As an avid reader of The Northern Star, I was very disappointed to see the bad timing on their part with the way the paper handled the Homecoming King and Queen story.

A major racial barrier was broken when Willie Fowler and Marthony Longo, both black candidates, were elected King and Queen of NIU’s 1988 Homecoming Court. Much to my surprise, the Star didn’t even deem it necessary to mention this extraordinary event in their paper until almost a week later, when the thrill of Homecoming had already subsided. In fact, the Hare Krishnas in front of the Student Center were featured on the front page way before Willie and Marthony were even acknowledged as winners.

What kind of newspaper are we running here? Two blacks receive the popular vote on a predominantly white campus and our newspaper doesn’t even feel that the story is newsworthy until Homecoming is almost forgotten. I’m willing to bet my tuition money that if two white greeks were to win the honors instead, headlines would have been printed the following Monday.

For a newspaper that claims to be unbiased, you sure know how to prioritize your material.

John Quilico

Alpha Phi Alpha Sphinxclub