1. The University of Miami
2. Texas
3. Oklahoma
4. Virginia Tech
5. Ohio State
6. Oregon
7. Georgia
8. Notre Dame
9. Tennessee
10. NC State
11. Washington State
12. Florida State
13. Michigan
14. Penn State
15. LSU
16. Iowa State
17. Florida
18. Iowa
19. Washington
20. Wisconsin
21. Kansas State
22. Air Force
23. UCLA
24. USC
25. Mississippi
The Miami Hurricane Top 25 Poll
‘Canes hand Huskies defeat in FSU warm-up
Less than fifteen minutes after the conclusion of the Connecticut game, one could already hear the infamous Seminoles war chant in the Hurricane locker room, which meant only one thing: It’s time to prepare for Florida State.
The Hurricanes reached that stage with ease Saturday, defeating the Connecticut Huskies 48-14 at the Orange Bowl. Miami got off to a quick start, scoring on their first drive en route to a 42-0 halftime advantage. Quarterback Ken Dorsey liked what he saw from the ‘Canes for the most part.
“I like to think we have a pretty good football team,” Dorsey said. “We played the way we wanted to play, and we kind of put it all together in this game.”
Once again, Willis McGahee electrified the crowd as well as providing the Hurricanes with several key runs in the first half. McGahee, who finished the contest with 107 yards on 11 carries, scored three first half touchdowns for the Hurricanes. McGahee’s play was one of the reasons why UCONN head coach Randy Edsall could do nothing but admire the Hurricanes talent after the game.
“What are you going to say? That’s the No. 1 team in the country, far and away,” Edsall said. “I think they’ll run the table again and be the national champion.”
After a blocked punt by Sean Taylor ended the Huskies first possession, Miami took over at the UCONN 17-yard line. Three plays later, McGahee’s 15-yard scamper down the left sideline marked the first opening drive score for the Hurricanes this season. McGahee’s other two touchdowns, on runs of 15 and 11 yards respectively, gave the ‘Canes a 21- point cushion early in the second half.
The Hurricane defense got into the act as well in the first half, holding UCONN off the scoreboard. The highlight of the Hurricanes defensive play came when Andrew Williams recovered a fumble off a Vince Wilfork sack. Williams took it 56 yards for a Miami touchdown, the first of the career for the senior defensive end.
“They came out passing and were switching things a lot,” said defensive end Jamal Green. “We were able to react well to that.”
Ken Dorsey had arguably his best game this season, completing 19 of 26 passes for 216 yards and three touchdowns. Two of the touchdown strikes went to Kevin Beard, who awoke from a disappointing year so far to catch five balls for 51 yards.
The Huskies offense finally showed some production in the second half, gaining a bulk of their 190 yards against the Hurricanes second-team defense. Orlovsky hooked up with tight end Tommy Collins for a 14-yard score, and UCONN got their second touchdown thanks to a blocked punt return by Ezra Carey.
“For the most part, we showed great speed today, but we had a lot more opportunities to make plays,” Green said. “We need to step it up and play a complete four quarters of football.”
The defense may have been a little too comfortable protecting a big lead, but the offense had no complaints about their play. Miami gained 498 yards of total offense, including 214 yards on the ground. Jason Geathers, coming off two unproductive games, spelled McGahee nicely throughout much of the second quarter, picking up 82 yards on nine carries.
With the victory, the Hurricanes improve their record to 5-0 and remain the consensus No.1 in yet another week of crazy college football. However, the focus in the locker room was not on the unblemished record, but rather the test awaiting Miami come Saturday.
“We know what FSU is all about and what they will bring to the table,” said offensive lineman Sherko Haji-Rasouli. “It’s a big rivalry and we are expecting a tough game.”
The Seminoles are 5-1 on the season, but have struggled in several of their contests. In addition to an overtime loss at unranked Louisville, Florida State has looked sluggish in close victories against Iowa State and Clemson.
Head Coach Larry Coker has no doubt, though, that Miami will see a major test Saturday afternoon from their in-state rivals.
