Registration and Federal Aid

To the Editors of the Crimson:

I was quite infuriated to read in the Crimson today that Harvard is strongly considering compensating students for federal funds lost through their refusal to register.

Such a policy would be repugnant for two reasons. First, requiring individuals to register is to impose a very small obligation in comparison to the many benefit' of citizenship. Regardless of whether one believes registration is good policy, the United States asks very little of its citizens, and the time required to complete a short questionnaire should not impose a serious burden of anyone, even if they are busy Harvard students.

Second, as a law student and recipient of financial aid, I am concerned that my financial aid will be reduced in order to compensate for the loss in federal funds to students who refuse to register. This will in effect mean that I will be paying higher tuition to subsidize the illegal activities of my fellow students. I believe that forcing me to do so is a morally unacceptable position for Harvard University to take.

Some will make the argument that the University contemplates only loans, not grants, to replace the money refused by non-registrants. This obscures the fact that the University must obtain this money somewhere. Whether it borrows or self-finances, the total University budget will only increase, inevitable generating higher tuition levels.

Some will stand beneath the banner of academic freedom and proclaim that all students, regardless of their political views, deserve the opportunity to have a Harvard education, and that this opportunity requires guaranteed financial aid for all. I agree that students should not be excluded from Harvard because of their political beliefs. However, there is no adequate justification for forcing those who do register to shoulder part of the financial burden of those who do not. If the non-registrants are willing to openly defy the law, they should also be willing to pay the added cost of taking outside loans or jobs to replace the federal funding they have denied themselves. It is they alone who have broken the law, and they alone who ought to bear the full financial burden of their non-registration. Thomas Rozinski