it 
is 
not 
uncommon 
for 

institutions with expertise on 
a certain issue to submit briefs 
to the Supreme Court. He said 
in this particular case, the 
University can draw on its own 
experience to help the court 
make a sensible decision.

In 2006, Michigan voters 

approved an amendment to 
the state’s constitution, called 
Proposal 
2, 
which 
banned 

colleges and universities from 
granting preferential treatment 
to any student based on race, 
ethnicity, sex or national origin. 
Accordingly, 
the 
University 

abandoned 
race-based 

affirmative action, and attempts 
to achieve racial diversity on its 
campus through a race-neutral 
admissions process.

Regardless, in the brief, the 

University said it continues 
to 
believe 
the 
limited 

consideration 
of 
race 
is 

necessary to attain institutional 
diversity.

“To 
identify 
promising 

candidates 
effectively, 

admissions officers must be 
able to consider the fullness of 
each applicant’s background 

and 
experience, 
including 

socioeconomic 
profile, 

challenges overcome, cultural 
background — and also the 
applicant’s race,” the brief said.

In the case of Fisher v. 

University of Texas at Austin, 
a student named Abigail Fisher, 
who is white, is arguing that 
she would have been admitted 
to the UT Austin if not for her 
race. Currently, the University 
of Texas employs two parallel 
admissions systems: one is an 
automatic admissions program 
for 
in-state 
students 
who 

graduate in the top 10 percent 
of their classes — known as the 
10 percent plan — and the other 
is a holistic process used to 
evaluate out-of-state students 
as well as Texans who did not 
graduate at the top of their 
classes. The court originally 
heard the Fisher case in 2013, 
but sent it back to a lower 
court at the time for further 
review. The court will hear the 
case again in oral arguments 
scheduled for December. 

In 
the 
Fisher 
case, 
the 

court will decide the future 
of the consideration of race in 
admissions procedures — if 
it rules in favor of Fisher, all 
universities, including Texas, 
would be required to remove 

any consideration of race from 
their admissions programs.

As the result of previous 

affirmative 
action 
cases, 

universities may not use quota 
or point systems to achieve 
racial 
diversity, 
but 
may 

qualitatively 
consider 
race 

as one of many factors when 
making admissions decisions. 
In 2003, the court upheld 
the University of Michigan’s 
holistic 
affirmative 
action 

admissions policies practicied 
in the Law School, but in 
another case that same year, 
struck down the University’s 
undergraduate 
policy 
which 

employed a point system.

The outcome of the Fisher 

case could be determined by the 
potential swing vote of Justice 
Anthony 
Kennedy. 
He 
has 

tended to side with the more 
conservative justices against 
affirmative action in the past, if 
that is any indication of how the 
case could unfold.

Along these lines, Primus 

said the University’s brief is 
important as an example of 
an institution that currently 
operates how the University 
of Texas would be required to 
if the court ruled in favor of 
Fisher.

“One of the big questions for 

Justice Kennedy, and therefore 
for 
the 
Supreme 
Court 
— 

because Justice Kennedy is the 
median justice on this issue — is 
the extent to which universities 
can be racially diverse without 
race-based affirmative action,” 
he said. “We are a good 
example of a university that 
is trying hard to be racially 
diverse without (race-based) 
affirmative action.”

In 
support 
of 
the 
UT 

position, the University held 
in the brief that since race-
conscious admission programs 
were banned in Michigan, the 
University has had trouble 
meeting its goals for diversity 
on its campuses.

“Despite 
persistent 
and 

varied 
efforts 
to 
increase 

student-body racial and ethnic 
diversity 
by 
race-neutral 

means; 
despite 
committed 

efforts by University faculty, 
staff, students, and alumni 
to 
conduct 
race-neutral 

recruiting 
and 
admissions 

programs; 
and 
despite 

admissions 
consideration 

and 
extensive 
financial 

aid 
for 
socioeconomically 

disadvantaged 
students, 

admission 
and 
enrollment 

of 
underrepresented 

minority students have fallen 

precipitously in many of U-M’s 
schools 
and 
colleges 
since 

Proposal 2 was enacted,” the 
brief said.

