Shifting positions in the drab blue speckled armchair, Liz Minifie, coordinator of counseling services at Salve Regina University, started to tell a story about a young woman who had come into her office, struggling with several problems stemming from low self esteem. One of the problems was a dependency on her boyfriend. That week, however, she had made a breakthrough.

You have the right to remain silent. Anything you do or say can be held against you in the court of law. You have the right to legal counsel and if you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be appointed for you. As Anne-Marie D’Allessio, director of the Rhode Island Victims Advocacy and Support Center (RIVASC), noted, criminals are read their rights.

The results of the American Marketing Association’s competition found Salve Regina’s representatives at the top, tying for second behind the University of South Carolina.

One of Salve Regina University’s newest organizations, the Gay, Straight, Lesbian and Bisexual Alliance (GSLBA), will be holding a day of silence on Wednesday, April 21. This event will last nine hours and will recognize and protest the harassment, prejudice and discrimination that lesbian, gay or bisexual people face.

In light of the 9/11 hearings I have started to question how safe are we as a nation? This seems like a silly question to the untrained eye, we are the strongest nation in the world, so if we are not safe every other nation must be in deep trouble. In truth, with all of the intelligence agencies looking after our best interests, we, as a nation, still are not safe.