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The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

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Edited and managed by students at
the University of Michigan since 1890.
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Ann Arbor, MI 48104
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KARL STAMPFL
EDITOR IN CHIEF

IMRAN SYED
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR

JEFFREY BLOOMER
MANAGING EDITOR

Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles
and illustrations representsolely the views.of their authors.
sOM TH DAILY
An acceptable step
Allowing preferred names must be just the beginning
T he day-to-day pressures of college are hard on all of us. But
many transgender students face the added burden of hav-
ing their gender identities constantly misunderstood and
questioned. In a move intended to ease the extra burden and assure
more transgender rights, the University announced last week that
it will allow students to use their preferred names on class rosters,
CTools accounts and MCards. This new policy will help create a
more tolerant, comfortable atmosphere for the transgender com-
munity, but it should not be the end of the University's evaluation of
how its policies affect transgender people.

Shame on you Mary Sue."
- Anti-sweatshop protesters at the Fleming Building as police arrested them in the reception area of University
President Mary Sue Coleman's office after they refused to leave when the building closed.
SAM BUTLER|
You gotta pull
them sumbitches
out by the roots.
19
S 'e
Atradition unlike any others4j"

4

In 2005, a subcommittee appointed by the
provost recommended that the University
begin to accept students' preferred names.
Nearly two years later, the subcommittee's
recommendations have started to finally
trickle down into policy. By the end of the
month, current students and faculty will be
able to enter a preferred name on Wolverine
Access. Next fall, they will be able to request
a new MCard with that preferred name. New
students will be able to enter a preferred
name at registration in about a year.
Allowing transgender students and fac-
ulty to use their preferred names eliminates
instances of confusion and takes away the
stress of having to explain one's gender
expression every time you check out books
or watch a film at the library. In recognizing
a major need of the transgender community,
the University has advanced its goal of cre-
ating a tolerant, respectful and open atmo-
sphere for faculty and students alike.
Permitting the use of preferred names is a
significantgesture, yet there are many areas
--both symbolic and tangible - where the'
University can create a more comfortable
atmosphere for the transgender community.
An important change that should be made
immediately is the inclusion of the phrase
"gender identity and expression" in the
non-discrimination clause of the Univer-
sity bylaws. While the University maintains
that the bylaws already legally prohibit dis-

crimination based on gender identity and
expression, adding the phrase would serve
as a sign of respect. Including the phrase
does not change University policy, but by
excluding it, the University comes across as
oblivious, insensitive and unsupportive of
transgender rights.
The University can also promote and fos-
ter a tolerant atmosphere by providing more
tangible amenities. More gender-neutral
housing and co-ed bathrooms would cer-
tainly benefit the transgender community.
Schools like the University of Colorado and
Swarthmore College have already adhered
to such requests and instituted co-ed on-
campus housing.
Currently, transgender students at the
University can choose to live in gender-
neutral housing on North Campus, but
those who want to live on Central Campus
find their choices much more limited. Uni-
versity Housing has worked to provide at
least one unisex bathroom in each dorm,
but Housing officials have yet to discuss
plans for co-ed housing. The creation of
co-ed dorms would not only answer the
demands of increased student housing, it
would also create a comfortable environ-
ment for transgender students.
The University should work to provide the
community with resources to truly offer an
open, tolerant environment where everyone
is equally comfortable and respected.

TRAVIS RADINA AND CAROLINE HOGAN VIEWPOI
Students for Edwards

"We do not have to accept me
promise our values. We can de
we can address great problems;
possibilities."
For the past eight years, of
its people have suffered. We
from misguided policies, stra
and political scandals. Under
of the Bush Administration,
ficed American lives in an il
increased our dependence on
witnessed the emergence of tc
one of the haves and one of the
We deserve better. We need
is capable of achieving chang
restoring the nation's moral lea
John Edwards will be that pres
Edwardshasspenthisentire
adult life in public service.
For 20 years he dedicated his
career to defending families
against powerful insurance
companies, helping them
overcome the most chal-
lenging times of their lives.
In 1998, Edwards decided to
run for the Senate in North Car
lina to give those same peopl
voice in government. For the
six years, Edwards pushed for
care, better schools, civil right
mental protection.
In 2004, Edwards served as
dential candidate on the ticket
Kerry, making him the only cu
for the 2008 election with nat
experience. After Kerry's de
refused to disengage from publ
firmed his commitment to No
and Americans. He was named
University of North Carolina's
erty, Work, and Opportunity, w
to reduce the number of famili
erty. Duringhis national"Oppo
tour, Edwards traveled to Ann
to encourage students to beco
the fight against economic ineq
Edwards has proven that h
admitting when mistakes ar
than blindly staying the course
publicly for his vote to author

