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Catholic University officials play hide and seek with student paper
© 2006 Student Press Law Center
April 24, 2006
WASHINGTON,
D.C. — Admissions staff at Catholic University of America
removed copies of the student newspaper Friday from a rack outside the
admissions office.
It was Odyssey Day, an important recruiting day at
the school for prospective students, and the front page story on campus crime
might not have left the university’s desired impression on its visitors,
said Kate McGovern, editor in chief of The
Tower.
The front-page article, titled “University
Reacts to Three-Day District Crime Wave,” quoted students who said they
were uncomfortable walking around the campus in light of the recent rash of
crime in the area.
McGovern was promoting the newspaper for Odyssey
Day when she heard that the papers had been removed, she said.
An
admissions official told McGovern the office’s student staff was
responsible for removing the papers, McGovern said. But she said when she asked
for the papers back, the admissions official was only willing to put 20 copies
of the paper back on the rack.
McGovern then demanded that all 150
copies of the paper be returned immediately, a request the admissions official
complied with, McGovern said.
University spokesman Victor Nakas did
not return a call seeking comment.
But Nakas denied that the
university was trying to hide the campus crime problem in an article in
The Washington Post. He saw the removal
of the papers as a “non-issue” since the papers were only taken from
one rack, according to the Post
article.
“I just don’t think he understands the gravity
of the issue,” McGovern said of Nakas’ comment. “It’s
one thing to cover up the fact that the food in the cafeteria is sub par, but
trying to cover-up the fact that there’s a good chance you’re gonna
get mugged on campus? That’s
scary.”
—by Ricky
Ribeiro, SPLC staff writer
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