Though campus is abuzz
about the presidential election,
international students, many of
whom have never experienced
the American political process
firsthand, are bringing a new
perspective to the contentious
race.
Noting
political
discourse
among students has been tense at
times during the election season,
Business sophomore Jonathan
Cheng, who is from Hong Kong,
said he thinks Americans should
first recognize what a privilege
it is for them to be able to
democratically elect their leader.
“I think it is pretty impressive
for Americans to vote for their
president,” Cheng said. “Voters
should treasure this opportunity
where this is not a certainty for
people in many other countries.”
Cheng said he decided to
pursue his college studies in
the United States, both because
American
universities
are
consistently
ranked
highest
in the world, and because
he valued the more relaxed
learning
environment
and
relationship between professors
and students.
“The relationship between
students and faculty are more
‘equal’ and friendly,” Cheng said.
“I remembered in my accounting
class, while a student dropped
his notes on the floor, the lecturer
The University of Michigan
Central Student Government
launched a new campaign,
“It Starts With Me,” at an
event on the Diag Tuesday.
The initiative aims to bring
awareness
to
racism
and
discrimination on campus.
As
part
of
the
event,
students were also encouraged
to submit feedback to the body
about their initiatives and
plans this semester.
For
the
event,
representatives
from
the
general assembly, as well as
CSG commissions, were posted
near Mason Hall with 600
donuts, CSG handouts and a
suggestions board for students
to write on.
As of Tuesday afternoon,
the suggestions on the board
primarily
centered
around
transportation
to
North
Campus, as well as expressions
of
solidarity
for
minority
students on campus.
LSA junior Zena Shunnar,
deputy programming officer
for CSG, said the event was
organized in part because
leaders in the organization
believe the body needs to be
more accessible to students.
Increasing transparency of the
assembly’s initiatives was part
of the platform of newMICH,
the political party led by CSG
President David Schafer and
CSG Vice President Micah
Griggs, LSA seniors.
“I think it’s important to
show students what we’re
doing,
to
actually
have
interaction,” Shunnar said at
the event. “The main reason
we chose Diag Day (was) just to
show face and to not be behind
a door so much.”
“One trend that I’ve noticed
is about more frequent buses
on weekend, like the timing
of
buses,”
Shunnar
said.
“And then just, like, a lot of
people who have been feeling
discrimination
on
campus,
supporting different causes
and minorities on campus.”
In the past few months,
several
incidents
targeting
minority students have sparked
controversy on campus. In
September, posters were hung
in Mason and Haven Halls
bearing slogans like “denying
your heritage … be white.” In
response to the slogans, more
than 200 students marched
through campus, chanting “No
justice, no peace” to express
solidarity.
By the end of the day, the
suggestion board was covered
with more than 300 different
suggestions,
ranging
from
“No more meatless Monday”
to “Fight racism,” and CSG
representatives
said
they
University
of
Michigan
alum
Stanford
Lipsey,
the longtime publisher of
The Buffalo News and a
significant donor to several
initiatives and groups on
campus,
including
student
publications, died Tuesday
morning at the age of 89.
Lipsey
was
a
native
of
Omaha,
Nebraska
and
graduated
from
the
University
of
Michigan
in
1948
with
a
B.A.
in
Economics. While a student,
he was a photographer for
The Michigan Daily and a
photography editor for the
Michiganensian yearbook.
In 2005, Lipsey donated
$3 million for the renovation
of the Student Publications
Building,
which
houses
several campus publications
including
the
Daily.
The
Board
of
Regents
then
renamed
the
Stanford
Lipsey Student Publications
Building in his honor. Lipsey
also
established
a
series
of
annual
scholarships
and
prizes
in
2007
for
michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Wednesday, November 2, 2016
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Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail
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INDEX
Vol. CXXVI, No. 21
©2016 The Michigan Daily
NEWS......................... 2A
OPINION.....................4A
S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7A
SUDOKU..................... 2A
A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 A
S TAT E M E N T. . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 B
See INTERNATIONAL, Page 3A
CAROLYN GEARIG/Daily
Wayne State Prof. Saeed A. Khan speaks at Islamophobia: Politics, Priorities and Prejudice in 2016 at the Hatcher Graduate Library Tuesday.
With the presidential election
less than a week away, about
50 people gathered Tuesday at
Hatcher Graduate Library to
listen to researchers Saeed Khan
and Sarrah Buageila discuss data
on how everyone, but especially
those
from
marginalized
communities,
can
affect
the
political process at both the local
and national level.
The event — Islamophobia:
Politics, Priorities and Prejudice
in 2016 — was organized by
the Institute for Social Policy
and Understanding, a nonprofit
founded in 2002 that conducts
research aimed at empowering
American Muslims to increase
community
involvement
and
participation in democracy in the
United States.
Buageila, the project manager
for ISPU’s research department,
began the talk by detailing the
results of two polls on American
Muslims. She said the ISPU found
61 percent of Americans hold
an unfavorable view of Islam,
roughly half of all Americans do
not know a Muslim and 80 percent
of U.S. media coverage of Islam is
negative. Furthermore, she said
only 60 percent of Muslims are
registered to vote in the United
See LIPSEY, Page 3A
JEREMY MITNICK/Daily
University of Michigan students write suggestions for Central Student Government as part of a campaign to increase
inclusivity and tolerance on campus through an event on the Diag Tuesday.
The Statement
Daily Arts Writer Adam
DePollo travels to Valparaiso
and the home of his favorite
poet, Pablo Neruda.
» Page 4B
michigandaily.com
For more stories and coverage, visit
See DIAG, Page 3A
See LECTURE, Page 3A
Alex Hill, data and design
coordinator
for
the
city
of
Detroit’s Health Department,
spoke
at
the
University
of
Michigan
Institute
for
the
Humanities Tuesday on the
importance of contextualizing
data
Hill heads Detroitography, a
project designed to document
how
Detroit’s
history
has
changed its geography, economy
and
society.
The
project,
launched by Hill shortly after
he moved to Detroit in 2009,
emphasizes how residents tie
their identities to the spaces and
places where they live.
“When I first moved to the
city, I had a lot of questions about
where things were and what was
going on, so in my free time, I
started pulling data and creating
my own maps to understand
it,” Hill said. “In that process,
I was connecting with a lot of
other people in Detroit who were
making maps and they were
creating some great work.”
For Hill, a love of maps started
at an early age. As a former
See MAP, Page 3A
International
students draw
value from
U.S. election
Nonprofit urges Muslim-Americans
to participate in political process
GOVERNMENT
Presidential race sparks intrigue,
concern outside the United States
CALEB CHADWELL
Daily Staff Reporter
Researchers present data on low voter registration, high Islamophobic sentiments
KAELA THEUT
Daily Staff Reporter
Stanford
Lipsey, ‘U’
alum, dies
at age 89
CAMPUS LIFE
Former Buffalo News
editor was significant
donor to student groups
CALEB CHADWELL
Daily Staff Reporter
Central Student Government hosts Diag
event to gather feedback from students
Participant concerns center on University diversity, access to North Campus
ERIN DOHERTY
For the Daily
Lecturer
links data
and maps
in Detroit
STATE
Alex Hill discusses
project to create
cartographies of city
MARGOT SHERIDAN
Daily Staff Reporter