diocrity or com- Iraq and has promised to do everything pos-
cide to be great; sible to bring our troops home safely. He has
we can see great encouraged Congress to take action on the
safe redeployment of troops and has criticized
John Edwards Bush's stubborn and dangerous war policy.
Edwards's passionate populism has roots
ur country and in his admiration for his working-class par-
have suffered ents, who instilled in him a strong belief that
ategic missteps all Americans deserve an equal opportunity to
the leadership succeed. As the first member of his family to
we have sacri- attend college, John understands the impor-
legitimate war, tance of higher education, which is why he
foreign oil and -intends to expand his successful "College for
wo Americas - Everyone" plan to public universities across
have-nots. the nation. By providing full tuition for first-
a president who year students who work part-time, the pro-
e at home and gram helps promote social equity through
dership abroad. greater educational access.
ident. Edwards has demonstrated solidarity with
American workers by tirelessly advocating
for workplace rights, benefits and fair wages.
By choosing former Michigan Congressman
David Bonior - chair of American Rights at
Work.- as his campaign manager, Edwards
has established himself as the candidate for
W working-class families here in Michigan and
across the nation.
Throughout 2005 and 2006, Edwards
o- traveled from state to state petitioning for of
e a . minimum wage increases. His actions played
next a pivotal role in bringing the issue to nation-
rquality health al prominence, and earlier this year, the new
ts and environ- Democratic Congress voted to increase the
federal minimum wage.
the vice presi- Edwards's tireless advocacy on behalf of the
with Sen. John American people has inspired hope and opti-
rrent candidate mism. He believes that change begins in local
ional campaign communities. He believes that together we can
efeat, Edwards rebuild America into a place where dreams are
lic life and reaf- attainable and success is more than just a ban-
rth Carolinians ner on a battleship. Edwards is not just in this
l director of the race to become president; he is in it to change
Center on Pov- America.
here he worked For more information on Edwards and his
es living in pov- inspirational message, please join the Students
rtunity Rocks!" for John Edwards for President this Thursday,
Arbor in 2005 April 5, in the Kuenzel Room of the Michigan
me involved in Union from 7-8 p.m.

For red-blooded sports fans like
me, this is the greatest week
in sports. The Florida Gators
already took another bite out of Ohio
State's ego by winning the national
championship in men's basketball to
go with the football title they earned
in January, also by pounding the Buck-
eyes. Major League Baseball opened
its season, and for
a brief moment, all
baseball fans can
think their team
has a chance to win i
the World Series. ,
Last, but certainly
not least, golf's most
prestigious major k
championship, the JOHN
Masters, tees off STIGLICH
tomorrow down in
Georgia.
Augusta National Golf Club, which
hosts the Masters, came under fire
from feminist organizations like the
National Council of Women's Orga-
nizations a few years ago because the
club still restricts its membership to
males only. In this regard, Augusta
is the epitome of the Southern social
hierarchy that has plagued that portion
of the country for generations - rich
white males standing atop their plat-
forms and snubbing their noses at the
minorities and women below. While
NCWO chairwoman Martha Burk was
right to challenge Augusta's exclusion-
ary membership policies, she unfortu-
nately had no idea what she was doing.
In 2003, Burk wrote a series of
threatening letters to then-chairman
of Augusta National Hootie Johnson
demandinga change in the club's mem-
bership policy. Johnson responded by
reminding Burk that Augusta is a pri-
vate golf club with a membership cho-
sen by the membership. In this regard,
LETTER~S . T. -IT OR
Republicans want to
help the poor too
TO THE DAILY:
Howdiscouragingthat Christopher
Zbrozek would resort to constructing
straw men instead of tackling diffi-
cult policy questions head on (By the
owners, for the owners, 04/02/2007).
"With enough ideology, who needs
research?" Zbrozek asks. Cute, but he
should take his own advice.
The reform of many "Great Soci-
ety" poverty programs - social
welfare especially - have made our
economy more vital. True, 100 per-
cent of the blame for poverty does
not lie with the poor, but 100 percent
of the responsibility for pulling the
poor out of poverty does not lie with
the government either.
The whole bit about "wealthy elites"
benefiting from an "ownership soci-
ety" is slick populist rhetoric but it just
doesn't fit the facts. The households
that make up the bottom 20 percent
of income earners in America receive
$8.21 in government benefits for every
dollar in taxes they pay. There's no
need to "vocally advocate" redistribu-
tion because it already happens.
The appeal to morality that
Zbrozek makes is disingenuous. Con-
servatives want to help the poor just
as much as he does, just in a better
way. Higher taxes maybe levied with
the best of intentions, but experience
shows that they tend to decrease rev-
enues. The lower tax burden advo-
cated in an "ownership society" gives
the "wealthy elite" further incentive
to invest and enlarges the tax base.
This isn't heartless or immoral;
it's simply good economic sense.
Economic growth won't stagnate
in an ownership society as long as

