Opinion

JENNIFER CALFAS

EDITOR IN CHIEF

AARICA MARSH 

and DEREK WOLFE 

EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS

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MANAGING EDITOR

420 Maynard St. 

Ann Arbor, MI 48109

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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
4A — Monday, March 16, 2015

Claire Bryan, Regan Detwiler, Ben Keller, Payton Luokkala, 

Aarica Marsh, Victoria Noble, Michael Paul, 

Anna Polumbo-Levy, Allison Raeck, Melissa Scholke, 

Michael Schramm, Matthew Seligman, Linh Vu, 

Mary Kate Winn, Jenny Wang, Derek Wolfe

EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS

M

any of you probably have 
pets at home. Whether 
they’re 
the 
standard 

dog or cat, or 
even something 
a little more odd 
like a miniature 
pig, chameleon, 
hedgehog 
or 

stoat 
(seriously, 

look 
them 
up, 

they’re adorable), 
we love and pro-
vide for them. 
We want to make 
sure our pets are 
safe, well nour-
ished and healthy, treating them like 
a member of our own family. But 
when it comes to animals that we do 
not call “pets,” our desire to protect 
and defend goes out the window.

For a long time, humans have con-

sidered themselves the top of the ani-
mal kingdom. Intellectually, perhaps. 
We have some brain capacities that 
other developed and complex organ-
isms have yet to match. Our reason-
ing is finely tuned, and our ability to 
perceive potential results helps us 
to plan and avoid problematic out-
comes. But then again, we claimed 
the title “top of the animal kingdom” 
ourselves. No other animal has said 
“Ah yes, homo sapiens are indeed 
superior to us in terms of X, Y and 
Z.” We gave ourselves that title and 
have placed ourselves at the top and 
categorized other animals in relation 
to the widespread hairless ape.

I guess I should announce that 

I’m a whole-hearted believer in 
evolution. In fact, it’s my major. I 
know there has been a disconnecton 
between humans and the rest of the 
animal kingdom for centuries, and 
Charles Darwin, Thomas Malthus 

and Thomas Huxley were some of 
the first to take the stance that we 
weren’t an exception to the rules of 
nature. But recently, there has been 
a lack of concern for those that we’re 
not close to, or those that we do not 
consider as family.

In America, we don’t have that 

many native large creatures. Yes, 
bears and buffalo can be huge, 
but how often do we actually see 
these in physical proximity to our-
selves? Humans are the ones that 
are large and smart, in comparison 
to the dogs and cats and other pets 
with which we 
are 
constantly 

interacting. 
I 

think that this is 
why there’s not 
as much stress 
to protect the 
animals that are 
not around us, 
because there’s a 
twisted percep-
tion of how we, 
as humans, are in the animal king-
dom. We’re not dwarfed in stature 
by many animals, and we’re hardly 
rivaled in strength. Therefore, our 
lives are not in perspective.

Elephants are the largest land 

mammal. These enormous creatures 
are found in high concentrations 
throughout 
India, 
Africa 
and 

Sri 
Lanka, 
interacting 
with 

humans in many settings, such as 
transportation, tourist attractions 
and when habitats collide. Though 
they can be deemed as sensitive and 
docile animals, they can cause great 
damage to small towns, demolishing 
homes and cars. A similar situation 
can be found in Africa with gorillas 
and rhinoceroses attacking humans 
when they feel threatened. Those 

individuals who interact with them 
on a constant basis are aware of the 
power that they possess. It allows 
humans to see their place in the 
animal kingdom, where we stand 
in physical strength and emotional 
capabilities 
such 
as 
mourning 

and outrage. When we lose that 
perspective, I think we lose respect 
for the other creatures with which 
we share this planet.

We’re constantly driven by our 

own selfish endeavors, regardless of 
the consequences for the creatures 
that 
cannot 
speak. 
Destruction 

of 
habitats, 

killing for sport 
and killing for 
products 
like 

ivory or hands 
(yes, 
gorilla 

hands 
are 
a 

commodity) 
are 
driving 

these creatures 
to 
extinction. 

