Action Project - Madison's Politics - Monday, March 14, 2016 - The Daily Cardinal by The Daily Cardinal

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Action Project Issue, March 2016

We the Students

DESIGN BY BETSY OSTERBERGER AND ETHAN CLAES

“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”

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Action Project Issue, March 2016

An independent student newspaper, serving the University of Wisconsin-Madison community since 1892 Volume 125, Issue 67

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Editor-in-Chief James Dayton

Managing Editor Emily Gerber

News Team News Manager Negassi Tesfamichael Campus Editor Peter Coutu College Editor Madeline Heim City Editor Miller Jozwiak State Editor Andrew Bahl Associate News Editor Jake Skubish Features Editor Julia Gilban-Cohen Opinion Editors Jack Kelly • Cal Weber Editorial Board Chair Theda Berry Arts Editors Amileah Sutliff • Denzel Taylor Sports Editors Jake Powers • Zach Rastall Almanac Editors Liam Hutchison • Noah Mack Photo Editors Betsy Osterberger • Kaitlyn Veto Graphics Editors Bethany Dahl • Yi Jiang Multimedia Editor Jen Wagman Science Editor Sai-Suma Samudrala Life & Style Editor McKenna Gramoll Special Pages Editors Kerry Huth • Justine Jones Copy Chiefs Ellie Borstad • Eva Jacobs John Joutras • Sam Wagner Copy Editor Lauren Thill Social Media Manager Bridget Driscoll

Business and Advertising business@dailycardinal.com Business Manager Andrew Hahm Advertising Managers Clare Simcox • Maki Watanabe Marketing Director Conor McGinnis

The Daily Cardinal is a nonprofit organization run by its staff members and elected editors. It receives no funds from the university. Operating revenue is generated from advertising and subscription sales. The Daily Cardinal is published Mondays and Thursdays and distributed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and its surrounding community with a circulation of 10,000. Capital Newspapers, Inc. is the Cardinal’s printer. The Daily Cardinal is printed on recycled paper. The Cardinal is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press and the Wisconsin Newspaper Association. All copy, photographs and graphics appearing in The Daily Cardinal are the sole property of the Cardinal and may not be reproduced without written permission of the editor in chief. The Daily Cardinal accepts advertising representing a wide range of views. This acceptance does not imply agreement with the views expressed. The Cardinal reserves the right to reject advertisements judged offensive based on imagery, wording or both. Complaints: News and editorial complaints should be presented to the editor in chief. Business and advertising complaints should be presented to the business manager. Letters Policy: Letters must be word processed and must include contact information. No anonymous letters will be printed. All letters to the editor will be printed at the discretion of The Daily Cardinal. Letters may be sent to opinion@ dailycardinal.com.

Editorial Board Dylan Anderson • Theda Berry James Dayton • Emily Gerber Jack Kelly • Cal Weber Adelina Yankova • Thomas Yonash

Board of Directors Herman Baumann, President Phil Brinkman • James Dayton Emily Gerber • Andrew Hahm Janet Larson • Conor McGinnis Don Miner • Nancy Sandy Jennifer Sereno • Clare Simcox Jason Stein • Jim Thackray Maki Watanabe • Tina Zavoral

Political change starts with us Despite outside skepticism, students remain as committed to politics as ever JIM DAYTON AND EMILY GERBER management team

Cover photos courtesy of Daily Cardinal archives and Wisconsin Historical Society.

own. No matter which person that may be, the electoral process is there to ensure everyone’s voice is heard.

ith 2016 being a major election year, it’s nearly impossible to go a day without hearing or consuming political news of some sort. As college students, this time is especially important, because for many of us it marks the first time being able to vote in a presidential election. In our second of three Action Project issues, Daily Cardinal staffers set out to explore Madison’s political environment. The city has the reputation of being liberal, but is that the case for all of its inhabitants? How do UW students convey their own political interests, and how do these actions differ from the city’s long-term dwellers? Though their political views have occasionally been at odds with each other, students and residents have also found common ground through activism.

As college students, this time is especially important, because for many of us it marks the first time being able to vote in a presidential election. There is a rich history of advocacy within Madison. From antiwar protests to civil rights rallies, residents and students have repeatedly come together to express their desires for political change.

From anti-war protests to civil rights rallies, residents and students have repeatedly come together to express their desires for political change. This year is an important one for our country, filled with decisions and different opportunities for change. We hope this issue lends insight and perspective to our campus’ long history of activism and how those political undertones still exist today. The Daily Cardinal would like to acknowledge and thank the Evjue Foundation, the charitable arm of The Capital Times, for making the Action Project possible. What areas of our coverage did you enjoy? Was there an area of Madison’s political climate we missed out on? We’d love for our readers to be part of the Action Project conversation. Please send all comments and concerns to Jim and Emily at edit@dailycardinal.com. This issue will be on stands all week and throughout spring break. If you’re looking for our daily news coverage, analysis of the NCAA tournament or concert reviews from South by Southwest, check out dailycardinal.com to stay updated.

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Recently, students have mobilized to voice their opinions on a new crop of political topics. Issues related to racial equality and diversity, environmental sustainability and women’s health have been at the forefront of not only campus conversations, but national headlines as well. Muslim students have also promoted awareness about their religion and culture amid recent fears of ISIS across the world. While protests and public

demonstrations are visible indicators of student engagement, they certainly aren’t the only methods of civic activism. Many Wisconsin students have turned their passion for politics into a career path and ran for elected positions. For the vast majority of students, however, our future jobs won’t involve a life in public office. But we can all have an impact on government by voting for the candidates whose values and policies most align with our

The Daily Cardinal would like to recognize

The Evjue Foundation, Inc. (the charitable arm of The Capital Times)

for providing the funds to make the Action Project possible.

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Action Project Issue, March 2016

Contrasts grow with city, campus voters Story by Andrew Bahl

t’s not exactly a state secret that Madison is politically liberal. Famously derided by Republican Gov. Lee Sherman Dreyfus as “30 square miles surrounded by reality,” the city and its college campus are notorious bastions of liberalism in a state which swings between political parties. At first glance, voting data from the UW-Madison campus seem to unquestionably support Dreyfus’ quip; no Republican has garnered more than 30 percent of the vote in campus precincts since 2000 and in most elections the campus was even more liberal than the city of Madison as a whole. The 2014 election marked a significant shift, however. Although the U W- M a d i s o n campus overwhelmingly supported Democrat Mary Burke, incumbent Gov. Scott Walker garnered a historically high percent of the vote from students. Despite gathering identical vote totals statewide as he did in the 2010 election, Walker did 11 points better in campus wards than in his first election, taking 30 percent of the vote in 2014 compared with 19 percent four years prior. In addition, three of the campus area wards were among Walker’s best citywide. Walker nearly drew Burke to a

tie in Ward 56, which includes the Sellery and Witte dorms. He also received 48 percent of the vote in Ward 54, which includes Ogg Hall, 42 percent in Ward 55 that includes the Spring Street area of campus and 40 percent in Ward 59, which includes the Lakeshore dorms. All in all, Walker did 10 points better in campus precincts than the city of Madison as a whole. Charlie Hoffmann, president of UW-Madison College Republicans at the time, said that the result was a concerted effort on the part of his club to bring out more conservative voters. “It didn’t happen by accident,” Hoffmann said, who stated the group targeted campus precincts and tried to underscore for student voters how they thought Walker would benefit them.

