'Wildcat' shows anti-Catholic bias

By Michael E. Broyles and Frank Merced
Arizona Daily Wildcat
September 2, 1997

Editor:

Indeed, the college experience is often a time of student reflection regarding religion, a point Mary Fan attempts to drive home in her article, "A wide array of worships offered to students" (Wildcat, 26 August). While the author shows a cross-section of some religion, she omits some of the largest religious organizations on campus, most notably the Catholic Newman Center and the Campus Christian Center (CCC), providing access to the Episcopal, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian and United Campus Christian Ministry (UCCM) university groups. Yet this omission is only partly the most offensive aspect of the article. It is interesting to note how the article begins describing "less-than-pleasant experience(s)" with campus evangelists, setting the stage for an article with a less-than-positive tone. It is further interesting to find a group profiled which represents one end of the broad Christian spectrum, while other organizations that represent the rest of the spectrum are lacking. These points, however, are also not the most offensive aspects of the article; we digress.

Is it true accepted prejudice is dead in this country? By that, prejudice, while it still exists, is an item most will disapprove, often quite vocally. Yet one accepted prejudice does remain, and it is particularly repugnant. While Roman Catholics number the single largest Christian group in the world, anti-Catholicism remains widespread, often surfacing in the pages of the Wildcat. How can this occur in a newspaper that is supposed to represent the populace of this university, whose majority opinion most certainly does not endorse this flagrant bias? Although it seems rather inconceivable, it has resurfaced in the Wildcat. Why is it that the Wildcat chose to profile an individual, raised Catholic and now non-practicing, and then omit any mention of the Catholic presence on campus, which could have provided an acceptable balance? As written, the article screams with anti-Catholic bias. Certainly the Wildcat has noticed the tent sponsored weekly by Newman Center, the semester kick-off at the Campus Christian Center (25 August) and the tables intermittently sponsored by CCC groups, Lutheran Campus Ministries, for example, yet none of these is mentioned.

We implore the Wildcat to exercise greater judgment regarding religion in the future. In the business of information, accuracy is pinnacle; omissions are as great mistakes as false reporting. Additionally, objectivity should receive greater stress in such a manner as to not let the attitude of the author make up the mind of the reader; that is, to avoid judgmental portrayals of individuals or groups in a non-editorial setting. We would greatly appreciate your consideration in these matters.

Michael E. Broyles
biochemistry junior
Minister for Ecumenism, Lutheran Campus Ministries

Frank Merced
computer engineering junior
President, Catholic Newman Center Student Council