The Statement £ filicIgan hiIlj Ann Arbor, Michigan Wednesday, October 24, 2007 michigandaily.com Connerly's crusade continues Anti-affirmative action ballot initiatives planned for five more states in 2008 After successfully backing Pro- posal 2, a ballot initiative passed in November that banned affirmative action in Michigan, the American Civil Rights Institute is gearing up to place similar measures before voters in Arizona, Nebraska, Okla- homa, Missouri and Colorado in 2008. Twenty-three states have a bal- lot initiative process that allows voters to decide on proposals that gain enough signatures to be placed on the ballot. So far, Cali- fornia, Washington and Michigan have passed similar ballot pro- posals backed by the group led by Ward Connerly, a former member of the University of California Board of Regents. Connerly said he considers affirmative action a violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The act bans discrimination based on ethnicity, race and gender. "It is not being obeyed by col- leges or public agencies," Connerly said. "We're trying to get that back on track." The group is targeting five states of the remaining 20 that should easily pass the legislation, Connerly said. "We feel we will do extremely well in all those states," he said. "We wouldn't have chosen the states if we thought we would lose." Connerly said he doesn't think the inifiatives will face as much opposition as Proposal 2 did in Michigan. He was particularly critical of By Any Means Neces- sary, a radical group aimed at pre- serving affirmative action. He said the media gave the group more attention than it deserved. "We want to avoid another effort, like Michigan," Connerly said. Michigan's Proposal 2 passed 58 percent to 42 percent. In Colorado and Oklahoma, the ACRI is already busy gather- ing signatures, but the ACRI has struggled to craft its proposal for Missouri, arguing with the Mis- souri Secretary of State over the wording that will appear on the ballot. The secretary and group must reach a consensus before it can begin collecting signatures. Connerly said the group is dis- cussing language for proposals in See CONNERLY, Page 7A By Cathe Shubert Daily Staff Reporter MAP KEY States in which the American Civil Rights Institute is considering mounting ballot initiative campaigns to ban affirmative action States that have already banned affirmative action Washington Michigan California PARTY KEY Missouri Oklahoma Democratic Governor Democratic legislature Republican Govenor Non-partisan House Republican legislature * Split legislature WHAT'S NECESSARY TO GET A PROPOSAL ON THE BALLOT Arrests coming in M.NSA scandal Pair charged in connection with 2006 election web attack By DAVE MEKELBURG Daily News Editor Michigan Student Assembly Rep. Anton Vuljaj and Engineering senior Joel Alan Schweitzer have been charged with felonies for allegedly crashing a rival party's website during the March 2006 student gov- ernment elections, according to documents obtained by The Michigan Daily. Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Diane Brown said arrest warrants have been issued for two University students in connection with the attacks. Brown won't name the defendants until the arrests are carried out. The pair could be arrested as soon as today, she said. Vuljaj and Schweitzer are each being charged with one count of use of a computer to commit a crime, a See ARRESTS, Page 7A UNIVERSITY PRESS CONTROVERSY Press delay s decision on U..K. publisher Contract with Pluto Press under fire; some cry censorship By ANDY KROLL Daily StaffReporter The University of Michigan Press plans to release a statement this week outlining its decision on whether it will renew its contract with controversial British publisher Pluto Press. The University Press's executive committee made a decision regarding the renewal of its contract with See PRESS, Page 7A Florida* ARIZONA Population: 6,166,318 Signatures needed for ballot access: 229,594 Deadline: Within 20 months of petition certitication and by July 4, 2008 MISSOURI Population: 5,842,713 Signatures needed for ballot access:: 149,026 Deadline: July 29, 2008 COLORADO Population: 4,753,377 Signatures needed for ballot access: 76,047 Deadline: Within 6 months ot petition certication and by Aug. 4, 2008 Present Right now, 23.7 per- cent ofthe nation's population lives in states whose public universities can't se affirmative action. After 2008 If Oklahoma, Colorado, Nebraska, Missouri and Arizona all pass affirmative action hans, ust over31 percent of Americans will live in states without affirma- tive action. OKLAHOMA Population: 3,579,212 Signatures needed for ballot access: 138,900 Deadline: Within90 days of petition certifica- tion and by Dec.10, 2007 NEBRASKA Population: 1,768,331 Signatures need- ed forballot access: 115,000 Deadline: Within one year of petition certifica- /. tion and by July 4, 2008 'The use of affirmative action by public universities in Florida was banned by the state's elected cabinet, not a ballot initiative. sOURCES: CHRONICLE OF HIGHER EDUCATION, U.S. CENSUS BUREAU GRAPHIC: BRIDGETO'DONNELL/Daly CAMPUS KLlNG Jury deadlocks in EMU student murder trial LEAF BLAZE Judge declares mistrial (AP) - A judge declared a mis- trial yesterday after the jury was hopelessly deadlocked on the third day of deliberating in the murder trial of a man accused of raping and suffocating an Eastern Michi- gan University student. Orange Taylor III, 21, of South- field was charged with an open count of murder, which gave the jury a choice of first- or second- degree murder, in the death of Laura Dickinson, 22, of Hastings. The jury began deliberations Friday and continued Monday, but it told Washtenaw Chief Circuit Judge Archie Brown on Tuesday afternoon that a decision wasn't possible. "Do you believe there is any possibility you could reach a ver- dict on one or any of the charges," Brown asked the jury. Jurors answered: "No, your honor." "Sometimes you just can't reach agreement," Brown told them. He then set Jan. 28 as the date for a new trial. Family members of Dickinson at the court had no immediate comment. A message was left yes- terday evening at a coffeehouse in Hastings owned by the family. As he was being led from the courtroom, Taylor pumped his fist in celebration toward his family. "You have a hung jury so See TRIAL, Page 7A Doctors share stories of AIDS-ravaged South Africa Diagnosis often means despondency By KAREY QUARTON Daily StaffReporter The vast majority of South Afri- cans suffered under racial apart- heid more than 50 years. Now they suffer from another injustice, but one some consider just as prevent- able - the AIDS epidemic. That was the subject of a talk by the authors of a new book about AIDS in South Africa yesterday in Palmer Commons. Gerald Oppenheimer and Ron- ald Bayer spoke and read excerpts from their book, "Shattered Dreams? An Oral History of the South African AIDS Epidemic." The event was sponsored by the University's Center for the History of Medicine. The book is a collection of oral accounts from doctors and nurses working to fight AIDS in South Africa. Uncooperative politicians, a lack of anti-retroviral medication and the legacy of apartheid com- plicates the jobs of medical pro- fessionals in an already perilous situation, accordingto Bayer. Bayer recounted one doctor's struggle to return to work after the death of a 5-year-old girl from See AIDS, Page 7A A professor was drying leaves yesterday when they caught fire and forced the evac- uation of the Natural Science Building. For full story, see Page 3A. TODAY'S HI: 56 WEATHER LO 3: GOT A NEWS TIP? Call 734-763-2459 or e-mail news@michigandaily.com and let us know. ON THE DAILY BLOGS Pedestrian hit by car on State Street MICHIGANDAILY.COM/THE WIRE .INDEX NEW S ................................ 2A CLASSIFIEDS............. ..6A Vol. CXVI ,No.35 OPINION ...N......... .....4A SPORTS..................8..........8A @2007Theichiganaily ARTS .......... ......SA THESTATEMENT................ ..1B A