Hoffmann also credited the candidate himself for making an effort to reach out to college voters. “Sometimes Republican candidates don’t make an effort to reach out to college students,” Hoffman said, using 2012 presidential candidate Mitt Romney as an example. “You want to vote on things you care about and the tuition freeze [at UW-System schools] was the biggest talking point we’ve had for a long time.” UW-Madison political science professor Barry Burden said that multiple factors, including a growing gravitation of young people nationally towards conservative politics, could also have influenced Walker’s performance in 2014. “Nationwide surveys show that younger voters [18 or 19-yearolds] are trending more towards

the Republican party, compared with 21, 22, 23-year olds who are more Democratic,” Burden said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if the trend in Madison mimicked the nationwide one.” Burden also noted that momentum was bound to shift after historically high youth turnout to vote for President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012. “Young people in 2008 and 2012 had such high support and it would be hard to replicate that,” Burden said. Perhaps unsurprisingly, that trend was borne out on the UW-Madison campus as a whole. In 2008, Obama actually outperformed his citywide numbers on campus, receiving over 83 per-

cent of the vote. In one campus-area precinct, Ward 55, Arizona Sen. John McCain received only 5 votes. In 2012, Obama’s Republican challenger Mitt Romney did marginally better on campus but still lost these areas in a landslide. Despite beating his citywide vote total by five points, Romney barely garnered 25 percent of the vote in campus precincts. The question becomes whether conservative groups will continue their progress in 2016 or if their relative gains will be swept away in a tidal wave of presidential election fervor from Democrats. Hoffmann said, barring business mogul Donald Trump securing the Republican nomination, conservative groups on campus can continue their progress. “Students aren’t nearly as liberal and progressive as people think,” he said. Burden said that underclassmen who couldn’t vote in the 2012 election will play a major role in determining what the electoral makeup of campus looks like in November. Research, Burden said, has suggested that the first election for a voter leaves a lasting legacy. “With freshman and sophomores it will be interesting to see what happens,” Burden said. “This election will certainly leave an impact GRAPHIC BY JOHN JOUTRAS on them.”

Political groups prepare to halt potential Trump nomination Story by Lucas Sczygelski

fter months of waiting for the insult slinging author of “Art of the Deal” to stumble, students are soberly staring down the possibility of Donald Trump being the Republican party’s presidential nominee. Trump’s success prompted the mobilization of campus political groups who vow to blunt the mogul’s momentum ahead of Wisconsin’s April 5th primary. He has turned the Republican base against free trade, mercilessly put down

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the most polarizing political dynasty in the country and awakened a nasty strain of racism. However, Trump’s regressive brand of nationalism is not unique. As Europe clawed out of the Great Recession and Syria’s civil war flooded the continent with refugees, countries who had only recently escaped the shackles of Sovietera repression voted in nationalist governments headed by strongmen. Poland’s far right Law and Justice party gained majorities this fall by appealing to Poles alienated by economic and social change. Party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski stoked xenophobic fears by suggesting Muslim migrants carry “various diseases,” mirroring Trump’s full-throated assertion that Mexicans are rapists. In January, Poland’s newly elected conservative government drew protests for transferring editorial control of their public broadcasting service to the executive branch, creating a propaganda arm and eliminating a source of dissent. During a Fort Worth rally last week, Trump voiced his own proposal for muting free press. To the glee of his audience, Trump said: “open up our libel laws so when they write purposefully negative and horrible and false articles, we can sue them and win lots of money.” According to UW-Madison Journalism professor Michael Wagner, it is unlikely Trump’s unprecedented suggestion passes into law, but his reckless criticism of news media serves to weaken public trust in journalism. “If people don’t trust the media then when the newspapers or radio stations or television stations report what’s true and what isn’t, fewer people are likely to believe it and that is a real problem,”

Wagner said. “That’s why a lot of authoritarian leaders either control the media or seek to quash it.” UW-Madison College Democrats are not taking Trump’s authoritarian and nationalist tendencies lightly, according to their press secretary August McGinnity-Wake. “It’s pretty terrifying,” McGinnity-Wake said. “This is the kind of stuff we read about in dystopian novels. If Donald Trump wins the nomination we’ll be out there getting students excited, going door to door.” August’s counterparts, the College Republicans are obligated to support the eventual party nominee, but that has not stopped members from breaking rank on moral and ethical grounds. Jake Lubenow, bearded veteran of the Walker presidential campaign, pledged to stand against Trump even if it meant supporting the eventual Democratic party nominee or using his vote on a write-in. Lubenow hastily launched the Badgers for Rubio club following Trump’s strong Super Tuesday performance to put as much wind into the sails of Trump’s strongest remaining mainstream rival. “Donald Trump is a con artist,” an exasperated Lubenow said. “Beyond the fact that he’s just not qualified, I think his rhetoric is dangerous to the Republican party and to the American people as a whole. The things that he says about women and about muslims are just not okay.” According to Lubenow, the battle for party nomination is not over yet; his group will begin canvassing on campus where he predicts Rubio will beat Trump. “From my experience [Trump’s] support is limited on campus,” Lubenow said, although he conceded that several College Republicans support him. “I think he struggles to get his message across to millennials

because they are more forward thinking than a lot of his supporters.” According to Wagner, Trump does not have a lock on the nomination yet, but encourages Republicans wary of voting for him to coalesce around an alternative quickly. Despite a recent decline in national polls, Lubenow maintained the alternative must be Marco Rubio. “What I would say to kids on campus is that you have a voice, you need to utilize it,” Lubenow said. “We’re all smart enough on this campus to know that Donald Trump would not be a good president and voting for someone like Marco Rubio can help stop the momentum that Trump has.”

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Action Project Issue, March 2016

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Students in politics, past and present From local representation to the U.S. Senate, UW-Madison produces leaders in the political process

Story by Sam Allen and Jake Skubish Students in office

Senators, congressmen and local representatives throughout Wisconsin and the nation call UW-Madison their alma mater. But while the campus is popularly known for the public servants who started here, today’s students also represent themselves in government. The UW campus dominates two local districts in city and county government, regularly sending current or recent students to public office. “I think unofficially it’s always been a student’s seat,” recent UW alumnus and Dane County Supervisor for District 5 Leland Pan said about his current position. District 5 covers the UW-Madison campus, including most housing areas and about half of Lake Mendota.

hard work for others,” Pan said, citing past campaign work like his role advocating for a Green Party member running for State Assembly. “I supported candidates who were really left wing with no chance of winning.” Wood had been active in the Democratic Party, eventually becoming vice chair of College Democrats of Wisconsin. He ran for office on a platform of improving public safety and combating sexual assault. Both approaches to office, one of firebrand progressivism and the other of activist party leadership, are not only hallmarks of the university, but of age as well. Representatives of the campus district, traditionally serving one or two terms, work with other officials who have been serving one or two decades. “You’re not expected to be in office forever, to bury yourself in bureaucracy and technical issues,” Pan said. “In some ways it’s liberating, you get to say what you believe.”

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Leland Pan was first elected to serve as Dane County Supervisor for District 5 when he was a sophomore at UW-Madison. Since graduating last year, Zach Wood, City of Madison District 8 Alder, said he recognizes students’ integral role in local government. Both Pan and Wood said they owe their current positions to their time at UW. Pan, a sophomore when first elected to office in 2012, became known as a fighter for lost causes. “One major reason folks asked me to run is that I put in

Pan said, however, that “there is a level of, maybe, condescension” from some others on the county board. But respect among colleagues and for the campus district itself, previously represented by figures such as Tammy Baldwin and Paul Soglin, keeps students’ voices valued in deliberation. “District 8’s been a productive seat,” Wood said. “I don’t think

I’ve experienced prejudice.” Angelito Tenorio, a UW-Madison sophomore and District 5 County Supervisor candidate, emphasized the importance of keeping young, new faces in office. “You can bring a new perspective, as opposed to sitting on the board for long periods of time,” Tenorio said. “Turnover is unique to District 5. People usually hold office for two to four years.” The campus district also has expectations for representatives’ ideals. “How activist-driven UW is really drives the reason why there even is this seat,” said Hayley Young, a recent UW graduate and candidate for District 5 supervisor. Young stated the UW experience affected her entire worldview. “You want to say ‘I’m an upperclassman or recent alumni’ and once you can no longer call yourself that you pass it on to someone in their early 20s,” Young said. “It’s not a rule, but more of a tradition.”

organizations sparked the political careers of several alumni, including Graul, who was involved with College Republicans, and former District 8 alderman and mayoral candidate Scott Resnick, who was in College Democrats. Resnick, a 2009 graduate, said his participation in organizations as a student continues to shape his career.

