Broderick Johnson
recounts formation of
Obama’s community
outreach initiatives
By CAITLIN REEDY
Daily Staff Reporter
University
alum
Broderick
Johnson, White House cabinet
secretary
and
chair
of
the
administration’s
My
Brother’s
Keeper task force, delivered a
lecture about his experiences
in the White House at the Ford
School of Public Policy Monday
afternoon.
Johnson — who received his
law degree from the University —
joined President Barack Obama’s
administration in 2013.
During his address, Johnson
spoke of his experiences working
closely with Obama and his
leadership in My Brother’s Keeper,
a program created by Obama that
aims to address the persistent
opportunity gaps faced by young
men of color.
Johnson himself grew up in
lower-class areas of Baltimore,
he told the crowd. He said the
foundation
for
the
program
was prompted by the death of
Travyvon Martin, a Black teen, in
2012.
“The president spoke about
anger and angst after the death of
Trayvon Martin,” Johnson said.
“He and I talked about what we
could do to use the power of the
presidency to go big on this and do
something significant.”
Six
guidelines
drive
the
program: preparing young boys
for school, ensuring they have
the ability to read by grade three,
making sure boys graduate from
high school in preparation for
college, ensuring they complete
postsecondary
education,
entering the workforce and, most
importantly, giving the population
targeted second chances.
“Boys and young men of
color are more likely to live in
concentrated
poverty,
attend
poorly funded schools,” Johnson
said. “They too often receive harsh
punishments and are least likely
to be given a second chance …
we can’t have millions of young
people missing from this society.”
Johnson also spoke about the
extension of My Brother’s Keeper
into the private sector. Through
the My Brother’s Keeper Alliance,
the program also corresponds
with the NBA. Their program, the
“In Real Life Campaign,” aims to
connect every child who wants a
mentor with a player and to share
some of the backgrounds of NBA
players.
Johnson said more than 200
communities have pledged to be
My Brother’s Keeper communities
to combat current statistics on
educational
achievement
for
young men of color. Last year,
Johnson said, 4,000 three- and
four-year-olds were suspended
from preschool. He also noted
that young Black men, who
comprise 6 percent of the
population, account for more than
half of all homicides in the nation.
“(My
Brother’s
Keeper)
is
about disrupting the status quo,
where everyone has a fair shot and
everyone is in the game,” Johnson
said. “While social transformation
is complex and measured over
decades, I can personally see that
we are getting closer and closer
every day, but we still have a lot of
work to do.”
Beyond his talk on My Brother’s
Keeper, Johnson also discussed
his work as cabinet secretary and
relationship with Obama. Despite
nearing the end of his term,
Johnson said the administration
has plans to continue its work.
He
touched
on
several
memorable moments he shared
with
the
Obamas:
crossing
the bridge in Selma, and many
briefings in the Oval Office.
“Working in the White House
is the hardest job I have ever
had,” Johnson said. “As cabinet
secretary, we have surreal and
unexpected
challenges
with
a Congress that has a lot of
challenges within itself. It’s been
my distinct honor to get to know
the president as a friend. He is
quite an amazing human being. It’s
hard but incredibly rewarding.”
2-News
2 — Tuesday, February 2, 2016
News
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
THREE THINGS YOU
SHOULD KNOW TODAY
The Michigan men’s
basketball
team
returns home for a
two-game stretch against
ranked teams: No. 22 Indiana
on Tuesday and then No. 10
Michigan State on Saturday.
>> SEE SPORTS ON 7
2
CAMPUS EVENTS & NOTES
Defense
lecture
WHAT: Ralph
Vartabedian, national
correspondent for the
Los Angeles Times, will
examine the nation’s
weapons plan.
WHO: Gerald R. Ford
Presidential Library
WHEN: Today from 7:30
p.m. to 9 p.m.
WHERE: Gerald Ford
Library
Inuit musical
performance
WHAT: Tanya Tagaq
will perform ancient Inuit
music, accompanying a
screening of “Nanook of
the North,” a 1922 film.
WHO: University
Musical Society
WHEN: Today from
7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
WHERE: Lydia
Mendelssohn Theatre
San
Francisco
Police
Department officials will
launch an investigation
following the December
death of an unarmed Black
man in December, the Los
Angeles Times reported. A
video of the shooting has
sparked protests nationwide.
1
Noon lecture
series
WHAT: Jeffrey Moser,
assistant professor of art
history at Brown University,
will lecture on the Zhenghe
era bronze cauldron owned
by Emporer Huizong in 1116.
WHO: Lieberthal-Rogel
Center for Chinese Studies
WHEN: Today from 12 p.m.
to 1 p.m.
WHERE: School of Social
Work, Room 1636
Seven cases of the
Zika
virus
have
been
confirmed
in
Houston,
ABC
reported.
Officials
say
the virus, which is linked
to birth deformities, has
been found in patients
who
have
traveled
to
Latin
countries.
3
Open swing
class
WHAT: A social swing
dance workshop with
warm-up, basic lessons
throughout and free dancing
at the end. No experience or
partner required to attend.
WHO: Mswing
WHEN: Today at
9:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.
WHERE: Michigan
League, Henderson Room
Movie
screening
WHAT: Take a break from
homework with a movie
screening of “Groundhog
Day.”
WHO: Center for Campus
Involvement
WHEN: Today from 7
p.m. to 10 p.m.
WHERE: Michigan
Union, Kuenzel Room
Flint water
crisis debate
WHAT: Students are
invited to debate whether
the people of Michigan
should recall Gov. Rick
Snyder over the ongoing
Flint water crisis.
