University of Texas Austin - Cactus Yearbook (Austin, TX)

Page 15 text:

m lUnnWirrrn Still on Track 1 1

Page 14 text:

F Breaking the routine by Christi Mance In a race, runners often think of other things to forget the pain in their body. With many students ' academic life in a routine, they also found other ways to occupy their attention. Some students concentrated on extra-curricular ac- tivities such as Union committees or special interest clubs. Some were more protest oriented. Weekends at home offered another reprieve for those who lived within commuting distance. The road north to Dallas was unusually crowded one weekend in October, OU WEEKEND. Many students ' road-tripped ' to the Cotton Bowl October 10, even if they didn ' t have tickets to the game. For some, it was for a weekend away. For others it was the game itself. For yet others it was Commerce Street or the State Fair. For most though, it was some sort of combination of it all. One event that cured many people ' s springtime fever was the annual Round-Up parade. The Student In- volvement Committee, who sponsored Round-up, had made a concentrated ef- fort to involve more non-Greek groups in Round-Up activities over the past few years. FIRE AWAY: The Texas Cowboys participate in the annual Round-Up parade. The Cowboys are the guardians of Smokey, which they fire when Texas scores during the football season. HOOK ' EM: An Alpha Phi Omega member helps carry the world ' s largest Texas flag during the Round- Up parade. UP, UP, AND AWAY: Delta Phi Ep- silon members watch the balloons leave during their annual Balloon Ascension. The balloons were let go during the Round-Up parade. Abigail Chapman 10 Still on Track

Page 16 text:

Controversy sparks campus protests by Christi Mance External factors also played an impor- tant part in the life of UT students this year, affecting the outcome of the race for some. The first thing to affect most students were the state budget cuts for higher education. The cuts sparked many student protests, the largest of which was the march on the capital on Sept. 23. By far, however the longest lasting protest centered around the Shanty on the West Mall. The Shanty was first built in the early fall by Democracy in Academia. It was a symbol of the plight Jim Sigmon EMPHASIS: Jesse Jackson speaks to a packed auditorium of students on April 22. Jackson stressed the need for greater awareness of minori- ty problems. REBUILDING: A student repairs the Shanty after it was destroyed. In all, the Shan- ty was destroyed 1 5 times this year. EMOTION: A student takes part in the Red Hands protest on Oct. 21. The protesters wanted the University to divest its holdings in companies with interests in South Africa. of the blacks in South Africa. DIA vowed not to destroy the Shanty until the University divested its holdings from companies involved with South Africa. Other students had something different in mind however. Throughout the year, the shanty was destroyed 15 times, the last on April 20. It was always rebuilt. Usually bigger and stronger. Despite the controversy, student opin- ion of the Shanty varied widely . The most protest filled day of the year was Oct. 21. At 7:40 a.m., 16 students entered the President ' s office and bar- ricaded themselves inside. The students demanded that the Regents approve a divestment policy by 5 p.m. Oct. 23. The students were removed 20 minutes after the demonstration began. Later that afternoon, in a protest against UT involvement in South Africa and the ar- rest of the UT 16, hundreds of students rallied on the West Mall for about three hours. Many dipped their hands in red paint and pressed them to the Main Building as a symbol of apar- theid. No arrests were made that after- noon, but two students were later ar- rested for criminal mischief because of the red hand prints. Jim Sigmon 12 Still on Track