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Friday, December 6, 2019
Ann Arbor, Michigan
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Protestors call for equity, climate action at final Regents meeting of year
Climate Action Movement, One University demand ‘U’ withdraw fossil fuel investments, provide equitable funding
KEEMYA ESMAEL/Daily Protesters from the University of Michigan’s three campuses demonstrated outside of a Board of Regents meeting in Ann Arbor on Thursday.
LIAT WEINSTEIN & EMMA STEIN Daily Staff Reporters
Members of the Climate Action Movement and the One University Coalition from all three U-M campuses joined forces to protest before and after the Board of Regents meeting on Thursday, ultimately blockading the exits following the meeting in response to the University’s lack of action regarding their demands. U-M Flint senior Lucine Jarrah, a member of One
University, addressed the crowd at the pre-meeting protest. She began by saying the University has not listened to these student activists and has instead actively pushed them aside. “Over the last year, our movements have been actively demonstrating the urgency and addressing the drastic inequities in Flint and Dearborn, as well as establishing a carbon neutrality agreement at the University of Michigan,” Jarrah said. “Instead, for months we have been consistently sidelined by the
Board of Regents who have been dismissive in every opportunity to communicate our mission.” Jarrah said no progress has been made in the One University Campaign, and while the University says they support their cause, no action has been taken. “Time and time again we are seeing the University of Michigan deny and reject the inequitable conditions on the Flint and Dearborn campuses,” Jarrah said. “This denial has only managed to fuel the instability and mistrust between our campuses and,
in the end, students are the ones getting left behind. The One University Campaign was formed in January of last year. It is now almost a year later, and we have yet to see the results we need ... words of solidarity are no longer enough. We need action and we need it now.” LSA junior Solomon Medintz, who writes for The Daily’s opinion section, was the last speaker before the board meeting. He noted while the big picture goals and demands are important, the point of the protests at the meeting are to get the bare
minimum of action needed to keep the University on track. “This is a critical moment, and we haven’t gotten anything, and we need to know that we’re going to have a chance of getting our big picture goals,” Medintz said. “We’re not asking for everything today; we’re asking for what is absolutely necessary.” Medintz then expressed his frustrations surrounding the University’s decision not to take action. He said despite the administration voicing their support for the movements, nothing has happened.
“Both our movements have met with the administration and regents dozens of times, and although officials have said they support our goals, they do nothing,” Medintz said. “They do absolutely nothing. So, we are here to say that we are not going to be silenced or pushed aside anymore.” LSA junior Amytess Girgis told The Daily the University is mistreating people of color, not only on campus, but around the world, because climate change disproportionately impacts minority populations. See REGENTS, Page 3
Workshop gauges interest from Skymint Dingell in on new housing plan opens A2 Madrid to community SmithGroup and city of Ann Arbor host event to discuss affordability GOVERNMENT
BUSINESS
attend UN gathering
marijuana business
JULIA FANZERES
ANGELINA BREDE
Largest company in state launches local dispensary, bringing total sellers in city to 12
Michigan representative joins delegation with other Dems for global convention on climate Daily Staff Reporter
U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., joined a bicameral delegation to the Madrid Climate Convention 2019 on Dec. 2. The conference is the 25th session of the Conference of the Parties. Along with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and other key Democrats, Dingell joined other international leaders for a weeklong convention to discuss steps forward with the Paris Climate Agreement of 2016. This was the first time Dingell traveled to a Conference of the Parties. The Paris Climate Agreement’s central aim is to “strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.” The treaty was signed on April 22, 2016 by 196 state parties. Dingell noted the importance of staying on track with the Paris Climate Agreement, even if the Trump administration is planning on formally withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement within the next year. See DINGELL, Page 3
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Daily Staff Reporter
ALEC COHEN/Daily Ann Arbor residents take part in an affordable housing workshop in the Ann Arbor Downtown Development building Thursday.
BRAYDEN HIRSCH For the Daily
About 20 Ann Arbor residents attended an affordable housing workshop in the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authorit y building on Thursday night. As the f irst of a f ive-step series of workshops, the cit y of Ann Arbor and SmithGroup, an urban desig n f irm, gauged the interest of Ann Arbor residents in a new affordable housing plan the g roup is developing. Affordable housing is def ined as costing 30 percent or less of a household’s g ross annual
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income. To spread the word about workshops, representatives of SmithGroup visited various Universit y of Michigan classes on real estate. The cit y of Ann Arbor wanted to g ive as many people as possible the opportunit y to participate. Michael Johnson, leader of the urban desig n practice at SmithGroup, has taken the lead on this project and hopes to complete the prog ram with the help of the Ann Arbor communit y. “Our f irm is architects, eng ineers, landscape architects and urban desig ners, and we get
to work all over the country,” Johnson said. “Both doing desig n and running exercises public engagement exercises and working with neighborhoods, communities and cities to re-envision what our cities might be in the future.” The workshop consisted of three different stations in which members used virtual realit y to visualize what the buildings would look like in different locations. The location options were the former Y-lot and 415 West Washing ton. At another station, participants used Legos to build potential options for affordable
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housing locations. Taubman g raduate student Jiawen Qiao is taking a class on real estate development. She chose to attend this event to g ive her a real-life example of what she’s tr ying to accomplish in class. “ We are actually bring ing about some apartments,” Qiao said. “And we’re also thinking about adding some affordable units into it. So, our professor suggested we come to some of the committee meetings about affordable housing to learn more.”
Michigan’s largest marijuana company recently opened on Nov. 15 at 1958 S. Industrial Highway in Ann Arbor, about a seven-minute drive from the University of Michigan’s central campus. With the addition of this new location, there are now 12 marijuana dispensaries in Ann Arbor. Skymint, part of Green Peak Innovations company, now has four stores in Michigan. The Ann Arbor location is housed in a 2,500 square foot space, and is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day. The Michigan Marijuana Regulatory recently announced that, beginning on Dec. 1, residents will legally be able to purchase marijuana from stores, after its legalization in Michigan last year. The store was approved for a recreational marijuana license last week. Summer Ransom, president of retail for Skymint, said the legalization of recreational marijuana creates a safer and more regulated environment for users, who now will not have to rely on the illicit market for product.
See HOUSING, Page 3
Vol. CXXIX, No. 42 ©2019 The Michigan Daily
NEWS.........................2 OPINION.....................4 CLASSIFIEDS................5
See MARIJUANA, Page 3
SUDOKU.....................2 ARTS...................5 SPORTS.................7