ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SEVEN YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
Tuesday, November 28, 2017
Ann Arbor, Michigan
michigandaily.com
CAMPUS LIFE
Juuling rises on campus after library ban on e-cigs Students seek smokeless alternative while studying, experts warn of addiction KENNEDY WERNER Daily Staff Reporter
RUCHITA IYER/Daily
Georgia Representative and civil rights activist John Lewis discusses his graphic novels at Hill Auditorium Monday.
Congressman John Lewis pushes for nonviolence, ‘good trouble’
Leader of civil rights movement suggests ‘silence is best’ in face of hate groups CARLY RYAN
Daily Staff Reporter
Congressman John Lewis, D-Georgia, a prominent civil rights leader, recounted his firsthand experience in the civil rights movement to a packed crowd Monday night at the University of Michigan’s Hill Auditorium. Lewis was accompanied by Nate Powell and Andrew Aydin, illustrator and co-author respectively of the National Book
Award-winning graphic novel “MARCH,” which they published in 2013. Lewis is considered one of the “big six” leaders of the civil rights movement, a group including people such as Martin Luther King Jr. During the civil rights movement, Lewis was arrested over 40 times, had his skull cracked while marching in Selma, Ala., and spoke at the 1963 March on Washington. Lewis said in today’s political climate, the lessons he learned and preached during the civil rights movement
are relevant in light of recent news that Richard Spencer will not be banned from speaking at the University. “In a public space, people have the right to speak,” Lewis said. “I would advise the students and the University community, whatever you do, do it in an orderly, peaceful, nonviolent fashion. Sometimes when you have hate groups, silence is best.” The ideas of peace and nonviolence were instilled in Lewis by Martin Luther King Jr., who he considered a mentor.
Though he was beaten and unwelcome in many scenarios, Lewis reiterated learning and speaking out against injustice is necessary. “I was inspired to get in trouble — good trouble, necessary trouble,” he said. These principles of peace were also the driving motivation for writing the comic book “MARCH.” The book was the brainchild of Andrew Aydin, who now serves as Lewis’s digital director and policy adviser. See MARCH, Page 2
Despite the fact the University of Michigan has been a smoke-free campus since 2011, it is not uncommon to see someone smoking in the Diag, raising questions of the effectiveness of the policy. Now, many students are saying the use of electronic cigarettes, which are portable, quiet and almost odorless, across campus is on the rise. In January of 2015, the University libraries implemented a “no electronic cigarette” policy after recognizing a spike in the usage of electronic cigarettes in the libraries. The policy was created with the University Smoke-Free Campus initiative and Tobacco-Free College Campus Initiative, which provides resources to cigarette users interested in quitting. Stephen Griffes, a
senior manager in Library Operations, explained each individual library department makes the decision as to whether electronic cigarettes are included under the “no smoking” policy. “If we receive complaints from library users or if we see someone smoking an electronic cigarette, our Library Operations staff inform the user smoking the e-cigarette of the policy,” Griffes said. “In almost every case, the person indicates that they were unaware of the policy and ceases using their electronic cigarette upon request.” LSA junior Brad, who requested his last name remain anonymous due to his violation of University code, started using the Juul as an alternative to cigarettes about a month ago at tailgates. Because the Juul is sleek, small and discreet, he said he has used it in the Shapiro Undergraduate Library while See RISE, Page 3
DEI graduate student assistants find University A2 officials Council to themselves overwhelmed in positions solve water
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
CITY
survey on term starts
6 new positions hired through diversity plan this year are first at public university
Campus-wide body talks Labor Day option, voter turnout and Spencer visit
Despite the initial thrill of obtaining paid student diversity labor positions after a contentious bargaining process, University of Michigan students and faculty alike believe administrators continue to fall short in expressing support for graduate students working to implement the initiatives listed in the Diversity, Equality and Inclusion plan. In April 2017, over 250 Graduate Employees’ Organization members and their allies staged a sit-in to protest their unpaid work in promoting diversity initiatives — the capstone of a year of negotiations, beginning in fall 2016, where members began advocating for graduate student workers’ pay and benefits. This September, six Rackham-funded DEI graduate student staff assistant positions, as well as two in the School of Nursing, were created to reward student labor with full tuition waivers, living stipends and health insurance benefits. Rackham student Jamie Tam, former chair of the Graduate Employees’ Organization’s DEI committee, said there is no way in which six GSSA positions can meet the monumental demand for graduate student labor and expertise on campus. She acknowledged the steps taken by the University to foster a more inclusive campus environment,
SHANNON ORS
Daily Staff Reporter
The final University Council meeting of the semester was held Monday evening in the Michigan Union. Discussion among representatives from student governments across campus centered around projects for next semester, including increasing student voter turnout and a survey to understand students’ opinions toward beginning the fall academic calendar before Labor Day. The meeting opened with guest speaker LSA senior Micah Griggs, former vice president of Central Student Government during 2016-17, who presented information about the Leadership Engagement Scholarship established by CSG last year to help eliminate financial barriers for students in extracurricular leadership roles. The discussion then shifted toward the council’s role in increasing student voter turnout. CSG Vice President See COUNCIL, Page 3
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KAELA THEUT
Daily Staff Reporter
but said she believes much more could have been done. “The reality is that six positions can’t meet the needs of the entire campus community, and even 23 positions would have been too few to meet the incredible need for leadership and expertise from graduate student leaders on DEI,” she said. “When we realized we were going to become the first University to ever offer union benefits to students doing diversity work, we felt like we
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were doing something truly historic. That was an incredible high. At the same time, we knew that this was only a small step forward, and that a lot more work needs to be done on this campus before it actually achieves its mission of a truly inclusive climate. So, yes, we celebrated this victory, but we were also critical because the University could have done so much more. This was not a lot. It was an important step, but a small one.” Information graduate student
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Vidhya Aravind spent the majority of last year campaigning tirelessly in conjunction with the GEO for paid positions for students performing diversity labor. This year, she serves as a DEI GSSA for the School of Nursing — one of the six University-funded positions — after the GEO campaign and months of advocacy work by students such as herself. “I was on the team that led the campaign for this,” she See GSSA, Page 3
DESIGN BY OLIVIA STILLMAN
INDEX
Vol. CXXVII, No. 37 ©2017 The Michigan Daily
crisis for short term
After pipe emergency last week, city assures of no resident limit on water use ISHI MORI
Daily Staff Reporter
Ann Arbor weathered a water emergency last week, but concerns remain for the future of the city’s vital infrastructure. Craig Hupy, Ann Arbor’s public services administrator, told City Council last Monday that one of two pipelines bringing water from the Huron River to the city’s water treatment plant off Sunset Road ruptured on Nov. 18. The situation prompted city officials to attempt to divert the f low from the ruptured line to the other line; however, the initial attempts failed, forcing the city to bring in an outside contractor. On Tuesday, engineers successfully isolated the leaking pipeline by using a technique called line stop, which provided isolation without using valves. The accident caused some concern last week as Hupy warned city residents may have to brace for an emergency measure that would force them See CRISIS, Page 3
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