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

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The region was already on edge following the riots, and a general feeling of lost security from the violence plaguedthe area. Tensions increas ed as aftershocks continued to be felt for days and weeks. Closed off roads and bottleneck traffic j ams added to the tension. However badly the region was battered, however, one could not deny the assets of Southern California. On the day of the earthquake, while the rest of the country froze, Los Angles re- mained a balmy 80 degrees. So despite the onslaught of catastrophes that ravaged the state over the past few years, a majority of people stayed and attempted to rebuild yet again. Also, the thousands that flocked to the state every day continued to pour in with dreams and wishes that they expected the Golden State to fulfill. MICHAEL JACKSON One of America ' s biggest pop icons was put through an arduous ordeal, when a 13 year-old child accused Michael Jackson of molesting him. The news was splashed across newspapers and tabloids around the world when the Los Angeles Police De- partment began to investigate the charges. The boy, his half sister, and his mother traveled to Monte Carlo and Disney World with Jackson, where, the boy claimed, Jack- son slept with him. The boy told his thera- pist that in Monaco, Jackson lured the boy into a bathtub and performed oral sex on him, and then told him that he would be sent to juvenile hall if their relationship was revealed. Over the ensuing months, Jack- son and his image both suffered a tremen- dous loss of prestige. He was dropped by Pepsi as a spokesman for their products, and then was sued for more than $20 mil- lion in a fraud and breach-of-contract suit filed when he canceled his world tour amidst the allegations. Many of his friends and family also bailed out on Jackson. Sister LaToya hit the talk show circuit yet again, this time to throw mud at her superstar brother. She said that their mother, Katherine, had called Michael a damn faggot even as Katherine was on TV de- fending him. It seemed as though most of Jackson ' s friends were on vacation during the controversy, as none lent their public support. Only Elizabeth Taylor continued to proclaim her friend ' s innocence through- out the ordeal. As the winter dragged on, more claims came to light. Jackson ' s former maid, Blanca Francia said that the star had slept and showered with little boys, and may have abused these children. She said that Jackson had given them the nickname Rubba, which meant that he rubbed the boys against his genitals. In return for making these allegations on the tabloid TV show Hard Copy, she earned a reported five-figure payment. Even Brett Barnes, an 1 1 -year-old Australian boy who spoke in Jackson ' s defense, said that the star had shared a bed with him. In Oprah Winfrey ' s interview with Jackson the pre- vious year, Jackson said that the thing he missed most about his own childhood was slumber parties. After months of being the head- line on countless tabloids, hear ing con- stant rumors about the entire controversy, and being subjected to a strip search that he called the most humiliating ordeal of my life, Jackson settled out of court with the 13-year-old. Lawyers refused to discuss the details of the settlement, but sources said that the amount fell between $10 and $20 million in addition to a trust fund that was also set up. Many questions were raised by the settlement. Why did Jackson take so long to settle? Many blame some of Jackson ' s lawyers and private investigators who feared a settlement would induce oth- ers to come forward with false claims in the hope of reaching a similar settlement. Despite the settlement, L.A. County District Attorney ' s Office contin- ued with its criminal investigation of Jack- son. The settlement was expected to have the silence the 13 year-old, which meant that the D.A. ' s office had lost its star wit- ness. ' Retrospect

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H H DECEMBER NORTH KOREA ' S REFUSAL TO ALLOW INTERNATIONAL INSPECTIONS OF NUCLEAR FACILITIES PROMPTED PRESIDENT CLINTON TO MEET WITH SECRETARY OF DEFENSE, LES ASPIN, AND JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF, JOHN SHALIKASHVILI. THEIR OPTIONS INCLUDED POSSIBLE ECONOMIC SANCTIONS OR EVEN A MILITARY STRIKE COCAINE KINGPIN PABLO ESCOBAR WAS KILLED IN A SHOOT-OUT WITH SOLDIERS AND POLICE. THEY TRACED CALLS MADE BY ESCOBAR TO HIS WIFE AND CHILDREN ON HIS BIRTHDAY. HIS DEATH ENDED THE 16-MONTH MANHUNT THAT BEGAN AFTER HIS ESCAPE FROM A COLOMBIAN PRISON THE DISCLOSURE OF SECRET TALKS BETWEEN THE IRA AND LONDON LED TO A MEETING BETWEEN IRISH PRIME MINISTER ALBERT REYNOLDS AND BRITISH PRIME MINISTER JOHN MAJOR. THEIR GOAL WAS TO END THE 25 YEARS OF VIOLENCE THAT HAD PLAGUED IRELAND AND BRITAIN THREE WARRING BOSNIAN FACTIONS MET TO DISCUSS AN END TO THE LONG WAR. A BREAKTHROUGH IN DISCUSSIONS CAME WHEN BOSNIA ' S MUSLIM GOVERNMENT CONSIDERED A PLAN TO PARTITION SARAJEVO IN EXCHANGE FOR SERB LAND IN THE EAST. THIS PLAN FELL THROUGH THOUGH, WHEN THE SERBS REFUSED TO GIVE UP LAND WARRING SOMALI FACTIONS MET IN ETHIOPIA TO DECIDE ON THE FATE OF SOMALIA. EVEN POWERFUL WARLORD MOHAMMED FARRAH AIDID, WHO BOYCOTTED PREVIOUS PEACE TALKS, ATTENDED. AIDID, WHO WAS THE TARGET OF A U.S. LED MANHUNT ONLY WEEKS BEFORE, WAS FLOWN TO THE CONFERENCE ON A U.S MILITARY PLANE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE LES ASPIN RESIGNED. REPORTS CLAIM THAT ASPIN WAS FORCED OUT OF OFFICE AFTER GETTING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FIGHT OVER GAYS IN THE MILITARY. PRESIDENT CLINTON NOMINATED BOBBY RAY, A POPULAR FIGURE WITH BOTH PARTIES, TO REPLACE HIM RUSSIANS APPROVED A NEW CONSTITUTION GIVING PRESIDENT BORIS YELTSIN STRONG NEW POWERS. AS PART OF THE ELECTION HOWEVER, THE ULTRA-REACTIONARY LIBERAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY, HEADED BY VLADIMIR ZHIRINOVSKY, ALSO MADE MAJOR GAINS. ZHIRINOVSKY, OFTEN COMPARED TO HITLER, SPOKE OF RESTORING RUSSIA ' S BORDERS TO THOSE EXISTING DURING ITS 19TH CENTURY EMPIRE, INCLUDING PARTS OF ALASKA AND FINLAND - THE GENERAL AGREEMENT ON TARIFFS AND TRADE (GATT) WAS APPROVED BY 1 1 7 NATIONS AFTER 7 YEARS OF DELIBERATION. THE NEW AGREEMENT ELIMINATED NATIONAL TARIFFS, SUBSIDIES, AND QUOTAS FOR DOZENS OF INDUSTRIES THE FOX TELEVISION NETWORK OUTBID CBS FOR THE RIGHTS TO THE NFC. CBS HAD BEEN HOME TO PRO FOOTBALL SINCE THE 50 ' S r ISRAEL AND THE PLO MISSED THE DEADLINE FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PEACE PLAN AGREED TO IN THE FALL. BOTH SIDES ANNOUNCED FURTHER DELAYS WOULD HOLD OFF PALESTINIAN SELF RULE FOR AWHILE , VI H H Retrospect 87