Russ Feingold. “It was an era when a number of movements were in their early stages, so it was a very exciting time to be on the campus.” For some alumni, however, schoolwork took priority over politics. Ann Walsh Bradley, state supreme court justice and 1976 graduate of UW-Madison Law School, said law school was incredibly time-consuming.

Alumni in politics

As election season approaches, students across campus are joining political organizations, promoting candidates on social media and registering to vote with the hopes that their efforts can make a difference. The UW experience of former mayor of Madison Dave Cieslewicz, a 1983 UW-Madison graduate, shows how cyclical student political involvement can be. “In 1979 Paul Soglin had just left office for the first time, and I was disappointed that he stopped being mayor just before I arrived,” Cieslewicz said. “It never occurred to me that two decades later I’d run against him for mayor.” Like Cieslewicz, many prominent alumni in politics first got involved while on campus. Mark Graul graduated in 1992 and went on to be the state director in Wisconsin for former President George W. Bush’s reelection campaign in 2004. “Being in Madison, at the center of political activity in the state, gave me lots of opportunities to get involved in the political process,” Graul said. “I would not have been politically engaged had I not gone to the University of Wisconsin.” Participation in student

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Alumnus Zach Wood, who graduated last year from UW-Madison, serves as Alder for District 8. “Many friends that I still keep today, I met through College Democrats,” Resnick said. “It was those kinds of interactions that led to see the value of local politics and the importance of personal interactions.” Graul stated although campus groups tended to be liberal, the political climate was never discouraging for conservatives. “Obviously at the university there’s some left-leaning students and faculty, but there were plenty of us conservatives on campus,” Graul said. “Even if we saw things we disagreed with, at least we were involved in the process, and I think that’s one of the great things about going to Wisconsin.” For others, personal political engagement stemmed from the city’s activism. “At the time there were enormous concerns about the Vietnam War, and I had strong objections to it, so I participated in protesting the war,” said former U.S. Senator and 1975 graduate

“I had to support myself through law school, so I always had a job, which didn’t leave a lot of time for extracurricular activities,” Bradley said. Feingold stressed that students should not overly prioritize involvement in campus organizations over the college experience. “I also focused a lot on my school work and, frankly, having a good time, so I didn’t run for office, I didn’t run for student government,” Feingold said. “I was enjoying being at Madison.” Regardless of how students get involved, however, Cieslewicz said he believes attending UW-Madison can change students for the better. “The UW shaped me in ways that are hard to measure. I was a little unfocused, which is not necessarily uncommon among UW students,” Cieslewicz said. “I graduated without a job and with a small student loan to repay, but I knew where I wanted to be if not who I wanted to be. That would come later.”

4 GRAPHIC BY KAITLYN VETO

Above, a map shows the alder districts for campus offices. District 8 covers the campus area, including most university housing and some of the area near Lake Mendota.

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Unpaid interns work to break into field Story by Ellie Borstad

ophomore Sarah Metropulos’ daily tasks reflect those of a typical legislative employee— she works in the Capitol, attends caucus meetings and writes letters to constituents. There is one difference, however. As an intern, she is not paid for her work. Metropulos is one of many college students at UW-Madison and across the nation who decide to take an internship and get paid in experience, information and professional contacts rather than in money. A political science major, Metropulos has worked as an intern for state Rep. Amanda Stuck, D-Appleton, for more than a year. She said she wanted an internship to receive more real-world experience and go beyond what she learned in the classroom. “What you learn in the real world and being at the Capitol is so different than what they teach you in class,” Metropulos said. “It is a lot more applicable to what you’re going to be doing in the future.” Internships can improve students’ chances of getting employed after college. A recent survey found that 60 percent of employers said they preferred hiring applicants with at least one internship on their résumé, according to investigative news organization ProPublica. Kate Constalie, legislative aid to state Rep. Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, previously worked as an unpaid intern for Shilling in Madison. She said interning for the representative played a role in her receiving a job offer in the office later. “I think [interning] really helped give me the good start I needed for when I graduated,” Constalie said. Constalie echoed Metropulos’ view that her internship gave her valuable hands-on experience in the field of politics.

“It rounds you out and helps hone your professional skills, your professional writing [and] speaking,” Constalie said. Constalie’s duties as an

give a heads-up when there is an opening in their office, Constalie noted. Stuck invited Metropulostowork on her re-election campaign this

graphic by eva jacobs

intern included working w i t h constituents and attending Senate and assembly sessions. She said her favorite part was seeing what goes on behind the scenes.

“What you learn in the real world ... is so different than what they teach you in class.” Sarah Metropulos UW-Madison sophomore

Metropulos communicates with constituents as well, and does other office tasks such as labeling and filing. She said the highlight of her internship has been attending Gov. Scott Walker’s

State of the State addresses. While the internship has made Metropulos realize she does not necessarily want to be a legislator, it has taught her how to network. “It’s all about connections, even [with] people within the community,” Metropulos said. “I think that is so important for any job that you go [into].” Constalie agreed that internships provide opportunities to meet people in other organizations. “It’s an important aspect of your post-college life,” Constalie said. “No matter what internship you’re working on, making sure you’re getting your name out there and making a good impression [and] meeting people.” Contacts can become future job references for interns and

summer, and Metropulos said she knows she can go to the representative in the future if she needs a letter of recommendation.

“It’s an important aspect of your post-college life.”

Kate Constalie legislative aide Office of Rep. Jennifer Shilling

Ultimately, neither Metropulos nor Constalie said it is unfair that they were not paid for their work. Between 500,000 and 1 million people intern for free every year, according to ProPublica. “Yeah, paid internships are

great, but I just don’t really think that there’s that many of them,” Constalie said. Metropulos said she did not expect to be paid because she first came in as a freshman and lacked experience in the field. “I think that college students that want jobs like that know that you have to be unpaid for a little bit,” Metropulos said. “Like you can’t just walk in anywhere and expect to do a job like that and get paid right away, without a degree.” While their internships were not paid, both women received course credit toward graduation for their internships. Currently, 90 percent of universities offer academic credit for them, according to ProPublica. Metropulos said she believes being unpaid has helped her build relationships with her employers. “They know that I’m there because I want to be there, not because I’m getting paid for it,” Metropulos said. “They know that I’m there because I want to learn, and since they know that they want to teach me as much as they can in the short time that I’m gonna be there. I think that helps with the trustworthiness between us.” Although unpaid internships are beneficial, people have criticized them for not being a feasible option for minority and lowerclass students who cannot afford to work without pay, according to The Washington Post. Presidential candidates came under fire last year for denouncing student debt and economic inequality while not paying their own interns, The Washington Post discovered. In fact, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is the only presidential candidate who does, an anomaly in the intern economy. While unpaid interns are common in the political realm, the work they do is key to getting things done. “Amanda Stuck is in office because she got voted into office,” Metropulos said. “But the only way she did that is through unpaid people.”

Katie scheidt/the daily cardinal

While political interns are often not paid, they receive valuable hands-on experience, access to professional networks and a boost to their résumé.

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dailycardinal.com • 7 arts education to students, something Daniell said was an integral part of the actions she witnessed on campus. “There were issues raised during classes, professors and TAs were getting challenged all the time,” she explained. “It’s part of the whole discussion and discourse that a liberal arts college is supposed to encourage, which is to start questioning things, like questioning authority. There was a lot of that going on.”

