GOPHERS PREP TO FACE GATORS IN SWEET SIXTEEN PAGE 4
LATE WEEK THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2019
MNDAILY.COM
SERVING THE UMN COMMUNITY SINCE 1900
STUDENT LIFE
The policy aims to protect students’ right to designate their pronouns. BY JASMINE SNOW jsnow@mndaily.com
A
policy on gender identity and expression nearly three years in the making was enacted by the President’s Policy Committee last Friday. The decision comes after 18 months of systemwide University consultation and a recent comment period. The policy aims to help ensure University of Minnesota members can identify and be identified by their specified names and gender pronouns. Previously, a draft of the proposed policy included language implying disciplinary action following noncompliance with the policy, including “up to firing or expulsion.” Earlier this year, the Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action responded to complaints of free speech infringement by excluding that language altogether, claiming that existing Board of Regents provisions would take care of potential issues. A recent survey with 330 completed responses conducted this fall by the Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication found that 84 percent of surveyed University students felt either very comfortable or somewhat comfortable “using genderneutral pronouns if they were asked to do so.” This is compared to 9 percent of students who reported they would be somewhat uncomfortable and 7 percent who would be
UMN students weigh in on new pronoun policy
very uncomfortable. This survey has a margin of error of 5.4 percentage points. The Minnesota Daily talked to students across campus about their thoughts and feelings on gender pronoun usage and a policy encouraging it. Jackson Baril, MBA student from Shorewood, Minnesota “I understand that you can change your preferred name now more easily, which I think that’s a good step. I think it’s important that students start the class off with people using the correct pronouns so that they can feel comfortable and open in that environment right away.” Esteban Bedoya, senior from Rochester, Minnesota “I can’t really say I’d know much about the pronoun policy . . . I would agree [that the U needs a policy]. I think everyone deserves to be called by the right pronoun that they identify with. I don’t think that I would want to be called a pronoun that I don’t feel represents who I am. I think it’s a very good idea that there is a policy to kind of makes sure that everyone has that right to be called by their right pronouns.” Keaton Sieve, senior from Jordan, Minnesota “[Students] should be able to [dictate their pronouns] … It’s their right. Why not? It doesn’t affect anyone else in a negative way.” Halle Kruchoski, freshman from Delafield, Wisconsin “I think [a policy] is necessary just to make everyone feel welcome and comfortable here. I can’t see any reason why we wouldn’t have one or why anyone would be against it.” Elgin Lee, master’s Student from St. Paul, Minnesota u See PRONOUN Page 3
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS
RESEARCH
Proposed visa application fee could impact U students 15 years on, The filing fee for a N-400 visa, the application form for permanent residency, would roughly double. BY JIANG LI jli2@mndaily.com
The Department of Homeland Security proposed a range of new fees last month that could increase immigration costs for thousands of University of Minnesota students and faculty members. In early November, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced a new fee schedule for many immigration applications, with an average increase of 21 percent. For example, the filing fee for a N-400 visa, the application form for permanent residency, would nearly double to $1,170, according to the National Law Review. The fee would affect many of the
most common visas University of Minnesota students and faculty members apply for. The additional funds generated by the fee increases would help reimburse the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for facilitating immigration and naturalization services, according to the proposed rule. Many communities on campus, including students who have green cards or are part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival program, would bear the burden of the cost increases, said Immigration Response Team Director Marissa Hill-Dongre. In addition, the proposal would take away people’s ability to qualify for a filing fee waiver, she said. Organizations and individuals can submit comments and insights about the proposed rule to the federal government until Dec. 30. In response, the University’s IRT is currently working to reach out and collect
NEIGHBORHOODS
clinical trial leaves scars Dan Markingson’s case is one that still haunts the University of Minnesota. BY MICHELLE GRIFFITH AND DYLAN MIETTINEN mgriffith@mndaily.com, dmiettinen@mndaily.com
ILLUSTRATION BY MORGAN LA CASSE, DAILY
information from different community groups about the fee change. “One of the things that we’re doing is making people aware of the fact that this proposal is out there and making people aware of the opportunity to submit a
comment,” Hill-Dongre said. IRT has reached out to many University graduates who may intend to apply for a work visa, informing them of the proposed increase, Hill-Dongre said. u See VISA Page 3
OUTREACH
A step to rebuild relationships: U hires director of tribal relations Tadd Johnson serves as an ambassador between tribes throughout the state and the University. BY NATALIE RADEMACHER nrademacher@mndaily.com
A boarded window on the 14 floor is rimmed by scorch marks at the Cedar High Apartments on Monday, Dec. 9. (Kamaan Richards / Minnesota Daily)
Following high-rise fire, CedarRiverside begins healing process Community members gathered on Saturday to discuss safety concerns following the accident. BY EMMA DILL AND BROOKE SHEEHY edill@mndaily.com, bsheehy@mndaily.com
Following a deadly building fire last month, the Cedar-Riverside community is beginning to heal despite lingering questions.
