Attorney's office said.
McAlister, a fourth-year architecture student, was arrested on Feb. 19 in Laguna Beach, Calif., after a sting operation where police and volunteers from Perverted-Justice.com posed as a 13-vear-old girl from whom McAlister allegedly solicited sex.
A pretrial hearing is set for April 27 at Harbor Court in Orange County.
—	Sarah Springer, staff writer
Joel Zink I Daily Trojan
Walk the walk. Harason Horowitz, a senior majoring political science, models sweatshop-manufactured apparel at a sweatshop fashion show Thursday.
Students strut for labor rights
The Stuilent Coalition Against Labor Exploitation held a fashion show Thursday.
By MICHAEL B. STAPLETON
Contributing Writer
In front of Tommy Trojan Thursday, a group of 16 student models strutted, swaggered and sometimes even sashayed their ways down the catwalk.
This was no ordinary fashion show, though. The Student Coalition Against Labor Exploitation sponsored the event to demonstrate its concern about the USC apparel being sold in the campus bookstore.
As students made their way down the catwalk clad in USC apparel, David Romero, the emcee of the event, could be heard over a micro-
phone educating the audience about sweatshop labor.
"Workers that make these clothes don’t even earn a living wage," Romero said. “In Mexico, laborers often work for $4.50 a day, and even though the law prohibits their employers from forcing them to work more than eight hours per day, they are often forced to work 10 or 12 hours per day."
The USC Pertusati Bookstore currently sells clothing manufactured by Nike. Russell Athletic, DW Authentic and Wide World Sportswear, among others.
SCALE says that these corporations are utilizing sweatshop labor to produce the clothing found on campus.
"We chose to put on a fashion show to educate students about I see Show page 7
Student Newspaper of the University of Southern California Since 1912
www.dailytrojan.com
March 31, 2006
Trojan quarterback John David Booty will undergo back surgery today. 12
Vol. CXLVIII, No. 4H
INSIDE
LAST IN A FOUR-PART SERIES ON USC ALUMNI AND THEIR CAREERS
Getting her
FEET WET ... AGAIN
After graduating, Paige Francis came back to USC as a swimming coach.
By KATE JACKSON
Staff Writer
From her native town in Scottsdale, Ariz., to her time at USC starting in 1997, to her career in Austin, Texas, and back to USC again, swimming the backstroke and freestyle has always been an integral and important part of Paige Francis’ life.
Currently in her first season as the assistant USC women’s swim coach after a year as a graduate student assistant swim coach, Francis shares about life after graduation from USC and what brought her back to her Trojan roots.
After graduation from USC in spring 2001 with a degree in communication, Francis embarked on a two-month excursion to Europe with a friend and then began job-searching in Austin. Texas was an usual choice, the Arizona native said.
"My parents thought I was crazy because I had never been there," Francis said.
Francis said that she saw this time after graduation as an opportunity to start a new life and had
heard that Austin was a great city.
"1 felt really sheltered," Francis said, “being part of a swim team my whole life and swimming my whole life."
So Francis went to Austin and job searched for two weeks until finding a |ob doing public affairs for Martin and Salinas. Francis said that although the job was the perfect fit for what she wanted to do, she found the work and environment challenging.
"You are under pressure, under the gun and expected to do it (the work) and do it right, -he said.
While Francis said she appreciated her USC foundation, she also realized that much learning is done on the job through experience.
Having quite an accomplished swimming career while at USC, including being on the first two USC women's NCAA national championship teams and having such a close relationship with swimming her whole life, Francis said that she was easily persuaded by the University of Texas swim coach to re-enter the world of swimming and train for the 2004 Olympics.
Francis started tmining as a post-graduate with the UT swim team while still working full time.
“I started doing i-ally well with swimming," Francis aid hut she
I see Francis page 7 I
INDEX
Songfest 2006 begins tonight at Bovard Auditorium. 6
Everytfody cheats a little here and there. 4
News Digest Opinions......
WEATHER
Today:
Mostly (loudy.
High 61, low 51
Tomorrow:
morning
showers
Rockin’ the festival. The Latina/o Student Assembly's Festival de Aztlan came to a close Thursday night with per formances by Quetzal, Las 15 Letras and Viernes 13. Students from local community colleges came for the show.
’SCuela de Rock rocks McCarthy
Many students from load community colleges came to the Thursday night show.
By ARCHANA PRAKASH
Staff Writer
The month-long Festival de Aztlan came to an end Thursday night with a concert featuring Spanish-rock sensation Quetzal bringing nearly 200 people to McCarthy Quad.
The festivaL sponsored each vear by the I atina/o Student Assembly and I'SC Program Board, is aimed to celebrate the latino community by highlighting culture, as well as sooo-political issues
that are of interest to Latinos.
“Having the concert to end the festival has been an LSA tradition for the last couple of years." said Sarita Michaca. executive director of LSA. who added that the orgamzatmn had sponsored several noontime concerts at Tommy Trojan to highlight the cultural aspect of latino heritage
"We've had the USC Manat hi plav and a Peruvian folklore group, as well as latin |a77 this past Monday.' Michaca said.
M ithaca said the Thursday night concert featured Spanish rock because it is a popular trend that speaks tn latinos and non-Latmos alike
"In the past, it's been our most suc-
cessful event and it brings out a lot of people," Michaca said. "We’ve actually considered changing the music but this just seems to always be welcome."
Popular local bands Viernes 13 and las 15 letras opened for Quetzal, bring ing with them a large non-L’SC folkm ing.
Ix>cal community college student Cynthia Diaz came out to listen to Viernes 13.
“We heard that they were playing here through their MvSpace page." said Diaz, a freshman at Los Angeles City College who said she was excited to see them play
Attendees said they liked the music see Concert page 7