Protest culture embedded at UW-Madison The campus has historically aimed to provide an environment where students can speak their minds Story by Madeline Heim

n May 1966, UW-Madison junior Ken Mate joined hundreds of other students for a sit-in at the Peterson administration building to peacefully protest university actions in the draft for the Vietnam War. The sit-in, which lasted a week and included lectures from professors like anti-war activist and foreign policy expert Harvey Goldberg, was a “revelatory” experience where Mate said he finally felt he knew what going to college and learning was all about. “All the things I came to the university to learn and never learned in classes, I learned in that building,” Mate recalled. “The motto of the university was on North Hall— the sifting and winnowing by which the truth alone can be found—that’s what we did in that building, and we

did it for six days.” Although the Vietnam War era spawned a hotbed of political activism that caused the campus to shut down in May 1970 and culminated in the infamous bombing of Sterling Hall later that summer, it was not UW-Madison’s first or last brush with a progressive movement. As early as the 1930s, the university housed emigre intellectuals who fled from totalitarianism in Europe, according to UW-Madison alumnus Bill Wadsworth, and began to craft its unique tradition of progressivism and creativity. The Civil Rights Movement, modern feminism, the growing hippie counterculture and the birth of rock ’n’ roll in the 1950s and 1960s all added to students’ development of radical and revolutionary thought. UW-Madison sociology professor Pamela Oliver explained that after the anti-war movement wrapped up, there were the Teaching Assistants’ Association strikes in the late 1970s,

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anti-apartheid protests in the 1980s and protests against sweatshops in the 1990s. In recent years, the u n ive r sity has seen demonstrations for racial equality and rallies for

better protection of tenured faculty. Oliver said Madison’s long history of protest culture and progressive liberalism is what attracted some students to the university, which was part of the draw for

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Tina Daniell, a UW-Madison alumna and former editor-in-chief of The Daily Cardinal. In high school, Daniell said she remembers thinking she wanted to go somewhere where things were happening and where she could make a difference, and Madison seemed like that kind of place. When she arrived on campus in fall 1970, seeing smashed windows on State Street and reporting on demonstrations, she recalled, “you knew that you were walking into something.” “I was exposed to a lot, but it was totally fascinating,” Daniell said. “It was an immersed experience, you were just immersed in everything. You were in the middle of it.” Mate also said being in the “world of ideas” and trying to relate what is learned in class to reality is something that can truly shape students’ minds. “Young people are more malleable,” he said. “They haven’t been around long enough to be cynical,

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they haven’t seen their ideals being dashed because circumstances overtake them. They’re still idealistic.” This idealism was what Mate said tied students to a larger theme than just taking issue with the war: that of right and wrong. After one incident when a woman was hit by a bus on University Avenue and critically injured, Mate

said students held sit-ins in the bus lanes to pressure the city to make the area safer. Although it was not a political issue, Mate described the event as largely indicative of where the direction of the campus and students’ thoughts were headed—toward discussions and demonstrations that would allow them to distinguish “good” from “bad.” UW-Madison has long prided itself on providing a well-rounded liberal

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He said UW-Madison was designed to be “a cauldron of experimental social thought.” As a large school with representatives from a variety of races, religions, classes and backgrounds both nationwide and internationally, UW-Madison has historically aimed to provide a space where students with different experiences can read, think, share ideas and voice their

opinions freely. Daniell said she believes these varying opinions and experiences shape the “great tradition” of protest culture embedded within UW-Madison. “It’s a crossroads,” she said. “It’s a perfect storm of people and ideas, and a time in your life when you’re supposed to be questioning things and learning things and expanding your horizons.”

“Young people are more malleable. They haven’t been around long enough to be cynical, they haven’t seen their ideals being dashed because circumstances overtake them.” Ken Mate UW-Madison alum

Wadsworth likened the university’s progressive culture to a genetic mutation in the human race, one that has moved beyond the various issues themselves as they arose throughout history and into the realm of tradition.

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claire grummon/cardinal file photo

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BlackOut reissues six demands to improve UW diversity during Board of Regents protest Story by 4. Forming a task N Peter Coutu force to evaluate early 40 students walked out of class March 10 as part of the BlackOut movement to protest the UW System’s mandatory standardized testing requirement for application at the Board of Regents meeting. T h e students stood up roughly an hour into their third Board of Regents protest and began to recite their list of six demands, which are focused on improving inclusivity and diversity on UW campuses.

BlackOut’s list of demands:

1. UW System President Ray Cross and Regent President Regina Millner publicly acknowledging the “failure of progress on diversity within the UW System.”

When the students started to yell, the Board of Regents quickly

2. UW System creating and enforcing a mandatory “comprehensive racial awareness and inclusion curriculum” for students, faculty, staff, administration and Regents. called a recess. “At this point it’s a clear recognition that the Board of Regents just doesn’t care,” said Kenneth Cole, a UW-Madison senior

and co-leader of BlackOut. “If they can do so quietly [the Board of Regents] would like to continue acting as oppressors and to continue to act with disregard to any other student experience than the majority being impacted by what they do.” B o t h C o l e a n d Ty r i e k Mack, a UW-Madison sophomore and c o -l e ade r o f BlackOut, said the r e m ov a l of mandatory standardized t e st i n g f r o m UW System schools would be a focus for the BlackOut m o v e m e n t going forward. “There has been so much research against it,” Cole said. “It’s almost blatant-

ly oppressive to ignore the fact that you are only hindering lowincome and minority students from attending the university.” After listing the group’s demands, three female UW-Madison students spoke about recent instances of discrimination across UW System schools. Misha Johnson, a UW-Madison

3. Re-evaluating Plan 2008 (an earlier diversity plan) and, if necessary, creating a new 10-year plan. junior and member of the Wunk Sheek stu-

have something written when I talk,” Johnson said. “But I really used this incident as my motivation and I just really spoke from my heart this time.” University Housing has started an investigation into the March 9 incident and Vice Provost and Dean of Students Lori Berquam sent out a campuswide email in response. Berquam said the incident, along with recent instances of bias, “have deeply hurt students, but also caused damage to our community as a whole.” UW-Madison Director of News and Media Relations Meredith McGlone encouraged any students with information about the incident to report it to kelly.giese@housing.wisc.edu.

“the experiences of students of color on each campus.”

dent organization, detailed a Wednesday night incident of discrimination when Native Americans were mocked with stereotypical war cries during a healing circle. Johnson was moved to tears when she told the Board of Regents about the incident. “As a future educator I always have to

After the three students finished their speeches, the Board of Regents began to speak to and possibly thank the members of BlackOut, but

Regents would have been insincere. To grow

5. Increasing funding and resources for “hiring mental health professionals, particularly those of color, boosting mental health outreach and programming across the UW System institutions.” the group quickly left. Cole said they walked out because a thank you from the Board of

6. UW administration acknowledging the bias of standardized testing, and UW schools adopting “a test-optional program to encourage a more diverse pool of applicants” in order to “increase socioeconomic and racial diversity throughout the System.”

the movement, Cole said he wants to further expand on other UW campuses and to draft specific policy options for their demands to present to the Board of Regents.

