Ujima Newspaper, Volume 1, Issue 3 - December 1976

UJIMA Volume 1, Number 3 LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY December, 1976 Pi Gamma Mu, the National Social Science Honor Society, recently held a symposium on The Road Ahead: America in the Next Four Years. Event was sponsored after Jimmy Carter’s victory in the presidential elections. Speakers were Dr. Edith Perlmutter of the Economics Department, Fr. Thomas Buckley of the History Department and Professors Fitzgerald, Thompson and Carey from the Political Science Department. In photo, Fr. Buckley addresses a captive audience. Photo by Beneua Jackson December Warmth: A Christmas Feature by Clare Demyer Here, December nights waft softly in warm ocean breezes, and Christ¬ mas carols are sung to the accom¬ paniment of steel drums. A full moon rises over the swelling tide, and the rythmic pulse of the season, songs, and people is something felt rather than heard. The land I speak of is no fairytale paradise, but a tiny, struggl¬ ing newly independent Caribbean country. Belize, formerly British Honduras, is about the size of Massachusetts, and is found on the Caribbean shore of Central America. It is bounded at the north by Yucatan, Mexico, and Clare Demyer on the west and south by Guatemala. 1 was lucky enough to be a Christmas-time guest at the home of a good friend — the proud maker of One Barrel Rum, one of Belize’s major local products. I went there eager, arrived hesitant, but left infi¬ nitely richer for the experiences that I underwent in my brief one-month stay. Belize City, the major social and economic port of Belize, is by no means a pretty city. Periodic hur¬ ricanes carry the ocean up over its sea-level foundations, bringing with it mud, sand, and strong devastating winds. Most of the buildings are old and badly in need of paint. At first sight the thought of spending an en¬ tire month there was not exactly thril¬ ling. On top of that, it was 85°, and very, very humid. Christmas seemed to be as far away as Alaska, and the bumpy ride into town from the air¬ port did nothing to inspire my op¬ timism. In as little as a day and a half’s time, however, I found myself warmed by the rum and the incredi¬ ble friendliness of the people. More than that, the easy-going nature of the land was easy to fall into. I re¬ member the moment precisely. It was nighttime in the unfinished gar¬ age of a newly built house. The road to it was mud, and the area that should have been lawn around it was mud as well. But somehow, I couldn’t see the dirt for the clarity of each and every star in the sky. Then, the steel band struck up its soft reg¬ gae beat and the Christmas party goers spilled smiling out onto the dance floor. Tables heaped with baked ham, rice and beans, roast turkey, and potato salad lined the dimly lit walls, and a friendly invita¬ tion to eat, dance and enjoy was of¬ fered at every turn I made. Soon, I found that I too had somehow drifted onto the dance floor and as I spun around, the moon, huge and silver, raised itself lazily up above the neighboring house. That was the moment, and I knew that I had fallen in love with a country and a people that I would never to able to leave behind me. From' then on, my stay in Belize was like a magical fairytale. I had found the beauty of a kind, easy- smiling people in a land blessed with the abundance of clear sparkling waters and dense green forests. By day, we swam and fished and dove. By night we danced and laughed and smiled. I felt right at home among my new friends, and I was Creole, Maya, Spanish, British, and Caribbean all at once. We shaied together the holi¬ ness of a Christmas season just as the entire country was doing, with gaiety and laughter, and love. On Midnight of Christmas Eve, it seemed that everyone in the pre¬ dominantly Catholic nation had come together for a Mass at St. Jo¬ seph’s Church — the oldest in thecity. People lined the antique cathedral, and swelled out from there into the doorway and onto the front steps. From where we stood near the back of the crowd, we could barely hear the priest, but somehow, the spirit of the season was as much in front of the altar as it was back by the street. And the prayer was clear. “God bless and keep our tiny country and help us continue to grow in unity and love.’’ For Belize, this prayer is slowly coming true. Despite the unpredicta¬ ble natural calamities that she faces, such as hurricanes, floods and earth- (Continued on Page 3) Successful Semester For Black Organizations by Angela Parris The Black students of Loyola Marymount University have worked hard this semester — and not only at their studies. They have successfully organized, and with other groups executed, several projects of benefit to needy members of the Los Angeles Community. The Biology Society, the Black Students’ Engineering Society, the Phi Beta Sigmas and the BSFA were the main groups contributing to a successful semester. These groups pooled their efforts to organize a raf¬ fle which successfully made $167 for the American Cancer Society. First prize of $100 went to Carol Kropp who works in the Housing Office. The second prize of two tickets to a Lakers basketball game and the third prize of any two stereo albums were both won by Loyola students. Uni¬ versity officials present for the hand¬ ing over ceremonies included two representatives of the American Cancer Society, Academic Vice- President Fr. John Clark, Vice- President for Student Affairs Tom Quinlan and BSFA President Julius Jones. The BSFA also worked success¬ fully this semester with the Afro- American Center in sponsoring the Shambrey Chorale concert last month in St. Robert’s auditorium. The function netted $314 and the Chorale has pledged to use the money for worthy causes in Los Angeles, The Black Students’ Engineering Society staged quite a meaningful project last month also. The organiza¬ tion had Ms. Peggy Harding of UCSF Allied Health Sciences as guest speaker on the subject of admissions to medical, dental and other profes¬ sional graduate schools. Lisa Landry, the Society’s president, expressed to Ujima satisfaction with her group’s work so far. In her words, “we are primarily a science oriented club and we hope to keep up the good work. ” And Phi Beta Sigma is starting a tutoring session soon for students of John Muir Junior High School. Mak¬ ing this revelation was Sigma presi¬ dent St. Clair Garcia. Plans by the organization for next semester in¬ clude a walk-a-thon to be co¬ sponsored by the March of Dimes. The walk which will be called SAD (Sigma Attack Defects) will take place in Santa Monica. “We are looking for sponsors and walkers' ’, Garcia told Ujima and added, “we don’t care what you look like.” The BSFA has also worked hard this semester. Of special pride to the organization is the publishing of the Ujima in newspaper format, and two successful fund raising dances. Slated for mid-December is a Christmas dinner for the needy. In reflecting on the Fall term BSFA president Julius Jones emphasized that all racial groups were rep¬ resented in the organization’s suc¬ cessful projects this year. Reminded that in the past BSFA was viewed as a “separate entity” on campus, Jones replied, “the activities and functions that we initiate are not limited to Black students. In fact we are en¬ couraging others to participate.” Center For Faculty Development Proposed For LMU by Festus Brotherson Jr. Dr. Charles Waddell Loyola Marymount University is con¬ sidering establishing a Center for Fa¬ culty Development. The idea has been put to the faculty and administ¬ ration in a five page memorandum by Dr. Charles Waddell, Associate Professor of Psychology. According to Dr. Waddell, “given that LMU stands for quality in teach¬ ing and closeness between teachers and students? faculty at LMU could benefit from a CFD designed to examine the effectiveness of teach¬ ing.” It is proposed that such a Center would firstly conduct an analysis at LMU to determine the in¬ structional needs of the campus. It would also, according to the memorandum, “assess the teacher effectiveness at LMU and establish (Continued on Page 3)