ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SEVEN YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
Ann Arbor, Michigan
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DESIGN BY OLIVIA STILLMAN
Administration responds to racist, anti-Semitic rhetoric on campus
Despite action, students see ‘U’ responses as inadequate in many situations JENNIFER MEER Daily Staff Reporter
In the past two years, the University of Michigan has seen several acts of hate targeted at people of color and minority groups across campus. In September 2016, flyers advocating white supremacy were found on campus posting walls. In February, engineering students received racist and antiSemitic emails from hacked email
accounts. This September, the Rock, a campus landmark, was found graffitied with anti-Latino and pro-Trump expressions. In October, racist slurs were found on the residence hall doors of three Black students in West Quad Residence Hall. In the aftermath of these incidents, campus communities have not stood idly by. Hundreds of students have rallied against racist flyering, graffiti and a variety of other attacks. In late September, Rackham student Dana Greene knelt in the Diag for 21 hours to protest racism on
campus and across the country; dozens of other students joined the peaceful protest. The University administration has taken steps to respond to acts of hate and its historically low minority enrollment. In October 2016, the University launched its five-year Diversity, Equity and Inclusion strategic plan, which aims to foster a diverse and inclusive campus, while also supporting inclusive scholarship and teaching. Diversity has been especially difficult in the University, since practicing affirmative action has been
banned in the state since 2014 despite the University’s attempts to appeal the vote. When the plan was implemented, then-Provost Martha Pollack, who is now the president of Cornell University, said the recent racist incidents only emphasized the need for the plan. “It’s only human to respond with anger and sometimes with fear, emotions that have been felt deeply on this campus,” she said. “I share the grief and outrage felt by our students, faculty and staff. We must cling to the vision of
what the world must be … and that is what the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion plan is all about.” However, also pertinent to DEI, the University ranked last in terms of socioeconomic mobility and diversity among top public universities. According to a report by the Equality of Opportunity Project, which was highlighted by The Upshot — a data analytics section of the New York Times— 66 percent of students come from the top 20 percent of the income distribution and students have the highest median family income of 27 “highly selective” public colleges. The DEI plan has been criticized for failing to foster a diverse environment and for failing to put a stop to racist incidents. After the racist emails were sent out in February, students protested outside University President Mark Schlissel’s house calling for “action, not emails,” referencing the University’s digital statement, which showed its support for those attacked, but no further action. “Schissel WYA” is a common rally of for University students, criticizing University President Mark Schlissel’s response to the incidents. In mid-September, students gathered in front of the president’s home and posted flyers on his door. Schlissel was at a family event during this time. Postdoctoral fellow Austin McCoy was not surprised by the University’s response. “From the administration, I anticipate them sending out probably an email and saying that they condemn the acts and then that they’re investigating, but other than that, I don’t know what else the administration plans to do,” he said in February. However, such incidences and responses are not unique to the University of Michigan campus. Post-election, campus climate and rallying students have been points of debate across the country. Conservative criticism refers to liberal students as too sensitive
and ignorant of free speech — worried for conservative students and their lack of voice on more Democratic campuses. The University of Chicago even shut down the concept of “safe spaces” — sparking what some call a clear rebuke of political correctness. Liberal students, however, hope to protest the turn of the administration along with the fear of rhetoric that they deem bigotry and do not wish to give such thought a platform. This article is part one of a series in which The Michigan Daily looks at colleges similar to the University of Michigan on the issue of reacting in a tense campus climate. As the University administration and students face their own numerous bias incidents, The Daily will look at other schools to compare and contrast in incidents, administration response and student activism, whether it is a difference in religion, culture, politics or policies. Cornell University Juliana Rosana Montejo graduated from Cornell University in May 2017. Montejo is Guatemalan and came from a predominantly white high school. She said when she entered the university in 2013, she wasn’t really aware of incidents on campus. “Long story short, every semester there has been something,” she said. Cornell University, located in Ithaca, N.Y. — a blue state — ranks similarly to the University of Michigan in terms of the Upshot’s SES status — albeit in the private school category among other Ivy Leagues. Out of 14,907 undergraduate students, Cornell has 6,462 students of color — 43.34 percent. In the graduate program, it is 17.94 percent. Cornell also uses affirmative action in admission. In fall 2013, a campus organization that promotes Cornell sporting events attempted to increase support for an See ADMINISTRATION, Page 2