Johnson bested Burk because there is
no law that mandates privately funded
organizations adhere to non-discrimi-
natory membership policies. Burk
could only hope the public pressure
would make Johnson cave. It didn't.
Burk then made her dumbest move
of all by contending the Masters could
move to a more gender friendly venue.
Once again, she exhibited no respect
for the tradition. Among the four major
championships in golf, the Masters is
special because its founders, Bobby
Jones and Clifford Roberts, insisted
that it be played annually at the same
venue. Losing that tradition is not
something the Masters would even
consider.
Burk also tried swaying Augusta's
mind with economics by pressuring
companies that sponsor the Masters to
pull their money out of the tournament.
Before Coca-Cola, Citigroup and other
sponsors could even respond, Augusta
National took the bullet for its sponsors
by funding the tournament out of its
own pocket.
Tickets for the Masters are the
cheapest of the four major golf cham-
pionships, concession prices are rea-
sonable compared to other sporting
venues and television coverage of the
Masters features the least commercials
per hour of any major sporting event.
Translation: Augusta National wants
golf fans from all walks of life to enjoy
the tradition without taking out a loan
or getting frustrated by commercials.
Still, despite Burk's miscalculation and
lack of understanding of the Masters
tradition, she was headed down the
right path.
The single greatest reason to watch
golf events on television or attend
them in person is to watch Tiger
Woods dominate his competition.
When Tiger is in contention on the

weekends, television ratings skyrocket
and walk-up ticket sales boom. On the
other hand, long-time PGA Tour stops
have recently closed because finding
corporate sponsors and legions of fans
is infinitely harder if Woods doesn't
play. Enlisting Tiger Woods as an ally
of the women's movement should have
been Burk's top priority.
Tiger has dramatically changed the
game of golf for the better, both on an
off the course. But if there is one gripe
against Woods, it is that he is not inter-
ested in social transformations. Unlike
Muhammad Ali, Woods refrains from
offering his opinion on social issues
and prefers to focus on his game.
Tiger is the key
to ending sexism
at Augusta.
If Tiger were to threaten to skip the
Masters, we would witness an instanta-
neous revolution. In the modern PGA,
hosting a tournament, even a major
championship, without Tiger Woods is
simply not worth the effort.
Tiger would be making a statement,
because as a black man he is in a special
position to talk about discriminatory
exclusion from facilities in the South.
He would be single-handedly respon-
sible for transforming golf from a sport
that proudly catersto upper class white
society to one that every person from
everywalk of life can enjoy.
In this regard, Tiger can have more
of an effect on his sport than Ali ever
had on boxing.
John Stiglich can be reached
at jcsgolf@umich.edu.

U
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SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU

the incentive to invest in the future
remains in tact.
Michael Saltsman
Alum 'O5
Government not at
faultfor enforcing law
TO THE DAILY:
I found the views expressed by
Aaron Willis in his letter to the edi-
tor very disheartening (A govern-
mental waste of time, 04/03/07). Too
often, people are quick to blame the
government for every single problem
no matter how ludicrous or illogical
the reason.
Willis clearly failed, to realize
that the reason Micheal Bianco Inc.
received the contract to produce the
backpacks for U.S. troops was direct-
ly related to its employment of illegal
immigrants. If Willis took the time to
think the situation through to the end,
he would have realized thatthere are
always bidding wars between com-
peting companies to win government
contracts. The companythat can pro-
duce the items at the lowest possible
price wins the contract.
Now, what would be an easy but
illegal way to produce goods at really
low prices? Easy: Hire illegal immi-
grants and pay them substantially
below minimum wage. Do not blame
the government simply because it
upheld the law. Point your finger at
the business world, where illegal
business practices like these run
rampant and unchecked.
Blame the lawbreakers not the law
enforcers.
Brian Kaminski
Engineeringgraduate student

Construction waste is
unnecessary pollution
in green Ann Arbor
TO THE DAILY:
The demolition of the Anberay
Apartment Complex on East Uni-
versity Avenue and approval of
Zaragon Place is once again on the
city's planning commission agen-
a da. For a town that prides itself on
being green and making recycling
a top priority, it is surprising that
there hasn't been more of an outcry
about this proposed demolition.
Whether or not you believe in the
value of preserving historic build-
ings, the fact is that the demolition
of any building is not green. Recy-
cling is a community goal, so why
doesn't the reuse of a building fall
into this category?
Sixty percent of our landfills are
full of construction waste. I'm hard
pressed to understand why reusing
buildings is not a higher priority for
organizations like the Ann Arbor
Ecology Center. "Zero waste" is
its stated goal, yet the remnants
of the Frieze Building, the Busi-
ness School, the auto dealerships
on Washtenaw Road and Stadium
Boulevard and numerous other
smaller buildings are tumbling into
landfills at an alarming rate.
Given the lack of interest in re-
using buildings, I hope you excuse
me if I just throw my pizza box in
the trash. It can't possibly matter in
the face of that great waste stream
of debris.
Susan Wineberg
Institute of Labor andlIndustrial
Relations, Ann Arbor

uality.
e is capable of
e made, rather
. He apologized
rize the war in

Travis Radina and Caroline Hogan are
[SA juniors. Radina is the chair of the campus
chapter of Students for Edwards and Hogan
the vice chair of communications.

Editorial Board Members: Emily Beam, Kevin Bunkley, Amanda Burns,
Sam Butler, Ben Caleca, Mike Eber, Brian Flaherty, Mara Gay, Jared Goldberg,
Emmarie Huetteman, Toby Mitchell, David Russell, John Stiglich, Jennifer Sussex,
Neil Tambe, Radhika Upadhyaya, Rachel Wagner, Christopher Zbrozek