P1 THE DAILY TEXAN LITTLE Serving the University of Texas at Austin community since 1900 DITTY Musician moves from ON THE WEB California to pursue a BAREFOOT MARCH passion for jingles Austinites and students walk shoeless to A video explores the meaning of ‘traditional the Capitol to benefit poor children values’ with regard to current legislation LIFE&ARTS PAGE 10 NEWS PAGE 5 @dailytexanonline.com >> Breaking news, blogs and more: dailytexanonline.com @thedailytexan facebook.com/dailytexan Wednesday, April 6, 2011 TEXAS RELAYS TODAY Calendar Monster’s Ball Lady Gaga will be performing at the Frank Erwin Center at 8 p.m. Tickets range from $51.50-$177. Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays Track and field teams will compete in the first day of the 84th Annual Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays at the Mike A. Myers Stadium. Texas Men’s Tennis Longhorns play Baylor at the Penick-Allison Tennis Center at 6 p.m. ‘Pauline and Felder | Daily Texan Staff file photo Paulette’ Texas’ Charlie Parker stretches for the tape to finish first in the 100-yard dash to remain undefeated on the season during the 1947 Texas Relays. Today marks the beginning of the The Belgian comedy-drama invitational’s 84th year in Austin. Collegiate and high school athletes will compete in the events, as well as several professional athletes. directed by Lieven Debrauwer will be shown in the Mezes Basement Bo.306 at 6:30 p.m. ‘Take Back the A race over the years Night’ By Julie Thompson Voices Against Violence will hold a rally to speak out against he Texas Relays started as a small, annually to the local economy. Two years ago, the African-American com- In the 1960s, Williams, who now teaches at sexual violence in the Main Mall regional competition for white “It is an incredible legacy event and we are munity criticized the city’s response to the Rutgers University, competed in the Penn Re- at 6:30 p.m. males, but has grown into one happy to have it here,” said Beth Pratt, a spokes- relays, including closing parts of Interstate lays, a similar event in Pennsylvania. of the nation’s most important woman for the Austin Convention and Visitors Highway 35. The city also did not provide “I don’t know if the city has embraced the David Ramirez track-and-field meets. Bureau. “The hotels plan for it, the city plans extra police officers during the relays, which Texas Relays like Philadelphia has the Penn Re- Every April, the Texas Relays bring more for it, and we are looking forward to welcoming prompted store owners in Highland Mall to Cactus Cafe presents David T lays,” Williams said. “I think what happened in than 3,000 athletes to Austin from high visitors back.” close early that weekend. Ramirez for a free show at 8:30 Austin wouldn’t have happened in Philadelphia schools, universities and the professional Clyde Littlefield, a former UT basketball Jerome Williams, a former UT advertis- p.m. because the community and university worked ranks to compete at Mike A. Myers stadium and football player and track star, created the ing professor, said the small number of Af- together to embrace the event and make it an on campus. It all begins today and continues event in 1925. Littlefield coached track at UT rican-Americans in Austin makes the in- opportunity to bring in people from many dif- through Saturday. from 1920 to 1961 and won 25 Southwest flux of black visitors appear larger. Blacks ferent areas and make them a part of this atmo- According to the visitors bureau website, Conference Championships during his 40- make up 8.1 percent of the city’s pop- sphere. I never got that feeling with Austin.” Today in history the Texas Relays bring in 40,000 visitors every year career. He was also on the Texas Relays ulation, according to the most recent In 1947 year and contributes an estimated $8 million committee for 30 years. census data. HISTORY continues on PAGE 5 The first Tony Awards are INSIDE: Read more about Texas Relays on page 6 presented for theatrical achievement. Campus watch Latest liberal arts budget Bump it leaves centers without aid Main Mall, 200 Block West Inner Campus Drive By Matthew Stottlemyre no longer receive money from the A UT student reported Daily Texan Staff college’s budget. a black Fossil wallet The Center for Russian, East- After student protests and containing personal ern European and Eurasian Stud- months of examining and adjust- identification, several credit ies, the Center for East Asian Stud- ing recommended cuts, three more cards and $2.00 in cash ies and the Humanities Institute Special Academic Centers will no was stolen. During the received 100-percent cuts and will longer receive funding from the investigation, the officer have to rely on outside sources of College of Liberal Arts, Dean Ran- learned the subject had funding — primarily from special- dy Diehl