To 
this 
end, 
the 
brief 

cited 
two 
Michigan 
Daily 

articles concerning minority 
enrollment at the University.

While the ruling in Fisher 

will not legally affect the 
University (as it is already 
banned from employing race 
considerations in admissions 
decisions 
based 
on 
state 

law), 
it 
could 
have 
broad 

policy implications for other 
universities 
and 
colleges 

nationwide.

Primus 
said 
other 

institutions 
currently 

employ the kinds of race-
based 
admissions 
processes 

the 
University 
previously 

employed.

“Nationwide, the Supreme 

Court has left the door open for 
certain kinds of consideration 
of race in admissions, so long 
as the system of admissions 
overall is careful to treat each 
applicant 
as 
an 
individual 

instead of as a manifestation of 
a racial category,” he said. “One 
of the questions is whether 
other states can continue to use 
the method that we used to use 
successfully here.”

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
Tuesday, November 3, 2015 — 3

Student the subject 
of armed robbery 
on Halloween

This 
Halloween, 
at 

approximately 
8:20 
p.m., 
a 

student was robbed by an armed, 
unknown male at the 1100 block of 
Oakland Street at East University 
Avenue.

The student’s cell phone was 

taken and the suspect fled on foot.

The suspect was described to 

Ann Arbor Police by the witness 
as being a Black male in his early 
20s, of medium build, wearing a 
backwards black hat.

Diane Brown, University Police 

spokeswoman, said AAPD has no 
further 
information 
regarding 

this incident at this time.

Students were notified of the 

armed robbery Nov. 2 at 12:49 
p.m., three days after it took place 
on Oct. 31.

On Oct. 19, students were 

notified of a home invasion at the 
700 block of Oakland Street. This 
suspect involved in this incident 
had a similar description — a 
Black male in his 20s of medium 
build wearing a backwards denim 
baseball hat.

Supreme Court 
rejects hearing 
Armstrong case

The U.S. Supreme Court on 

Monday said it won’t hear an 
appeal from the former Michigan 
assistant attorney general who 
lost a defamation suit filed by a 
former University student body 
president.

Chris Armstrong was the first 

openly gay Michigan Student 
Assembly (now Central Student 
Government) president. Shirvell, 
former state attorney general, was 
fired in 2010 for anti-gay rhetoric 
against Armstrong, which then 
attorney 
general 
Mike 
Cox 

deemed “harassing conduct.”

In February, a circuit court 

upheld 
the 
defamation 
suit, 

though it reduced the damages 
Shirvell owed to $3.5 million.

Armstrong alleged that Shirvell 

stalked and harassed him because 
of his sexuality. Shirvell was 
ultimately fired from his position 
after creating a blog titled “Chris 
Armstrong Watch” where he 
argued Armstrong was using 
his position as MSA president to 
promote a “radical homosexual 
agenda.”

Alum John Wu 
donates $10M to 
China partnership

John Wu and his wife Jane Sun 

donated $10 million to the Univer-
sity of Michigan’s Shanghai Jiao-
tong University Joint Institute; 
the University’s largest global 
partnership.

The donation will go toward 

the creation of the John Wu and 
Jane Sun Endowment Fund to 
fund scholarships, professors, fac-
ulty awards and student entrepre-
neurship funds.

Though the China-based insti-

tute is the largest global partner-
ship the University is involved in, 
the University sponsors initiatives 
in Ghana, India and Ethiopia.

University to aid in 
regional data hub

The National Science Founda-

tion is working to create a national 
data hub, and the University was 
chosen as one of five universities 
to take charge of the Midwest 
Big Data Innovation Hub. Other 
universities involved are Illinois, 
Indiana, North Dakota and Iowa 
State.

The Midwestern hub is one of 

four regional data hubs created 
across the United States.

By creating the date hubs, the 

NSF hopes to create partnerships 
to utilize the data to fix regional 
problems. The city of Detroit, Gen-
eral Motors, TechTown Detroit, 
the Henry Ford Health System, 
Domino’s Pizza, Ford Motor Com-
pany and Quicken Loans are all 
partners on the project.

The Midwest hub will focus on 

societal infrastructure, nature 
and health care.

—EMMA KINERY

NEWS BRIEFS

sphere,” Klein said. “This is how 
our current system deals with 
climate change.”

