4A - Thursday, March 18, 2010 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com tE JiCdigan ,Ealy Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MS 48109 tothedaily@umich.edu a Attention Wal-Mart customers: All black people leave the store now. - An unauthorized announcement made over a New Jersey Wal-Mart PA system, as reported yesterday by Time magazine. Wal-Mart officials have apologized and are investigating. JACOB SMILOVITZ EDITOR IN CHIEF RACHEL VAN GILDER EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR MATT AARONSON MANAGING EDITOR Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors. Requiring repatriation 'U' should return Native American remains ver the course of the last two decades, University officials, students and Native American organizations have been locked in a controversial debate over museum artifacts deemed "culturally unidentifiable." But this week, the debate over these artifacts at the University's Museum of Anthropology may finally advancing after years of gridlock. Recent changes to the 1990 Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act will force museums, including those at the University, to re-evaluate "cultur- ally unidentifiable" remains and return them to the Native Ameri- can community. The University should act in a timely manner and return the 1,390 "culturally unidentifiable" remains it currently possesses to the appropriate Native American groups. This watchdog is ticked f you're a regular reader of this column, you know that some- thing might be wrong with you. But you also know that some- thing might be wrong with the University, too. ; And you know that I'm a watchdog of the University. You know that if some- thing isn't right, I will loudly alert WILL others of the prob- lem, in hopes that GRUNDLER they will make it go away. This is what beinga watchdog is all about. Well, something isn't right. In fact, everything is wrong. I am referring to, of course, the tour groups that are all over campus. PLEASE STOP THE TOURS. The Daily will double what you are making to stop, tour guides! E-mail my editor for details! No, I am kidding. The tours aren't the problem. They are only part of the problem. A lot of bad things have been happening on campus ever since the weather turned unnaturally warm, and not just smarty professors telling us "We told you so" about cli- mate change. Actually, one bad thing happened off-campus. Like thousands of other students whose sole reason for exis- tence is Michigan sports, I was shak- en beyond measure last Friday when the basketball team lost to Ohio State after a buzzer-beater. Our - and by "our" I mean "the basketball team's" - last chance to make a miracle run to the NCAA Tournament was shat- tered, and now we - and by "we" I mean "the basketball team" - are not even in the NIT. This is just an embarrassment. I mean, why do the sports teams think students go to school here in the first place? It gets worse. If you thought our athleticswere a jokeyou'll be pleased to know that our faculty thinks the LAW is a joke. I'm referring to last week's traffic violation by Vice Presi- dent of Student Affairs E. Royster Harper and University President Mary Sue Coleman, who were caught speeding to Bursley Hall. Accord- ing to a report on Daily's news blog, E. Royster Harper, who was driving, had the nerve to tell the police officer, "Don't you know who I'm with?" To teach hera lesson, the officer ordered her out of the car, cuffed her and yelled repeatedly, "Whatndoes the "E" stand for!? Huh? No one knows! Edith? Eleanor!? What gives!?" This last exchange hasn't been ver- ified, but nonetheless the vice presi- dent of student affairs thinks joking with an officer of the law is morally acceptable. So, to recap, tour groups, athlet- ics and administrators - one would hope the embarrassment would end there. One would hope, as a Wolver- ine, that one could hold one's head up high and say, without a shred of sarcasm, "At least we'll always have our student government." Indeed, in turbid times, the Michigan Stu- dent Assembly has always been a last vestige of respectability. No longer. The recent website scandal has torn the very fabric of MSA and its many, many faithful supporters apart. At first I thought the website scan- dal stemmed from the fact that when you google "MSA," the Michigan Student Assembly website doesn't appear until page two, after such organizations as the Michigan Snow- mobile Association and the Miner- alogical Society of America. MSA, of course, is way more relevant than these trash organizations, and should really have the top spot in the Google results (currently held by Mine Safe- tyAppliances Company). But THEN I discovered the real scandal: MSA was buildinga NEW website (presumably to overtake Mine Safety Appliances) and went over its budget by $6,000, for a total of $9,000 on a site that still doesn't work. We're in the midst of dark days here at the University. 0 As reported by the Daily yesterday, a com- mittee representing NAGPRA approved an alteration to the initial 1990 legislation on Monday. Under NAGPRA, museums are obligated to keep public record of Native American artifacts in their possession. The changes approved on Monday would require museums to inform nearby tribes of where "culturally unidentifiable" remains were unearthed. Based on that informa- tion, Native American tribes may request the return of the artifacts. The change will take effect on May 14 and will be followed by a 60-day comment period. Under the new rules, the University's Museum of Anthro- pology will be required to re-examine the 1,390 artifacts in its collection. The University has refused to take action to return "culturally unidentifi- able" remains to Native American groups for years. Since NAGPRA's inception in 1990, the University has been repeatedly asked to re-examine its Native American remains by tribes hoping to find remains of members of their groups. And though the University returned a fraction of its human remains, along with other artifacts, to Native American tribes in 2005, the Uni- versity has still failed to act upon other "unidentifiable" artifacts. But this