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H H JANUARY DECLASSIFIED MILITARY DOCUMENTS SHOWED THAT 800 PEOPLE WERE USED AS NUCLEAR GUINEA PIGS FOLLOWING WORLD WAR II TO STUDY RADIATION. CONGRESS ANNOUNCED THAT AN INVESTIGATION WOULD TAKE PLACE AS EVIDENCE ACCUMULATED 5 PEOPLE WERE KILLED AND 2 WOUNDED WHEN A ROCHESTER, NEW YORK MAN MAILED BOMBS TO HOMES AND WORKPLACES ACROSS THE STATE TO RELATIVES AND FRIENDS OF HIS GIRLFRIEND. HE DID SO AFTER A FIGHT WITH HIS GIRLFRIEND VATICAN AND ISRAELI OFFICIALS ANNOUNCED THAT THEY WOULD BEGIN DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER PRESIDENT CLINTON FACED THE FIRST MAJOR SCANDALS OF HIS PRESIDENCY. ALLEGATIONS SWIRLED OF MARITAL INFIDELITY DURING HIS PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN THE PREVIOUS YEAR. A MORE SERIOUS SCANDAL INVOLVED THE WHITEWATER DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION IN ARKANSAS. 5 BOXES OF PAPERS WERE SUBPOENAED BY THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT TO DETERMINE THE CLINTON ' S INVOLVEMENT IN THE ALLEGED COVER-UP FIGURE SKATER NANCY KERRIGAN WAS ATTACKED WITH A CLUB AT THE U.S CHAMPIONSHIPS IN DETROIT. AS THE PLOT UNFOLDED, A CONSPIRACY, LED BY PEOPLE CLOSE TO SKATING RIVAL TONYA HARDING, WAS DISCOVERED THE DETROIT PISTONS ANNOUNCED THAT UPON ISIAH THOMAS ' S RETIREMENT, HE WOULD HAVE A MANAGEMENT JOB WITH THE TEAM. ALSO, HE WOULD BECOME A PART OWNER OF THE TEAM. HIS SHARE WOULD BE WORTH APPROXIMATELY $55 MILLION 1 00 PEOPLE WERE KILLED IN MEXICO DURING A PEASANT REBELLION IN THE SOUTHERN STATE OF CHIAPAS ON NEW YEAR ' S DAY. THE REBELS, CALLED THE ZAPATISTA ARMY OF NATIONAL LIBERATION, WERE COMPOSED MAINLY OF MAYAN INDIAN DESCENDENTS. THEIR GOAL WAS TO EARN BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS PRESIDENT CLINTON ' S NOMINEE FOR SECRETARY OF DEFENSE, BOBBY RAY INMAN, WITHDREW HIS NAME FROM CONSIDERATION. HE CLAIMED THAT THE VICIOUS ATTACKS BY THE REPUBLICANS AND THE MEDIA WERE CHARACTER ASSASSINATION. DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY WILLIAM PERRY SUCCEEDED INMAN AS THE NOMINEE LORENA BOBBITT WAS FOUND NOT GUILTY BY REASON OF INSANITY OF MALICIOUS WOUNDING. SHE WAS COMMITTED TO A MENTAL HOSPITAL FOR 45 DAYS + A MAJOR EARTHQUAKE MEASURING 6.6 ON THE RICHTER SCALE STRUCK LOS ANGLES KILLING 55 AND CAUSING $30 BILLION IN DAMAGE NASA ' S SPACE MISSION TO REPAIR THE HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE WAS A COMPLETE SUCCESS. PICTURES FROM THE TELESCOPE THAT HAD BEEN FOGGY AND BLURRY BECAME CLEAR AND PRECISE . H o H Retrospect 89