Wednesday, September 13, 2017
99th year • Issue 4
THE INDEPENDENT
COLLEGIAN Serving the University of Toledo community since 1919
INSIDE
LAW
UT supports DACA students By Bryce Buyakie News Editor
Alpha Psi Omega hosts 24-hour play COMMUNITY / 6 »
Soccer ends weekend with a win and a loss
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SPORTS / 5 »
“This shortage also forces UT bike riders to get creative. Students link their chains around trees, picnic tables and even other bike chains, which is not the ideal situation for anyone.”
EDITORIAL Where have all the bike racks gone? OPINION / 3 »
Toledo walks to defeat ALS
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COMMUNITY / 6 »
“Different people need different things, and there’s no standard for how you should act. Don’t feel bad about acting one way or another...” JESSICA HARKER
Advice for your first year
OPINION / 3 »
In response to the Trump administration’s announcement to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, University of Toledo President Sharon Gaber released two statements Sept. 5 and 6, in support of UT’s DACA students. “I am deeply disappointed by yesterday’s announcement from the White House that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program will be scheduled to end,” Gaber wrote in her Sept. 6 statement. “This will have a dramatic impact on students and the communities to which they contribute.” The DACA program was implemented in 2012 under the Obama administration to grant children of migrants the authorization to work and gain an education with two years of legal protection from deportation, given that they follow several guidelines. According to Pew Research, approximately 800,000 DACA renewals have been issued since 2012 and have significantly increased every fiscal quarter since spring 2016. In a performance report for
“We need Congress to help protect our students. The planned termination of the program would disrupt the lives and education of UT students who are important contributors to our region, campus and community.” SHARON GABER UT President
DACA applicant considerations in quarter two of fiscal year 2017 released by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Ohio has accepted 11,144 requests and has approved 9,566 requests to date. This includes both first-time applicants and renewals. The decision to end the program was announced by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a press conference on Sept. 5 and went into effect the same day.
Sessions said that the decision to end DACA was based on many factors, including its ability to stand up to the constitutional scrutiny that Deferred Action for Parents of Americans underwent. According to the USCIS website responsible for DACA requests, the service department is “no longer accepting initial requests” and will only adjudicate “DACA renewal requests received by Oct. 5, 2017.” Gaber wrote that she has reached out to elected officials, expressing her concern and supporting the legal protections for the students; Gaber also urged officials to support codifying the provisions of DACA. “We need Congress to help protect our students. The planned termination of the program would disrupt the lives and education of UT students who are important contributors to our region, campus and community,” said Gaber. Willie McKether, vice president for diversity and inclusion, said the university needs to be reactive to new legisla-
LAW
Opinion Editor
Since the fall of 2016, University of Toledo Clinical Law Professor, Robert Salem, has worked with the students of the Civil Advocacy Clinic to draft legislation that would propose a buffer zone around Toledo’s only abortion access facility. Salem said the law would create an eight-foot buffer zone, a design he felt wouldn’t limit freedom of speech. “If you are the patient and you want them to come up to you and give you literature and talk to you personally and council you, as they put it, well that’s your right,” Salem said. “But if you don’t want that, you have the right to be left alone.” Similar ordinances that were used as a base to draft this legislation are in Columbus, Ohio, and New York City. “We drafted this ordinance in a way that would withstand constitutional scrutiny,” Salem said. “So, that if it went to a court, most likely the court would rule that it is within the bounds of the Constitution.” According to Salem, both places have had a high success rate in passing their legislation. Columbus enacted 14-foot buffer zones in June 2016, per NBC4I. The New York Post reported that NYC enacted an even larger buffer zone, requiring protesters to stay 35-feet back in the city. “In fact, the Supreme Court of the United States actually singled out the New York City ordinance as a model way, balancing the competing interests of the two sides,” Salem said. “The Supreme
