‘A Satellite Campus’

I am writing as a New York University alumna and an active community member of the East Village. When I graduated from NYU almost 20 years ago and moved to the East Village, my neighborhood had not yet become saturated with NYU students. That is, sadly, no longer the case [“A Satellite Campus,” Andrew Berman, Opinion, March 21, 2006].

The NYU students who live now in the enormous NYU dorms and market rate housing that dot the Village do not participate in the community. Exactly the opposite: They stay for one year and relocate.

The change in atmosphere in my building and on my block is palpable. I no longer know most of my neighbors even to say hello to them on the stairs or the sidewalk. They have no vested interest in making sure that our landlord or the city provides adequate services to our neighborhood because they come and go.

If NYU does not curtail its takeover of existing buildings and erection of new dormitories, not even to mention the expensive private housing some students’ parents seem well able to afford, they will succeed in completely eroding the helpful, friendly, caring New York neighborhood that always used to surprise my out-of-state and country visitors who didn’t realize that under the hard New Yorker stereotype the city’s citizenry is really very responsible and caring.

DONNA HILL
Manhattan

‘Patrimony Strikes Again’

I am an attorney who represents several numismatic trade organizations in cultural property matters, but I write solely to convey my personal opinions. Your editorial, “Patrimony Strikes Again,” is like a breath of fresh air [March 21, 2006].

All too often corrupt foreign governments and their allies in our own archaeological establishment ask our government to enforce unfair foreign cultural patrimony laws at the expense of our own citizens.

Now, even objects as plentiful as old coins are said to be “treasured artifacts” to be returned to their country of origin even as the state in question – Saudi Arabia – bulldozes culturally significant buildings associated with the Prophet for fear of promoting idolatry.

Seizing common artifacts and then hyping their worth does little but encourage corrupt regimes in source countries to continue treating finders (usually their own citizens) badly.

Only fair laws in source countries that require reporting, but compensate finders for artifacts the state wants to keep, can succeed.

Our government is only going to stop enforcing other countries’ unfair laws when the public takes notice that its actions are seriously out of whack.

PETER K. TOMPA
Washington, D.C.