announced Tuesday. been attending the Big ized research grants and philan- Diehl made changes to and final- Boi concert when he felt thropy, Diehl said. Three of the 19 ized the cuts the college’s nine-fac- someone bump into him. centers are already completely self- ulty-member Academic and Plan- At the time, the student did funded. ning Advisory Committee recom- not realize his wallet has He said he let the committee mended last fall. No centers will be been lifted out of his pants eliminated, but three of the 19 will pocket. CUTS continues on PAGE 2 Ryan Smith | Daily Texan Staff First-year students, transfers Laura Ling gave a lecture Tuesday at the Union Ballroom about her journalism career and time spent in cap- Quote to note tivity in North Korea. may get more time to Q-drop “We’re always going to have poverty, Journalist shares captivity experience By Ahsika Sanders students, including transfer stu- Daily Texan Staff dents, to drop a course up until the but we don’t have By Jody Marie Serrano to shoot a documentary on North across the ice that North Korean final exam. ‘ Daily Texan Staff Korean defectors — people who flee soldiers came at us with guns and First-year students may gain Senate of College Councils to have‘ dumb peace of mind with the option to the secluded Asian country to seek started running.” president-elect Carisa Nietsche poverty. We don’t Journalist Laura Ling has spent a better life in China. During their Ling said the soldiers beat her drop a course after the last class day said Faculty Council is current- her career serving as a window for time along the Chinese-North Ko- and dragged her across the soil. if the administration accepts a Sen- ly discussing the resolution and need poverty [from readers into dangerous situations, rean border, the pair’s guide beck- Ling saw the soldier raise his rifle to ate of College Councils resolution. will have to approve it before it things] that we can including government oppression oned them to cross to the North strike and thought it was the end of The University Academic Policies is implemented. in Myanmar and the inner workings Korean side for some footage, and her life. She blacked out and when and Procedures’ current policy only “It could potentially mean that a fix easily.” of Mexico’s drug war. On March 17, they followed. she woke up, she was in custody. allows a student to drop courses af- student could drop a course after a — Terry Cole 2009, Ling became the story when “We were standing on the fro- Ling spent 140 days in captivity in ter the mid-semester mark for non- class has already ended, as long as Founder of Street Youth North Korean military officers de- zen ice, it wasn’t our plan to cross North Korea and was released after academic circumstances, such as se- they haven’t completed the course- Ministry tained her on the job. into North Korea,” said Ling, who former President Bill Clinton nego- vere illness or mental stress follow- work,” Nietsche said. Ling and Current TV colleague shared her story at the Texas Union ing a family member’s death. The NEWS PAGE 5 Euna Lee traveled to China in 2009 on Tuesday. “It was about halfway LING continues on PAGE 2 new resolution will permit first-year DROP continues on PAGE 2 TODAY’S TIP: Recycling at Home P2 2 NEWS Wednesday, April 6, 2011 Texas House THE DAILY TEXAN Speaker Joe Straus sits Volume 111, Number 178 down with Dr. James Henson, director of the UT Texas CONTACT US Politics Project, to talk about Main Telephone: state budget (512) 471-4591 cuts and other issues including Editor: concealed Lauren Winchester weapons on (512) 232-2212 campus. [email protected] Managing Editor: Claire Cardona (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com News Office: (512) 232-2207 [email protected] Multimedia Office: (512) 471-7835 [email protected] Sports Office: (512) 232-2210 [email protected] Life & Arts Office: (512) 232-2209 [email protected] I-Hwa Cheng Photo Office: Daily Texan Staff (512) 471-8618 [email protected] Comics Office: (512) 232-4386 Tuition increase sometimes ‘necessary,’ Straus says Retail Advertising: By Mary Ellen Knewtson get 12.3 percent from $187 bil- have done a good job dealing with ed $15 billion to $27 billion bud- with Straus and brought him to (512) 471-1865 Daily Texan Staff lion. The bill included signifi- fiscal constraints. get deficit, he said he’s worried law- UT. Rep. Dan Branch, R-Dallas, [email protected] cant cuts to public education and “Raising tuition is something makers are ignoring big issues such the House chair for higher educa- Two days after the Texas House health and human services and they’ve done that I haven’t been a as transportation, infrastructure tion, was the last speaker in the se- Classified Advertising: passed a $164 billion budget bill, will head to the state Senate in the particular critic of,” he said.