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NEWS: 76-DAILY
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wwwmichigandailycom
Thursday
December 6, 2001
I
Vo.4tt o 47 An Abo, Mihian 201 Te .. ga t3;l
I
Hearing
in
national
spotlight
By Rachel Green
and Elizabeth Kassab
Daily Staff Reporters
CINCINNATI - Carting 19-inch televisions
and piles of clothing out of their residence halls,
University of Cincinnati students leaving for
winter break bustle past gold-colored flyers and
magic-markered posters spreading the word
about a rally on campus and march to the Potter
Stewart U.S. Courthouse, where the 6th Circuit
Court of Appeals will hear two cases challenging
the University of Michigan's admissions policies
today.
"I can't honestly say that we have a lot of sup-
port, but the people we do have are very
adamant, said Jeena Jarrett-Gray, a member of
the local chapter of
the National Associa-
tion for the Advance-
O N T U \ ment of Colored
People.
After nearly five
years of legal wran-
gling, the lawsuits
challenging Michigan's use of race in under-
graduate and law school admissions move to
one step away from the U.S. Supreme Court
today.
Thousands of high school and college students
are expected to follow attorneys for the Universi-
ty, the Center for Individual Rights and the inter-
vening defendants to this city on Ohio's southern
border, where each side will have a matter of
minutes in both cases to convince the nine judges
on the appeals court whether affirmative action
has a place in college admissions.
The pair of lawsuits, which were filed by
Washington-based CIR in 1997 on behalf of
white applicants who were denied admission to
Michigan, come into today's hearing as the only
cases challenging race-conscious admissions
that are still on track for the Supreme Court,
where they could set a new national standard.
Today's rally and march will be the second in
Cincinnati in support of Michigan's admissions
policies. The cases were originally scheduled
to be heard by a panel of three appeals court
judges, and while the hearing was delayed so it
could go before the full court, protesters went
ahead with a rally and march on Oct. 23 as
planned.
Jarrett-Gray said the time since the delay has
been used to garner more signatures on a peti-
tion that is to be submitted to the judges during
the trial. The petition now has about 40,000
signatures from across the country, Jarrett-Gray
said.
"We encourage a peaceful demonstration We
respect the law, but we also want to get our
point across," Jarrett-Gray said, adding that she
feels the slogan used by many affirmative
action supporters - "By Any Means Neces-
sary" - may be too extreme.
Jarrett-Gray said the NAACP has been work-
ing closely with the University of Michigan's
chapter of the Coalition to Defend Affirmative
Action and Integration and Fight for Equality By
Any Means Necessary, despite initial concerns
See HEARING, Page 7A
Taubman
convicted,
could get
jail time
By Maria Sprow
Daily Staff Reporter
One of the University's wealthiest
alumni and most generous contributors
was convicted yesterday of price fixing
by a U.S. District Court jury in New
York and could face up to three years
in prison.
Billionaire A.
Alfred Taubman,
a Bloomfield
Hills shopping
mall mogul and
former chairman
of Sotheby's auc-
tion house in New
York City, was
found guilty of
Taubman conspiring with
rival auction house Christie's Interna-
tional to inflate prices and commis-
sions between the auction houses,
which control 90 percent of the
world's art auctions.
Prosecutors believe the scheme
made Taubman and Christie's Chair-
man Anthony Tennant $400 million in
commissions over six years.
Throughout the years, Taubman has
made pledges to the University total-
ing $35.6 million. The Taubman
School of Architecture and Urban
Planning, the Taubman Medical
Library and the Taubman Center of
University Hospitals all bear the bene-
factor's name.
After Taubman's indictment in May,
the University released a statement
saying Taubman's name would contin-
ue to be recognized on University
buildings, regardless of the outcome of
the trial.
University President Lee Bollinger
said there is no policy for removing a
benefactor's name from buildings or
programs.
"He has given us much and we'll
continue to honor those contributions,"
Bollinger said in the statement. "In our
recollection, the University has never
before removed an individual's name
in this way ... We are committed to
retaining his name."
University officials said yesterday
that despite the conviction, they are
still standing by this policy.
Taubman has proclaimed his. inno-
See TAUBMAN, Page 7A'
At arms
soldiers
killed by
U.S. bomb
WASHINGTON (AP) - Three U.S. Special Forces sol-
diers were killed and 19 wounded in Afghanistan yesterday
when a U.S. bomb missed its Taliban target. The bomb, carry-
ing 2,000 pounds of explosives, landed about 100 yards from
the soldiers' position north of Kandahar, where the Taliban is
making its last stand against Afghan opposition forces.
Pentagon officials said they could not immediately explain
what went wrong in the deadliest "friendly fire" accident of
the war. Whatever the cause, it illustrated the danger inherent
in the kind of suppgrt U.S. forces are providing to Afghan
fighters: calling in airstrikes on nearby enemy positions.
"This is one of the potentially most hazardous type of mis-
sions that we use as a military tactic," said Rear Adm. John
Stufflebeem, deputy director of operations for the Joint Chiefs
of Staff.
Five Afghan fighters also were killed in yesterday's incident
and an undetermined number were wounded.
The Pentagon identified those killed as Master Sgt. Jeffer-
son Donald Davis, 39, of Watauga, Tenn.; Sgt. 1st Class
Daniel Petithory, 32, of Cheshire, Mass.; and Staff Sgt. Brian
Cody Prosser, 28, of California. All were members of the
Army's 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group, stationed at
Fort Campbell, Ky.
All casualties were evacuated from the scene, first to a U.S.
Marine base south of Kandahar and then out of Afghanistan.
