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Thursday, September 22, 2011
michigandailycom
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FEDERAL LEGISLATION
Professors,
'U' groups
talk DADT
elimiation
ALLISON KRUSKE/Daily
Second-year graduate student Amber Kao and junior Tehillah Frederick, both in the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, perform an improvisational piece at the Mark
di Suvero sculpture outside the University of Michigan Museum of Art yesterday.
UNIVERSITY RESEARCH
ReSearchers concerned for
future of federal funding
Experts: Impact
of 'don't ask, don't
tell' repeal unclear
By ANDREW SCHULMAN
Daily StaffReporter
LGBTQ rights advocates
on campus celebrated in the
wake of the official repeal of
the U.S. military's "don't ask,
don't tell" policy on Tues-
day. But the
repeal also office
raised ques-
tions about HQORS
how it will
affect military programs both
nationally and at the Univer-
sity.
Following the repeal of
DADT, University professors
and campus organizations
discussed the merits of the
overturn of the legislation
in advancing LGBTQ policy,
while acknowledging there
is much work to be done. The
policy had banned openly gay
soldiers from serving in the
military since 1993.
In an event held Tuesday
night in the Welker Room of
the Michigan Union, about 20
members of the University's
chapter of Stonewall Demo-
crats and LGBTQ rights sup-
porters gathered to celebrate
the upending of the DADT
policy and to discuss how the
repeal will affect the nation.
The Stonewall Democrats,
many of whom were clad in
buttons that read "Ask, Tell,"
celebrated and proclaimed
that the day was "long over-
due" and a "big step for
equality." Others, while still
heralding the day as a mile-
stone for LGBTQ rights, said
it was just one victory for a
cause that still has ground to
gain until complete equality is
achieved.
Blake Mackie, co-chair of
the Stonewall Democrats,
said in an interview after
the event that despite other
laws in place that currently
hinder LGBTQ rights, the
DADT repeal is a milestone in
advancing LGBTQ civil liber-
ties.
"'Don't ask, don't tell' was
an ineffective policy that
resulted in the discharge of
many able and qualified ser-
vice members and the silenc-
ing of LGBTQ Americans,"
Mackie said. "(The end of)
'don't ask, don't tell' was real-
See DADT, Page SA
Sustainability
research may not see
sharp funding drop
By RAYZA GOLDSMITH
DailyStaffReporter
Despite the University's
record-high research spending
this past fiscal year, researchers
are concerned about the future
of their projects because of
potential"funding cuts.
Research expenditures at the
University grew 8.5 percent to
$1.24 billion this past fiscal year,
with a 9.8-percent increase in
federal funding accounting for
much of the growth. But Ste-
phen Forrest, the University's
vice president for research, said
the University might see a sig-
nificant decrease in funding this
coming year.
"I think I'm fairly safe in say-
ing that the growth in research
fundingfrom the federal govern-
ment is going to be slowed this
year quite considerably," Forrest
said.
For the 2011 fiscal year, fed-
eral funds accounted for 66.7 per-
cent of the University's research
spending, according to a Sept.
20 University press release. The
National Institutes of Health
increased its grant money to the
University by 12.6 percent for
that year, the National Science
See FUNDING, Page 5A
BY THE NUMBERS
8.5%l0
The percentincreaseofUniversity
research spending last year
$1.24 billion
University research spending in FY 2011
9m8%
The percent increase in federal
funding for research last year
SPRING COMMENCEMENT 2012 ________________
Students nominate Mark
Zuckerberg as grad. speaker
200 students sign
petition in support of
Facebook founder
By K.C.WASSMAN
Daily StaffReporter
After protests erupted follow-
ing announcement that Repub-
lican Gov. Rick Snyder would be
the commencement speaker last
spring, some members of the class
of 2012 are determined to find a
speaker they want to hear.
In an effort to do this, LSA
senior Jake Steinerman started a
petition over the summer to have
Facebook founder Mark Zucker-
berg serve as the keynote speaker
for the 2012 Spring Commence-
ment ceremony.
"The whole point of having the
speakers is to inspire the graduat-
ing class, to take what you've heard
and apply it to the real world, and
I think his story, to me atleast, has
been very inspiring," Steinerman
said.
Steinerman's petition currently
has about 200 signatures, and he
has continued to raise awareness
for his cause on - you guessed it
- Facebook.
"I'm not relying solely on Face-
book, but I think it would be awe-
some if it could be driven by social
media," Steinerman said. "That
would sort of prove its case further
and show that what he's done has a
See ZUCKERBERG, Page 5A
SPEAKERS ON CAMPUS
In Rosenthal Lecture, Al- Qassemi discusses
social media in Middle Eastern countries
ALLISON KRUSKE/Daily
Employee Cody Pan changes the display inside Poshh on East Liberty Street yesterday.
Poshh to close after 10 years
of business on East Liberty
Sultan speaks out
about region
on TWitter
By BRANDON SHAW
* Daily StaffReporter
As the world continues to
examine the role of social media
in recent uprisings in the Middle
East and North Africa, Sultan
Sooud Al-Qassemi, a Twitter
commentator, lecturer and glob-
al policy scholar with exper-
tise in the Middle East, spoke
to a group on campus yesterday
about the use of communications
in turmoil.
Al-Qassemi, who is also
founder and chair of Barjeel
Securities - a financial interme-
diary based in the United Arab
Emirates - delivered the Josh
Rosenthal Education Fund Lec-
ture to a crowd of about 75 people
in the Annenberg Auditorium at
Weill Hall yesterday afternoon.
During his lecture yesterday, he
highlighted the power of social
media in countries where dicta-
torial regimes forbid or severely
restrict internet communication.
"When there are periods of
See SOCIAL MEDIA, Page 5A
Store owner
says foot traffic
has decreased
By HALEY GOLDBERG
Daily StaffReporter
Ann Arbor fashionistas have
only a month left to get the lat-
est fall trends at women's cloth-
ing boutique Poshh, which will
be closing next month after 10
years of business.
Poshh owner Wendy Batiste-
Johnson recently announced
that the store on East Liberty
Street will close on Oct. 30.
Batiste-Johnson, who said she
has been contemplating the
decision for a few months, is
closing the shop to spend more
time with her family.
"The main reason that I have
decided to close is that this is our
10-year milestone, and I have
two small children," Batiste-
Johnson said. "... I just really
wanted to spend more time with
mykids. Runningabusiness and
having a familyis extremely dif-
ficult ... I've missed out on a lot
and I'd like to not miss out on
anymore."
Poshh opened in 2001 when
Batiste-Johnson moved to Ann
Arbor with her husband, a Uni-
versity alum, and took note of
the need for more retail stores
in the downtown area.
See POSHH, Page SA
WEATHER HI 64
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