ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SIX YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
Friday, December 2, 2016
Ann Arbor, Michigan
michigandaily.com
CAMPUS LIFE
Student use of nighttime safety efforts sees increase University piloting expansion of SafeRide program NISA KHAN
Daily Staff Reporter
Hispanic enrollment at ‘U’ grows slightly with 2016 freshman class University says socioeconomic diversity also sees boost TIM COHN
Daily Staff Reporter
The the percentage of Black students at the University of Michigan decreased by a margin of 0.51 points for the 2020 graduating class. At the same time, number of Hispanicidentifying students rose by 0.82 percent in this year’s freshman class, according to enrollment statistics released last month — an increase from 344 total students to 428.
The fluctiations followed a long-term trend of low minority enrollment at the University. Kedra Ishop, the vice provost for enrollment management, cites Proposal 2 — which banned Affirmative Action in the state — as a leading cause for low Black student enrollment. However, Ishop noted the University is still investigating other potential reasons for the decrease. “We pursue many courses of action to improve diversity on campus, and some are unsuccessful,” Ishop said. “We
are currently researching this decrease in African-American enrollment. We will be looking at what kinds of students we lost, and why we had fewer African-American students. Was it because of financial aid, was it because of program selection, was it because they got into Harvard? These are all things that we can use to inform us going forward.” The ongoing decrease in Black student enrollment has been a cofus of student activity on campus for decade. It spiked in
2013 #BBUM, where students shared their experiences of being Black at the University on Twitter. University alum Capri’Nara Kendall, former speaker of the Black Student Union, expressed frustration with the low Black and Latino student enrollment in an interview in 2015. “Talk to me when minority enrollment is out of the 4 percent; when we’re looking at more of a 7-percent enrollment for African Americans,” Kendall said in 2015. “We’re looking for more of a SeeENROLLMENT, Page 3
After two crime alerts for hate crimes occurred near the University of Michigan’s campus in Ann Arbor last month, Kinesiology sophomore Brianna Kennedy has started taking SafeRide, a free afterhours transportation system, every night to get home after a full night of studying — and she’s not the only one taking extra precautions. “(Walking home alone) is not something I would choose to do if I had the option not to with SafeRide or the bus,” Kennedy said. “I would choose that over walking home because of the recent incidents and all that’s been going on.” On the Friday after President-elect Donald Trump’s win, a female Muslim student was approached by a man who demanded she take off her hijab, threatening to light her on fire if she refused. Days later, another female student
Political science professor predicts LoftSmart aims to ease stagnant future relations for U.S.-China
was pushed down a hill after being ethnically intimidated on campus. As well, several incidents have occured that have not been sent out as alerts. Two weeks ago, an unknown man cut a woman’s face with a safety pin on East Liberty Street, four men assaulted a University lecturer and an Ann Arbor resident found swastikas drawn on his door. Since the incidents and the subsequent increased in student demand for more safety resources, SafeRide has expanded its usual 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. hours to 8 p.m. to 2 a.m., driving students within a onemile radius of the Central and North campuses. “I think it’s helpful,” Kennedy said. “Just with it being winter and the fact that it gets darker earlier. So (the new hours) keep in mind the students.” Steve Dolen, executive director of Logistics, Transportation and Parking, declined to cite the alerts as a reason for the expansion in See SAFE RIDE, Page 3
BUSINESS
SCIENCE
search for A2 housing
David Shambaugh says friction has come to characterize relationship
Study says med. exams aid claims for ayslum
Website launched at University of Virginia expands to Ann Arbor
The U.S.’s relationship with China relationship, fraught with friction and rising competition, will most likely not improve under Presidentelect Donald Trump, according to David Shambaugh, a professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University who spoke at the Ford School of Public Policy Thursday. About 60 people gathered to listen to Shambaugh discuss his views on the state of U.S.China relations today and their projected evolution over coming decades. His lecture is the first of several organized by the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies on U.S.-China relations over the next year in the context of the U.S. election, as well as upcoming changes in Chinese leadership next fall. Shambaugh began his talk by noting that there is friction between the two nations, especially regarding the past and present U.S. presidents’ wishes to hold China accountable as a world power. Though Shambaugh said the Obama administration implemented policy generally continuous with actions of the Bush administration, Obama’s more left-leaning, internationally based policies lead to greater mistrust from the Chinese government.
CALEB CHADWELL Daily Staff Reporter
LoftSmart, a New York-based startup seeking to connect college students with off-campus housing, is hoping to make an impact in the Ann Arbor market. Sundeep Kumar, co-founder and chief operating officer, said the new website hosts offcampus rental listings in college towns, including information, reviews and the ability to connect with the landlord and sign a lease online. “If you think about it, a lot of students make (housing) decisions based on word of mouth, what friends have told them or what they have seen on street signs and stuff like that,” Kumar said. “At the end of the day, they might not know everything there is to know about that place.” Co-founder and CEO Sam Bernstein formulated the original idea for the site at the University of Virginia and Kumar said he randomly met Bernstein in March of this year at a bar in Austin, Texas. Soon thereafter, Kumar formed a partnership See LOFTSMART, Page 3
GOT A NEWS TIP? Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail news@michigandaily.com and let us know.
KAELA THEUT
Daily Staff Reporter
“If there was a shift from Bush to Obama, it was Obama’s even greater embrace of the global governance dimension of the relationship,” he said. However, Shambaugh added that though it is important to recognize the fraught nature of the U.S.-China relationship, there are also several positive dimensions and interdependencies that act as buffers between the
competitive countries — such as billions of dollars in two-way trade, investments and export markets. He also emphasized the strong relationship between Michigan and cities in China. “We’ve got sister city and sister state relationships, including Michigan’s own long-standing relationships in China,” Shambaugh said. “Governor Snyder’s done a great deal to increase that, but it goes
back, in fact, to when I was a student here.” But despite relationships between specific provinces and states, Shambaugh said two-thirds of the public in both countries view each other with mutual distrust due in part to the countries’ differing ideologies, as well as China’s rapidly growing commercial and political presence. He stated See CHINA, Page 3
ELIZABETH XIONG/Daily
David Shambaugh, professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University, speaks about relations between the U.S. and China at Weill Hall Thursday.
For more stories and coverage, visit
michigandaily.com
INDEX
Vol. CXXVI, No. 38 ©2016 The Michigan Daily
Refugees often struggle to establish proof of trauma, researchers find ANDREW HIYAMA Daily Staff Reporter
For the majority of refugees coming to the United States, the process of entering the country is long and difficult, especially for those who have experienced trauma and then have to prove it happened to gain asylum. However, according to a new University study, this burden of proving persecution or trauma is made considerably lighter with the provision of a professional medical examination. Bridgette Carr, law professor and director of the Human Trafficking Clinic at the University of Michigan, said refugees have to provide substantial evidence of their persecution or trauma to be granted asylum. Trauma can range from domestic abuse, religious persecution or persecution because of sexuality or nationality. “In America, asylum seekers can put themselves in one of two categories: They can have experienced persecution in the past, and that past persecution can be enough that they get See REFUGEES, Page 3
NEWS.........................2 OPINION.....................4 CLASSIFIEDS................6
SUDOKU.....................2 ARTS......................5 SPORTS....................7