We think that 

humans are at the top, mighty over 
these beasts. But if they could have 
the chance to defend themselves, 
humans would easily lose. A gunshot 
can end any life, whether it’s that of a 
human, a cat or a massive pachyderm. 
But if left to nature’s rules, those that 
are strong would prevail.

Unfortunately, those who hold 

the gun are at the top and dic-
tate what happens in nature. Just 
because they’re not our pets doesn’t 
mean that we can disrespect these 
animals. They’re on the same phylo-
genetic tree that we are. We are not 
an addendum to the animal king-
dom, but rather in it together.

 
— Sara Shamaskin can be 

reached at scsham@umich.edu.

Humans in the animal kingdom

SARA
SHAMASKIN

The fight over the right to pee

C

harin Davenport, a transgen-
der activist and professor at 
both Delta College and Sagi-

naw Valley State 
University, 
has 

been 
extremely 

vocal 
regarding 

recent events at 
a Midland Planet 
Fitness, where last 
week, gym patron 
Yvette 
Cormier’s 

membership 
was 

revoked 
after 

she 
continuously 

hassled other gym 
patrons and man-
agement about a transgender woman 
using the women’s locker room. The 
story has since garnered national 
attention, having been picked up by 
both Fox News and MSNBC.

Davenport, a veteran and former 

journalist, gave her take on the story, 
and told attendees her personal experi-
ences as a transgender woman at a stu-
dent-run event last Friday at East Quad. 
In her opening statements, Davenport 
described the event in Midland as “one 
of those before and after moments” of 
transgender history that should be of 
great importance to those identifying as 
transgender and their advocates.

In light of recently introduced 

legislation in Texas, Florida and 
Kentucky that, if passed, would effec-
tively entrust cisgender citizens to 
police gendered bathrooms, incentiv-
izing surveillance in some instances 
with a $2,000 bounty, Davenport 
may indeed be right. The happenings 
at Planet Fitness have since become a 
vignette in discussions surrounding the 
legitimacy of whistleblowing transgen-
der citizens and their bathroom use.

Davenport views the introduction 

of what she call “Bathroom Bounty 
Bills” as completely unnecessary. She 
believes a transgender person should 
be able to use bathrooms, locker rooms 
or any other facility that is congruent 
with their gender identity.

“It seems inconceivable to me that 

people feel the need to legislate what 
others can do based on whether they 
have penises or vaginas,” Davenport 
lamented. “If I have to take a pee, for 
some reason many of our elected lead-
ers feel the need to decide how and 
where I do it.”

Davenport 
segued 
seamlessly 

between “Bounty Bills” and an expla-
nation of her personal journey in com-
ing to terms with her female identity, 
a story underscored by tenets of the 
transphobic society of the mid-20th 
century in which she came of age.

Growing up in the Saginaw area, 

Davenport felt stifled by the senti-
ments of both her direct environment 
and those expressed in the media; she 
took these as signals to “shut up” and 
lead a cisgender life.

“I was afraid to talk to anybody 

about it,” she disclosed to me after the 
event. “I felt like my body was right, 
but that I was wrong.”

So she attempted to hyper-mascu-

linize herself; she engaged in drug use 
and partook in any dare that came her 
way, even joining the military after 
high school in hopes that the experi-
ence would “toughen her up.” It wasn’t 
until after two failed marriages and 
three children that Davenport began 
her transition.

In lieu of leading a quiet life as 

a transgender woman, Davenport 
became an out-
spoken 
repre-

sentative 
for 

the transgender 
community, spe-
cifically 
regard-

ing the rights of 
transgender vet-
erans. However, 
she considers her 
work in advocat-
ing for 2014 non-
discrimination legislation for LGBTQ 
employees in Bay County to be her 
entrance to the political theater.