“Obviously the level of play next Saturday will be much higher,” Coker said. “There’s no doubt about it – Florida State, Connecticut, it’s a different ballgame.”
You can reach Jeremy Marks-Peltz at jmp310@hotmail.com.
Defense dominant in win
Once again, the Miami defense shut down its opponent in commanding fashion. The ‘Canes first team defensive unit did not surrender any points to the new division 1-A foe UConn, proving that this team did not look ahead to the FSU game.
“Whether people want to believe us or not, we never look ahead,” said UM senior defensive end Andrew Williams. “We took care of business and now we can start thinking about the FSU game.”
Williams was a major factor in the Miami 48-14 victory on Saturday, as he scored his first career touchdown on a 56-yard fumble recovery in the second quarter.
“It felt great to get in the end zone,” Williams said. “However, as a team, we would have liked to finish them off in the second half and have them put up a goose egg.”
The Huskies did manage to score 14 points in the second half, seven of which came on a blocked punt return for a touchdown. The UConn scores came against mostly UM reserves, but the team as a whole still wants to play their best game until the final buzzer sounds.
“We played solid defense in the first half, but definitely could have played better in the second half,” UM junior middle linebacker Jonathan Vilma said. “We better play four solid quarters next week if we want to beat a tough FSU squad.”
Beard Sighting
One of the biggest questions coming into this season for the Hurricanes was whether the offense would establish a second wide receiver option for Ken Dorsey after Andre Johnson.
Junior wide receiver Kevin Beard answered the calling with a career game against the Huskies in which Dorsey found him twice in the end zone in the first half. Beard finished the game with five receptions for 51 yards and two touchdowns. Beard was proud to have a good showing, but understands its only one game.
“It felt really good to go out there and make some big plays,” Beard said. “If you practice hard all week, it will pay off on Saturdays. One game doesn’t make you a good player though. I just want to make plays for the team and become better as the season moves on.”
New Starters
Left defensive end Jerome McDougle made his first start of the season, after backing up Cornelius Green in Miami’s first four contests. McDougle earned the starting role after a strong performance against Boston College. The decision paid off, as McDougle recorded two sacks and four tackles.
Last year, McDougle started all 12 games.
On the offensive side of the ball, freshman tight end Eric Winston made his first career start, replacing Kellen Winslow Jr. on Saturday.
The start was only for the first series however, as Winslow made his first appearance on Miami’s second drive. Coach Larry Coker said that Winslow violated team policy earlier this week.
Miscellaneous
With an attendance of 52,131 on Saturday, Miami is on pace to break the average home attendance record this season…Dorsey was sacked for the fifth time this season. Last year, Miami only surrendered four sacks…Redshirt freshman Quadtrine Hill made his fifth consecutive start at fullback. Coker said last week that Kyle Cobia would get the start, but Cobia wound up not dressing due to a stinger injury in his neck…Freshman Glenn Sharpe started his third game of the season.
You can reach Brian Poliakoff at b.poliakoff at umiami.edu.
Lindsey Yach producing as a frosh
Like many athletes, freshman Lindsey Yach had a list of division one schools knocking at her door in high school. For Yach, who received Big East Rookie of the Week honors on Sept. 23, it wasn’t about who had the most championships or where she could stand out most in the crowd. A unified team is the lifeblood of every successful sports program, and Yach is more aware of that then anyone else in a similar position.
Yach was quick to put her talent on display. She is second on the team, totaling 22 points on eight goals and three assists. She has already made quite an impact and still has seven games left to play in her first season.
Yach was surprised when she got wind of her honors.
“I didn’t think they’d be watching me,” Yach said.
Her teammates were very impressed, facetiously asking for her autograph. Head Coach Tricia Taliaferro, meanwhile, was not astonished to hear the news.
“Tactically, Lindsey really understands the game,” Taliaferro said. “Her vision is special; it’s not something everyone on the team has.”
What the team did have as a whole, though, is the reason why Yach arrived in Coral Gables.
“When I came here and first watched them play, I liked the girls on the team,” Yach said. “I felt like I could be a part of something.”
