4A -- Friday, Novemrber 8, 2013 I~diii d ad ictn-zuaged-by students at All; Ak :' 1h Univritiy ofJMichiganz since 1890. Thle Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com* 420 May naid St.' Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tc11 ladrryt« r ichiyandad~iy.cnt M4ELANIE KRIUVELIS and ADRIENNE ROBERT.Z"S MATT SLOVIN LI Dii1 Al I s-'(L D I S IVIANAGING EDIJOR ANDREW WEINER 11[)111INI Cl-III Uiisigned editoriaisseflectihe official piositionl oflie tDily's editotrial board. All oilier sigiied aricnles andililiistratioins repireseitisolely the views of their authors. Com-municatting responsibilities Tenants will now he ticketed directlyfo any accrued fines T he responsibility of cleaning up Anti Arbor lawns littered with red solo cups from football Saturdays may soon shift from land- lords to tenants. Recently delibert aed aimenadments to sections 72 and 132 to the "Hou~rsiing Law of, Michiganl" would directly ticket tenants for any fines accrued froni violating ordinances regarding conimunity standards of cleanliniess and public welfar e. Although .the amendments may seem like an attack oii student poecetbookIs, these potential chaniges would create an iinptoved level of.iiotificatioin for tenants. Students will now be made aware of what behaviors caii result in fities, and they will now kcnow the triagntude of the cotsaequences. This new chantiel of com- municatioti betweeni the city, teniants and the landlords displaces some of the uneasiness students caii feel as thecy move off campus. Biefore these amiendmiieits wetre suggescted, the responsibiility of painlgatoy finies issued by Aim AthoarfItlito the liidlord, and the city wasn't requiiied to tiotify tie occupas of the building. Noiw, the rvised cases iif, the lill state that its the duty oifithe occupnts of a dwelling to keep the tatelmise "lice fromtithe accumoulationa of dirt, filth, rubbish, garbage or other mailer ina the yards, couitis, passages, areas or alleys conntected or bielonigt thia dwelling." If thle teniants of ain atartmeniitir house fail to do so, the city ._ini tiaticular lie Cotmmtuntity Stanadc isot ot Ain Atiiiri- will issue a,;"' writeninotice of violaiitin to the occupant. The ldcloof thle buildinii will receive tite 11s well. Inithe past, whieiiailaindlotrd ieceived a notification of a ine, lie could iiiforiiithic tenants at his discrction. lane to iiifecctive comnhticationa, a tenant coutld totentilly commit the same offeiisc'iver aiiil over and unconsciously accitie a nitiiibir of ines. Dependigtipoit the laiidloi c, the paymtieiit could caone oit if the oiviiris tiocket iii taos sibly the secuirity detiosit of his teniaiits; and, there are myriad citations capabileiii niaik lng secentity deposit cdisatipear. tHowever, the landlord piossesses the optioin to tuirii the Ie over hifs tenaiits. Accoiding toi the city, teli' ants can tie ined for iiifenses raiigin fom ilii overgrowvn grass, 0tdvii accuiiiulai, artkl- DEREK MAGILLI hng in tihe y aird to eveni "abanldonaed refrig- craor. xIni p ~ articilar, tenaniscan be haeavily fiued Icir placing aiiicithostered couchl upon th oc ftheir cdwelling oii the grociids thiti is 5aIipotential fire hazard. '11111 Koetsier, a meniher of the Reiital Propelrty ownoers of Michigant, uses this examipie to illustrate his support for the hill. tHe claimls that "laiidlords doi't pot couch- es o porches, tetnants doi, and if they (tie mnicipality)uanlt it iceiovccl thaey soold cite the cenant for thatit In the iteesis of proteccitig students and their seemrily depositsiliceiUnivcrsity irecent- iy held 111ninrmatilonlscssioniregaiditag the iegall deticils ptoent~li linats should kiaow befoi esligiig a lease. Couplcd with the pro- posal1 of ihis aiiieidcd billthec University aiid 11115 e li s 15in Lmiiiiiii ar doiiig a mlore effec- live job of priividing stucdcnts with iformla- luoau t th111 e duties thalt coiie uith relting. I tolievet, these tio enitities shloulcdn't have to continueliccmlipenlsatiilg for thae lack of coin- miunlicatliionllictweenldllllorcds