Student in Illinois made up racism

(U-WIRE) Evanston, Ill. – Evanston police arrested a Northwestern University freshman in communication Monday and charged him with felony disorderly conduct, alleging he lied about two hate crimes to bring attention to race relations on campus.

Jaime Alexander Saide, nicknamed Xander, told police he found the words “Die Spic” written on a poster and wall adjacent to his first-floor room in Chapin Residential College on Nov. 4. Four days later Saide told police someone grabbed him from behind on the street nearby the dorm, held a knife to his neck and whispered “Spic, we didn’t run away this time,” into his ear.

Saide “made up” both incidents, Vice President for Student Affairs William Banis wrote in a press release issued yesterday morning. Police charged Saide late Monday with two counts of felony disorderly conduct in connection with fabricating police reports about the incidents.

Saide confessed he falsified reports about the racist acts to initiate dialogue about racial relations on campus, said Chief Frank Kaminski of Evanston Police Department. Saide could not be reached for comment.

“Certainly his motivation was to bring attention to himself and his cause,” Kaminski said Tuesday at a press conference.

He added that Saide’s false testimonies have done a disservice to the campus, shifting police officers’ focus from “legitimate” concerns, such as the recent robberies of Northwestern students.

Bars may get extra hours in Illinois

(U-WIRE) Champaign, Ill. – Champaign-Urbana, Ill., the home of the University of Illinois, could soon be joined by two other college towns in the state with extended bar hours.

DeKalb, Ill., the home of Northern Illinois University, and Charleston, Ill., the home of Eastern Illinois University, have both taken actions this month to try to extend their bar hours to 2 a.m., mirroring actions taken by Champaign in August.

“Champaign is the case we’ve looked at,” said Adam Howell, member of the Eastern Illinois Student Senate. “It’s also the place a lot of students go to on the weekends for later bars. It’s almost an indirect effect of Champaign’s later hours that we’re trying to extend ours.”

Howell said the proposal began out of student desire and concerns for student safety. Students asked for extended bar hours, especially after Champaign and Urbana extended their hours, and city and university officials thought students would be safer drinking in a controlled environment. Officials were also concerned that many Eastern students were leaving Charleston to go to other bars, especially in Champaign-Urbana.

The proposal could extend hours from 1 a.m. to 2 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, but would only be valid for a limited time. Roger Cunningham, the assistant chief of police in Charleston, said this is so the city can evaluate the new system after a certain period of time.

Cunningham also said that even if the measure passes, he doesn’t think it will change police procedure much.

– compiled by Sarah Lingo