Jewett says that the existence of Hillel does not reflect on the issue of a minority students center.

"Hillel's building is not funded by the University. It's a religious group that has an affiliation with the University, but the building is separate," he says. "I don't think it's analogous. The decision to have it is theirs. It's not particularly our business."

Hillel's extraordinary $8 million capital campaign is the result of decades of work, according to Acting Hillel Director Rabbi Sally Finestone. "The only reason why Hillel was able to raise the funds was basically because for over 30 years people have been becoming part of this community, worshipping here and studying here," says Finestone. "It took 30 years of nurturing a community of alumni support, and the fund raising has been going on for seven years."

Finestone also draws a distinction between the functions of Hillel and of a possible minority students center. "Hillel is basically the synagogue for the Harvard community, and that is different than what the other groups face," says Rabbi Sally Finestone, acting director of Harvard-Radcliffe Hillel.

"On the other hand," Finestone says, "I feel that it would be a tremendous aid to the ethnic and racial groups on campus if there was a physical space to gather and hold offices. That's sorely needed."

In an interview with The Crimson in November, Epps said the Gomes report does not apply to Hillel, saying he believes it is primarily a religious organization rather than an ethnic organization.

"Hillel is more similar to the Catholic students' center than a Third World center," said Epps. "Therefore, I do not have the same concerns about the activities of Hillel that I would otherwise."

But Ali disputes Epps' distinctions.

"The frequent administration response is that those groups are religious, but I would say that that's a very simplistic analysis of those groups," Ali says. "Many [administrators] laud the cultural richness that is promoted at Hillel, and that type of richness we promote as well."

While Hillel began as a purely religious organization, leaders have said the group has increasingly sponsored social and cultural projects in the Jewish community.

While Epps may oppose proposals for a center, other administrators appear to be, at the very least, lukewarm.

Dean of Housing Thomas A. Dingman '67 says that a minority students center for offices and meeting space could work effectively in conjunction with the house system. "I don't think it would detract from the houses as being central to undergraduate life," Dingman says.

Still, Jewett says he has not made a decision in advance of any formal proposals. "I'm ready and willing to discuss it if students want to," Jewett says, "but I would still have to be convinced the center is the best way to go."

Garcia rejects Jewett's concerns that a multicultural center would polarize the campus, "They're the only people who divide the campus at this point," he says of the administrators who oppose the center.

Separatism?