Growing up in the small suburb of Carrollton, Texas, Yach also felt like big city life would be a nice change.
“Carrollton is a lot more laid-back-here, there’s always something to do,” Yach said.
Needing something to do has not been a priority for the freshman midfielder. With grueling practices after class and traveling up the coast for away games, time management is an issue that the Computer Information Systems major grapples with daily. Her days playing on a Dallas club soccer team during high school now seem much easier, especially in the physical game.
“On the club team I could get away with trapping the ball, looking up, and finding where to go,” Yach said. “Here, I have to think a lot more. The girls here are much more aware of what they’re doing.”
But Yach knows she didn’t reach this level all on her own. Her parents have been the most influential people in her life, helping to guide her. Yach’s father gave her pointers and worked on her game with her, while Yach’s mother always backed her up with the confidence she needed.
Before soccer powerhouses such as Texas A+M, Southern Methodist and the University of Missouri recruited her, Yach played in the North Texas State Olympic Development Program (ODP). The program consists of several teams who compete at the state, regional, and national levels. College coaches often look for recruits through the ODP.
“You have to show off and stand out,” Yach said. “If you don’t, then you’re just another player and you won’t be able to move forward.”
Yach didn’t seem to have a problem standing out, although she enjoys playing together much more than individual competition. She gets along with her UM teammates well, and they have a strong relationship.
Yach is happy about the smooth transition she’s experienced into college soccer so far. Just from her numbers, it’s apparent that other members of the team, including the coaching staff, are not too disappointed about her presence, either.
“She’s creating chances for her teammates, and she’s creating chances for herself,” Taliaferro said.
For now, these golden opportunities are a large part of what’s keeping the ‘Canes in the Big East 8
UM soccer splits weekend road trip
Sophomore forward Gitana Gotay scored in the opening seconds of the second overtime period to give Miami a 3-2 victory over St. John’s Sunday afternoon in Jamaica, NY.
Thirty-six seconds into the second overtime, sophomore midfielder Jenna Johnson found Gotay five yards out who knocked in the game-winner pass goalkeeper Tina Fogg.
The Hurricanes improve their record to 8-4-1 overall and 4-1-1 in the Big East. St. John’s falls to 6-3-3 overall and 2-3 in conference play. With the win over St. John’s Miami moves into first place with 13 points in the Northeast Division of the conference. No. 10 Connecticut took a break from conference play on Sunday they have 12 points.
The Hurricanes opened the scoring in the 13th minute of play when Allison McWhinney connected on a Vonda Matthews goal-line pass for her sixth goal of the season.
St. John’s found the equalizer in the 65th minute off the foot of Kaitlin Schmidt on a pass from Theresa Bulman. Erin Henderson would give the Red Storm a 2-1 lead three minutes later when she connected on a cross from Reina Dominica. Schmidt was also awarded an assist on the play.
However, Miami send the match into overtime when Johnson scored her fourth goal of the season with just a minute left in regulation. Johnson knocked in a rebound in front of the net on a shot from McWhinney.
The Hurricanes out-shot St. John’s 20 to 10, including a second period 11 to 5 advantage. Additionally, Miami’s defense held the Red Storm without a shot in the overtime periods.
The victory came two days after a tough loss to the 10th ranked Huskies, who shut out Miami, 5-0 in Storrs, Conn. UConn’s leading scorer Kristen Graczyk recorded a hat trick in the shutout over Miami. Graczyk also recorded nine shots in the first half and put two past Hurricane goalkeeper Rachel Elsby in the first four minutes of play.
Graczyk’s first goal came just 3:28 into play. Teammate Jennifer Sullivan placed a corner kick in the box and Graczyk, with her back to the goal spun around and headed it in. A mere 20 seconds later, Graczyk scored unassisted as her shot lobbed over Elsby’s head.
Graczyk finished her hat trick with a second unassisted tally at the 71:17 mark of the game. She placed another just out of reach of Elsby.
