Going Undercover
In October 1992, Yaron Svoray, posing as an Australian journalist named Ron Furey, infiltrated a neo-Nazi movement in Germany. The most incredible part of this task? Svoray is an Israeli Jew and the son of Holocaust survivors.
On Thursday, February 24th at 8pm, Svoray will speak in McLeod Auditorium about his encounters in the neo-Nazi underground world, which he claims involves all walks of society, including lawyers, engineers, professors, policemen and military officers.
Svoray's project was intended to determine the strength, leadership and financial backing of Germany's neo-Nazi movement. His undercover findings indicated the movement is far larger in numbers and much more pervasive than previously expected. His experience inspired him to write In Hitler's Shadows and also prompted the HBO movie "The Infiltrator," starring Oliver Platt as Svoray.
"I think his experience has made it real to him that it could happen again," said Rebecca Franklin, a second-year College student from the Speaker's Committee of University Union, which is co-sponsoring the event with Hillel.
The program is free for University students and $5 for community members. Tickets can be purchased at the Newcomb Ticket Office as well as at the door.
Put on your dancin' shoes
This weekend prepare to dance. A lot. The catch? It's for a good cause.
Saturday marks the second Dance Marathon at the University, the proceeds of which will go to the Sarah Du Bose Fund at the Children's Medical Center.
The program, modeled after the Penn State Dance marathon is still in its formative years at the University but is growing by leaps and bounds. Last year, engineering student Jeff Ludwig proposed the idea as a First Year Council project, but the event soon outgrew the committee. This year, the Dance Marathon is its own Contracted Independent Organization.
Participants, who have been collecting donations of $50 or more, will dance from 12 noon on Saturday to 12 noon on Sunday. The general public has it easier. By making a minimum $5 donation, anyone can come between the hours of 9pm and 2am to dance, watch entertainment by the Whethermen and enter a drawing to win prizes such as a Palm V planner.
During the 23rd hour, children who have benefited from the fund will attend the festivities with their parents, an event that is sure to inspire a second wind in the fatigued dancers as they complete the final hour.
"As soon as I heard about [Dance Marathon] when I got here, I thought it was a great idea," recalls Natalie Shonka, a first-year College student and Dance Marathon participant.
Last year, the marathon's dates conflicted with those of the Foxfield races, yet the event managed to raise "a little over $8,000," Ludwig said. This year, with improved scheduling, the Dance Marathon already boasts over 200 students, including 60 to 70 Delta Delta Delta sisters from James Madison University, who have completed their fundraising. According to Ludwig, the Overall Accounting Committee's Chair has surpassed the $5,000 mark in donations, and Ludwig himself has raised $1185.
Shonka, along with three other Kappa Delta sisters, is missing her sorority's date function that night to dance for charity. The event is well worth it, she claims, for "Where else can you dance for 24 hours straight and for a good cause?"
Compiled By Allison Botos
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