www.IndependentCollegian.com AWARD
Alumna receives NASA award
By Benjamin Morse Staff Reporter
University of Toledo graduate Maria Babula recently received an award from the organization that landed the first man on the moon and is responsible for overseeing U.S. space exploration and aeronautic research. NASA’s press release on the matter explained that more than 100 NASA Glenn Research Center employees earned awards for their exemplary accomplishments in science, engineering, technology, leadership and administrative service, as well as their contributions to NASA’s mission during the 2017 Nasa Agency Honor and Center Awards Ceremony in Cleveland on Aug. 23. “Maria was nominated for this award due to her high level of achievement and technical management competence in helping Glenn Research Center’s Research See Achievement / 4 »
RESEARCH
Civil Advocacy Clinic students weigh in on abortion issues By Jessica Harker
See Deportation / 4 »
Toledo Rockets stay undefeated in Reno / 5 »
Court said it’s a good way of ensuring the free speech rights of the protesters while ensuring the freedom that the patients have to access medical care.” Salem said the idea was brought to him by Kristin Hady, the escort coordinator at Capital Care Network, the only abortion access facility in Toledo, who expressed a concern for patients entering the clinic. “We know that there are protestors there every day the clinic is open, and they harass patients and they prevent patients from going in. They basically engage in psychological warfare.” Salem said. Salem said that two students who were particularly interested in this project were Molly Ebraheim and Kaitlyn Filzer. “They were very interested in taking on the matter, so that’s how it got started,” Salem said. Salem said that the need for this legislation comes from clinic patients getting verbally and physically harassed outside of the clinic, often preventing them from entering. “By showing them pictures of what they claim are aborted fetus’, they call them murderers. they’ll say, ‘You’re going to hell.’ So, let me be clear, that’s their free speech rights, they can say awful things. What this ordinance does is simply requires them to stand back.” Salem said. Salem said that after researching the issue, students reached out to Steve Steel, a Toledo City Councilman, who agreed to sponsor the legislation. Since then, the legislation has been brought to a hearing before See Ordinance / 4 »
Laboratory opens on Main Campus for detecting algae blooms By Olivia Rodriguez Staff Reporter
The University of Toledo opened a new laboratory Sept. 5 to test drinking water for toxins in North Engineering on Main Campus. Associate professor of civil engineering Youngwoo Seo and research professor and director of CMSC Polymer Institute Joseph Lawrence wrote the proposal for the laboratory. The drinking water research lab will allow researchers to support water utilities in Ohio to prevent future water crises by detecting new and emerging algal blooms, Seo wrote in an email interview. A $500,000 grant received from the Ohio Community Capital Program provided MEAGAN O’HARA / IC the renovations for the North Engineering is located near Main laboratory and technology, Campus and is the new home of the including two major instru- toxin-testing laboratory. ments and other equipment the most toxic microcystin found necessary for water analysis, in water, microcystin-LR, Seo wrote Seo. wrote. One of the instruments going According to Seo, samples with to be used for testing is the liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry, Lawrence said. This will be able to detect 50 to “During the 2014 100 times lower concentration of Toledo water crisis cyanotoxins in water, compared to event, the Toledo the one part per billion threshold concentration with earlier techwater treatment plant niques. used an enzymeThe other main instrument that based assay system for will be used is the flow cytometer, which detects assimilable organic cyanotoxin screening. carbon that can feed bacteria for It is effective to screen regrowth in treated water, wrote Seo. to detect the presence “During the 2014 Toledo water of microcystins.” crisis event, the Toledo water YOUNGWOO SEO treatment plant used an enzymeAssociate Professor of based assay system for cyanotoxin Civil Engineering screening,” wrote Seo. “It is effective to screen to detect the presence of microcystins.” oxidation byproducts or backHowever, the enzyme-based ground organic matter can trigger assay system “only determines the a false positive in the assay kits. total microcystin concentration” and cannot determine other types See Toxins / 4 » of the microcystin toxin such as