UConn scored again just over two minutes later when Sullivan received a crossed pass from Salla Ranta and shot it to the left side of the net to continue the shutout. Rookie Kristine Lundberg scored the Huskies’ final goal.
Miami tallied 12 total shots, while the Huskies finished with 19. Elsby made seven saves in 76 minutes of action, while backup goalie Jessica Keller played 13 minutes in goal.
Miami returns home to face Seton Hall on Friday, October 11 at 7 p.m. at Cobb Stadium.
-Compiled by the Sports Information Department.
Volleyball finally falls
The University of Miami volleyball team’s nation leading win streak came to an end Sunday in a 3-2 loss to Georgetown at the McDonough Gym in Washington, D.C.
After conceding the first game 30-26, the Hurricanes (15-1 overall, 3-1 in the Big East Conference) dominated the second and third 30-12 and 30-16 respectively. The Hoyas (11-7, 3-1) took the fourth 30-27 and the fifth game 15-12.
“We became tentative and let them back in,” coach Nicole Lantagne Welch said. “It’s just disappointing because had the match under control. We played not to lose… We looked like we felt pressure.”
Among the bright spots for UM was the play of freshman middle blocker Karla Johnson, who recorded 14 kills and a match high .440 hitting percentage. UM sophomore outside hitter Elizabeth Tyson led the Hurricanes with 19 kills, while Valeria Tipiana followed closely with 18. Sophomore libero player Jamie Grass had a match high 22 digs for the Hurricanes.
The Hoyas were led by Lauren Warner, who had a match high 24 kills, and Sara Albert, who had a match high 10 total blocks.
Lantagne Welch is hoping that her team can learn from the loss.
“I think we can learn that we have to put teams away when we have the chance,” she said. “We just have to push a little harder. I know (these players) don’t like to lose. The loss really hurt.”
The loss marked Miami’s first since October 5, 2001. The Hurricanes had held the longest win streak in the nation at 26 consecutive victories. The loss also followed another road victory, a 3-0 win over Villanova (9-11, 0-3) at Nevin Fieldhouse.
The Hurricanes took the first two games 30-20 and 30-21, before stifling a determined effort by the Wildcats in the third game to win 30-28. Tipiana led Miami’s balanced attack with a match-high 19 kills. She also turned in an impressive .471 hitting percentage.
“Val had a great match offensively,” Lantagne Welch said. “They couldn’t find a way to stop her and she was effective in front and behind the setter.”
Gamarra led the defense with a match-high 15 digs, while Tyson followed with 14 digs. Lantagne Welch was especially pleased with the play of Gamarra on defense, citing a number of difficult digs that the senior came up with.
Sophomore setter Mallorey James quarterbacked the offense and was credited with 48 assists. Leah Mathews and Erin Birunas led the Wildcats with nine kills apiece.
-Compiled by the Sports Information Department.
University bathrooms becoming a health issue
There were signs, petitions and protests, newspaper articles and opinion columns all fighting for one thing- a living wage and improved medical benefits for the UNICCO workers at the university.
The student-lead initiatives succeeded. But now, it seems UNICCO is getting paid more to do less.
To start with, I’ll go back to last week in Hecht when over 24 hours passed without anyone refilling the toilet paper in any of the stalls on my floor. My RA was informed of the situation. Two days later, as I was sitting in a classroom in Merrick, I noticed that the trash can was overflowing onto the floor. Candy wrappers, paper, and gum were everywhere. Then my eyes wandered to the ants that were swarming all over the trash and surrounding areas, crawling up the walls, the floor, and the trash can. The food had started to grow mold. That’s nasty.
Even worse, that particular classroom isn’t used by more than 20 or 30 people a day, if that. How long had the trash not been emptied?
Despite the classrooms and residence halls, an even greater lack of maintenance exists in the UC, particularly during the weekends. I’ve worked in the UC for over a year and have never had people complain as much about the lack of toilet paper, soap, and cleanliness in the bathrooms as I have since this semester began. Sometimes I have to take a 15-minute break from work and run across campus to another bathroom for fear of slipping on urine or passing out from the smell in the bathrooms.