aiid stcudeiits. Stuicits also iieed to lie adults atad accept lie ic spoiisiiilitiis that coime with living off- camiipus --cceii if iliactimeans paying for occai- siiiin aiiiiuts if lzinless. However, studeiats are: capabdilile of fclfilliiig these obligaltionls if 1landlordd contine to provide tlheii with Iitsufllicitilt iiifiirmiatioii. Intersection of Greek Life and LGBTQ Jwaited patieitly outside of take bung to see that le was't keep- it appear so honophobic? wrhat t thought sas the side lng oiie rather, lie was concealig It's worth coisidering, however, doior of the hicuse. oii the glass his sexual orientatitin froia a key that iiaye the issue isn't that the door was a white eleiieit ini his life: his fraterniaty Greek commlunity is homophoic, decal if three ----- aid the broader Greek-life cultuiie. rather hyper-heterosexual. As a Gieekc frateriity "So it's really not a secret that Greek life nenuer, I can attest that letters that, to you're keepinig. Crrct iae if 'iiiwheiaI lived in a sorority house, aia isider, rep- , wrong, ht it's noe so that you conversations at the dinner table resent a variety doi't want to sake thiiig p?" I were largely driveii y heterosex- of experienices askedlhiln. aity - "That guy you met at Alpha froii brother- "Yes. It's not that inteestingIm leta Chal last night ... are you taking hood, ' oi- ._ a normial person." hitm to formal?" It isn't homopho- radeship atid SARA Jackie Simtpson, director of the ic, it just isn't inclusive language. coimiounity to MOROSI Spectroto Ceter, explained that But the sate can e said for the football tail- ovr the yeas, acceptanlce of the wider campus culture, not to men- gates, Ilatitus LGBiTQ commuity in Greek life tioti all across society. When viewed Special Light, dronkeit hookups, has been a topic of conversaioit. h's broadly, we wonder how it can ps- cleavage, itfatuatioti, regiet atid routitnely brought up y studeitts to sily change, ut that doesn't mean tile occasiottal smell of sount. the Spectruma Advicacy Board as we shouldn't do our part in mak- I ad rarely come to the frater- an issue they would like to pursue. ing all corners of our University nity house on a weekday nighnt.The Accorditig to Simnpson, about six an acceptitg place for the LGBTQ feel was very diffeieint. Thee was years ago, the Spectruiai Center, im comiaunity. Ote way is to continue no music blaritig aiad iiy oots were 'colaoratioia with Geek life, led a cotsciously elitinating micro- not stickintg to spilled alcohol ott the survey that explored the erceived aggressiots, like usitg "gay" or tile as I walked dowit tiemiii hall- level of acceptatmce of LGiTQs "faggot" in a negative connotation. way. The same three Geek letters withinth le Greekllomon iy. There is itucha to e cone before were painted in white onthle wall. I "I found the _________ the Greek com- taoticed a hal-full otle of off-bratad results to e very imunity, as an Sprite onth ie floor, ptobably a leftover fascitatitig," Greek Life entity, can tote bottle of chaser fronthtie vweekentd.- Simtpsoil said. *f acceptance of Todd Needle, a senior photo edi- What the str- . isnt necessariiy LGBTQ mem- tor at The Michigata Oaily, sat across vey fountd was hom o u ti es utI frotmi tme o00is edrooma floor, lie sat that the perceived honpho ibuf t1 believe were witha his legs crossed - a position we level of accep- hme~ eeoe u l noving for- referred io itteettettary schtool as tance of LGBTQ .yVe -eeosx a ward. Person- "Indian style." it mtade his body ook membuers varies ally, I have cratmped, ht the iifortaaity of his across cotitimuti- seet a change posture made him appear relaxed at ty, chapter ad the itdividual. itt acceptance withint Greek life the samie titme. onu the wall above his Sinpsont recounted that whena over the past four years that I've bed was a posier that read "Forward students were asked, "hDo you feel beet part of it. with Obama." said level is suportive of LGiTQ Last February, Needle told me, For years, Needle has struggled maembahers?" te