As BlackOut left the meeting, faculty members who were at the meeting because of the new tenure policy applauded the group of students.

news 8

Action Project Issue, March 2016

dailycardinal.com

Muslim students share feelings about prejudice on campus, within politics Story by Noah Habenstreit

onald Trump’s rhetoric throughout the 2016 presidential campaign has sparked outrage from members of the American Muslim community, and for Muslim UW student Alaa Fleifel, it has sparked fear. In December, Trump called for a “total and complete” ban on Muslim immigrants entering the United States, just weeks after he proposed registering Muslim Americans in “some type of database.” “When people get riled up about hating Muslims, eventually Muslims are not seen as human, [and] they become easy targets,” Fleifel said. “I honestly have felt somewhat unsafe.” Amid a presidential campaign that has centered on issues relating to Islamic extremism, Fleifel’s comments echo the sentiments of many in the UW Muslim community. Although much emphasis has been placed on Trump, antiIslamic sentiment has been common since well before this election cycle. According to a poll conducted in 2015 by the Public Religion Research Institute, 56 percent of Americans believe Islam is “at

odds” with American “values and friends who wear the hijab have way of life.” been harassed and accused of Political experts say Trump is belonging to ISIS on the UW camcapitalizing on white Americans’ pus. More often, though, prejudice frustration and latent prejudice against Muslims in the UW comagainst Muslims, Latinos and munity is more nuanced. other groups. During a recent discussion about Islam at the Multicultural Student Center, some Muslim students said although Trump and other Republican candidates may be furthering Rather, my ‘culture’ Islamophobic sentiment in the U.S., they is one meant to align more are not the root of the problem. with my skin color and curly “[Trump’s rise] was inevitable,” hair. This form of prejudice said one Muslim student. “Division is exhausting. already existed … The channel by which this division Hayder Al-Mohammad was created is the media.” assistant professor “Trump has not changed anything,” said UW-Madison UW student Naman Siad. “People have just gotten more confident in their hatred for Muslims because they have a spokesperson.” Hayder Al-Mohammad, an Even in Madison, a city widely assistant professor in the UW seen as a bastion of liberalism, Department of Anthropology, Muslim students can be the targets said the bulk of the prejudice of hateful speech. he sees is “wrapped up in much Fleifel said she and other liberal politeness.”

“

“I was raised in the UK, yet at UW people find it difficult not to reference my ‘culture.’ I have a thick London accent yet the ‘culture’ being referred to is not British,” Al-Mohammad said. “Rather, my ‘culture’ is one meant to align more with my skin color and curly hair. This form of prejudice is exhausting.” Muslim students said because so many of their peers have had little or no contact with Muslims in the past, some do not know how to be respectful toward people of unfamiliar cultures or faiths. “It delegitimizes my American identity when people tell me I speak English really well,” Siad said. “English is my first language.” “People don’t sit next to me in class,” said student Dania Shoukfeh. “You just kind of get used to it after a while.” Some also point out that Muslim students may be treated differently because of their skin color as well as their religion. White students make up more than three-quarters of the UW student body, and students of color can find it difficult to find a community.

”

“Identifying as a minority in a predominantly white campus has brought conflicting feelings,” Fleifel said. “[Prejudice] is not the case for Muslims alone, but for minorities in general.” Al-Mohammad also said the line between racism and Islamophobia can be difficult to determine. Muslim students are “kept apart from much of UW life” not just because of their beliefs, but also because of their skin color, he said. “What might seem as prejudice against Islam could just be oldfashioned racism masking itself under more acceptable forms of hate,” he said. Whether the problem is specific to Islam or general xenophobia, Fleifel contends it can be alleviated by greater contact between students of different backgrounds. “I think everyone has preconceived notions of who Muslims are,” Fleifel said. “But as soon as a stream of conversation starts people become more empathetic.” Al-Mohammad said removing barriers between students of different races is essential for eliminating prejudice against Muslims. “When you can have white, black and Hispanic students engaging each other as equals and peers at UW—we’re a long way off from that—I assure you antiIslamism goes away.”

BETSY OSTERBERGER/THE DAILY CARDINAL

Islamophobia expressed in this year’s presidential campaign is mirrored by the experiences of prejudice Muslim students and faculty face on campus.

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s f u o s e tai c im n a b il i t y p or t a

Gr u eenHo

a l n p t e s s

Action Project Issue, March 2016

dailycardinal.com

Story by Sammy Gibbons

idden in the depths of the Lakeshore neighborhood residence halls is a living option with a feature unique to it: Aldo Leopold Residence Hall, which holds a small greenhouse on its roof, home to the GreenHouse Learning Community. GreenHouse is a group that allows students to learn about the environment and sustainability through doing hands-on experiments, reading materials by conservationist Aldo Leopold himself and other tools. The 93 UW-Madison students living in the learning community are given the opportunity to register for GreenHouse seminars; one is offered as an introductory course in the fall semester that students are highly encouraged to take, and four more are available in the spring that focus on various environmental topics, including globalization, agroecology and clothes-making. “There’s a lot of ‘DIY’ stuff that we do,” said Alan Turnquist, the GreenHouse Learning Community program coordinator. “The idea of using your head, hands and heart is a way to cultivate different kinds of involvement and engagement with how humans interact with each other and the planet.” According to Turnquist, the community gives students, especially freshmen transitioning to college, a meaningful purpose to be involved with others and the idea is to have thoughtful experiences outside of the classroom. Students learn the ideas of

what place humans have in the world and the human value of the landscape. “Fundamentally, it’s important for you to understand how you’re a part of your community and what kind of way that you’re going to help improve it,” Turnquist said. The residence hall includes other uncommon features, most noticeably of which are several solar panels on the roof. A program room in the basement of the hall has materials that allow students to work on projects of their choosing. Various tools and books are available, and a large table fills most of the space, where a student building a guitar exhibited the endless opportunities that the room offers. Environment-friendly features include shower water meters and individual thermostats in each room. “Sustainability can mean a lot of different things,” Turnquist said. “Human interaction with nature is an important part of it, we have transitioned into something broader that helps students think about their values and how they act them out in the world.” UW-Madison senior Jacob Kositzke lived in the learning community his freshman year. GreenHouse hired him as an intern that following summer, and he is now the gardening program assistant, helping to operate the community garden at Eagle Heights. “People that are in the ‘Seed to Ground’ seminar help put together the garden,” Kositzke said. “We

Katie Scheidt/the daily cardinal

The GreenHouse Learning Community is housed in Leopold residence hall, and it holds 93 enrolled students who can get hands-on experience in the dorm’s greenhouse. hire five of them to maintain the garden over the summer, so that when fall rolls around they have a full garden and food.” The community partners with the organizations Slow Food and F.H. King, among others, and donates their time and products. They also work with Allen Centennial Garden and plant onions and shiitake mushrooms in that space. The students volunteer at the Lakeshore Nature Preserve frequently. They also give their time to the East Madison Community Center and cook healthy meals for children that visit. “We engage the idea of food a lot, for a lot of reasons,”

Turnquist said. “We want to elevate the consciousness of how the food was brought to the table, but also the sense of community that food brings.” To practice this concept, GreenHouse holds monthly meals for learning community members, featuring speakers who discuss the importance of sustainability. The group reaches out to the Madison community as well by educating others on what they have learned. “We are the incubator for the botobiology program, which is a curriculum that teaches kindergarten through twelfth grade students about biology,” Kosiztke

said. “They take recycled materials, like water bottles from sports game, and also teach them about things like succulents and simple hydroponics systems.” Turnquist believes the community itself makes the greatest impact on students, who then learn about the world and themselves and, hopefully, utilize that knowledge to better their world. “It’s been a huge impact on my time here,” Kositzke said. “I hope that experience extends to other students, and that they become aware of the issues that are out there. We give them that kind of training, and get them to do the outreach and share what they’ve been learning.”

Campus Women’s Center promotes women’s rights Story by Hannah Altwegg

which, in some cases, made distance an inconvenience.