Recently, there have been days that I’ve worked from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and not seen a single UNICCO worker. But this weekend after an entire day of referring people to the convenience store or Sbarro’s for toilet paper, I noticed two UNICCO workers by the pool area standing and talking, oblivious to the fact that the trash needed to be emptied, that the bathrooms smelled like a sewer and were out of toilet paper and soap, and that all of the ants in Miami were working very hard to take care of the overflowing trash bins all over campus that they had neglected to empty.
Now don’t get me wrong, most of the UNICCO workers are hardworking, nice people who are very friendly and sociable with students, faculty, employees, and everyone else on campus. And I want to make perfectly clear that I believe it is extremely unfair that the lack of work by some reflects negatively on all. But something needs to be done because overflowing trash contents, feces and urine-ridden bathrooms, lack of toilet paper and liquid soap, and low levels of maintenance translates into an issue of public health.
Leigha Taber is a junior majoring in psychology.
Racial profiling necessary in times of conflict
In light of recent events involving three medical students who happened to be of an unfortunately conspicuous nationality, I still agree with it. When I was in eighth grade and we toured the White House, the world was a different place, yet my eighth grade catholic school class was still warned seriously against any dialogue carried on within White House walls. We were told not to even joke about things such as bombs because it was rumored that there were actually secret panels in the walls out of which the secret service would appear and drag the foolish conversationalist off for serious interrogation. It is a well known fact that when you’re in the airport and the guy at the counter asks you all the boiler plate question – “Has anyone had contact with your bags…etc.” you don’t make a joke and say, “well there was that strange man who asked me to carry his package…” although I’m sure we’ve all wished we could – but we don’t. We live in a different world. We tip toe through times when certain humor is no longer acceptable and in the wake of such devastation.
The bottom line is that our unrestricting, free speech, free press, free everything society is partially to blame for the events of last year. Something slipped by. Everyone was so free that we forgot about our enemies. We shunned the very control that could have protected us all.
Stereotyping is natural. Discrimination is acting on a stereotype and that is unacceptable. But what is so wrong about being aware of our surroundings? Don’t we all glance over our shoulder when walking to the car in a deserted parking lot after a late class? Doesn’t our breathing become a bit staggered as our footsteps on the pavement seem to echo ominously, almost in anticipation of a second set, following closely behind? So how is this current situation any different? What so many “activists” fail to comprehend is that this inherited bias has nothing to do with Arabs or Muslims or Middle Easterners or any of the other coffee table terms for the origins of these recent terrorist cells. If the World Trade Center was hit by blond-haired, blue-eyed Swedes, we would catch ourselves glancing a little too long at any blond-haired, blue-eyed person we happened to cross on the street; evaluating their moves, presupposing their motives. These three men may have made a bad joke, fed up with the sideways glances and the quiet whispers, but it was the wrong joke at the wrong time. The chastised shouldn’t lay blame with the Americans who are just genuinely afraid because their security and systems of belief have been threatened. The blame is to be carried by those who inflicted this loss; those who have disgraced their nationality and isolated their race from mankind.
Whitney Friedrich is a senior majoring in Advertising and English.
GLBC should include transgender in its name
When the Reverend Martin Niemoller was rescued from German concentration camps, he was asked why even he, a respected and well-known preacher, was targeted by the Nazi government. He answered, “first they came for the Communists, and I didn’t speak up, because I wasn’t a Communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak up, because I wasn’t a Jew. Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn’t speak up, because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time there was no one left to speak up for me.”
I’ve realized that, too often, I’ve chosen to stay quiet about issues just because they didn’t affect me. When my journalism teacher told us the story of Reverend Niemoller, I began to understand the consequences of silence. Injustice concerns us all, even if sometimes we don’t see how we relate to those being unjustly treated.
For almost a decade now, the gay and lesbian community has accepted transgender people as part of their movement. Although many transgender people are not gay or lesbian, they have suffered the common foes of ignorance and intolerance from those who embrace equality as an exclusive privilege instead of an inherent right. To date, the efforts of what is now known as the GLBT community have yielded amazing results. Two states and 41 counties and cities across the country have added gender identity to their non-discrimination laws, ensuring that everyone is equally treated in the areas of employment, housing, credit and finance.
