A volunteer hands out water packets to victims of the earthquakes in the capital of Haiti, Port-au- Prince. Over three million people have been displaced, according to the World Food Programme.(Photo courtesy Nehemie Destine)

Haitian ties pull GRCC
By Yirssi Bergman
Collegiate Staff Writer

This time a year ago, the city of Jacmel, Haiti, was celebrating a carnival full of color, dancing and costumes. This year, the residents are counting their dead and trying to stay alive.

The earthquake that shook the Caribbean nation on Jan. 12 has taken over 150,000 lives in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, according to Haiti’s government. The AP reports that the total death toll in the country may be as high as 300,000 people.

“Pretty much everyone knows someone who lost someone,” said former GRCC student Jacson Celestin. Celestin is a native of Jacmel, which is about 45 miles southwest of the capital. Everyone in his family is OK, but he does know people who have died.

Celestin said that Haiti is in “complete destruction.”

Lynda Pierre, another former GRCC student, received news from Haiti two days after the earthquake hit. When she did, she posted her aunt’s story on her Facebook profile: “We all were in the apartment together and the apartment started to shake. The minute I realized that the apartment was about to fall on us, I took the smaller children and threw them off the balcony in hopes to save their lives. The older children ran out of the apartment while the complex started to fall on us.”

Pierre has her mother’s side of the family in Port-au-Prince. She said, “They all lost their homes. They are all walking street, but we were fortunate enough not to lose anybody.”

When the news of the earthquake reached the world, aid began pouring into the country. In the first 48 hours after the earthquake, the American Red Cross had received over $3 million, and that was only through text messages. President Barack Obama pledged $100 million to Haiti, and the Hope for Haiti telethon raised over $57 million.

Aid workers and the media insist that it is not enough. The BBC reports that aid workers are struggling to get water, food, and medical help to the people in need, which according to the United Nations’ World Food Programme is over three million people.

Nehemie Destine is a former GRCC student who has many ties in Haiti. Destine’s father, Marcel Destine, is one of the many people trying to help the country. Marcel is a pastor who is distributing water and crackers throughout Port-au-Prince. He is the only member of Nehemie’s immediate family still in Haiti.

“He can’t leave, he has people counting on him,” Nehemie said.

The Haiti Foundation Against Poverty was created by Mallery Thurlow in 2007 when she was only 19. According to the organization’s website, it is “a registered non-profit charity which helps provide Haitian children with life necessities like food, clothing, shelter, and education.”

Thurlow went to the island as soon as she received news about the earthquake and left her sister, Brooke Thurlow in charge.

Brooke, a GRCC student, has been working full time to coordinate the needs of the organization.

“These are not just numbers, these are my friends,” Brooke said. “I have no choice but to help; these are people I care about.”

Brooke decided to drop every class except one this semester, in order to focus completely on helping the people in Haiti.

(Top/Index)

Students Robbed
By Jacqueline Prins
A&E Editor

GRCC student, Tim Zartman was exhausted as he left the Ford Fieldhouse on Jan. 12. He may have been sweaty from the 45 minute run he had just finished, but the exhaustion he was feeling this particular day was not physical.

Zartman was tired of having his belongings stolen.

For the second time in three months his locker at the Ford Fieldhouse (FFH) had been broken into. Both times Zartman said his locker was locked.

“GRCC is not a safe place,” Zartman said. “That’s what I’m feeling right now. I would never tell anyone I know that GRCC is a safe place to work out.”

According to Zartman, the two textbooks that were stolen were worth approximately $300.

“I had my Chemistry 103 and Math 107 books in my locker,” Zartman said. “Campus Police got the Chemistry 103 book back about an hour later. Someone was trying to sell it back to the GRCC bookstore.”

Lt. Harold Woolworth of the GRCC Campus Police Department, said there are no suspects at this time.

He also said they do not know how many thefts occur from locked lockers in the FFH.

“Each individual report would need to be read,” Woolworth said.

Woolworth added that patrols of the FFH has increased due to the recent thefts and that larcenies have increased not only on campus but in the downtown area.

President Ender, Zartman, and Bob Partridge, Executive Vice President of Business and Financial Services all believe the thefts are a serious problem that needs to be addressed.

The First Theft

The first time Zartman experienced theft in the FFH locker room was on Nov. 16, 2009.

“My locker was locked,” Zartman said. “I had double checked it. They picked the lock and took my money but left my credit cards.”

Woolworth said he could not say how the locker was broken into.

“Sometimes a lock may look like it is locked, but a quick pull on it will open it up,” Woolworth said. “A lock should be double checked to make sure it is secured.”

Ender said there are some precautions in place, but that they are looking into using cameras to determine who has access at what time.

“I would like to solve the problem in the locker room,” Ender said. “Let’s see what we can do to ensure that the locker room is a safe environment for people’s possessions.”

Partridge said he is planning to put cameras outside the locker room.

“I know the cameras are a high priority and we’ve already approved budget for the key high-risk areas on campus,” Partridge said.

