A Call for Change

To the Editors of The Crimson:

We have come together in a unified call to express our outrage over the representation and coverage of minority organizations and events by the Harvard Crimson and to support S. Allen Counter's position as director of the Harvard Foundation. Crimson coverage has been a problem of grave concern to us for a long time, but in light of recent controversies on campus regarding minority affairs, we confront the editors and staff of The Crimson with a few distinct examples representative of a larger problem which we demand that you address. We hope that this will be the first step in bringing about constructive change.

1. We are offended and angered when The Crimson questions the legitimacy of our organizations because of the speakers we choose to invite to address the Harvard campus. The Crimson's editorial entitled "BSA Hypocrisy" on the Black Students Association (BSA) invitation to Leonard Jeffries is a clear example of this.

2. We are upset by the presence of only one Crimson reporter designated to cover all minority issues and events on campus. The diversity and nuRTLÃ of events by minority organizations is so broad, no individual person can adequately cover these events. Not only is it unfair for our organizations, it is also unfair for the one reporter.

3. We object to the minimal coverage of events organized by minority groups. The Asian American Association's (AAA) ECASU conference attended by over 550 students from over fifty colleges from across the nation on February 28 through March I did not receive any coverage in The Crimson. The Crimson article on 18 April ("Latino Culture Celebrated") on the Latino Conference sponsored by Raza, La Organization Estudiantil Boricua (La O) and Latinas Unidas was the first Latino-sponsored event to receive front page coverage all year. When The Crimson does report, it selectively concentrates on some politically controversial events, sensationalizing these as it ignores many other cultural and political events. An example of such reporting includes the year-long speaker series sponsored by BSA, which has received selective coverage as only the most controversial speakers were covered by The Crimson.

4. The Crimson repeatedly represents our organizations in a negative and inaccurate way which denigrates our endeavors to educate the Harvard community about issues that are of vital concern to our ethnicities. In a 17 December, 1991 issue of the Crimson, the editors of The Crimson included a blow-up quote in Richard Primus' editorial ("Zionism Isn't Racism," 17 December, 1991) that incorrectly stated that the Society of Arab Students told Primus that they "weren't interested in promoting a productive discourse about the Arab-Israeli conflict." Two days later, only after several people had complained to The Crimson about the quote, there was a brief correction. But the damage had already been done. Additionally, BSA was repeatedly portrayed in a negative manner during the Leonard Jeffries affairs.

5. Crimson reporters often misquote members from our organizations and extensively edit quotes, take words out of context and selectively pick parts of interviews and statements which misrepresent the speaker. We ask for less editing of quotes and a less combative style of interviewing. Also, non-members of a similar ethnic back-ground are often quoted to represent the whole organizations. The Crimson's series on diversity proved this incompetence.

For example Zaheer R. Ali '94 was quoted as saying that "all my friends are Black" whereas what he said was that "all my close friends are Black." Additionally, his quote in the staff editorial on 14 April claimed that Ali criticized the Harvard Foundation. In fact, Ali supports the work of the Foundation. Additionally, the AAA fashion show does not have a height requirement, this is clearly a Crimson fabrication.

6. The Crimson has demonstrated negligence in reporting and incompetence in checking the facts. In the whole staff editorial in the 14 April issue of The Crimson, the editors wrote that La O was one of the student groups that expressed hostility towards the Leonard Jeffries lecture sponsored by BSA. This is simply incorrect, since La O neither supported nor protested the event.

These are a few of the problems we see with Crimson coverage of our events. We are not the only ones that see that this is a problem. Counter also realizes the inaccurate and negligent coverage of minority issues in The Crimson. Considering that his words have been given various and conflicting interpretation, we strongly support the efforts and achievements of the Harvard Foundation and Counter in promoting interracial and inter-cultural understanding. Counter is an outstanding professor and administrator at Harvard who has sincerely dedicated his life to creating a better environment for minorities at Harvard and we applaud his dedication.

At the last Cultural Rhythms festival held in February, Counter was recognized for his extensive involvement in these issues with an award from President Rudenstine for improving race relations. Many, if not all, of the events sponsored by our organizations would not have been possible without the moral and financial support of the Foundation. Finally, we oppose the call for Counter's resignation.

In conclusion, we demand that The Crimson institute drastic and immediate changes in its representation and coverage of issues of concern to minorities and the rest of the Harvard community. Additionally, we ask the Harvard administration to dissolve the board reviewing the call for Counter's resignation. We hope that both administrators and students learn to work together to create dialogue that is both open and sensitive to a diversity of perspectives concerning race and ethnicity. Mark H. Kim '94   Connie I. Cheng '94   Asian American Association   Art A. Hall '93   Black Students Association   Efrain Cortes '94   La Organizacion Estudiantil Boricua   Veronica Rasales '94   Raza   Samia Mora '92   Laila Sahyoun '94   Society of Arab Students

Editors' Note

The Crimson has never "question[ed] the legitimacy" of any of these organizations. In fact, staff editorials have expressed solidarity with these groups in the past, as well as with others such as BGLSA and Hillel.

The "BSA Hypocrisy" editorial praised the BSA for bringing "a diverse and important range of speakers" to campus and defended the BSA's right to invite whomever they wish.

The BSA was cited as hypocritical for objecting to last year's Confederate flag hangers as "offensive" (a position which The Crimson supported) while not recognizing Leonard Jeffries as offensive.

While it is true that The Crimson designates only one of its 12 College beat reporters specifically to cover minority issues, the other 11 also frequently cover minority issues and events. Managing Editor Maggie S. Tucker will explain some of The Crimson's staffing and coverage policies in a signed editorial on Monday.

Richard A. Primus '92 immediately brought to our attention the serious error we made in writing the blow-up quote. We apologized as soon as space was available, and printed two letters from SAS members that day.

The Crimson apologizes to members of these groups who feel that they have been misquoted--and also to professors, athletes, dining hall workers and anyone else who does. However, we stand by the Zaheer Ali quote.

As for the AAA height requirement, Haewon Hwang '95, the fashion show organizer, told our reporter Betty Cung '95 that there was a height requirement to fit the clothes to be modeled. Later, Hwang told Crimson staffer June Shih '94 that the requirement was more a loose "guideline."

Finally, we apologize to La O for the error. Next week, we will print a staff editorial in response to these criticisms and those of S. Allen Counter and Natosha O. Reid '93.