cultural insensitivity is unacceptable. The Univer- sity should take more aggressive action to identify and return the artifacts. While the University may feel the pos- session of these remains is important for research and educational initiatives, it can't simply ignore the request of Native Ameri- can groups to regain ownership of their history. Native American groups at the Uni- versity have been fighting for decades for the proper return of these artifacts, and the University has unacceptably taken exces- sive efforts to avoid fulfilling its legal obliga- tion to do so. The University has an ethical responsibility to stop dragging its feet and return the property that rightfully belongs to Native American tribes. The battle between the University and Native American groups has been long and contentious. But with the passing of new NAGPRA regulations, the University now has no excuse for its inaction. It must make more efforts to return the artifacts. And now the University has an opportuni- ty to put the controversy behind them and return the artifacts without undue delay. Making sure that these artifacts are returned in a timely fashion won't make up for the delay, but it will help establish a beneficial relationship between the Uni- versity and Native American groups. This would herald an important step towards the reconciliation between the two par- ties while still allowing the University to continue its research - without hoarding anyone's heritage. During the outrage that followed, many students experienced intenise psychological and physiological reac- tions: shock, disbelief, disgust, loss of appetite, loss of purpose and rashes. I think I threw up - though I con- fess I can't remember exactly what happened. For the first time in MSA history, it failed to accomplish whatit had set out to do. In my previous columns about the moral shortcomings of this institu- tion we all love, Ihave urged students to not let these types of things get to them and to instead focus on aca- demics. But who comes here for the academics? I realize now that this is a shallow solution at best. I realize now that as I pass those infuriating tour groups, and those infuriating tour guides - with their little yellow jackets on, standing on some bench - I want to stuff a brochure down the guide's throat and yell to the group, "What's wrong with you? Can't you see what a failure this place is? How do you think you'll get a job after- ward, with no athletic presence in theBig Ten and astudentgovernment who can't even enact a website?" I guess this is why I see so many students getting drunk on the week- ends. These are dark days. - Will Grundler can be reached at wgru@umich.edu. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor. Letters should be fewer than 300 words and must include the writer's full name and University affiliation. Letters are edited for style, length, clarity and accuracy. All submissions become property of the Daily. We do not print anonymous letters. Send letters to tothedaily@umich.edu. EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS: Nina Amilineni, Jordan Birnholtz, William Butler, Nicholas Clift, Michelle DeWitt, Brian Flaherty, Jeremy Levy, Erika Mayer, Edward McPhee, Emily Orley, Harsha Panduranga, Alex Schiff, Asa Smith, Brittany Smith, Robert Soave, Radhika Upadhyaya, Laura Veith ADRIAN MADRIZ Love all your neighbors ELLEN STEELE | Time to modernize gendered housing 6 Perhaps you've seen someone on the Diag holding a sign that says "God Loves Every- one (Yes, including the gays)." And perhaps he's told you "God bless you, and have a good day." If you haven't taken the time to speak to him, you should. He's a pretty nice guy. I know because I am that guy. If you count yourself among those that are confused by my message, don't be ashamed, you're not alone. Some-people wonder, "How can a person who is openly gay be a devout and true Christian?" Answering this question in its entirety can't be done in the 800 word limit of this viewpoint, but it's not as simple as saying "Read Leviticus 18:22 and it's written plain as day. Homosexuality is just wrong!" I often (perhaps too frequently) have this debate with individuals who claim to be "true Christians." Every time someone thinks theBible condemns homosexuality, they are coming from a philosophy that views the Bible as the inerrant and infallible word of God. The simple response to these objections is that the Bible just isn't iner- rant or infallible. One only need observe verses like Ephesians 6:5 (which condones slavery) or Matthew 15:4 (which commands parents to killI the children that disrespect them with a rod) to realize that the Bible is not perfect, and that it has some questionable things to say. However, I do believe that the Bible contains the word of God. It's just a matter of analyzing the Bible's many verses critically and with this core philosophy at the forefront of your mind: Love your neighbor as yourself. Using the Bible to disparage any group of people, including gays, is a dangerous misuse of the text. Using God as an excuse to hate any group of people is not only wrong, but is one of the main reasons that the religious are in such poor standing among the agnostic and the atheist. And religious people should care about what the faithless think about them. For an extended discussion of these ques- tions and the issues that they raise, I encourage students to attend the 2010 TBLG Interfaith Conference this Saturday, . Mar. 20 from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Dana Building. It's being organized by Spectrum of Faiths, an Inter- faith LGBT organization at the campus. The aim of the organization and the conference in general is to help shed some light on these issues and allow for a different kind of discus- sion that doesn't end with, "Well, if it's in the Bible, that's the way it is, and there's no point in debating it even further." The issue is deep- er and more complex than that. Additionally, the conference will address how other faiths, including Judaism and Islam, are handling these issues related to sexual orientation and gender expression. Attending this