Partridge also said Zartman’s situation was unique.

“He had two locker break-ins and had personal items stolen,” Partridge said. “I ran into him at the President’s office and overheard the conversation. His frustration was not being able to get his book back to study because it was evidence of the theft.”

Partridge said after checking with the GRCC bookstore, which had no Chemistry 103 books left, he and Woolworth were able to find a solution.

Although frustrated at having to identify his book before the police would give it to him, Zartman said he was happy to have it back.

“When I went to get my book, they asked me the author and the edition, before I could have it back,” Zartman said. “I was very thankful to people like Bob Partridge, and Elaine McCormack.”

Elaine McCormack is Executive Assistant to the President. Zartman said both McCormack and Ender were helpful in getting his chemistry book back. They set him up with a borrowed math book from the GRCC bookstore Rent-A-Text program.

Rick VanderVeen, FFH Events Director, said there will always be a certain degree of thefts at a facility like the FFH. He said it is best to lock personal belongings up, using a FFH issued lock.

“The college changed its locks a year ago,” VanderVeen said. “We went to a three-tumbler, high-security lock. It is

hard case and pretty high end.”

VanderVeen said locks are available for rent at the FFH for $20.

“They get $10 back, so for the entire school-year they can rent a lock for only ten bucks,” VanderVeen said.

Another Run-in

On Jan. 18, Zartman was running on the treadmill at the FFH. This time, to ensure his belongings were safe, he brought his belongings with him, despite FFH rules to leave book-bags in a locked locker.

According to Zartman, he was approached by what he later learned was a worker at the FFH. Zartman was told to move his belongings, but he said he did not feel safe leaving them in the locker room.

“She told me I had to get my stuff out of there now, and I told her if she had a problem she could call the police,” Zartman said.

Officer Martin Ruiz of the Campus Police arrived and spoke with Zartman.

“The officer didn’t come up and say ‘Excuse me sir, can I talk to you a minute?’ ” Zartman said. “He came up ready for a fight I told him I had to cool down a minute, I had just been at a brisk run. He looked at me and said ‘Get off the treadmill now!’ I was guilty immediately in his eyes.”

Zartman said he knows he was frustrated at this point.

Ruiz said in an e-mail, “During our conversation Zartman advised that he did not have any respect for authority and his actions showed it. I completely understand that he was a victim of two unfortunate crimes, but that does not give any person a reason to be disrespectful towards a GRCC employee or a police officer.”

The FFH worker was not wearing a badge, or identification according to Zartman.

Partridge said “We hope students and staff respect the rules of the Fieldhouse. Also, the staff of the FFH need to be clearly identified so that when students and staff are approached by the people in charge they know these people are in charge. They are identified with some sort of GRCC identification, and that they would ask them in a polite way to remove the materials, and the same is true with campus police.”

VanderVeen said he also expects FFH staff to be identified, and the rules of the FFH to be followed, but made no comment on the incident.

Becky Eastham, full-time GRCC student, regularly uses the FFH locker room.

“The big issue for me isn’t the lockers, although some people do leave their combinations on the back of them, it’s the bathrooms,” Eastham said. “They are constantly out-of-order.”

Christen Lewis, also a full-time student, said “I usually come everyday and I haven’t had any problems.”

However for Zartman, even one theft is too many.

“I want to see a change,” Zartman said.

Zartman said his goal now is to help bring about change. He said he doesn’t want other students to go through the same experience.

“As long as I’m a student I’m going to stay on this matter until changes are made,” Zartman said.

Zartman decided not to workout at the FFH until the problem is resolved.

(Top/Index)

GRCC student James Wisner’s White Culture Club was denied status as an official GRCC student organization last semester.

Student Life Director Eric Mullen wrote in a letter to Wisner, “We have substantial evidence that demonstrates your true intent to form this organization is inconsistent with the information presented in your application.

“The true purpose of the group is a clear violation of the college’s Equal Opportunity and Non-Discrimination policy.”

Before making his decision, Mullen communicated with GRCC Professor Keith St. Clair, who, at the time, was willing to be advisor to the club.

“As you review his facebook profile, you can clearly see the affiliation with white supremacist beliefs, speech, doctrine, symbols and groups, ” Mullen said.

After speaking with Mullen, St. Clair withdrew his support.

“(Wisner) told me he was not a racist,” St. Clair said. “All that seemed fairly innocent and naïve.”

“I’m here to entertain debate. People aren’t going to develop any sensitivity if we just shove it under the rug.”

In the end, St. Clair wasn’t happy with how things turned out.

“I felt like a schmuck for even taking the kid at face value,” St. Clair said. “He basically lied to me.”

Wisner feels that he was denied due to “racism towards whites.”

“I feel that Eric Mullen and others are scared to simply allow a white person to love who they are and where they come from because a few people may be offended,” Wisner wrote to Collegiate staff writer Mike Peterson in an instant message. “I am offended that Eric would imply hatred because I choose to follow my people’s old ways.”

Wisner is quick to make a distinction between pride and prejudice.