The fire killed five residents in a 25-story high-rise owned by the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority. During a community meeting Saturday, Cedar-Riverside residents impacted by the fire said they still have concerns about the cause of and response to the blaze. But community members said unity will help the neighborhood move forward. The fire started by accident around 4 a.m. on Nov. 27 in the u See FIRE Page 3
The University of Minnesota appointed the first-ever senior director of American Indian Tribal Nations Relations late last month to help build relationships between local tribes and the University. Tadd Johnson, a member of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa, has a busy road ahead of him — serving as an ambassador between the 11 tribal nations in Minnesota and the University while also supporting Indigenous faculty and students on all five University campuses. An emerging role Because Johnson is tasked with implementing the new role himself, he is unsure what exactly his position will look like. To develop meaningful connections with tribes, there is much consultation and relationship building that must be done first, Johnson said. He plans to spend weeks, even months,
getting to know members of tribal nations, finding out about and listening to issues impacting their communities. Cori Bazemore-James, a director in the Graduate School Diversity Office who led the search committee for the position, said Johnson already has respectful relationships and trust built with local tribes, something necessary for this role. One thing some Indigenous students are hoping for with Johnson’s role is more accessibility to resources and University administration. “We want to see more transparency in recruitment, attracting and retaining Indigenous students,” said Charles Golding, vice president of the American Indian Student Cultural Center. This fall, there are around 400 students who self-reported as American Indian, according to the University’s Office of Institutional Research. This number has stayed fairly consistent over the past decade. Golding, who also served on the search committee for the position, said he thinks Johnson is a good pick for the role because he u See TRIBES Page 3
After more than a decade of policy changes, extensive reports and community healing, the scars of a “tragic” and “disastrous” University of Minnesota clinical trial are still visible and will continue to influence psychiatric research nationwide for years to come. Dan Markingson was 26 years old when he was forced to make a decision: comply with his physician’s treatment plan, a clinical trial testing FDA-approved drugs, or face commitment to a psychiatric institution. Though he was later deemed a “vulnerable adult,” he agreed to the former. In the months following his enrollment in the treatment plan, his mother Mary Weiss grew increasingly concerned about the state of his mental health. Though she repeatedly reached out to his care team, her concerns should have been taken more seriously, a state report said. She asked the study coordinator, “Do we have to wait until he kills himself or anyone else before anyone does anything?” Within a month, he would die by suicide. Fifteen years later, his death still looms over much of the University’s research. Since his death, the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and the University has implemented more than 60 policy changes to better research practices and protect patients. The state report found no causal link between Markingson’s death and his involvement in the clinical trial. However, after a state audit report said University leadership acted in a way that would later be called “defensive, insular, and unwilling to accept criticism about the Markingson case either from within or outside the University,” many wonder what the changes really mean. The facts of the case It was 2003 and Dan Markingson was not well. His mother noted a marked and distinct change in his attitude, words and actions. Weiss was so concerned she brought him to a hospital where u See MARKINGSON Page 3 VOLUME 120 ISSUE 30