The UW-Madison Campus Women’s Center, an intersectional

n recent months, Planned Parenthood has faced much opposition in the Wisconsin courthouse, which has resulted in a major reduction in services as well as an attempted deflation of women’s rights across the state. Since his election in 2010, Gov. Scott Walker has passed several pieces of legislation aimed toward limiting the reproductive rights of women. Much of this legislation has included bills to defund Planned Parenthood facilities, prohibit the use of state funds for abortion services, limit laws for legal abortions and limit access to information and care. After Walker’s initial cut to the organization in his 2011-’13 biennial budget, Planned Parenthood was forced to close five of nine facilities that received state money. Roughly 3,000 patients had to relocate to another Planned Parenthood clinic to receive services, according to a PolitiFact article,

leah voskuil/the daily cardinal

Campus Women’s Center representatives have spoken out against Gov. Scott Walker’s efforts to defund Planned Parenthood facilities.

feminist resource and informational community center, works to provide students with local access to safe sex supplies and acts as a general safe space for people of any gender, sexual orientation or race. CWC Program Coordinator Margaret Babe said Planned Parenthood provides life-saving care directly to women, and said Walker’s desire to draft bills defunding the organization only flaunts “just how much he believes what he believes.” “A close examination of this bill and of the defense that conservatives have made of it reveals that it is an ill-conceived, immoralistic and ultimately anti-poor, anti-women attempt to punish people for having sex,” Babe said. Defunding Planned Parenthood also makes it harder for women to access hormonal birth control, which Babe said may lead to an increase in the use of barrier methods such as condoms. The CWC is one of the major sources of free contraceptives on UW-Madison’s campus. “We might see some of those people who are no longer able to access anything except what we can offer

them for free,” Babe said. According to a CNN article, Planned Parenthood provided services for 2.7 million patients in 2013, and claims to be the largest provider of reproductive health services. Planned Parenthood provides birth control, cancer screenings, STD tests, treatment and education. Only 3 percent of Planned Parenthood services include abortion, the primary issue Wisconsin politicians have focused on when attacking the organization. According to Babe, CWC members post frequently on social media to discuss women’s issues and they attend protests supporting Planned Parenthood, among other organizations. Babe stated the changes Walker has made to Planned Parenthood affect not only women, but everyone who relies on the organization’s services. “I think [people] should care about this issue because it shows Scott Walker’s true stripes,” Babe said. “It affects women directly, it affects women’s partners directly, it affects people of all genders who rely on Planned Parenthood for ultimately life-saving care.”

opinion 10

Action Project Issue, March 2016

dailycardinal.com

Civic engagement is more than presidential voting view Cardinal View editorials represent The Daily Cardinal’s organizational opinion. Each editorial is crafted independent of news coverage.

lection season is once again upon us. We’ve been inundated with presidential election coverage since last summer and have seen a particularly volatile cycle unfold over the past several months. Candidates on both sides have appealed to populist sentiments, and there has been no shortage of personal attacks between potential nominees. There is a certain aura of discontent surrounding this election, especially among young voters who have grown disgruntled with establishment politics and radical alternatives. Make no mistake, however—a prevailing sense of political

Other forms of civic engagement do no good if we are not making the effort to vote.

skepticism is no excuse not to vote. Population changes in the U.S. have made the youth vote an essential portion of the national electorate. A 2013 report by the Pew Research Center projects millennials, defined as those between the ages of 18 and 33, will make up 36.5 percent of the electorate by 2020, an increase from their 25.5 percent share in 2013. Both political parties are looking for new ways to appeal to our growing age demographic.

Whether these tactics have been successful so far is up for debate, but it’s clear politicians will need to place greater emphasis on issues we find important in the coming years, since our vote will have a powerful impact on who holds office. However, while presidential elections may inspire many of us to become politically engaged, true political engagement does not come once every four years. “The farther the distance in terms of federal level, the farther the distance in terms of people’s capacities to affect anything,” said Connie Flanagan, a professor in the School of Human Ecology whose research specializes in youth political participation. In other words, city, county and state politicians have far greater influence on localized aspects of certain issues than the president. Voting consistently at these levels ensures that we elect officials who have much more direct effect on our daily lives. National elections are easier to participate in. The candidates are more well-known and media coverage is far more salient. Voting in local elections requires some motivation to educate ourselves about these races. However, the trade-off is worth it. Looking at our Facebook and Twitter feeds, many of our friends may blame national politics for local issues. Taking action in local elections can alleviate this divide and move us away from the passive, armchair activism of social media.

WIL GIBB/THE DAILY CARDINAL

With primary season in full swing, students should turn their attention to local elections. Certainly social media has given youth voters a valuable trove of information, one that is accessible at our fingertips. It’s a conversation we can easily participate in to voice our opinions. But being politically active on social media and not following through with voting creates a huge disconnect. “Voting is where you actually have some power over the people that represent us,” said political science professor Kathy Cramer. “You can write all the letters and emails and tweets you want, but the thing that actually gets elected officials to behave in a certain way is voting them in or out of office.” While this premise seems obvious, our generation has not acted on it in recent years. Less than 25 percent of eligible voters age 18-29 participated in the 2010 and 2014 midterms, according to a 2014 NPR article. Even in the presidential election years of 2008 and 2012, the same age group only voted at a 52 percent and 45 percent rate, respectively.

Still, there is reason to believe young voters will soon become much more active at the polls. Historically, more people vote as they get older and realize all the nuanced ways government affects their lives. Even when baby boomers first became eligible, they turned out at essentially the same rate as millennials currently do. Baby boomers now participate at about a 67 percent rate in recent presidential elections.

Make no mistake, however—a prevailing sense of political skepticism is no excuse not to vote.

But there’s no reason to wait until we’re older to vote. We will feel the biggest effects of long-term political change, change that is gradually taking place now at mul-

Voter ID laws are limiting democracy SEBASTIAN VAN BASTELAER opinion columnist

ast month, I took time out of my day to go to the Red Gym and vote. The primary election for the Wisconsin Supreme Court opening was being held, and I was eager to fulfill my democratic duty. As my Wisconsinite friends got waved through and casted their votes, I was held up. Despite having taken the time to register to vote in the state, neither my school-issued identification nor my Maryland driver’s license were accepted by officials, and I was turned away. Veterans and out-of-state college students make up a relatively small proportion of the population. The disenfranchisement of these demographics is nevertheless abhorrent. The efforts by the state legislature to bar some of its most politically active and proud residents are repugnant and have no place in today’s society. The voter ID laws passed in the past five years are a microcosm of an alarming trend in American politics. Since 2012, 16 states have enforced new voting restrictions on its citizens—almost exclusively in states controlled by the Republican party. These laws are designed to make it more difficult for minorities, students and other groups

to vote. Not coincidentally, these demographics are traditionally more likely to vote for Democrats. In Wisconsin, the new laws that changed the voter ID requirements attempt to do the exact same thing. They stipulate that all voters present either a state-issued ID—my Maryland driver’s license apparently was insufficient to identify me—a passport, or various other Wisconsin documents. Other rules state that IDs need to have the voter’s signature on them, and must have an expiration date less than two years away from the day they were issued—as a result, Wiscards don’t qualify as valid forms of ID. Students without “valid” identification need to obtain a separate voter ID card, as well as proof of enrollment, in order to cast a vote. State lawmakers claim that the strict rules are to make it harder for voter fraud to occur. They would have people believe that cheating at the polls is an epidemic facing the state, besmirching the great democratic process. The Washington Post, however, puts it in perspective—there have been 31 cases of voter fraud out of the one billion ballots cast since 2000. What the law really does is disenfranchise people—out-ofstate students, elderly and minorities—who do not have Wisconsin driver’s licenses. Many of these

people, students and minorities in particular, happen to be liberal. It’s no surprise that they’re the ones being targeted by the new laws.

The voter ID laws passed in the past five years are a microcosm of an alarming trend in American politics.

