ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-NINE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
Thursday, February 6, 2020
Ann Arbor, Michigan
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Study abroad programs in China face cancellation
Spread of Coronavirus impacts students enrolled in school trips HANNAH MACKAY Daily Staff Reporter
ALEC COHEN/Daily Solomon Rajput, candidate for Michigan’s 12th Congressional District, canvases at houses in Ann Arbor in January.
Riding the socialist wave
Medical student Solomon Rajput puts studies on hold to primary incumbent US Rep. Debbie Dingell, channels leftist discontent in appeal to voters JULIA FANZERES Daily Staff Reporter
In the middle of the Michigan League’s Maizie’s Kitchen & Market, a dozen undergraduate students huddled around a laptop to sign in for their canvassing shifts. The small group decided to brave the January blizzard and knock doors for Solomon Rajput, a 27-yearold Ann Arbor native who put his medical studies on hold for a year to challenge Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., for Michigan’s 12th congressional
seat. Dingell has represented the district for the last four years. Previously, it was held by the late John Dingell for 59 years and before that, by his father John Dingell Sr. for 22 years. Rajput hopes to disrupt this 85-year-old political dynasty. He said he was interested in politics as a teenager but was disenchanted with how candidates seemed to be controlled by big corporations. Still looking to make a difference, Rajput decided to enter the medical field. “I ended up in medicine because it is a way to help
people in a very vulnerable moment, heal people,” Rajput said. “I was thinking maybe we can change our health care system from the inside out.” After Hillary Clinton lost the 2016 presidential election, Rajput’s political ambitions were reignited, leading him to found the activist organization Michigan Resistance. The goal of the group was to advocate for local progressive bills in the county and state legislature. Noting the success of progressive campaigns such as those run by U.S. Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York,
and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., in 2018, Rajput said he became hopeful that he, too, would be able to make a difference through politics. In September 2019, he decided to put his medical studies on the back burner and run for Dingell’s seat. “I feel like times are changing, and it’s actually really exciting because we have a new generation of leaders who are running for office. We’re saying we’re not going to be beholden to corporate interest any longer,” Rajput said. See RAJPUT, Page 3
LSA sophomore Katyanne Calleja planned on studying abroad for two semesters this summer in China when the program she had applied to was canceled due to the recent coronavirus outbreak and a lack of interest in the program. Calleja said not all of the abroad programs in China have been canceled, though there has been a lot of confusion among students hoping to still travel there over the summer. “I know so far that the Beijing one is not canceled and they say that they are just waiting to see what’s going to happen,” Calleja said. “I feel like the whole situation is kind of confusing because sometimes you hear things are canceled, but then sometimes it’s not.” Since the University of Michigan issued a travel restriction on Jan. 27 for the entire country of China due to the recent coronavirus outbreak, all undergraduate and most graduate student travel to China has been
ANN ARBOR
Saline HS Candelight vigil draws community racist acts to share experiences of sexual assault of concern Michigan students gather on Diag Wednesday evening to demonstrate support to parents PETER HUMMER
In discussing children’s encounters with racism, Chela’s owner Iraola expresses frustration JULIA RUBIN, BRAYDEN HIRSCH & EMMA RUBERG Daily Staff Reporters
During a community meeting on diversity, equity and inclusion in Saline Area schools on Monday night, one man asked a Latinx parent why he had come to the United States, rather than “stay(ing) in Mexico.” The meeting was held following an incident last week at Saline High School when students were found posting racial slurs in a Snapchat group chat. The altercation occurred after Adrian Iraola, the father of three Saline school district alumni, shared his children’s experiences with racism during their years in Saline. In a video recorded by MLive, Iraola said other students called his children “taco, nacho and enchilada.” While Iraola was sharing his story, parent Tom Burtell interrupted and said, “Then why didn’t you stay in Mexico?” The remark was followed by gasps from the audience and various calls for Burtell to leave. See SALINE, Page 3
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Daily Staff Reporter
Freezing temperatures, wind and swirling f lurries of snow did not stop about 25 students and Ann Arbor community members from gathering in the Diag for a candlelight vigil in support of sexual assault victims Wednesday night. The event was organized by the Sexual Assault Victims Alliance (SAVA), in conjunction with The Michigan Democracy Institute for Civic
Engagement and Roe v. Rape. In order to protect the privacy of the speakers, they will be referred to only by their first names. In an interview with The Daily, Candice, Eastern Michigan University student and an organizer of the event, spoke about the construction of the vigil. “We wanted to have some kind of display that would show how many victims there are at U of M and how common it is here,” Candice said. “We thought that the
candlelight vigil would be really awesome.” Candice said events raising awareness of sexual assault are valuable for decreasing stigma. “I think that events like this are super important, especially with taboo issues like sexual assault,” Candice explained. “When no one’s talking about the issue … you don’t really know that it exists — that people are struggling with it. Because no one is really open about it, so these events do a lot to educate people who maybe
would be and will be our allies, but they don’t know what the problem is.” She also expressed her surprise at the amount of enthusiasm she encountered while organizing the event. “Almost every person I reached out to was really excited about it. I had really good engagement,” Candice said. “People were really excited and were really willing to contribute to the event, which I wasn’t really expecting.” See VIGIL, Page 3
prohibited and many study abroad programs have been canceled. The University’s travel ban specifically discourages any “nonessential” travel to China for students, faculty and staff and has affected all spring and summer study abroad programs affiliated with the Center for Global and Intercultural Study. When contacted by The Daily, University spokeswoman Dana Elger referred all students, faculty and staff interested in learning more about the virus to the Key Issues section of the Office of Public Affairs’s website. On Friday, the page addressed the travel ban and the international and national threat from the coronavirus. “The U.S. State Department classifies China as a level 4 travel advisory, recommending that individuals avoid all travel to the country,” the post reads. “The entire country remains under a U-M travel restriction. All U-M Related Travel to China, including for faculty and staff, is discouraged. See CORONAVIRUS, Page 3
ADMINISTRATION
Statement authored by A/PIA targets ‘U’ Undergraduates send letter in response to jury’s verdict in trial over discrimination JENNA SITEMAN Daily Staff Reporter
After a jury found the University of Michigan did not discriminate against a couple who accused the school of violating the state’s civil rights statute, a group of students minoring in Asian/ Pacific Islander American Studies authored an open letter to the University and public. The students outlined requirements they would like to be met to make them feel more supported. On Dec. 20, 2019, a jury determined that the University did not discriminate against Emily Lawsin and Scott Kurashige, who filed a discrimination lawsuit in 2016 against the University under the ElliottLarsen Civil Rights Act, with claims of disparate treatment, discriminatory hiring practices and sex discrimination, among others. In the letter, the group of students introduced a path of action they would like to see the University embark on to improve their working relationship.
HANNAH YOO/Daily Michigan student Jenny Lavin speaks during the Sexual Assault Survival Candlelight Vigil on the Diag Wednesday evening.
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INDEX
Vol. CXXIX, No. 64 ©2020 The Michigan Daily
NEWS.........................2 OPINION.....................4 CLASSIFIEDS..............6
See LETTER, Page 2
SUDOKU...............6 SPORTS...................7 ARTS...............5