vast mlajority of stu- "We're just not there yet, as a Geek to coute to termas with his sexual dents claitmed that as a communtity, culture. It's disappointing. Ito not orientation. Beinlg a studenti at the Greek life is not accepting, and that even there yet as a person, to e rn- University, a fairly liberal shool their chapter is somewhat accept- ning around taking guys to formal.' at that, has bothicm ipicatedhatd ing, atd, as an idividual, tey are With a snie he added: "Although cleated his path to self-discovery. accepting. we'd totallyhave matchi nghowties." Needle is a nember of Greek life on Simpson explained that judging Since then, Needle has become campuus. Htowever, it hasn't ahays by the needs of siudenas consult- moe and mmre open abot his sex- baen ati environimuent itt whichi he tgat the Spectrumut Ceter, shie has uah preferetce. This fal, le posed felt coimfortable expessiuglhis sex- ot noticed a catge ini the level of for pictures ext to ii boyfriend ual orientation. accepatce itt LGB'Qtmeners i at his fraternity's Gatbyitspired Greek cultue stignmatizes gays. Greek life sincethesurvey was ctin- date party. "It's not auueuviuomunaet conducive to duced oe thata half a decade ago. And yes, uhey wore bow ties. homosexuality, to openahomoseual- "I would say that students exp- "I've beeti very impressed by ity," Needle told tme. Because of this, rietnce it ie saue. They continue to eeryone who knows me person- iin tihe pst le has consciousy filtered bring this cp as somoethitg they feel ally - especially nmy brothers. They himselthie with his brothes. He needs to e worked on. What that haven't atted an eyelash." Needle has spoken in a mtoe masculine tone. says to me is that it has't changed." told te ita ate October. "But when lie has joiedlitt convesations aboiut Simtpsonm added, "For tme persotn- I ear people say fag' or 'itat's hmot sorority girls, ally, as director of the Spectrumi Cen- so gay,' h want to tell themm that it Last- semtester, I tottk a course ter, I viewv ty colleagues ini Greek life doesn't nake you ound cool; it ini narrative journaismt. I chose to and sudemnts I've worked witha iiiFC miakes you soutd like an assoe." write muy marrative about Needle's -and anhel as very supportive." "It retminds me that we still have extperienmce withnthe ittersectioum So what's goitg ou? If the major- a ways to go." of hotmosexuality anld Grek life. ity of surveyed Greek miembuers are -________- - I originally set out to tell a story allegedly acceptlig of the LGBTIQ - Sara Moosi can e reached about keepitug a secret, hut it didn't conuntity, why, as an entity, does a sunuisi,uiched. EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS Kaan Avdan, Sharik Bashir, Barry Belmont, James Brennan, Eric Ferguson, Jordyn Kay, Jesse Klein, Melanie Kruvelis, Maura Levine, Aarica Marsh, Megan McDonald, Victoria Noble, Adrienne Roberts, Paul Sherman, Daniel Wang, Derek Wolfe No excuse for slut shaming r 0 0 0 A party of their own 'The hibe'rtatrianiPtty didl rit cost tile RepubliucantlParty the VtrginlialgovetroI lice, they did thuat oumtiheir own. 'There ar~etmvouways ithue tcc-tblicllll hParry can view its narrowtlos11s tilirlillciais illth Virginmiaugubierniatoriahlh race: Eithier tile party needs further reforimtaout social polic ies or those peskey Liber tatiahut 1lieu s 'cosi LuS tile electionu." 'lie formler would be warmilly wv'] copted hay a ppuclace thalt's demiandcilt;-- wimli an everm itmreasitig fervorit-sociaill ibetrties. Thl~m atter wtuuldi ha savage hmypocrisy. Whiai khm itofmessauge cdoes it sendc whenut a hiltty that allegedly suppoimts cuimimpeitininilmar- kets wants tut e-njvoy It lmonopotiliy ilmhe ticc tiusmlprodess? Whtilohe par 111ties alie * uiltiy of doing everythitng itt their tiuwer to tmlalgiiil ice third patrtic's, tile iepulicanl treatment of the LibartarianPtaiy is 1par1ticulatrly galling with is cheaguttips. "a svote fur a Liei tariani is a vote for a Decmocralt." A }par1ty thati as to smaumue tiole inmto votimig fur it is niii