Administration at UW, when given the option to reissue Wiscards to comply with the new laws, balked. They claimed that the process would be too costly. The decision, though cost-efficient, indirectly exacerbates the plight of students with inadequate IDs. Many students will go to the poll with an incomplete understanding of the law and be turned away; others will be dissuaded from voting at all by the various hoops they’re forced to jump through. Not every student will go out of their way to get a second ID card in order to cast a vote, yet if new Wiscards were issued, everyone would get one and everyone would retain their right to vote. If legislators really care about fair elections, they need to make sure that every voice is heard. Very few people turned out to cast votes for the state Supreme Court vacan-

cy: Some counties had turnout in the single digits. The fact that people who took the time out of their day to vote in a (relatively) inconsequential election were turned away is deplorable. The day after the aforementioned election, politicians and news outlets reported “little to no issues” in enforcing the new law, trumpeting it as a success. The problem, though, is that there shouldn’t be any issues at all. Registering to vote should not and cannot be conditional. Making certain people jump through extra hoops in order to cast their votes is an antiquated and discriminatory practice. Legend has it that State Street was built running from the Capitol to Bascom Hill so that politicians and students could have an ongoing dialogue. The street itself, obviously, continues to thrive. With the introduction of strict voter laws in Wisconsin, however, the proverbial road between the government and UW has been narrowed. We cannot allow it to be closed off altogether. Sebastian is a freshman majoring in environmental studies. Do you have a voter ID? If not, do you feel like you can obtain one easily? Do you believe this new legislation will hinder democracy? Let us know what you think. Email us at opinion@dailycardinal.com.

tiple levels of government. Millennials have shown a penchant for protest and demonstration, building on themes of political activism of generations before us. We have taken it a step further by using social media to mobilize and spread the word regarding certain issues. Now, we need to make our voices heard at the ballot box. Other forms of civic engagement do no good if we are not making the effort to vote. Our commitment to politics cannot afford to die this November when the new president is elected, and keeping it alive starts with the simple act of casting votes. “You have to exercise this right because there’s all kinds of forces that are trying to take it away,” Cramer said. “This is yours, exercise it, otherwise it’s going to be gone.” How do you feel about voting in the upcoming election? Do students need to focus on local elections first? Send all comments and concerns to opinion@dailycardinal.com.

How to vote The April 5 Wisconsin presidential primary is quickly approaching. Read below to find out how to vote and make your voice heard.

How do I register? Students can register before the election by bringing proof of residence to the Madison City Clerk’s office, at any Madison public library or by registering with a special registration deputy on campus. They also can register at the polls on the day of the election.

What is voter ID? Voters in Wisconsin now need a form of photo ID. Wisconsin driver’s licenses, passports and military IDs are all acceptable forms of ID. In addition, out-of-state students or those without other IDs can get a voting identification card from the Wiscard office at Union South. The voting card must also be accompanied by proof of residence, which can be found in the “My Academics” section in Student Center. Wiscards and out-of-state driver’s licenses are NOT acceptable forms of ID.

Where do I vote? There are numerous polling places on or around campus and which one you’ll go to is based off of where you live. To determine your exact voting address, go to http:// www.cityofmadison.com/election or https://myvote.wi.gov.

opinion dailycardinal.com

Action Project Issue, March 2016

Peaceful protesting no longer exists in our political climate BEN MILLER opinion columnist

he First Amendment to the Constitution, found in the Bill of Rights, famously protects the right to assemble. Groups across campus and across the country have fully utilized this right. Groups such as Black Lives Matter, PETA and even Westboro Baptist Church lead massive protests. While the right to assemble is important, organizations have seemed to overlook one key word within the First Amendment: That word is peaceably. The First Amendment protects the right to peaceably assemble, not violently assemble. Unfortunately, many protesters and student activists seem to have forgotten this important word and many protests have taken a turn for the worst. This past week, Donald Trump was to hold a rally at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The Trump campaign cancelled the event due to security concerns after the event was stormed by a wave of protesters. The protest, organized by a group supporting Bernie Sanders called People for Bernie, brought together waves of people disgruntled over Trump’s controversial statements about Muslims and Hispanics. Things worsened when protesters turned violent by ripping Trump signs and physically assaulting Trump supporters. One police officer was taken to the hospital after being hit over the head with a bottle. While groups have the freedom to say what they want and to peaceably assemble, it is utter-

ly disgraceful when they begin to attack others. Twitter exploded as people called for the release of protesters who were “unjustly” jailed after turning violent. I find it infuriating when people don’t understand that violence is illegal. Those arrests aren’t unjust. The police were trying to protect people, and instead they get assaulted themselves. We also recently saw the rise of two massive protests in Ferguson and Baltimore. What started out as peaceful protests quickly turned into rioting. SWAT teams had to be called in as buildings were burned, stores were looted and shots were fired. The ironic matter of it all is that, by attempting to protest police injustice, many protesters committed acts of injustice. President Barack Obama addressed the nation by reminding the public of the difference between constructive and destructive protests. However, many simply didn’t listen or care. Perhaps the most famous protest to occur in recent history happened just blocks away from campus. In 2011, as many as 100,000 people rushed to the Wisconsin State Capitol to oppose Governor Scott Walker’s infamous Act 10. While the bill remains controversial to this day, most people recognize that the protests got ugly. Legislators were spit on and had to take underground tunnels just to leave the Capitol. Protesters camped out on the floor of the building. Large national organizations even began to bus people from across the country to Madison just to grow the ranks. While just an 8th grader at the time, I realized

the events in Madison were bad. However, I didn’t realize just how bad it was until I read Governor Walker’s book “Unintimidated.” No matter where someone stands on the issue, I highly recommend the book just to get a behind-the-scenes look at what occurred. The protests are a prime example of when a good cause becomes a rotten egg. Going forward, it will be one of the defining moments of Wisconsin history in our lifetime. Student activism plays an important role on campus and in our country. As the rising generation, it is our duty to make sure that our voices are heard. There is a mighty difference between constructive protesting and outright rioting. Quite frankly, the best way to have one’s voice heard is to make sure that protests don’t get out of hand. Violence makes matters worse and being outright disrespectful will only cause people to resent a protest. If we choose to participate in any type of protest, we should always take the high road. Respect changes minds and hearts, whereas disrespect only brings problems. We the people have a right to peaceably assemble. As a result, we should absolutely utilize this wonderful right we have that many across the world don’t. However, it must never be forgotten that there is one little important word that has been neglected as of late: peaceably. Ben is a freshman majoring in political science. Do you agree with him? Let us know what you think. Send all comments and concerns to opinion@dailycardinal.com.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN STUDIES PROGRAM

Madison’s Native culture centers around the Ho-Chunk Nation.

Putting the spotlight back on Native American culture CAL WEBER opinion editor

little more than a century ago, the University of Wisconsin-Madison was a completely different place than the campus we walk today. In 1840, just eight years before the founding of UW-Madison, the population of the Madison area consisted of 99 percent Ho-Chunk, and a mere one percent of non-Indian society. In a recent interview with Interim Assistant Dean and Director of the School of Education Aaron Bird Bear, conducted by UW-Madison Communications Director John Lucas, Bird Bear highlighted the transformation of the area, saying, “there has been a complete physical and social transformation of Dejope from a marshy burr oak savannah with much less forest cover.” This is compared to the hustling and bustling that we see today. If this complete physical and social transformation of our campus area has only happened in the past 170 years, why do only a small percentage of students take concern with this issue? While UW-Madison does offer both a major and certificate program through the American Indian Studies office, students are rarely informed of the rich history our campus has with the American Indian community. The campus itself sits in the middle of the treatyrecognized borders of the former 10 million acres of land owned by the Ho-Chunk Nation. Not to mention that the Lakeshore neighborhood has Dejope Residence Hall and Four Lakes Market, which were the original names given to this region of Wisconsin by the Ho-Chunk Nation. Madison’s rise in student activism over the past year is something that our campus should be proud of. But it seems that we are missing a large portion of Madison’s direct history. Just this past week Madison saw an incident of racial discrimination against a group of Native American women. This incident took place in the Lakeshore neighborhood, the area of campus that is richest with Native American history. These women were gathered in a healing circle, spurred by the recent statistic that showed nearly 47 percent of current Native American women at UW-Madison had reported being sexually assaulted. While engaged in a healing ritual these women were interrupted with racially insensitive calls and chants. While steps were taken to rectify this situation, both by Campus Housing and the campus group

