T
his
Wednesday,
the
University of Michigan
College
Republicans
and
American
Enterprise
Institute
are
sponsoring
Charles
Murray,
a
white
supremacist,
to
speak
on
campus and promote his new
book. Murray, who is a fellow
at the American Enterprise
Institute, co-wrote the “The
Bell Curve” in 1994. The
publication of this book marked
the 1990s re-emergence of
racist eugenics and biological
determinist
theories
using
pseudo-science,
linking
IQ
to race and claiming white
intellectual superiority. He is
considered a white nationalist
by the Southern Poverty Law
Center. He is an “alt-right”
bigot who is emboldened by
President Donald Trump.
The
sponsoring
organizations have stated to
The Michigan Daily that they
want to distance themselves
from
the
“alt-right”
and
white supremacist movement.
If
they
are
sincere,
they
should cancel this event. His
upcoming event has already
inspired another racist poster
campaign on campus claiming
white
superiority,
which
threatens the safety and rights
of the students and faculty
at the University, especially
immigrants,
Muslims,
trans
people,
women
and
other
minority students who are
most consistently targeted.
The event must be canceled
or
shut
down.
Murray’s
speaking engagements have
been
canceled
at
colleges
such as Assumption College,
Azusa
Pacific
University
and
protested
at
Harvard
University, Middlebury College
and some other campuses and
venues due to safety concerns.
There
is
no
reasonable
debate to be had with white
supremacists. Actions speak
louder than words. Statements
from the University logically
refuting these theories, such
as the University’s Diversity,
Equity and Inclusion plan last
September, are important but
insufficient. If the University
means what it says about its
commitment
to
diversity,
equity and inclusion, the safety
of its students and requests
to stop the spread of racist
violence on our campus, they
will cancel the event.
The
movement
for
immigrant
rights
and
against
Trump
is
gaining
in
strength,
even
forcing
many
leading
Republicans
to distance themselves from
Trump. By sponsoring this
event, the University College
Republicans
are
not
only
supporting Trump’s attacks,
but attempting to strengthen
the most violent, racist and
reactionary
forces
of
the
Trump movement.
This is not an event that any
college campus should condone
— it threatens the safety and well-
being of students and faculty
and threatens the academic
mission to promote learning and
leadership. The confrontations
will not be confined to the
time and place of the event;
hate crimes will escalate, and
innocent
people
will
suffer
verbal and physical abuses. If
white supremacists are given
a platform by the University,
University administration will
be directly responsible for aiding
and allowing bigoted and racist
attacks to endanger students.
Especially after the horrific
murder
of
Heather
Heyer
by a white supremacist in
Charlottesville, Va., the danger
of “alt-right,” white supremacist
and fascist organizing is clear
to anyone who wants to see
the
truth.
The
“alt-right”
and fascists are emboldened
by Trump’s explicit backing
of
racist,
anti-immigrant
demagogy and attacks, such
as his move to repeal Deferred
Action for Childhood Arrivals.
As long as Donald Trump is
president, the “alt-right” and
fascists will be emboldened and
will continue to organize and
make attacks. If we continue
to
organize
independently
and fight in the streets, in our
schools and in workplaces, the
resistance movement against
Trump can force him to resign
or be removed.
By taking matters into our
own hands and mobilizing our
own community defense, we
have the power to stop racist
and fascist attacks, to defend
DACA and win the Dream Act,
restore affirmative action and
make all our campuses, cities
and communities sanctuaries for
immigrants. Only then will our
University be truly equal, diverse,
integrated and inclusive.
A protest is planned to begin
at the Diag at 4 p.m. Wednesday
and we are marching to the
Charles Murray event at Palmer
Commons. Join us Wednesday
to protest and defend our
campus
community
against
racism and immigrant-bashing!
T
hese days, it seems
everybody
has
something
to
say.
People
of
all
political
affiliations are bound to feel
wound
up
and
passionate
about recent events. It’s better
that our citizens stay engaged
than
become
complacent;
people who actively involve
themselves in politics are
looking out for the country’s
best interests. Furthermore,
some of the United States’
biggest critics are also its
biggest patriots, exercising
the First Amendment rights
our Founding Fathers fought
so hard for. As uncomfortable
as it can be, challenging
the status quo is the only
way
progress
happens.
Controversy gets important
conversations started.
It baffles me that some
people call protests such as
kneeling during the anthem
“un-American.” Quite frankly,
what is more American than a
non-disruptive act of defiance?
Many sports players do this to
protest police brutality and
racial resentment that have
been crippling the country for
some time now.
And yet, people implore
football players to stick to the
sport next time. People label
these players as ungrateful
for criticizing the country
that allowed them to reach
such heights in the NFL.
Both of these arguments not
only silence these football
players
but
delegitimize
them as human beings. These
football players are more than
just your Sunday afternoon
entertainment.
They
have
lives outside their profession
and have voices that deserve
to be heard just as loud
as everybody else’s. Their
success does not blind them to
the pertinent issues of today.