Hamid Karzai, the southern Pashtun leader and newly des-
ignated head of the provisional government in Afghanistan,
was in the area where the bomb landed but was not seriously
wounded, Pentagon officials said.
"I, along with the rest of American, grieve for the loss of
life in Afghanistan," President Bush said during an Oval
See WAR, Page 7A
DAVID ROCHKIND/Daily
ISA junior Chris Johnson and other members of the Air Force ROTC perform a demonstration on the Diag yesterday afternoon.
Winter courses offiered o
Islam,-
By Tomislav Ladika
Daily Staff Reporter
wo
In response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks
and the war in Afghanistan, several Universi-
ty departments are modifying their course
offerings for the winter semester to challenge
students' perceptions of the war and enhance
their knowledge of Islam.
The University's International Institute has
developed a mini-course - "Religion, Secu-
rity and Violence in Global Contexts" - in
conjunction with four departments within the
College of Literature, Science and the Arts.
Prof. Michael Kennedy, who is teaching the
one-credit mini-course, said students will
learn how to discuss and understand a variety
of intellectual issues related to the terrorist
attacks.
"To understand terrorism, and to under-
stand security, we need to understand tech-
nologies of violence and the social
organization of terrorists," Kennedy said.
He said he hopes the class will be a plat-
tr in Mghani..stan
form for students to encourage social change. tragic, the events since September 11 I
"Students contribute to social change first also been profoundly historic and life-ch
by taking up the tough questions and learning ing," he said.
opportunities this university offers," he said. Several professors are also revising cl
"The next step is to take that learning into the they are currently teaching or will teach
broader public sphere where debates about semester. Nancy Florida, director of thet
terrorism and security should take place." ter for Southeast Asian Studies, said shei
Kennedy said the issues the class will cover ganized the curriculum of her semina
include the reactions of women and children Indonesian literature after the attacks.
to violence and Islamic political organiza- said she included more information on
tions. He said the class structure includes two concept of jihad and violence in Indone
discussions and requires students to attend culture because, in addition to studying
three lectures or panel discussions on terror- rorism and various perceptions of the atta
ism. students must gain a broader understandin
have
ang-
asses
next
Cen-
reor-
ir on
She
the
esian
ter-
acks,
ng of
I I
In addition to the mini-course, the commu-
nications department is offering a section of
Communication Studies 458 called "Report-
ing on War." Visiting Prof. Jeffrey Ghannam,
who is teaching the class, said it will show
students how U.S. media are reporting events
from the war in Afghanistan and how the gov-
ernment attempts to censor information dur-
ing national emergencies.
"I chose this, subject because while very
various cultures and religions.
"Few students are aware that Indonesia has
the world's largest Muslim population. Per-
haps if Americans knew more about other
places in the world, like Indonesia, they
would be less likely to be perceived as arro-
gant and self-absorbed," she said.
Prof. Alexander Knysh teaches Islam 262
in the Arabic, Armenian, Persian, Turkish and
See CLASSES, Page 7A
AP/POOL PHOTO
A U.S. Marine CH-53 helicopter kicks up dust as It comes In
for a landing behind another CH-53 yesterday morning at the
Marine operations base in southern Afghanistan.
Warm weather
shatters records
Ann Arbor is state's
most integrated city,
Census data reveals
By C. Price Jones
Daily Staff Reporter
Last year by Thanksgiving, mounds
of snow had piled up across the state.
But with this fall's unseasonably
warm, record-breaking temperatures, a
snowflake has yet to fall.
The high temperature yesterday in
Ann Arbor was 67 degrees, which ties
the record high set in 1998 for any
day in December. This temperature
also beats the record high of 63
degrees for Dec. 5 also set in 1998,
said meteorologist Dennis Kahlbaum,
a weather observer for the University.
"The November that we just had
was the highest since 1889, when
records began," said Kahlbaum.
He added that the average tempera-
ture in November was 8.1 degrees
higher than the normal average.
With temperatures lingering in the
60s yesterday, students spent the after-
noon sitting, sleeping and studying on'
the grass surrounding the Diag.
"This has been a mild autumn -
usually I have my snowblower operat-
ing by now," said research associate
Tom Goss.
"There's a rose in my house that's
blooming today," he added.
.,
. DAVID ROCHKIND/Daily
LSA junior Julia Koenigsknecht and others take advantage of the unseasonably
warm weather yesterday to catch some sun and study outside Cava Java on South
By Shabina S. Khatri
Daily Staff Reporter
According to a study of the 2000
census by The Associated Press, Ann
Arbor is the most integrated city in
Michigan. But many University stu-
dents say the numbers on paper may
not reflect reality in this college town.
For its review, the AP looked at all
the metropolitan areas listed by the
census as having more than 100,000
people. Eight Michigan cities were
included: Ann Arbor, Detroit, Flint,
t~rnnrl Annirk arwino, ivonUia_ ter-.
in which zero indicates perfect integra-
tion, and 100 indicates perfect segre-
gation.
Ann Arbor's segregation index was
45.9 for white-black, 45.6 for white-
Asian and 35.8 for white-Hispanic.
Each was lowest among the Michigan
cities studied.
LSA sophomore Elizabeth Kluczyn-
ski cites Ann Arbor's warm atmos-
phere as a major reason for the city's
diverse makeup.
"I work at Child Centers, and a lot of
the faculty is very diverse. They do a
goodn iob of inconrnoratirne allthe culd-
University.
for it," LSA senior Mike Shapiro
quipped while strumming on a guitar.
"I hope the squirrels are enjoying
One drawback of the unseasonably
warm temperatures, local retailers
said, has been slow sales of winter