OCR Text |
Show Tuesday, March 30. 1993 The Daily Utah Chronicle - Page Five r Opinions The Daily Utah Chronicle Editorial Stop child abuse Abuse prevention needs to be government priority Children's - WM'A W H MEETINGS in SECRET? lives are entrusted to adults, so adults abuse the youngsters TT TAcb-H . CARE ' gH fePP they're supposed to be caring for, society needs to step in and provide protection and prevention. Jan Graham, Utah attorney general, and chil- dren's groups in the state want the Legislature to fund a new division in the Attorney Gener- al's Office next year. The sole purpose of the division would be to handle child-abus- e issues. Utah The Division of Family Services reported more than 10,000 cases of child abuse in 1992, while a Utah Attorney General's Child Abuse Prosecution Assistance Unit official said Cleaning up graffiti only treats the symptoms of a continuing problem he estimates 24 children die each year as a result of abuse. These statistics clearly show the problem is widespread and that something must Around be done. The Chronicle supports the creation of a division to help prevent child abuse and to catch abusers. Citizens should become involved by getting behind the attorney general and lobbying the Legislature over the next year. Children are the most important citizens in this state, yet they are without the resources to lobby themselves. Hopefully, legislators in Utah, as well as around the nation, will begin to make children a higher priority. However, Utahns are now capable to lead the fight against child abuse because they are fortunate enough to have such a strong children's advocate in Graham. Utah's attorney general seems to realize children should be treated more like humans than like household property. campus User-friendl- y leaders and administrators at the of Utah have taken significant steps over the past year to make the campus for students. The extended more hours at the Marriott Library and the revised phone registration system are two prime exam- Student user-friendl- my neighborhood, buildings have 7 passed out to clean up the 1 popped up overnight. Some residents have walked out of their houses in the morning to find the walls surrounding their homes have been covered with spray paint. Even walls along the freeway, nearby where I live, have been hit by this visual display of juvenile delinquency, most noticeable the work done by a group called the "East Side Hoods." Graffiti disturbs so many people because of what it symbolizes. Areas covered with spray paint come to be known as crime-ridde- n, places where you don't want to walk alone at night. When we think of graffiti we think of Los Angeles, Detroit and New York subways. That's why residents, including myself, were so shocked that graffiti was appearing in a suburb of Salt Lake City. The area hasn't been hit by crime until recent years. Gangs and gang activities were naively thought of by many of us as problems that only occurred downtown or on the west side, if they were happening at all. Now that the problem has hit so close to home, residents are up in arms. A group met near the Cottonwood area where I live with plans to deter the graffiti activity. Paint and other means to get rid of the graffiti were neighborhood. Residents thought that if removed they the paintings, juve- niles would stop vandalizing. Although resi- Eleni Vatsis dents have a right to beautify their homes again, such a simple solution Chronicle Editorial Editor won't solve a It's as not as complex problem. easy to cover an unsightly using make-u- p mole. Cleaning up graffiti is like presenting a thief with a room full of goods she has stolen before and then wondering if she will steal again. Graffiti artists will just have another clean place to vandalize and, sure enough, downtown businesses have reported that the graffiti they clean up one day is quickly replaced the next. The cycle continues, costing home and business owners hundreds of dollars for a temporary solution. But solutions need not be so ephemeral. Projects to clean up graffiti only cure the symptoms of the problem and don't get at the heart of it. According to Dr. Theresa Martinez, U. assistant professor of sociology, juvenile vandalism such as graffiti exists because society is asking itself the wrong questions. "The question is not whether we should paint over it or not," Martinez said. "We should ask ourselves why it's there and then get to the root of it. Instead of victim blaming, ask why they're writing on the walls. Are they lacking for a means of expression?" As for cleaning up the vandalism, Martinez said, "In the long run, those types of solutions won't have an effect." In addition to marking territory for gang members, graffiti is an art form and a way for young people to express themselves, although it's unfortunate that their art must destroy another person's property. Many graffiti artists are obviously talented but have chosen an illegal avenue to exhibit their art. Young people clearly have something to say, even if it is just to make their presence known. Utah, like the rest of the nation, is pursuing an impotent policy in issues involving juvenile crime. We need to redirect our efforts from just treating the symptoms of vandalism to finding permanent solutions. This includes helping young people find better ways of expressing themselves. y ples of what has been done. However, there are still some obvious shortcomings in the way the U. campus does business. It would be of immense help to all students if the University Bookstore would be open on the Sunday before the first day of school. It might k lines. cut back on the The Union Building should also be open that last Sunday of a break. Although the U. is primarily a commuter campus, some consideration should be shown for those students who return from vacations to their dorm rooms and would like to relax, get ahead in their studies or just grab something to eat. first-wee- The Chronicle is an independent student newspaper. Unsigned editorials reflect the majority view of the Editorial Board. Chrony needs mature editor Editor: I have read Steve Miller's editorial and the article about using Christo- pher Jones' name in a very reprehensible letter that he did not write. My reaction: "Well, it finally happened!" Those of us who have been around this place for a few weeks know such letters are a common practice in the Chrony. Why? Because certain people at the Chronicle are not doing their job! The Chronicle editors should have made a front page apology to Mr. Jones and any others who were harmed because you people are not running a newspaper, but a propagan- da organ for your own personal viewpoint. Grow up! About 90 percent of the letters I have written to the Chronicle over the last two years have not been printed. Why? Because most of them conflict with the narrow-minde- d viewpoint of those who decide whether they will be printed or not. I can only speculate about why the "Christopher Jones" letter was printed. Probably because you really thought it was an opportunity to get someone who disagrees with you. Again, grow up! I can try to hypothesize why the letter writer though an alias was nec- essary. Steve Miller said, "There should be a free exchange of ideas." Well, have the editors at the Chrony ever allowed such a free exchange of ideas in "their" newspaper (which might change the letter writer's mind about his views)? Of course not! So grow up before I throw up. Initiate a policy that every letter must be checked out and then printed less of content if legal). (regard- G. Lee Benefield Sophomore political science LETTER POLICY The Daily Utah Chronicle Business hours: Monday through Friday 8 am to 5 pm 581-704- 1 The Chronicle welcomes reader response. Please bring letters, typed, double-space- d not exceeding two pages, to 240 Union Building. Each let- ter should include your name, major, year in school and telephone number (for verification purposes only). Unsigned letters will not be considered for publication. The Chronicle reserves the right to edit letters for spelling, grammar and space. |