University of Michigan - Michiganensian Yearbook (Ann Arbor, MI)

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Ann Arbor is famous for it ' s diverse populace. From every stale and scores of nations they come thousands of crossing paths, every one the richer for it. medical school senior and recent chairman of the College Republicans. It ' s a much more ' me ' oriented campus, he said. In the 60s, students said, Tm going to find myself and find out what I can do for the world. ' Now they ' re say- ing, ' I ' ve got four years, this is ex- pensive, and I don ' t have time to screw around. ' Gone are the days of students coming here because they didn ' t have anything better to do. Seth KJukoff, editor of the con- servative campus paper The Michigan Review, agrees. I think people are more con- cerned with getting through school than protesting, said the LSA junior. It ' s a waste of time. People don ' t want arrest records on their resumes if they want to get a job at IBM. But activist Dean Baker believes student political par- ticipation, although at a lower level than Michigan saw in the 60s, is growing in size and effec- tiveness. Baker, president of Rackham Student Government and organizer of protests against U.S. Rep. Carl Pursell (R- Plymouth) for his stands on Cen- tral America, has been arrested three times in the past year for civil disobedience. I think there ' s definitely a move toward more activism, especially among the graduate student population, he said, noting that some recent demonstrations against U.S. military involvement in Central America have drawn up to 200 people. Given the low level of U.S. involvement, we compare fairly well (with the 60s). Baker said student disinterest in activism stems primarily from ignorance of issues more than self-centeredness. Ive never heard anyone say, ' Well, that ' s real bad, but I don ' t care. ' ' Whatever the reasons, activism at Michigan is far from dominating the campus as it did in the 60s. Issues will have to become more pressing before they ' re likely to provoke mass in- volvement, according to Eldersveld. That ' s the sentiment out there, he said. You don ' t see it as wildly radical, and it ' s not anti-establishment like it was in the 60s. It ' s more polite, more subdued, more sophisticated and more potential CONTINUED PROLOGUE 21