Olympic hopefuls
Dinosaurs and Drunkenness Day drinking may be one sign of alcoholism, but it also leads to some crazy adventures +PAGE TWO University of Wisconsin-Madison
Six Badger wrestlers might earn their tickets to the 2012 Olympic Games in London at the team trials this weekend
+SPORTS, page 8 Complete campus coverage since 1892
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dailycardinal.com
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Reported sexual assaults up During Sexual Assault Awareness Month, this threepart Daily Cardinal series delves into the numbers, spotlights available resources and expands the conversation to reflect the real impact of sexual assault at UW-Madison.
Voters unlikely to need IDs in recalls
By Scott Girard and Alison Bauter
By Jack Casey The Daily Cardinal
Since 2009, the number of sexual assaults reported by UW-Madison students nearly tripled. According to Assistant Dean of Students Tonya Schmidt, that increase is a good thing. “It means that the victims are getting help for themselves, and that’s the most important thing,” Schmidt said, but added the numbers do not necessarily tell the “real story.” As Schmidt explained, increased reports instances of sexual assault, dating violence do not mean more sexual and stalking on campus. “This isn’t assaults are occurring, but that EVOC works with campus more students are disclosing a about numbers, groups to dispel myths pretypically underreported crime. this is about vic- venting students from report“This isn’t about numbers, tims getting the ing sexual assault, including this is about victims getting the support they need the misconception that they support they need after a very after a very trau- could be charged for underage traumatic incident,” she said. and the tendency for matic incident” drinking Schmidt credits the victims to blame themselves, increased reporting to the Tonya Schmidt, rather than the perpetrator. assistant dean of efforts of campus groups When the initiative began students in 2009, students reported 45 working in coalition with Ending Violence On Campus, an initiative sexual assaults on campus. In 2010, that designed to combine local resources to end number more than doubled to 112. In the past
year, the Dean of Students Office said there have been 123 instances of sexual assault reported by UW-Madison students. Still, Val Kowis, chair of student group Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment, agreed the increased reports do not tell the whole story of sexual assault at UW-Madison. “When I look at it, I think about the fact that one in four women will experience sexual assault during her time at college,” Kowis said. “We’re not seeing nearly close to those numbers being reported.”
The state Supreme Court said Monday it will not review two court cases invalidating the state’s controversial voter ID law, likely meaning voters will not need to provide identification at polling places for the spring recall elections. Two Dane County Circuit Judges blocked portions of the voter ID law in March, ruling it violated the state constitution by disenfranchising some Wisconsin voters. The Department of Justice appealed the cases in two different appeals courts, both of which deferred the decision to the state Supreme Court saying both cases involved important issues and required a timely decision. The High Court’s decision
sexual assault page 4
voter IDs page 3
Mayor opposes extending Occupy Madison permit By Abby Becker The Daily Cardinal
Mayor Paul Soglin remained adamant that the Occupy Madison encampment on East Washington Avenue disperse on April 30 despite a proposal to extend the deadline. At a press conference Monday, Soglin said there is “no reason” not to follow through with plans to shut down the site, as previously agreed upon with Occupy Madison. The Occupy encampment is currently located on the 800 block of East Washington Avenue near the former Don Miller auto dealership. Ald. Lisa Subeck, District 1, said she and other city council members are proposing a resolution at Tuesday’s Common Council meeting to extend the Occupy encampment’s deadline to June 30. Sponsored by Subeck, Ald. Marsha Rummel, District 6, and Ald. Brian Solomon, District 10, the extra two months the resolution calls for would allow the city to develop long-term solutions for the encampment. The resolution will also form a committee with Madison-area
Mark kauzlarich/the daily cardinal
Occupy Madison members voiced their displeasure after Mayor Paul Soglin said he is against letting the encampment stay on East Washington Avenue past April 30. Urban Ministries to develop options for the site beyond June 30 and an additional joint city-county committee addressing homelessness. Occupy member William Gruber said he is disappointed in the mayor’s decision and supports
the resolution. “[Soglin] doesn’t have all the answers,” Gruber said. “If he chooses to veto [the resolution], he and a number of people in power these days don’t care what people want.” While the meeting started as a
conversation on the Occupy site’s upcoming deadline, it quickly turned into a discussion on homelessness in Madison. Although the city council recently recognized the Occupy
occupy page 3
Court decision to impact student voters
Students will likely not need to show a valid form of identification when at a polling place or registering to vote absentee for the recall elections May 8 and June 5. University officials developed a new identification card that students could vote with, after the voter ID law passed last summer. It was one of many campus drives to educate students of the changes to voting after the law ruled current student IDs insufficient. Danny Umhoefer from the UW-Madison Student Vote Coalition, an organization dedicated to educating students about elections, said the decision makes the registration and education process easier for students. “But we are trying to tell students that they still might need them in the future,” Umhoefer said.
“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”