WHO: Michigan Political
Union
WHEN: Today from 7 p.m.
to 8:30 p.m.
WHERE: Michigan Union
Prayer meeting
series
WHAT: A weekly prayer
meeting will take place
along with a talk on wisdom
by Joseph Matthias.
WHO: University
Christian Outreach
WHEN: Today from
7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
WHERE: Campus Chapel
TUESDAY:
Tables and Tents
THURSDAY:
Twitter Talk
FRIDAY:
Photos of the Week
WEDNESDAY:
In Other Ivory Towers
MONDAY:
This Week in History
TABLES AND TENTS
Fundraisers for Flint, Honduras
CLAIRE ABDO/Daily
Art & Design freshman Nate Rieger browses albums at
Encore Records on East Liberty Street on Monday.
OFF THE RECORD
The Michigan Daily is
introducing a new rotating
item, Tents and Tables, that
seeks to highlight campus
activities on the Diag and near
the posting wall in Angell Hall.
Student organizations
tabled at Angell Hall and the
basement of the Union to
raise funds for the Flint water
crisis and Students Helping
Honduras.
The National Council
of Negro Women at the
University collected water
bottles, wipes and money
for relief in Flint, where
contaminated water pipes
have corroded, allowing lead
into the city’s water supply.
To provide an alternative
for the contaminated water
in the city, the NCNW will
donate its collections to Live
United’s Flint Water Fund.
LSA juniors Micah Griggs
and Asia Paige said NCNW
wanted to contribute because
of connections to the majority
Black population in Flint.
“We just think that
since Flint is a heavily Black
population and since they are
being affected by this crisis
and we’re a Black collegiate
organization, we just thought
it was in our duty to fundraise
and help our neighboring
city,” Griggs said.
As for the entire
organization, Paige said the
NCNW also raises funds to
sponsor future events hosted
by the organization, such as
the HIV/AIDS Monologue
last December, by conducting
bubble tea and Panera
fundraisers. She said NCNW
hopes to add a capstone event
to their fundraising efforts.
“We’re trying to hold an
event that showcases Black
culture and Black talent,” Page
said. “It’s called ‘Black En
Vogue.’”
Students Helping
Honduras, a student
organization at the University
that sends members to build
schools in Honduras to end
gang violence and poverty
through youth empowerment
and education also manned
tables at Angell Hall Monday
to raise funds.
The group sold packets of
Puppy Chow to complement
their other, larger fundraising
efforts in April and February.
LSA freshman Veronica
Orellana said the Angell Hall
area can be a hit or a miss
when it comes to collecting
funds.
Faculty
music recital
WHAT: Kathryn
Votapek will perform
Brahms Sonatas
on the violin with
a guest pianist.
WHO: School of Music,
Theatre & Dance
WHEN: Today at 8 p.m.
WHERE: Stamps
Auditorium
RYAN MCLOUGHlIN/Dailly
Broderick Johnson, White House cabinet secretary, discusses his experiences as the chair of the My Brother’s Keeper
Task Force as a part of the Policy Talks series in the Ford School of Public Policy on Monday.
dean
for
undergraduate
education, said the goal of the
strategic plan was to find realistic
ways to implement the goals of
students regarding the climate
on campus.
“We did want to come up
with a way to help students
build their own capacity to think
about how you move from a good
idea to something that might
become a part of a strategic
plan at something like a major
university,” Dillard said.
Dillard said she thought the
talk went well, but she was
disappointed by the low turnout.
“I
think
students
aren’t
connecting to this process and it’s
really tough to figure out how to
get them to connect,” Dillard said.
Amanda Alexander, assistant
professor in the Afroamerican
and African Studies Department,
discussed a variety of initiatives
in the current draft of the plan,
such as the Ban the Box initiative,
which would remove questions
about an individual’s criminal
record from applications for
admission
the
University.
Another initiative in the draft
plan calls for disarming campus
police officers.
Alexander
said
her
goal
in pushing to include these
initiatives is to help embrace
potential
students
at
the
University and foster a greater
sense of community.
“Whether it’s mental health,
whether it’s being undocumented,
whether it’s having a criminal
record, there are all of these
points of stigma and silence and
shame that students don’t have
here,” she said.
Matthew
Countryman,
associate professor of history
and American culture, presented
on the ways affirmative action
and University policies impacted
minority enrollment.
Affirmative action has been
banned
at
Michigan
public
colleges since the passage of
a statewide ballot proposal in
2006. In that year, Black students
comprised 7.2 percent of the
overall campus population. In
2015, Black students make up
4.82 percent.
Countryman discussed how
last year there was an increase
in underrepresented minorities
in the incoming class, which he
says could be due to less early
applicants being accepted than in
years past. Countryman said this
change implies the University
could make adjustments to the
admissions process that might
lead to more diversity.
“It’s shocking to me that a
slight tweak in the process could
produce this shift when we were
told for 10 years that there was
nothing the University could do,”
Countryman said.
Faculty
members
also
discussed
how
the
language
of plan itself may contribute to
an insufficient conversation on
issues of inclusion. Ruby Tapia,
associate professor of women’s
studies and English, said diversity
may no longer be the optimal
word for campaigns such as this
due to it being overused, which
she termed “diversity fatigue.”
“People feel like we don’t need
to talk about these issues because
we’ve
already
talked
about
them,” Tapia said.
Tapia
recommended
the
word
justice,
which
several
participants
said
elicits
a
better sense of action. She also
commended the inclusion of the
word equity in the plan’s name.
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White House cabinet secretary
stresses inspiring Black youth