With 
weak 
support 
for 

constructive 
public 
policy 

in times of natural disasters, 
Klein argued, there is a great 
need to change the political 
infrastructure 
to 
implement 

preventative measures against 
future environmental disasters 
and better accommodate the 
victims of climate change.

Klein also spoke about the 

power 
of 
corporations 
that 

wield finances to exert political 

influence. 
She 
referenced 

billionaires Charles and David 
Koch’s $889 million contribution 
to a network of conservative 
advocacy groups as an example 
of “slowing down the march 
toward collectivism.”

By contrast, Klein pointed 

to the water crisis in nearby 
Flint, Mich. as an illustration 
of the power a collective efforts 
in 
addressing 
environmental 

justice issues. The discovery of 
lead in the water supply created 
a host of problems for the 
community, but local pressure 
to address the issue has led to 
progress mitigating it.

“This region is so blessed to 

have some of the most inspiring 

grassroots organizers … with a 
vision of a future that could be 
so much better,” Klein said.

Klein also spoke about how 

benefits related to recycling, watching 
waste, composting and eating less 
meat could lower individual carbon 
footprints — but stressed that 
individual efforts cannot come in lieu 
of regulatory policy.

“If 
we 
aren’t 
regulating 

corporations, we’re going to get 
nowhere,” she said.

“It’s not just enough that we 

have a green economy … we need 
a fair economy. That means we 
need principles,” Klein later 
added. “The first principle: no 
new fossil fuel infrastructure … 
The money we need to pay for 

this great transformation is out 
there, we just have to go after 
it, whether that means an end 
to fossil fuel subsidies, financial 
transaction 
taxes, 
increased 

royalties for fossil fuel extraction 
and cuts to military spendings.”

LSA senior Nicholas Jansen, 

who 
is 
involved 
with 
the 

Divest and Invest organization 
on campus, an international 
environmentalist 
group 
that 

lobbies universities to divest 
from fossil fuels, said Klein 
spoke to several points the 
organization aims to promote.

“We’ve really, especially this 

past year, started incorporating 
this climate justice narrative 
around 
our 
issues,” 
Jansen 

said. “Naomi, she touched on 
perfectly today why these issues 
are important, mainly that those 
who have contributed the least 
are being affected the most.”

LSA senior Valeriya Epshteyn, 

also a member of Divest and 
Invest in attendance Monday 
night, said she envisions a world 
wherein special interests and 
individuals don’t overshadow the 
collective good.

“We hope to achieve this 

collective power and a collective 
vision toward climate justice 
which pushes forth a just energy 
transition where the people that 
are most directly affected by 
climate change are lifted up as the 
center of a narrative,” she said.

NAOMI KLEIN
From Page 1

AMICUS
From Page 1

for the Prechter Lab, said she 
thought the lecture provided the 
audience with the science behind 
depression and bipolar disorder.

“It was a lot to take in, but it 

was really interesting to see how 
far we’ve come,” Eter said.

Eter said Hood’s view on 

genetic diagnosis is a developing 
topic in health care.

“It isn’t a big focus right now, 

but it should be,” Eter said. 
“(The Prechter Lab) looks at a 
lot of things that relate to that 
disorder, and one of those things 
is genetics.”

Melvin 
McInnis, 
principal 

investigator of the Prechter Fund, 
said the study of bipolar disorder 
is intriguing because the disorder 
in many ways represents the 
spectrum of human emotion.

“The study of bipolar disorder 

is truly the study of humanity, the 
range of human experience, the 
depth of the depression, the top of 
the highs,” he said. “The range of 
expression, emotion and behavior 
is the range of human behavior as 
we know it today.” 

BIPOLAR
From Page 1

ALLISON FARRAND/Daily

A fire broke out in a vacant property behind Sava’s restaurant on State Street on Monday afternoon.

FIRE AT VACANT BUILDING

CLAIRE ABDO/Daily

Music, Theatre & Dance sophomore Kristine Overman sings at the Voice Department Recital Monday Evening at 
the School of Music, Theatre & Dance accompanied by Graduate Student Trevor Chartrand. 

BE LT IT

@MICHIGANDAILY

