UVa’s Inter-Fraternity Council has ruled that Zeta Phi members attending the Kappa Alpha Order Halloween party in blackface were engaging in expression protected under the First Amendment, and thus will not be charged with disorderly conduct. IFC did, however, condemn the behavior, saying that the partygoers had “an apparent historical blindness and lack of sensitivity,” recommending that the frats discipline and educate their members. The Post had the story yesterday.
Archive for December, 2002
Adolescent mental health center The Brown Schools of Virginia, whose pattern of human rights violations has been something like a train wreck in slow motion, has been given with another four citations by state inspectors, bringing them up to 107 in the past 23 months. This time, two kids were beaten with belts (the incidents going unreported to authorities), employees were found sleeping on the job, and it was found that patients were being restrained improperly. Looking on the sunny side, a state authority says that things are better than earlier in the years, when “there was a complete breakdown in treatment.” The Brown Schools had a grand reopening in May, renaming themselves from the Millmont Center because, in the words of their CEO, “a name change is a good way to visibly signal a fresh start.” Claudia Pinto, who has been following the story, has this latest chapter in today’s Progress.
dead_american writes: Found elsewhere: “Just came back from the anti-war, etc., coalition at the Little Flower Catholic Farm and the above subject was dicussed. Although this event will coincide with the Jan. 18 anti-war protest in DC, I think Bush’s Monticello appearance and the demostration which will follows for Virginians is more immediately related.” Personally, I wish he’d go to Waynesboro instead. He’s just gonna clog up traffic and walk around looking goofy. It might be enough to make TJ come back from the dead and thwack his butt, though.
The quoted text is from from an anti-war mailing list, in case it’s not obvious. :) Does anybody know anything more about the president’s planned visit?
“Man in Motion,” the ArtInPlace sculpture on Emmett Street near the Barracks intersection, was vandalized recently with spray-painted smiley faces, but ArtInPlace and the artist’s only complaint is that the vandals weren’t sufficiently creative. “My biggest issue is, I didn’t think it was done very well,” said creator Edward Pelton. “When someone first said there was graffiti on it, I was hoping it would be something like you see on the coal tower.” Pelton went on to explain that he’s planning a mobile sculpture for the purpose of attracting graffiti, such that the art could be modified by anybody that saw fit to do so. Elizabeth Nelson has the story in today’s Progress.
Anonymous writes: Four men, two of whom were regular mall kids for many years and former students of my high school (not CHS!), were arrested yesterday on varying charges ranging from burglary to rape. One was also charged with the Dec. 9 shooting of two men on Rt. 29. Judging by what I already knew about these kids, it’s only a matter of time before the major drug connection becomes apparent. I know there was a shockwave through all the people I know my age this morning when we read the Progress, and a lot of those people are regular readers here. Terrible news indeed. The Progress’s story is here, and WINA is carrying the story.
fdr writes: Driving along on Rt. 250 this morning, near the fire station between Meadowbrook and Hydraulic, I saw the sun glinting off a scupture. It wasn’t the Art in Place lions, a quarter mile further down the road — it was a piece, apparently built as commentary on the “Art in Place” art, made from (as best I could tell at 50 mph) shiny pieces of trash. Anyone else see it? Bets on how long it will remain up, if it hasn’t already been removed?
Neither President Bush nor Vice President Cheney will be able to attend the Lewis and Clark bicentennial kickoff at Monticello in January. Monticello’s director of communications (and former managing editor of the Progress) Wayne Mogielnicki says that “high-ranking representatives from the federal government” will be attending. Several area organizations had planned to greet President Bush with protests, so they are presumably now left in the lurch . Kate Andrews has the story in the Daily Progress.
In today’s Daily Progress, Elizabeth Nelson has a fascinating story about a couple’s recent purchase of eleven acres of property in Nortonsville (north of Free Union and Earlysville, near Boonesville, on the northern edge of Albemarle County). The land contains the old general store, a cottage, a farmhouse, “a smithy, grist mill, dairy, barn, cemetery and two schools - one for white children and the other for black children,” with many of these buildings dating from the late 1800s, yet all are in good shape. Some of the wood beams in the farmhouse appear to be recycled from a circa-1600s building and, before that, a ship. Michael Richardson, who owns the property, intends to preserve everything, and even assemble a history of the property. Richardson owns and has worked on historic properties in England and France, some dating back as the 1100s.
UVa’s beleaguered pep band has found themselves in hot water after a performance at Saturday’s Cavs vs. West Virginia University’s Mountaineers game that portrayed UVa’s opponents as hillbillies. Their halftime show was a spoof of the TV show “The Bachelor,” presented to the theme song of the “Beverly Hillbillies,” with an overall-wearing woman representing WVU in the faux competition. The spectacle resulted in hundreds of complaints, prompting an apology by UVa officials; a statement from UVa president John Casteen is expented on Tuesday. The Virginian-Pilot has the story.
The Daily Progress has assembled their listing of the top ten stories of 2002. These are, in no particular order: the drought, the state budget shortfall, the loss of Technicolor, the CHS/UVa attacks, UVa’s #2 finish, the Republicans’ Council victory, the ongoing Browns Schools saga, the Ivy Road parking garage fight, closing of the Jefferson School and the accusation of sexual abuse against and subsequent resignation of a local priest. What stories do you think were particularly big this year?
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