According to Davenport, her one of 

her biggest challenges since her debut 
has been trying to work with Rep. Gary 
Glenn, (R–Larkin Township), who co-
authored 
Michigan’s 
controversial 

Marriage Protection Amendment. The 
amendment’s disputed legality in the 
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals is at the 
center of current U.S. Supreme Court 
proceedings on same-sex marriage.

Glenn has also been outspoken 

about the Planet Fitness event.

“Planet Fitness obviously should 

rethink its anti-woman, anti-reality 
policy,” Glenn was reported to have 
said in an MLive article. “If they 
don’t, they shouldn’t be surprised in 
a conservative family-friendly com-
munity such as Midland if they lose 
more female members.”

“Sometimes it feels like his number 

one cause in life seems to be to keep 
me out (of the bathroom),” Daven-
port said last Friday in response to 
Glenn’s comments, “I’m not sure he 
understands what he’s talking about 
because I don’t get the sense that he 
understands what those of us in the 
trans community are talking about.”

I’d agree with Davenport on that one.
It’s a strange world we live in when 

white, conservative men feel that they 
can express obstinacy to humanist acts 
under the guise of accusing others of 
discrimination. In my opinion, if any-
one should be accused of being “anti-
woman” and “anti-reality,” it should 
be Cormier — after all, it was she 
who, over a four-day period, sought to 
embarrass, vilify and further margin-
alize a fellow woman.

Despite this obvious paradox, many 

have rushed to Cormier’s defense. 
On a Fox News segment titled “Legal 
Insanity,” Elisabeth Hasselbeck took 
a haphazard approach to analyzing 
the event from a legal standpoint. One 
of the segment’s contributors, Keith 
Ablow, a psychiatrist and author, made 
the following claim:

“They’re not settled on the fact that 

when somebody … declares, ‘I am of 

this gender,’ but 
they 
are 
ana-

tomically 
and 

genetically 
of 

another 
gender, 

people who see 
that 
individual 

have strong feel-
ings, like, ‘Look, 
I’m being viewed 
potentially while 
unclothed.’”

He’s got a point: ignorance some-

times 
goes 
unconsidered 
when 

attempting to legislate in ways accept-
ing and fair to those with marginalized 
identities. However, it seems that those 
views are, at the very least, allotted a 
bully pulpit on cable television. I expe-
rience “strong feelings” of nausea with 
regard to the latter, but I stomach it all 
the same. Opponents of inclusionary 
tactics should have to follow suit.

I wouldn’t expect those deaf to the 

plights of subjugated groups to change 
their views. However, what I would 
expect is, at the very least, a certain level 
of respect for another citizen’s right to 
conduct themself in a manner in which 
they believe they will feel healthy and 
safe. If a transgender individual has the 
courage to express themselves in the 
face of predetermined societal norms 
in a way in which they feel is congru-
ent with their identity, that’s their right. 
Bodily integrity and one’s right to pri-
vacy are civil liberties which shouldn’t 
by any means be abridged, regardless 
of the “strong feelings” one has to a 
certain means of expression. Even con-
servative lawmakers — self-proclaimed 
warriors of the U.S. Constitution — 
should understand that.

 
— Austin Davis can be reached 

at austchan@umich.edu.

AUSTIN 
DAVIS

L

ast week, a video surfaced of members of the Sigma Alpha 
Epsilon fraternity at the University of Oklahoma chanting 
a song littered with several racial slurs and profanities. 

David Boren, the President of the University of Oklahoma, reacted 
promptly to the matter. Within 48 hours of the video gaining 
national attention, Boren expelled the fraternity members deemed 
integral in the chant’s orchestration and ordered the members of 
the fraternity to vacate their house, severing all ties between SAE 
and the university. Many universities across the country, and their 
respective presidents, have acted poorly and inefficiently when 
issues have arisen in the Greek life community, but Boren had the 
power to enact strong university sanctions due, in no small part, 
to the University of Oklahoma’s claimed ownership of fraternity 
houses. However, recent claims have stated that the fraternity owns 
the land, while the university has legal claims over the house itself. 
This authority is essential to swift decision-making and assertion 
of power over Greek life when inappropriate behavior occurs.