conference is a valuable opportunity to learn about the important role that faith can and does play in the lives of gays and lesbians. The bottom line is that if you believe in a lov- ing God (which I do) and if you believe that God holds love higher than all other values, there is no credible way you can object to the genu- ine love that two people, of any sexual orienta- tion, have for one another. That also includes romantic love. Perhaps you don't think that homosexuals are capable of displayingthis kind of love. I know many a street preacher that hold this view. Maybe they think that gay and lesbian love is not really love, but rather a misplaced lust that can only manifest itself sexually and pro- miscuously with the aid of crystal meth. I can assure them that this view is fundamentally flawed, and I often find that the people in some of the most loving, committed and long lasting relationships, are gay. In the great majority of cases, they don't even have the official bonds of marriage keeping them together. Their relation- ship is sustained in its entirety by the passion- ate commitment that they have for one another, and I can find fewer things in life more beauti- ful than that. The thought of God rejecting this kind of love is illogical and inconsistent with the one central commandment: Love your neighbor as yourself (Romans 13:8). I encourage you as students of this great University to learn more about these issues, and continue to find ways to accept LGBT indi- viduals into the fabric of your communities, both secular and spiritual. Adrian Madriz is an LSA senior. This week, the Residence Hall Association will be con- ducting a survey of current residents in order to gauge student interest in creating a gender-neutral housing option in the residence halls. I encourage all eligible resi- dents to respond to the survey to give Housing an accu- rate portrayal of the community's opinions. Gender-neutral housing means that Housing residents would have the option to choose a roommate they would like, regardless of gender. Two people of different gen- ders could live in the same room. Gender-neutral housing would be offered in specific areas within the residence halls, in addition to the single-sex and co-ed floors that already exist. The proposed policies aren't meant to elim- inate housing choices or force residents into housing situ- ations, but simply allow more options for all students. The current housing policy that restricts students to same-sex rooms is outdated. Many universities already offer gender-neutral housing options, including the Uni- versity of California, Berkeley, the University of Pennsyl- vania, Brown University, and the University of Chicago. As a leading progressive public university, the University of Michigan should join these institutions in allowing gender-neutral housing. The creation of a gender-neutral housing option is essential to assuring equality in the dorms for all people, regardless of their gender, gender expression or sexual orientation. Gender-neutral housing will benefit the entire campus community by making the dorms more inclusive. The University has already made improvements to the housing policy by offering more options to trans- gender students, but an openly-available gender-neutral housing option could help many LGBT students feel more comfortable in the residence halls. By forcing men and women to live separately, the Uni- versity promotes heteronormativity, or the discrimina- tory mindset that heterosexuality is the norm and other sexual orientations are less valid. The current housing standards don't allow men and women to room together, therefore preventing couples from living together. How- ever, gay and lesbian couples can share the same room. The current policy denies that men and women can live in close quarters without having a sexual relationship. Many students of different genders choose to live together off-campus. They are aware that gender alone isn't a good indicator of whether people will be able to live together peacefully, feel at ease around each other or address conflicts successfully. As adults, we should be able to determine the best living situation for ourselves. For many students, living with a friend of a different gen- der would not only be a reasonable choice, but it would also be the best decision for both parties. However, the message our same-sex roommate policy sends to those who would prefer an alternative is "pay up for a single or get out of the dorms." Men and women may wish to live in single-sex hall- ways for personal or religious reasons, and the University won't violate their rights by randomly assigning them to a roommate of a different gender. Moreover, University Housing will continue to offer co-ed halls without gen- der-neutral options. Gender-neutral housing will simply be another choice available to students who specifically request it. Gender-neutral housing would be beneficial to all stu- dents regardless of their gender or sexual orientation. It gives students the right to determine their own living situation and thereby empowers them. Gender-neutral housing could create a greater sense of community in the dorms and make University Housing more appealing to upperclassmen. The dorms should accommodate the needs and rights of all students. Gender-neutral housing may seem like a radical shift, but it would not differ much from the co-ed floors Hous- ing already offers. It is time for the University to offer a gender-neutral housing option to all students. To take the survey and support gender-neutral hous- ing, please follow instructions in the e-mail sent out yes- terday by the RHA. The results will help determine how to best structure gender-neutral housing at the Univer- sity. This viewpoint was written by Ellen Steele on behalf of the Undergraduate Chapter of the ACLU. The Daily is looking for diverse, passionate, strong student writers to join the Editorial Board. Editorial Board members are responsible for discussing and writing the editorials that appear on the left side of the opinion page. E-MAIL RACHEL VAN GILDER AT RACHELVG@UMICH.EDU FOR MORE INFORMATION. 0 A I 4 t -