a party wor t votig ftutu . iids, hase eubah- licans ever tutghit 110w silly thalt soudcs? Atid, as imuchi as Repuicanllus wotiul hiy' to lay claium totm thembetartianim o uvementll, there are clearl y enoughil ilsertrian~ voters who tiimkusiconismm- Libertrianls "mar~try- ing" Rtepubllic-ans-- is an illegit imtacte lceans toward a motre liettrianlsuociety. Insteivdof, placiig lalmetd'oilpeuiplewhvoted forcm h e LibertariantFarty canidcate Robe'rtiSarki.,, Republicanus iced to as5k themtselvs: l~"u iy didn't these peouple vote RepcublicanE AWhy did the Democrats still wsina wietchtie majority of voters mm Virginial, if youucomblaie til epaulb- licanmanatdiLibertarianutsc, viated for freei nmarketis? Whit is thec disconniect bietwseli Lietrtaills aild1tle hte-pubsicanita1yR' Whuiluthelm ss I vious Ireasontlis 111111iii- emrtrianteli'acltulii;lyii40c1' free lual~c'I .,il's social liertices tha~t meouill have had the milti imnediate imipauct odilleilic' ltuftit lecdi-c litn. If thu Reubiican11 Party canldildatelienl has no role whaatsoever ini the marial amnd sc- ual relationtships of Virgimiia citizents, I dcan say with counfideclie lilactil'wsldd avelce ivdl nore Libertarianm votes despite thie fact that we would have still had disagreements. hibler~tains atremit time rigid ideologues that1 the .Reiubiliicant patty hats paimnted us to be. We 1recognize that mm politics, as mm any lite of imfhue, you 1can'lt always ave your cake anid ea~t it lul. I louver, we litu accept the plhilosopicallyi;illiteralte antchmoatlly hank- Irtupt shlutdhmlelt that social liberties aren't as importantlull as econmommic liberties. Cemntral to lilert 111. 11 phtilosopihy is time ecognuitionm thalt suiiuuuitiuy, peaceful associationus hetweena ipiee 1'etile focundationm for free imarkets. Fuir LibeaiIuhatns, Cuecitacii's stances out Iariage, the citrcg var, sex andc immuigration wevt-tlollfar iniviolatimng this tarinciple. lv iiredllhy .a hlardhprincipsle t accept that peoi- plie shld lcble fice to do whalt they wish in their plivile hlides, stoun115sit's peaucefuoh? Republi- calls 1ha1e1'ld ibc hertatrianis thteyre "stubbornm," bsut sttubornnetss ia defetnse of liberty cannot seriuly;bfe coiisidiered a vice. Iftwe locuk at time diretiondurl llctultcmre is mtovinhgin,uwmo is really bingitugodbblorni: those whmo would lilt social .rcstr ictiions, or those whmo would immpose themn .again~st lie veishes of mtost individuals? Thme result (tul"lie electilun speakis for itself. D~oes this tmeanu Libaertamrianms wanted time Dhemoucratic cauldidiie 'ferry McAuliffe to lie electedi'Far fruomm it. It simpltay man th at Repubihlians have not yet cuome far enoughaout socdilibier ties io uterit time early 150,00 Lib- ertaianIl voles thalt they cli~mRIobert Sarvis 'Siiihiiledi' awaly 11111 thtemm. While I have mo doiubhtt he Rei ~publicanstvwoucld halve tlakeni the elct1101 if tile Libsertarianm party had not fieldied iaumadidate, I have eqoally ito doubt ihiat the Repuictanlts would iaave wonm if they hadrildheselves of soume of their more meieiivall sic ill policies - some of whaichm, ,)rnt icthy shutre with ODumocrats. Apparnl ity, thoutghI, that was wishmfumi hiri. Redpubilicanms ha~ve already taken toi sociailimedlia to blame Libertarians for evslti" itieiiithe electionm of 1a "tree mmarket I aiicdidtiitha a siimpe relaxautiona of social pliieds mlighlthlved wonm. I woinder whuether thely have ever hueard that tinmeless hit of wis- domth: "Inlsanuity is cdoing time sante tiing over n~di v-slidc tin~gcdifferemnt results?" Derek Magill iv an LSA sophomore. Halliuweena is time onme night a yeahr whena girls canm dress ike a total shut amid no oter girls canm say anythinug about it," said Cady Hcrmonminm "Meam Girls," whichl is becomm- tug a generationu- al culi classic. As MA R commedic as this statementtaugust LEVINE sounmd, it could --_. - not he truer in time cuillege memtaity. With Hal- loween 2013 in our rear-view mir- roes, we are left withnbluhrry i~imoume pictures of ouor triemads dressed in outfits