THE DAILY
MISSISSIPPIAN
Friday, February 9, 2018
Volume 106, No. 68
T H E S T U D E N T N E W S PA P E R O F T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F M I S S I S S I P P I S E R V I N G O L E M I S S A N D OX F O R D S I N C E 1 9 1 1
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UM reacts to state’s concealed carry bill
Memorial service held for former student
JEANNE TORP STAFF WRITER
Since the Mississippi House of Representatives voted Wednesday to pass a bill allowing concealed carry in certain places, like college campuses, university leaders are adding to the conversation. The recent conversation first gained traction on campus after an Associated Student Body committee proposed the idea of allowing concealed carry on campus in a January meeting. ASB Sen. Coco McDonnell, chairwoman of the External Affairs Committee, introduced the idea of campus carry at the suggestion of her committee members. However, the proposal will remain just that unless the state Senate passes the bill and with a signature of the governor, it becomes law. “Until something is passed on the state level, there is absolutely nothing I (and other senators) can do to make this happen on campus,” McDonnell said.
PHOTO BY: BILLY SCHUERMAN
The Phi Delta Theta fraternity house mourns the loss of member Davis Cook by putting black ribbons in front of the house.
RACHEL ISHEE NEWS EDITOR
The Phi Delta Theta fraternity held a memorial service Wednesday night for Davis Cook, a former student who died Sunday. Chance Robinson had been friends with Cook since the summer before their freshman year. The two met at summer school but became closer when they pledged Phi Delta Theta fraternity in 2014. Robinson said Cook was the type of person who could connect with anyone. “If he knew you liked music, he would talk to
you about music. If he knew you liked sports, he would talk to you about sports,” Robinson said. “He always knew how to find a common interest with someone. He wanted everyone around him to be happy.” Robinson and a bunch of friends were with Cook minutes before his death. “It was Super Bowl Sunday. We were grilling and watching football at our friends’ house in Oxford,” Robinson said. “I found Davis there. I was a few minutes too late. I told everyone to leave, and we
SEE MEMORIAL PAGE 3
SEE CONCEALED CARRY PAGE 3
Alum to get his final wish of seeing The Pavilion today BLAKE ALSUP
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
“I have one last wish,” he said. “I would just love to see The Pavilion.” University alumnus Wiley Martin will return to campus to do just that Friday. The public is invited to help celebrate at 10 a.m. in The Pavilion. Martin, a former Ole Miss student with cerebral palsy and cancer, made his desire to visit the basketball arena known to his former professor and longtime friend Will Norton during a recent visit. Norton, dean of the Meek
OPINION
School of Journalism and New Media, wrote a story titled “The Indomitable Wiley Martin” for the most recent edition of the Meek School Magazine. Leslie Westbrook, an adjunct professor at the Meek School, decided she wanted to meet him after reading the article. The two traveled to Hattiesburg and visited with Martin for more than an hour. They were getting ready to leave and say goodbye when he told them seeing The Pavilion was on his bucket list. Norton and Westbrook immediately began brainstorming ways to get him here. The M-Club Alumni chapter
LIFESTYLES
of the Ole Miss Alumni Association, which Martin is a member of, helped work out the details of the trip and will be hosting the event. Clay Cavett, associate director of the Ole Miss Alumni Association, contributed to making Martin’s dream a reality. Martin is now unable to sit up or ride in a regular automobile so special arrangements had to be made in order to get him to campus safely. “We contracted with a company out of Phoenix called Angel Flight,” Cavett said. “They are taking care of all transpor-
Wiley Martin (front) is set to visit The Pavilion on Friday to cross off one of his
SEE WILEY PAGE 3 bucket list items.
IN THIS ISSUE... LIFESTYLES
Why Mike Pence is wrong
New Hoka Award unveiled
Double Decker, SAA collaborate
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‘Separating men and women in the workplace is not a solution’
PHOTO COURTESY: M-Club
Oxford Film Festival’s highest honor got a golden makeover this year
The musical lineup for Double Decker Arts Festival was announced yesterday
SPORTS
On track to success
Men’s and women’s track and field experiencing both team and individual successes PAGE 6