Gender identity, however, does not only protect transgender people. It applies to anyone who breaks or even bends gender boundaries. This can be as simple as a man wearing an earring or a woman preferring dress pants over skirts.
Although a topic of discussion in many areas of the country, it has gone ignored at the University of Miami. The only group on campus that may even understand this issue, the Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Community (GLBC) is still missing a “T,” while most other campus organizations around the country have already added transgender to their name. Although the GLBC president has assured me that a more appropriate name will be decided upon during this school year, it’s a shame we are to be one of the last to achieve inclusiveness.
UM should broaden the scope of diversity to include gender identity now, before it’s too late, and let the world know the University of Miami truly understands the meaning of equality.
Jean-Paul is a senior majoring in journalism and political science.
Letter to Editor
I very much enjoyed reading Mr. Travis Atria’s letter to the editor that appeared in Friday’s edition of the paper. While his comments were very eloquently expressed they were nonetheless no more in the right than any other item graced by his exceptional crafting of the written word. In any event I feel it both appropriate and necessary to counter his arguments lest someone get the mistaken impression that he has silenced me with his singular wit.
The conflict we presently find ourselves embroiled in does not fall into neat boundaries like past conflicts. The enemy is not a state or even a well-defined army of Barbary Pirates. This enemy is a loose confederation of terrorist groups and a few national governments that are sympathetic to our destruction. While it is not easy to identify a terrorist, we know that Iraq is one of the national governments that provide logistical support to the hombres malo who carry out murder in the name of God. It is irrelevant whether the aircraft in question were piloted by Mohamed Atta’s group or Saddam Hussein himself; it’s all part of the same element. It is no less appropriate for September 11th to be used to justify attacking Iraq then it was for the sinking of the Lusitania to be used as partial justification for declaring war on Imperial Germany.
Congress is authorizing President Bush to take action in Iraq only as it applies to Iraq itself as well as the immediate theater of operations. He is not being given unrestrained power to invade any nation thought to be developing weapons of mass destruction; that would acquire additional authorization from congress.
Finally, Mr. Atria’s final point is a pacifist’s argument against war in general. While it is indeed a tragic reality that many people will die in this war should it occur, we cannot allow that to deter us from doing what is necessary to protect our nation and its interests. If we had not moved against the Taliban (who I remind you did not fly in those planes either) because of the potential Afghan civilian deaths, we’d still be sitting here debating how best to respond to September 11th.
Scott Wacholtz
EDITORIAL
This past weekend, at the UM football game against Connecticut, a man fell over 30 feet down into a walkway, critically injuring himself and jeopardizing the safety of other fans at the game.
In preparation for this years FSU game, the biggest and busiest of the year, organizers at the Orange Bowl must closely examine all of the safety hazards to prevent any potential dangers.
Lets walk through some of the problems. First there are those CD packets that are given out before the game that turn into flying projectiles by halftime. Has anybody actually brought one home? They end up either in the trashcan or on the ground.
Once inside the stadium, one has to fight, push and claw his or her way through the crowd, only to arrive at a muddy seat. The mud, of course, comes from the feet of the person that was standing on the seat before you got there.
Last weekend, the staff of the orange bowl decided to try to put an end to students standing on the seats. Unfortunately, they weren’t successful. Then again, they hardly tried. They had one event staff representative threatening a whole section of drunken college kids to sit down and behave or else they would be asked to leave. Half of the student section was asked to leave but nobody really left.
Also, by the end of halftime, the Orange Bowl staff decided that the best way to clear the aisles of the people who were not able to find seats was to shove them into the overcrowded aisles.
The severe overcrowding is a result of the fact that many of the people sitting in the student section aren’t even students. Sure, there are some guests who have passes to sit with the students, but for the most part, the efforts of the Orange Bowl staff to check student ID’s when entering the student section is not enforced after the beginning of the game.
