Articles - THE RECORD

Last Poets at Antioch

By Alex Mette

This Saturday night Antioch hosted the ‘Godfathers of Hip Hop,’ The Last Poets. The group’s name is a reference to a poem by the South African revolutionary poet Keorapetse Kgositsile, who believed that the era of poetry was at an end, soon to be replaced by that of guns. The group, originally Felipe Luciano, Gylan Kain, and David Nelson, was born on Malcolm X’s birthday (May 19) at Marcus Garvey Park, East Harlem, 1969. Today The Last Poets are: Abiodun Oyewole, Umar Bin Hassan, and Don Babatunde Eaton. Like Malcolm X himself, the Last Poets have changed their political ideologies over time, and today denounce much of modern Hip Hop music. An article by DuEwa M. Frazier entitled, “The Last Poets: Still on a Mission,” quotes Abiodun Oyewole as saying that “Hip Hop has become a circus. The vehicle is still the same, but the artists, the drivers are silly. We know they’re doing this because niggas are trying to get paid, but see a lot of people are on the line to be niggas and they’re being paid to be sleazy and greasy.” On Saturday, Oyewole spoke of the importance, or lack thereof, of rhyme in poetry. While their use of rhythm and rhyme probably had a significant impact on what would become Hip Hop music, Oyewole stated that rhyme should come second to substance and that “You can’t just talk because your mouth runs.” In terms of political philosophy, when asked in an interview done in 1997 how his ideas about revolution had changed, Abiodun Oyewole stated that “back then, I wanted to see everything burned and people hanged. I wanted to see riots. The one thing that stopped me in my tracks was this guy speaking at one of our forums. [He said] ‘You can’t really be a revolutionary until you know the kind of world that you want your kid to live in.’” Going on to say, “Now, my whole thing is, we have to see how we can be the greatest part of us, which is the healing part of us. This self-empowerment mode is where I’m at. I’d rather that folks learn how to save themselves before they kill themselves. That’s what I’m trying to do.” Continue reading Last Poets at Antioch

Metaphysical Plant

By Tim Peyton

Students can’t make it out of the side of North anymore due to the broken step. Walking out the front door from North only leads to a gigantic puddle in front of the Union. “We were thinking of getting boats to cross it,” said first year Stacy Wood Burgess. In the Caf all the tables by the window are gone. Red ‘caution’ tape surrounds where they once were. If you ever decide to play pool, chances are you won’t find a stick because they are broken so often. Students trying to work in AIMAC can barely stand to be in there because of the broken window. This sounds like some sort of nightmare but unfortunately this is the state of Antioch College these days.

Some students are even getting injured because of these issues. International student Yoshitomo Kawai fell the other day walking up the steps to North. “ I was holding a glass of wine and it got everywhere,” Yoshi said. Some students are also having trouble getting to class on time because of the ice and large salt cubes on walkways. Continue reading Metaphysical Plant

Antioch College Racial Discrimination Prevention Policy

I. Preface
History of the RDPP
Since its student-initiated inception in 1997, the Racial Discrimination Prevention Policy (RDPP) has been the work of students, staff, faculty and administrators at Antioch College. The College’s Sexual Offense Prevention Policy inspired the idea for a policy designed to support an anti-racist College environment. There have been incidents on the Antioch College campus that demonstrated the need for this type of policy. Procedural components to address prevention are also included in the policy as part of the mediation and resolution process. The College’s Administrative Council approved this policy on April 25, 2006.
Continue reading Antioch College Racial Discrimination Prevention Policy

Housing Director to Step Down

By Erin-Aja Grant

With all of the uncertainty in Antioch’s future one more unexpected change is coming at the end of the month. The familiar face and open door across from the ASC will be closed and gone. Housing Director Katrina Dorsey is stepping down at the end of the week. Although many questions may loom ahead for the college it seems one more challenge has been added to the docket. In an interview with the Record, Katrina confirmed that she is indeed stepping down at the end of February. Katrina has had a short-lived run at Antioch totaling a little over 2 years, after replacing Madeline Lance. Many students like Greer Paris are going to be sad to see her go. Greer stated to The Record, “She always made me feel very comfortable, she is very approachable.” Katrina will be missed as she makes the move from Ohio to Rhode Island to become the Coordinator of Commuter Student Affairs. Last Friday Katrina accepted the position from the University of Rhode Island, as a strategic career move. Dorrisey stated, “This will be an opportunity to work outside of housing and with a new population.” When asked about her thoughts on Antioch she was very clear that reflection would come later about her experience here. Continue reading Housing Director to Step Down

Antioch Alumnus Shot in Coup Attempt

Jose Ramos-Horta, an Antioch Alum and current President of East Timor (Timor Leste), is in critical but stable condition after an assassination attempt at his house in Dili, East Timor. One of Ramos-Horta’s bodyguards was killed in the struggle following the shooting. Rebel Leader Alfredo Reinado has also been killed, reportedly from injuries sustained during the attack on Ramos-Horta’s House. Doctors say Ramos-Horta is expected to make a full recovery, despite suffering several gunshot wounds to his abdomen and chest area.
The attack has renewed fears of further violence in a country still reeling from rampant rioting and chaos following the expulsion of six hundred soldiers from the national army in 2006. It also exposes the bitter emotions and discontentment that still persists from before the country achieved independence from Indonesia in 1999. Continue reading Antioch Alumnus Shot in Coup Attempt