Incumbent Faces Negative Flyers

An Undergraduate Council veteran seeking reelection has become the target of a negative campaign effort because of his support for an on-campus Reserve Officer Training Corps program.

Jed D. Kolko '92 put up posters Tuesday night throughout Quincy House urging students to vote against Joel D. Hornstein '92.

"Do not vote for Joel Hornstein," the posters read, claiming that Hornstein "supported open discrimination against gay men and lesbians... encouraged disregard of the UC's constitution, and caused students and faculty to lose much respect for the UC."

The statements refer to a resolution sponsored by Hornstein and another council member in the spring of 1989 that urged Harvard to bring ROTC back to campus. ROTC left Harvard in 1969 in the midst of anti-Vietnam War student unrest.

The council originally approved the resolution, but it reversed itself a week later after a series of student protests over the military's policy of excluding gays and lesbians from service.

Hornstein, who is a ROTC cadet, said Kolko's posters are unjustified and misleading.

"I have never endorsed any policies of discrimination," he said in an interview last night. "I am hurt by these posters. They unfairly portray me as anti-gay."

Hornstein said he continues to support bringing ROTC back to Harvard but will not actively work to accomplish this goal.

"I don't believe there's any chance given what happened two years ago," he said.

Kolko said he decided to start the campaign to hold Hornstein accountable for his actions of two years ago, and to inform the new residents of the house of Hornstein's past involvement in the issue.

On his campaign posters, Hornstein lists a number of proposals, including abolishing the Quantitative Reasoning Requirement and reducing the fees charged to students using space in Memorial Hall.

"Joel's posters discuss his past involvement with the council and his neglect of the ROTC issue is misleading," Kolko said. "After what happened two years ago, I suspect that this is something he would rather not bring up."

According to Kolko, the anti-Hornstein posters are being ripped down. But he said that he did not know who was responsible. Hornstein said that his own posters were also being ripped down.