Now, the biggest problem and safety hazard at most of the games is the severe amount of alcohol consumption. There are a couple of sources to this problem.
First of all, although the legal drinking age is 21 and ID’s are said to be required, no one seems to enforce this national law. The beer vendors sell cold beer to anyone with $6 to spend, regardless of their age. The police and security just stand there and watch. This utter disregard for checking ID’s allows inexperienced, irresponsible, and immature individuals to drink and cause more safety concerns.
Some of these people find entertainment in throwing the bottles into the crowd to see whom they can hurt.
Finally, for those who survive the entire four quarters, the next adventure may be the most dangerous: the mass hysteria that is caused by students flocking like cattle towards the shuttles to return them to the metrorail. Students “line” up in clumps as speeding buses approach, desperately trying to keep their balance before being shoved in front of the speeding bus. Then once the bus stops, a sweaty mosh pit ensues, minus the music. People shove, claw, and punch their way to the shuttle in an effort to get to the Metro station a whole minute earlier then the next busload.
So now the issue is what can be done to fix these problems. For starters, half of all the altercations, safety hazards, and dangerous situations can be avoided if the liquor consumption is limited to those who are of legal age. Also, better-trained event staff would help alleviate the issues with crowd control and with fans roaming away from their appropriate sections.
Maybe now that there has been a serious accident, something will be done to remedy some of these safety hazards.
U. Penn students protest at senator’s office
10/04/2002
(U-WIRE) PHILADELPHIA – Sixteen University of Pennsylvania students, many of whom were from the campus group Penn for Peace, spent Thursday night sleeping in prison cells instead of their own beds. The students, protesting against military action in Iraq, were arrested for a sit-in they staged Thursday afternoon in the Philadelphia office of Republican Sen. Rick Santorum.
“We want to make it public that students and citizens in Pennsylvania and elsewhere oppose war in Iraq and we’re exercising our right to speak out against it,” said Penn for Peace member and College sophomore Claire Michaels.
The protest consisted of both a sit-in in Santorum’s reception area and conference room and a rally that followed outside the building in support of the earlier protesters.
The sit-in was a citywide event. Students from Temple University and United States Peace along with individuals in support of peace action were involved in the two-part event, consisting of a sit-in and a rally outside the building.
A total of 19 students walked into Santorum’s office at 10:30 a.m. with the intention of remaining there until 5 p.m., or until their demands were met.
Among other requests, the group demanded that Santorum pledge to vote against Bush’s authorization of military action against Iraq.
Once Santorum was aware of the protest, he called from his Washington office to inform the group that he was in opposition to all their requests and would have protesters arrested at 5 p.m. should they not leave his office.
The protesters proceeded to call Sen. Arlen Specter, a Republican, and Rep. Chakah Fattah, a Democrat, to encourage the politicians to come to Santorum’s office and make speeches on the group’s behalf.
Both Specter, who has yet to announce his stance on a war in Iraq, and Fattah, who is opposed to the war, declined to show their support for the protesters.
According to Penn for Peace member and protester Rob Levy, Santorum’s office was chosen precisely because of his strong advocacy of war in Iraq. In staging the protest, the group hoped to sway Specter to their side and to reinforce Fattah’s anti-war position.
Protesters spent the remainder of the work-day making speeches against the war and being interviewed by ABC, the BBC and local news stations.
“I would actually consider [the protest] a success,” Levy said. “We felt like we were really taking something into our own hands and trying to make a really strong statement.”
Levy was among three other protesters who left Santorum’s office before Philadelphia Police arrived to take away the remaining 16.
When protesters were being taken away by the police, a rally in support of the sit-in had already been underway since 4 p.m. The rally was initiated by Penn for Peace and consisted of about 75 individuals, including adults, children and passers-by.
Participants held signs and posters opposing war in Iraq while chanting, “the world needs us in the streets, we won’t bow down, we won’t retreat” and “this is a mockery, not a democracy.”
Santorum’s office and police officials could not be reached for comment Thursday night.