By Jeffrey W. Burritt
Arizona Daily Wildcat
April 22, 1998

Government 'blackmails' universities

To the Editor:

As a graduate from the University of Arizona and a current law student at New York University Law, I was extremely interested to read the article entitled "Stanford law may have to change military policy." I would first like to thank you for taking the time and space to publish this article and educate the readers of the Wildcat about the current system of blackmail being condoned by the federal government through educational grants.

NYU is fortunate to have enough private donors to allow us to turn our backs on threats of withholding federal funding. Unfortunately, few other schools have this luxury and those that do accept the funds, ironically ignoring Title VII and the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.

While I understand these schools simply cannot pass up these funds, it must be remembered that law schools are forums where the greates legal minds in this country and, in many cases, the world, meet everyday. To passively accept these legislative barriers, rather than challenge their constitutionality does a great disservice to the students at all law schools (except of course NYU... the best), whether they are homosexuals who are being discriminated against, or the other students, who should be taught to fight for the rights of others.

Therefore, I ask all of you applying or planning to apply for law school, to call up the schools you are planning to apply to and let them know that you object to their policy of supporting discrimination. It won't keep you out of any reputable school but it may serve to put schools on notice that there discirminatory policy, as well as their hypocrisy, is no secret.

Jeffrey W. Burritt
UA alumni, 1996