The ACSR Starts Rolling

Harvard's stock-voting machine started its second annual march to the summer this week, as its two components held a joint meeting to iron out their occasional tendency to march in different directions.

It wasn't immediately clear how successful they had been. Stephen B. Farber '63, special assistant to President Bok, said the Corporation's subcommittee on shareholder responsibility had moved closer to the position of the student-faculty-alumni Advisory Committee on Shareholder Responsibility on at least one issue--having companies send information activist shareholders force them to disclose to all shareholders, not just those who asked for it.

But this difference was pretty minor, even compared to the other differences between the two committees last spring, and though Farber said the groups' discussion was "free and open"--it was the first time the two committees had met--he didn't specify any other position changes.

Last year the two committees differed on a number of issues. The ACSR shareholder resolution that would have forced Mobil Oil's South African affiliate to institute an affirmative action program for granting equal treatment to its black and white employees; the subcommittee, which makes the final decision on how Harvard votes, abstained, saying the resolution might force Mobil to act illegally under South African law.

The ACSR supported disclosure of political contributions by three companies, Eastman Kodak, ITT, and Standard Oil, while the subcommittee voted Harvard's stock for disclosure by only Standard Oil, whose gifts, it said, were of proven significance. To ask other companies to disclose their gifts would be unfair, it said, since labor unions and other large institutions sometimes make secret contributions. There were other differences, too.

Meanwhile, students chosen in House-wide elections--in many cases. with just one candidate running for each position--agreed to put off choosing two undergraduate delegates to the ACSR until Monday. Only four of the students have indicated interest in serving on the Committee. Joel W. Motley '74, a member, said yesterday.