BlackOut, the representation of the Native American culture on campus is something that needs to be addressed. More than 48,000 students attend this university, and a shockingly low number of only 300 students are American Indian and Alaska Native, which is only around .00625 percent of this campus population. Along with this staggering neglect of culture, we also forget about the campus itself. The UW-Madison campus has the honor of being home to four Indian burial mounds, the most prominent of which are located on Observatory Hill. The Wisconsin Burial Sites Preservation Law (Wisconsin Statutes 157.70) protects these burial mounds from any “defacing, mutilating, injuring, exposing, removing, destroying, or desecrating” of the sites. A fact the campus seems to neglect, due to the fact that we have two sidewalks that run directly through the effigy mounds that call Observatory Hill home. Although these regulations are not strictly followed, Wisconsin burial mounds might not have any protection at all in the near future. A recent Wisconsin bill proposed by state Sen. Chris Kapenga, R-Delafield, and state Rep. Rob Brooks, R-Saukville, calls for the lifting of protections given to some historical burial mounds. With Wisconsin hosting the greatest diversity of American Indian nations out of any state east of the Mississippi, we already don’t focus enough on these issues, and shouldn’t be moving to eliminate what few protections we do have of their history. Campus is taking steps forward, even recently educating the Campus and Visitor Relations Office, which is in charge of campus tours and information, on the campus heritage surrounding the American Indian culture. But that still isn’t enough. Instead of allowing students to continue to hold such ignorance toward campus history, we need to educate them. The American Indian Studies Office offers tours focused on Native American influence on campus, a resource that is rarely taken advantage of. If campus highlights these services, and students were to step up and use them towards their education, Madison’s student population could become both more wellrounded and culturally educated. Cal is a sophomore majoring in political science and communication arts. Let us know what you think at opinion@dailycardinal.com.

arts

Action Project Issue, March 2016

First Wave Line Breaks Festival advocates for change and equality Story by Logan Rude

n many ways, advocacy and activism start with the arts. Countless individuals use their creative talents combined with personal experiences to bring attention to a wide array of political and social issues. Addressing concerns such as racial inequality, body shaming and gender stereotypes with a creative approach does two very important things. The first is that it makes the message easier to receive. For those who are pushing for unequal treatment or those who just don’t care enough to pay attention to the social issues, hearing the message in a creative manner could potentially cause them to pay more attention. It may not change their minds, but it opens a dialogue. The second is causing an emotional impact. There’s something unique about expressing oneself through poetry, music or a comedy skit. The words come alive when they are recited in front of an audience. Emotions are stronger than plain facts; that is why the arts are a perfect place to push for change. Bringing attention to these social and political problems through creative expression is exactly what First Wave is doing with their 10th annual Line Breaks Festival. A total of 10 different events took place in the

Overture Center this past weekend. The organization is part of the UW Office of Multicultural Arts Initiative. As students at a university with a rich history of activism, First Wavers show how they can make a difference without relying on traditional forms of advocacy. With a combination of their three pillars—academics, arts and activism—they work to promote change for the better. Being the first program of its kind in the entire nation, First Wave has recruited students from all over the country, each with their own stories, passions and artistic abilities. Line Breaks Festival gives these students an opportunity to showcase their work in front of live audiences. The weekend-long events focused on prevalent social issues such as the Black Lives Matter movement and women empowerment, and even more personal topics like mental health, substance abuse and endless day-to-day struggles. A performance from First Wave’s 9th Cohort called “Unhe[a]rd: Radical Forms of Protest” showed how effective advocacy through the arts can be. While UW-Madison has a long history of activism, there is also a long history of hate. The first act of the festival was a continuous series of powerful statements fighting the hate of past and present. Signs saying “Ain’t no place safe these days,” “Cliteracy is a form of language,” “What is a hoe?” and “Black Lives Matter” were held by the performers

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PHOTO COURTESY OF ALIZA RAND

First Wave’s 9th Cohort proclaimed pride in their unconventional protest during the Line Breaks Festival. and spread through the audience in complete silence and stillness. These signs would turn into important topics that were discussed in some way during the show. It forced the audience to sit and think about the words in front of them. Emotions played a major role in the show. Spoken word poems about living a life filled with oppression evoked some of the strongest reactions from the audience. First Wave’s strongest attribute is its ability to seamlessly combine the tragic experiences with a sort of entertainment. Though not the classic definition of entertainment, these performances stay with their audiences and are much more memorable than simply stating what is wrong with the world. With so many different topics covered in the show, the 9th Cohort graced the audience with a variety of performances. Whether rap, dance, poetry or even comedy skits, each type carried different feelings. The skits allowed for lighter moments in the show, while keeping the content relevant. College affordability, promotion of sexual independence, demolishing gender stereotypes and systematic racism were the main focus. A message constantly promoted was that one of the most impactful forms of protest is being yourself. There will always be people who disagree with your actions, but First Wave continues to push for individuality and equal rights for everyone who faces oppression.

Eli Lynch’s show “Explosions” spoke on a more personal level. His combination of a live narrative, raps and a touch of theatrics told the story of life growing up while struggling with loss and reliance on substances. The one-on-one nature of the story helped narrow the scope for the audience. Many problems often seem too distant and complicated for anything to be done about them. In what seemed to be a disjointed set of stories of childhood, Eli stitched together a chilling narrative with a theatrical ending of him finding relief from prescription pills. Audience members gasped in shock from the ending of the show. The quick, abrupt ending illustrated how matters of personal struggle and abuse can end in devastating ways. The show seemed as if it were actually happening before our eyes, a testament to the emotional power of the arts. Line Breaks’ event schedule wasn’t strictly performing arts. Dasha Kelly, a poet and author, held a poetry writing workshop at the Madison Public Library. The workshop was not nearly as saturated with social commentary as the shows, but focused on the importance of writing and language. In one specific exercise, the people attending were asked to describe a force of nature such as wind or lava. After being asked several questions, Dasha instructed everyone to replace their force of nature with the word “Women”. The result was a set of beautiful poems about

empowerment of women. Creative literature proved that it has an infinite potential for advocacy. First Wave’s Chapbook Series allows its scholars to get their poetry published. The personal stories from the six presenting poets covered a wide variety of topics just like the 9th Cohort’s show. From Ricardo Cortez de la Cruz II’s remixes of childhood fairytales that denounce the fetishization of black women, to Mariam Coker’s unique, brokenArabic poem, the artists each had their own ways of addressing the national troubles that they feel most strongly about. Many people underestimate the power that different phrases can have. Without the arts and motivation of these insightful artists, many of these issues wouldn’t gain the mass attraction and appeal they need to be properly addressed. In an age containing what seems to be an endless flow of social unrest and political injustices, First Wave is taking huge steps in promoting change. Line Breaks is a prime example of how the arts can bring different groups together wishing to spread awareness for the social ailments this country holds. Traditional forms of activism still have a place in this world, but advocacy through the arts has proven to not only allow for the expansion and growth of creativity, but also reach audiences who respond more positively to emotional displays.

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TOP LEFT PHOTO COURTESY OF ALIZA RAND; TOP RIGHT AND BOTTOM PHOTOS BY BETSY OSTERBERGER

The 10th Annual Line Breaks Festival was full of incredible, life-changing narratives, music and poetry.

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