FERRUM SAYS X-CAP ISSUE IS DEFUSED

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, March 19, 1993                   TAG: 9303190144
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: CHARLYNE McWILLIAMS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short
FERRUM SAYS X-CAP ISSUE IS DEFUSED
In an attempt to understand issues surrounding the surfacing of anti-Malcolm-X baseball caps on the campus of Ferrum College, students and faculty met Thursday evening to talk and learn.
Student Ryan Rutherford made the caps and continued to wear one after school administrators asked him to stop. However, he recently agreed to not wear the cap on campus.
Anand Dyal-Chand, vice president of student affairs at Ferrum, said that in the eyes of the community, the issue has been solved because Rutherford has ceased to wear the cap on campus.
Thursday's meeting, which was held under the college's guidelines for mediation of racial harassment complaints, was "an effort to bring students together to talk about it a little more," he said.
The issue surfaced in December when other students complained about the anti-Malcolm-X caps Rutherford made, gave to friends and wore himself. Rutherford has said the cap was not racially motivated, but symbolized his dislike for the civil rights leader's "by-any-means-necessary tactics." He insisted that wearing the cap was well within his rights of freedom of speech.
Dave Newcombe, dean of students, said he and other school administrators had met with Rutherford in December. He said he told Rutherford, " `For the interest of racial harmony, I appreciate it if you'd stop wearing the hat.' "
The issue has taken this long to come to mediation because, Newcombe said, he thought Rutherford had stopped wearing the cap, but then other complaints were lodged. Newcombe said spring break also interrupted the mediation process.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB