Monday, February 2, 2004
Arts 8A The Daily reviews
The Perfect Score.'
Opinion 5A
Editor Jason Z. Pesick
introduces himself.
J. Brady McCollough on another famous Brady ... page 3B
r~lic
Weather
kk 33
28
TOMORROW:
3411
News
3A Vigil highlights hate
crime issues.
One-hundred-thirteen years of editorial freedom
www.michigmady.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan Vol. CXIII, No.87
©2004 The Michigan Daily
SAPAC to move counseling services
Counselors will move to CAPS,
while countyjprogram will
admbi.s'ter 24-hour Cris--li'ne and
provide on-site intervention
By Aymar Jean
Daily Staff Reporter
Last week, possible changes to University
counseling for victims of sexual assault created
concern among students, with some student
leaders calling the changes detrimental.
Counseling and Psychological Services and
the Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness
Center will formally announce specific
changes in both programs today. The two cen-
ters, in collaboration with an off-campus
provider called SAFE House, will reorganize
their services in an effort to streamline respons-
es to crises involving sexual and domestic
assault, University administrators said.
University spokeswoman Julie Peterson said
that these changes are not a reduction in servic-
es. "It's not a budget cut, and it's not a reduc-
tion of total resources devoted to sexual
violence issues," she said.
No changes will take effect until this sum-
mer, said Associate Dean of Students Stephanie
Pinder-Amaker.
The organizational shift includes a three-prong
response system involving SAPAC, CAPS and
the SAFE House, the county provider of sexual
assault and domestic violence services.
SAPAC's two counselors - one full-time,
one part-time - will be transferred to CAPS.
The center hopes this shift will allow them to
focus their resources on education and advoca-
cy work, SAPAC Director Kelly Cichy said.
The two counselors, who hold degrees in clini-
cal psychology and social work, will work full-
time for CAPS.
In the past, SAPAC has waitlisted students
who want to receive ongoing counseling and
has occasionally referred students to off-cam-
pus providers, Cichy said.
"The advocacy work has always been
rolled into a piece of the counseling work,"
she added. Students never had one person
who they could use as an advocate in dealing
with professors, University housing and
other legal and administrative officials nec-
essary in these circumstances.
The other major change concerns immediate
crisis-intervention service, currently provided
by SAPAC's 24-hour Crisis-line. After this
semester, SAFE House will administer the hot-
line. The off-campus provider offers translation
into 150 languages and immediately connects
callers with a staff member or volunteer. Stu-
dents who call SAPAC's Crisis-line must hold
for a few minutes until a volunteer is reached.
As part of this relationship, the University
will also employ SAFE House's outreach serv-
ices, which include on-site crisis intervention.
"In a domestic violence situation, (SAFE
House representatives) will go anywhere the
police have gone. In a sexual assault situation,
they'll go to the hospital and do the work in the
emergency room," Cichy said. She added that if
students need on-site assistance during
SAPAC's office hours, a SAPAC representative
will fulfill this duty.
While SAFE House will provide immediate
See SAPAC, Page 2A
Confidence in
economy highest
since recession
MUSIC FOR A CAUSE
By Adhiraj Dutt
Daily Staff Reporter
The confidence American consumers
have in the economy rose significantly
last month and is now nearly as high as
it was before the economic bubble burst
more than three years ago, according to
a report gauging consumers' outlook on
economic conditions.
The Index of Consumer Sentiment,
released Friday, reported that con-
sumers' confidence in the economy is
the highest it has been since November
2000. The Index was 103.8 in January
2004, rising from 92.6 in December
2003 and from 82.4 in January 2003.
"Consumers have adopted optimistic
expectations for the year ahead," Uni-
versity Surveys of Consumers Director
Richard Curtin said. "They're as opti-
mistic now as in 2000. Their optimism
is comparable to November 2000,
before the recession."
The Index has not risen above 100
since November 2000, Curtin said.
The Surveys of Consumers releases
the Index of Consumer Sentiment on
the last Friday of every month, after
surveying 500 households nationwide.
Consumers' views on purchasing
household durable goods such as furni-
ture, electronics and appliances
reached a three-year high, leading to
the third-highest January index ever
recorded, according to a Surveys of
Consumers news release.
"The surge in consumer confidence
was due to more favorable develop-
ments in the economy during the past
few months and to the expectation of
renewed growth in jobs and wages dur-
ing the year ahead," Curtin said in a
written statement.
While the Consumer Sentiment
report painted a bright picture for the
future of the economy, federal state-
ments released at the beginning of
last week sent mixed signals.
At its Wednesday meeting, the Feder-
al Open Market Committee - which
See ECONOMY, Page 2A
ELISE BERGMAN/Daily
(Clockwise from left) Jackie Green, Clumsy Lovers and Martin Sexton play at the 27th Annual Ann Arbor Folk Fest at Hill Auditorium on Friday. The conlcert was
a fundraising benefit for the Ark, an Ann Arbor venue for local music.
Ark hosts nation's
top folk music talent
Kucinich turnaround
would rely on youth
By Michael Gurovitsch
Daily Staff Reporter
MANCHESTER, N.H. - As he sat
down for lunch during a brief respite
from campaigning here last Tuesday,
U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich touted what
he believes are his youth-friendly pro-
posals, saying his campaign has made
a special effort to reach out to young
voters.
Although the most recent Newsweek
poll shows Kucinich,an Ohio congress-
man, ranking last among the seven
remaining Democratic presidential can-
didates, he still hopes to acquire more
support by motivating America's youth,
whom he says are often overlooked in
presidential campaigns.
Kucinich's education plan calls for
the federal government to completely
fund higher education. He said college
is a prerequisite for success in the
modern world and should be available
to all children regardless of their finan-
cial situation.
"We need a commitment to fully
funded four-year college tuition,"
Kucinich said. "We do it for high school,
why not college?"
Kucinich added that the country has
the money to pay for this type of pro-
gram. He said he would fund higher
education grants by repealing the Bush
tax cuts, ending the U.S. occupation of
Iraq and reducing the defense budget.
Although Kucinich's education plat-
form may be the most generous, it is not
wholly unlike the plans of his Democrat-
See KUCINICH, Page 7A
By Alex Wolsky
Daily Arts Editor
Two years ago, the Ark, one of Ann Arbor's
most important vessels for channeling local
music, launched its largest public fundraiser
in history: The Campaign for the Ark. Friday night,
at the start of the 27th annual Ann Arbor Folk Festi-
val, representatives for the Ark announced that in
just two short years they had achieved their goal.
The original Ark was located on Hill Street in a
three-story Victorian mansion, stocked with over-
sized rooms belonging to the First Presbyterian
Church. After the church decided to raze the
building, however, Kathleen Dannemiller and
other church members urged that the house
become a coffee house and a medium for commu-
nity outreach.
After a few short years, the Ark came under the
management of David and Linda Siglin, who fur-
ther developed the venue into its modern day
incarnation on Main Street. This year's campaign
brought in $1.3 million to the organization as a
means of expanding the downtown venue to more
performances throughout the year possible.
Acting as the single largest fundraiser for the
Ark, the Folk Festival drew upon a diverse cross-
section of the burgeoning folk community. From
the fresh faces of local folk-pop ensemble Tanger-
ine Trousers to one of the most respected artists in
the history of bluegrass, Ralph Stanley, the two-day
festival transcended generational boundaries both
on the stage and in the audience.
Friday's performance encompassed the power
and range the festival has within the Ann Arbor
community. Beginning with an incendiary set of
music from the raging Celtic-rock group the
Clumsy Lovers, followed by the biting all-female
trio Bluehouse and a stirring performance by
folk-punk, do-it-yourself pioneer Ani DiFranco.
Boston-based Martin Sexton, one of the most
talked-about arrivals in the folk scene, also roused
audiences at Friday's performance. Despite the
over-saturation of the Boston folk community,
Sexton has managed to claw his way to notoriety
with impeccable vocal range and stage presence,
both of which were on display at Friday's show.
See FOLKFEST, Page 8A
South Asian conference draws more than 300
By Karen Schwartz
Daily Staff Reporter
LSA junior Gaurav Budhrani was
wowed by the famous speakers, writ-
ers and others who traveled to the
University from as far as London to
speak at the second annual South
Asian Awareness Network confer-
ence this weekend, attended by more
than 300 people.
Budhrani said the conference encour-
aged participants to get politically
involved in their community.
"I learned something pretty local," he
shops addressed issues such as hate
crimes, women and religion, health
and hunger and the Patriot Act.
The three categories of workshops
invited participants to learn about the
issues, showed them what they could
do to effect change, and then asked
them to imagine the future and how
the South Asian community could
grow together, said event organizer
Dhara Naik.
Naik, an LSA junior, said she heard
about the conference last year and want-
ed to be a part of it. She said she felt
that while the conference focused on
"I just hope people left feeling
inspired that they can do whatever
they choose to do, it goes along with
the theme, 'Envision the Future' -
envision the future as something dif-
ferent, don't be afraid of doing what-
ever you want, envision your future
for yourself and do whatever pleases
you," she said.
Keynote speaker Vijay Prashad, who
wrote a book called "Karma of Brown
Folk," spoke about the South Asian
community and how it has been used as
a tool against other minority communi-
ties, said conference co-chair Rahul
community for a couple of reasons. One
is because the immigration policies of
this country really only let in the
smartest and most well-educated people
in our community."
He added that Prashad discussed
how as a result of only the "smartest
and best-educated people being
allowed into this country," the South
Asian community is used as an
excuse against such policies as affir-
mative action and welfare.
"The general perception that people
get is that we're hardworking and we're
inherently smarter than others, but that's
- - 1