Community members discuss concern Budget ‘U’ denies 2 increases over new A Amtrak station location knowledge
ACADEMICS
CAMPUS LIFE
discussed at SACUA
Public comment set to close Thursday, debate over Depot, Fuller continues
Assembly also carries on discussion of racial tensions in classroom
On a Sunday afternoon in October, about 15 Ann Arbor residents gathered at the parking lot in Fuller Park. Bracing the cold wind, the group listened in as members voiced their concerns over the potential relocation of Ann Arbor’s railroad station from the current location on Depot Street to Fuller Park. The meeting was hosted by Protect A2 Parks, an environmental advocacy group, as part of its All Aboard On Depot Street initiative and included a tour of the Fuller and Depot locations ahead of public commentary on the subject closing Nov. 2. Ann Arbor resident Gwen Nystuen, who formerly served in the Park Advisory and Planning commissions, said Depot Street is a better spot for residents because of its proximity to Ann Arbor’s population centers and since it already has the buses it needs to take travelers elsewhere in the city. “It’s a better location for most of the city population,” Nystuen said. “There are already the things you need around the station, such as two restaurants … and it’s a much shorter to the downtown area.” The city released a draft environmental assessment report in September detailing options for the new Amtrak station. The report names the southern portion of Fuller Park, near the University of Michigan
ALEX COTT
Daily Staff Reporter
The Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs convened Monday afternoon to discuss increasing the body’s budget, standardizing the training protocols for the University Faculty Ombuds — a body of University of Michigan officials who handle cases of grievances among faculty members — and incorporating the topic of campus racial tensions into classroom discussion. SACUA Chair Robert Ortega, an associate professor of social work, discussed the results of their private meetings with President Mark Schlissel and Provost Martin Philbert, executive vice president for academic affairs, last week. Following these meetings, SACUA requested an increased budget to cover the expenses of digital innovations aiming to educate new Senate Assembly members on the inner workings of SACUA. “We had thought about doing a number of public service See SACUA, Page 3
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ISHI MORI
Daily Staff Reporter
Hospital, as the preferred spot for a new train station and expanded parking facilities. The station is slated to cost $86 million, after an accounting error of $5 million was discovered two weeks ago by Ann Arbor resident Rita Mitchell, a member of Protect A2 Parks. This is not the first time Fuller Park has been named as a candidate for a new train station. In 2010, the Ann Arbor Planning
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Commission approved building a five-level, 977-space parking structure, with a train station to follow. The plan was put on hold due to lack of funds, and the University built a structure on Wall Street instead. The parking lot that is set to be converted into a parking structure for the station has been rented out by the University from the city for $45,000 a year since 1993, according to Jim Kosteva,
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director of community relations for the University. Protect A2 Parks members said though the lease was only supposed to last 15 years, the University has been continually renewing the contract. Mitchell pointed out how the hospital’s employees’ cars are parked in the lot after 5 p.m. every day, though after that time the lot is reserved for city residents. “There’s a perception that the See AMTRAK, Page 3
COURTESY OF RITA MITCHELL
INDEX
Vol. CXXVII, No. 20 ©2017 The Michigan Daily
of Spencer speaking
Rumors originated from tweet claim the white supremacist will visit KAELA THEUT
Daily Staff Reporter
Despite online speculation, the University of Michigan has confirmed there were no attempts made by Richard Spencer, or anyone representing him, to book a speaking facility at the University this past weekend. Spencer, a prominent white supremacist, heads the National Policy Institute, which the Southern Poverty Law Center has deemed a hate group. Though he has attempted to speak about his beliefs on college campuses across the country, several university administrators, at the University of Florida, Texas A&M University and Michigan State University, have barred him from speaking due to safety concerns. On Oct. 27, Michigan attorney Kyle Bristow, an alum of Michigan State University and former president of conservative Young Americans for Freedom, tweeted: “This evening @CameronVPadgett requested to rent a room at @UMich for @RichardBSpencerto speak. Your move, @DrMarkSchlissel.” However, in an email statement, University spokesman Rick See CLAIMS, Page 3
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