thmat would he considered "shutty" ottany other day of the year sinmply because they canm get away with it tutu"H~allo-weekenhd." hBut just. beeause this hotliday has becohmle time one day a year in which it is cultural- ly acceptable to dress in a less-than- traditional mmanner does not make it OK for wotnenm to he "shut shanmed" or for menm to harass wutomen slot- ply hecacuse of whmat thmey are wear- ing. thme Michuiganmlawvs ona sexual huarassmmenut still apply evenm when a woman is wearing a sexy schoolgirl costunme tin Halloweema. Accordinag to a self-proclaimed femnmist blog, "Filnally a Femmi- nistn 101 Blog," "slut shaming" occurs when a womaan is attaeked or shamed for beimag sexual tar act- ing on sexual feeliings. It is also, ".. the implication that ifsa woman has sex that traditional society disap- proves of, she should feel guilty anmd inferior." Slut shaming can ead to women having low self-esteem and to mnieatinikinag that womena are nmere sexual objects and are able to he tharownm arounid with little cont- sequemnce. Just because a wonuma is dressed a certaimi way on Hallow- een - or ammy other day of the year - does not mean that site is "easy" to get into bed, that she can be treated withaout respect tue that she can bae touched simmply because youu wanmt to toucih lier. iUfortunately,umuanmy cllege nmen overstep their houdaries - "Hallo-. weekenad" or not. Maybe they are shut shuamimgammd thinuk that itheycanmuouch a woman inappropriately because of time way she is dressed, or umaybe they wvere M~len she mever tauighit manr.It; is beforei imuportanut tim realize, however, advance! that unless you schoolgi: know a womanuu personually and you know that she consents to physical contact, you shouldn't touch lier. Regardless of whether or not youm thimnk it is fumnny or hiarmlmess to grab lier tout closely while takimng a group pictdure or thu sip your artm aroutud lier wvaist durinig a preganme, thieve actions maay mmake her uncomofortable. More than making her uncom- fortable, these actionms are actually proluibited by law. Accordinig to thme Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network, sexual assault is any, "umnwanted sexual conmtact that stops short of rape or attempted rape. This includes sexual touch- ing and fondling." So while mere touchinug at a bale may seem harm- less, even this eould pursue into a form of sexual assault punishable by law. In Michigan, there are four 0 n . .r degrees of Criminal Sexual Con- duct. These degrees differ in both definitionus and guidelines for pun- ishment, depemding on the type of inappropriate contact sustained. Furthermore, resistamace by the victim is not mnecessary to establish CSC has oceurred; therefore, if a womana is too scared or ashanmed to speak out, renmove herself fronm an unucomfortable situation or tell her assailamnt to stop, the perpetrator. canm still he crimnally prosecuted. It would be wrronmg to assumoe that just because a womman did tot com- plain of discom- fort, she was not )uld ask affected. Fear of shanme or rid- naking cule may pro- hibit her from s - sexy resisting at that ri or not. timie~ ha beciome desensi- tized to women being called "shuts," to women beling touched inappropriatehy or feeling uncomfortable. Pop cul- tore makes it seena OR for a man to touch a woman when he finds her sexy; it supports the idea that nmen can take what they want when they want it. But neither a womnan wearing a playboy bunny costume nor a woman wearing a turtleneck sweater is juistifiably "asking for it." Men should always ask before mask-' ing advances on a woman - regard- less of what she is wearing. If not, they could find their slut shaming, selves in a courtroom, whether or not it was a harmless joke nr a mis- taken gesture taken "too far." - Maura Levine can he reached at mtoval@umich.edu. 0 0 FOLLOW THE DAILY ON TWITTER Keep up with columnists, read Daily editorials, view cartoons and join in the debate. Check out (ae-mirhigandaily to got updates nun Daily content throughout the day.