At the University of Michigan, President 

Mark Schlissel doesn’t wield such authority 
over Greek life, limiting his ability to act 
as effectively in enacting sanctions for the 
Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity, which vandalized 
a northern Michigan ski resort, resulting 
in over $100,000 in damages. According to 
Dean of Students Laura Blake Jones’ letter 
outlining the sanctions to the fraternity, SAM 
has been suspended from the Interfraternity 
Council for four years, and the chapter is no 
longer recognized by the University. Due 
to the way in which Greek life is organized 
at the University, these sanctions become 
questionable and arguably useless unless the 
national chapters take action.

These kinds of sanctions have been put 

in place here at the University in the past, 
such as those levied against the University’s 
SAE chapter. But, under this problematic 
system, SAE is able to function in largely 
the same way. Since their house isn’t owned 
by the University, they’re still able to act as 
a fraternity; they’re simply no longer a part 
of the Interfraternity Council after being 
suspended for several hazing allegations. 
The most recent sanctions will place SAM 
in a similar situation. Unlike SAE, SAM has 
been indefinitely suspended by its national 
chapter. However, the sanctions the national 
chapter has taken against the University’s 
SAM chapter are unclear.

The University must reevaluate how 

fraternities are punished. Fraternities that 
are suspended and/or kicked off campus 
are sanctioned for a reason. It’s problematic 
that they are still able to exist. Currently, 
all violations by Greek life chapters are run 
through the Greek Activities Review Panel. 
Because all members of GARP are affiliated 
with Greek life, bias potentially becomes 
an issue when bringing forward issues 
within the Greek system. Self-governance 
has its inherent issues. It would be more 
beneficial to include non-Greek life members, 

administration and the University’s president 
on the board. As more and more fraternity 
scandals are erupting across the country, it’s 
vital that universities hold the proper power 
in order to act in an effective and meaningful 
manner.

Recently, too many fraternities have made 

headlines, and not for respectable reasons. 
This week alone, University of Maryland’s 
chapter of Kappa Sigma has taken the 
spotlight after an e-mail promoting racism 
and non-consensual sex was leaked. A 
common theme between these scandals is 
that something, whether an e-mail or a video, 
is being leaked. Although the e-mail from 
the Kappa Sigma member was dated January 
2014, it’s only surfacing now. The recently 
leaked media from various chapters across 
the country seems to indicate that there’s a 
systemic and institutional problem that needs 
to be examined. This calls for universities to 
be making more investigations of chapters to 
regulate the ideals of such institutions.

It’s not the exclusive responsibility of 

universities’ respective authorities to do 
the policing of Greek life. There should 
be a common understanding within these 
communities 
that 
these 
behaviors 
are 

completely unacceptable. Greek life members 
across the country should be taking the 
responsibility to improve the reputation of 
their organizations, but more importantly 
to ensure that the beliefs and values of their 
chapters are concurrent with positive goals 
and acceptance across the board.

When functioning properly, Greek life 

provides several benefits to its members. The 
recent scandals from fraternities across the 
country have shown that there is a problem 
with these institutions. Ultimately, it’s essential 
for presidents of the universities to have more 
authority over the system and for leaders of 
these communities to self-evaluate whether or 
not the values of its members are acceptable in 
order to combat these issues and make Greek 

Reevaluating the system

The University needs more authority to sanction Greek life 

FROM THE DAILY

Bodily integrity and 

one’s right to privacy 

are civil liberties that 

shouldn’t be abridged.

When it comes to 

animals that we de not 
call “pets,” our desire 
to protect and defend 
goes out the window.

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— OutVets Founder Bryan Bishop reacting to the lifting of the Boston 

St. Patrick’s Day parade ban on same-sex rights activists marching in the parade. 

For the first time, activists marched in the parade this Sunday, March 15.

“

NOTABLE QUOTABLE

Finally in the city of Boston 

we’re seeing the inclusivity we 
never thought we would see.”

