STUDENT DEFENDS DUKE VOTE.

Byline: Yvette Cabrera Daily News Staff Writer

Defending his pivotal role in bringing David Duke to debate affirmative action on campus, Cal State Northridge student body President Vladimir Cerna on Friday brushed off claims that the invitation was an attempt to embarrass the Proposition 209 movement.

``We have never claimed that Mr. Duke is the official spokesperson of the dismantling of affirmative action efforts,'' Cerna said in an interview outside the university's Student Union.

``There is no official spokesperson on either side, you could have the campaign manager for an initiative, you could have someone from the street. Their views are as valid as anybody else's.''

Duke is an appropriate speaker, said Cerna, considering the debate will be solely on affirmative action and not Proposition 209, titled the California Civil Rights Initiative.

The measure would ban racial and gender preferences in state and local government employment, education and contracting.

``One thing we keep forgetting is that affirmative action is being implemented as we speak nationwide, not only in California,'' said Cerna. ``That's why we didn't want to restrict it to California and CCRI.''

On Tuesday, after a deeply divided student senate deadlocked on whether to approve Duke's visit, Cerna cast the deciding vote to bring Duke to Cal State Northridge.

Immediately after the vote, Cerna signed Duke's contract.

Since then, supporters of the initiative including Proposition 209 campaign chairman Ward Connerly and Gov. Pete Wilson have sharply criticized the decision, saying Duke's racist views would be unfairly linked to the initiative.

On Friday in Sacramento, Wilson said Duke's acceptance to debate civil rights activist Joe Hicks gives an entirely false impression of the ballot measure.

``There should be no misconception that David Duke represents the 209 campaign. He does not. He has nothing to do with it,'' Wilson told reporters, according to the Associated Press.

In late August, Connerly wrote a letter to Cal State Northridge President Blenda Wilson offering to debate the issue for free if Duke's appearance were canceled.

After Wilson passed the request on to the students, Cerna and his cabinet rejected the offer.

``It took us two months, $4,000 and an invitation to David Duke for him to say yes to our invitation,'' said Cerna. ``And that to me shows that he wasn't interested from the beginning to say yes to the debate.''

Had Connerly accepted the Associated Students' initial invitation, the controversy over Duke would have been avoided, said Cerna.

Connerly also claimed Friday that the Associated Students was trying to link Duke to the ballot measure, but whether the public or students would associate the two issues is not known, Cerna said.

``The purpose of the debate is to bring a discussion on affirmative action,'' Cerna said. ``We never intended it to be fair for the CCRI supporters, we never intended for it to be fair for the No on 209 people.''

But student senator Robert Cohen said Duke's appearance will not allow for a sober discussion of the issue.

``Anybody who stands up and agrees with Duke will be labeled a racist,'' Cohen said. ``I just don't think David Duke is a proper, credible witness to speak on affirmative action.

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Photo

Photo: CSUN student body President Vladimir Cerna explainswhy he voted to pay David Duke to speak on affirmative action.

Michael Owen Baker/Daily News