“Since when did pride become prejudice,” Wisner wrote. “I am baffled to think that because my beliefs make me prideful, that I am denied the right to share that with others, through my knowledge of White Culture and history.

Wisner said that he feels he is being forced to change his beliefs for the sake of sensitivity.

“Why should I have to change myself?” Wisner wrote. “I would rather face some adversity and a few bumpy roads then ever let go or subdue my pride and peoples sacrifices to let some other person feel more comfortable.”

Wisner is demanding an apology from Mullen.

“I would ask for a personal and professional apology for out right claiming things off extremely unsubstantial and bias information,” Wisner wrote. “As a major staff member for GRCC, Eric Mullen should be ashamed. It puts a bad name out for his peers.

“I would like to know why Eric Mullen has what seems to be a personal vendetta against me. I never did anything to him and it seems to me unprofessional to attack my personal life to avoid having to face a new age of diversity where even whites can be proud.”

Wisner feels that his Facebook profile shouldn’t have had an effect on the decision.

“My personal life and things such as my networking sites and what is on them should hold no bearing to how I run my professional organizations such as [the White Culture Club],” Wisner wrote. “It was tactless to use my personal life against me.”

Wisner claims that he was never given the chance to defend himself or the organization from the claims.

However, St. Clair said that before the rejection letter was sent, a meeting was scheduled between himself, Mullen, Wisner and the potential members of the club.

“(Wisner) blew it off,” St. Clair said. “He didn’t come to the meeting and tried to schedule another one. This is when Eric gave him the letter.”

Mullen said that they waited 45 minutes for Wisner before giving up.

(Top/Index)

Oct. 29 assault: still no suspects
By Brittany Zender
Collegaite Staff Writer

On Oct. 29, a female GRCC student was assaulted in the Bostwick parking ramp on her way to class.

“She was punched and robbed, then t r a n s p o r t e d to St. Mary’s h o s p i t a l shortly after her call to 911,” said GRCC police Lieutenant Woolworth. “She had no major injuries.

“This happens all the time, but hasn’t at GRCC in over four years, when a man was robbed in the Bostwick parking elevators.”

The campus police still have no leads or suspects.

“We had asked the Detective Bureau department of the GRPD to make a composite drawing of the suspect, and you can still see the posters around our campus,” Woolworth said. “The suspect is an African American male, early 20’s, with a tear drop tattoo on the left side of his face.

“We believe he does not attend here, and there are no new updates or leads since last semester’s robbery, and the case is still open.”

GRCC student Agatha Sudue said, “Last semester was my first at GRCC. I had a class that ended about 10 at night and I was very scared walking to my car because every time I left I noticed an older, toothless male standing on the corner. I really started to pay attention to my surroundings, walk a different way with a friend and refrain from using my cell phone or iPod.”

There are currently no cameras in the parking ramps, but plans are in action to add them and other safety features according to the GRCC Police.

Felicia Schears, a full time parking ramp attendant, advises GRCC students to always be aware of their surroundings.

“Walk with a friend to your car, especially at night, or call the police escort service if you feel uncomfortable,” Schears said. “Also, carry pepper spray and familiarize yourself with the yellow emergency phone poles around campus. It’s the most simple way to keep safe.”

The police escort service provides a campus police officer to escort you to your car.

“As long as it’s on campus, we’ll escort you,” Woolworth said. “The calls usually die down after the first month of school when students feel safer. But we advise anyone to call if they don’t feel safe.”

(Top/Index)

Police Reports for January 27, 2010

Trespasser in Winchester Alley
12/1
A person was hanging out in Winchester Alley. He tried to avoid campus security, and was hesitant to give his name. After the second name given, he became angry. He was not a student and was then escorted off campus.

Bookstore fraud
12/3
A student was trying to sell back duplicates of the books he had already purchased off of the
shelf and tried to receive cash.

Pepsi bike stolen
12/3
A student’s bike was stolen after winning it from a Pepsi contest. He had locked it up near the main campus bike rack and the bike and lock were missing. No information on the make or model other than the stickers “FILA” and “Pepsi” on it.

Projector stolen
12/3
After returning from break, an instructor noticed a $1200 LCD Panasonic projector missing from its stand with the cords hanging down, and the lock broke. No suspects at this time.

Laptop stolen
12/9
A student placed their backpack in a locker under their gym bag. The locker was not locked and a MacBook computer in a black zipper case, an iPod, and cords were stolen.

Parking ramp arm broken
12/13
Someone tried to closely follow a car into the parking ramp without swiping their card, or pulling a ticket. This resulted in the destruction of the ramp arm. No suspects.

Wallet stolen
12/14
A student retuned to the locker room to find his locker broken into and his wallet gone. No suspects.

Laptop, textbook and homework stolen
12/16
A student had their black laptop, a textbook, and homework stolen from their car in the Bostwick parking ramp. No suspects.

Possession of marijuana
12/27
A suspicious person was on campus. When asked to see their ID he was upset and hesitant. He was not a student, and when searched, was in possession of a marijuana cigarette.

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