The same can be said for
all celebrity activists. Take
a look at the 2017 Emmys:
Celebrities ranging from Alec
Baldwin to Donald Glover to
Jane Fonda all took shots at
the
Trump
administration
throughout the show. This
politicization of the Emmys
remained a topic of debate
all throughout the next day;
many conservative television
personalities expressed their
disgust with the Emmys and
disclosed plans to not watch
them next year.
ESPN
host
Jemele
Hill
received calls — some directly
from White House officials
— for her to be fired after she
posted a series of anti-Trump
tweets. It would be one thing
if Hill’s criticisms were said on
air amidst a sports segment.
But why shouldn’t she be able
to express her own opinions
on her own personal Twitter
account? Should working in
the sports industry limit her
to talking about sports only?
Late-night talk show host
Jimmy Kimmel also veers
away
from
his
comedic
content to get political from
time to time. On Oct. 1, tens of
thousands of people gathered
in Las Vegas to watch country
star Jason Aldean perform.
Yet, 59 lives were cut short
and over 500 people were
injured in what is now the
deadliest mass shooting in U.S.
history. Kimmel delivered an
emotional and passionate plea
against such senseless acts on
his show the following day,
and people were mad at him
for not sticking to comedy?
Comedy
is
derived
from
current events, but sometimes
the current events transcend
the realm of comedy and must
be talked about in a serious
manner. Kimmel’s show gives
him the perfect platform to
discuss these issues, and it
would be foolish for anyone to
not take advantage of this.
Some people claim celebrities
shouldn’t try to speak on behalf
of the “ordinary folk,” given
the extent of their privilege.
The way I see it, whoever has
privilege has the responsibility
to use that power to help those
who are less privileged. This is
exactly what these celebrities
are doing.
I
don’t
have
sympathy
for
those
who
find
the
politicization of NFL games,
award shows, comedy shows,
etc.
unwatchable.
We
do
not have a monopoly on the
content of such programs. We
all have family and friends
who post political rants on
Facebook and with whom we
often disagree, yet we are able
to look past this disparity and
carry on.
So why can’t we do the same
with celebrities?
Opinion
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
4A — Wednesday, October 11, 2017
REBECCA LERNER
Managing Editor
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
tothedaily@michigandaily.com
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890.
EMMA KINERY
Editor in Chief
ANNA POLUMBO-LEVY
and REBECCA TARNOPOL
Editorial Page Editors
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily’s Editorial Board.
All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS
Celebrity opinions matter
NICOLE KARDAS | CONTRIBUTOR
Silencing bigoted voices
KATE STENVIG | OP-ED
Carolyn Ayaub
Megan Burns
Samantha Goldstein
Caitlin Heenan
Jeremy Kaplan
Sarah Khan
Anurima Kumar
Max Lubell
Lucas Maiman
Alexis Megdanoff
Madeline Nowicki
Anna Polumbo-Levy
Jason Rowland
Anu Roy-Chaudhury
Ali Safawi
Sarah Salman
Kevin Sweitzer
Rebecca Tarnopol
Stephanie Trierweiler
Ashley Zhang
Kate Stenvig is a class of 2004
alum.
Nicole Kardas is an LSA sophomore.
“This is not an event
any college campus
should condone.”
EMILY WOLFE | EMILY CAN BE REACHED AT ELWOLFE@UMICH.EDU
Want kids to stay in school?
BILLY STAMPFL | COLUMN
I
never found school to be all
that boring. I kind of liked
high school, with its different
clubs and sports teams to join, cool
people to meet and interesting
things to learn.
Given my positive perspective
of school, I was alarmed to read
that 1.2 million students drop out
of United States high schools each
year. That’s one student every 26
seconds. That means about four
high schoolers have dropped out
since I started typing this column.
Do kids really think high
school is that bad? Why do they
choose to drop out?
In the 20th century, three
prominent researchers — Jonathan
Doll, a fellow at Harvard’s Center
for Education Policy Research,
and Zohreh Eslami and Lynne
Walters, associate professors of
teaching, learning and culture at
Texas A&M University — proposed
the main factors that led kids to
drop out of high schools fell into
three categories: students “pushed
out” when affected by adverse
influences, students “pulled out”
by personal circumstances that
prevented them from graduating
and,
finally,
students
“falling
out” when they do “not show
significant academic progress in
schoolwork and becomes apathetic
or even disillusioned with school
completion.” While “pulled out”
and
“pushed
out”
comprised
factors like financial difficulties
or enlistment in the armed forces,
“falling out” essentially means the
dropout got tired of going to school.
This last one caught my eye:
According to the 2002 iteration
of the study, 14.3 percent of the
subjects dropped out of high school
because they became apathetic
or
disillusioned
with
school
completion. You might argue that
things have changed since 2002,
but a Business Insider article from
2015 reported that 25.9 percent of
dropouts quit school simply due to
boredom. But high school dropouts
are a population in which, as of
2009, the average worker makes
$20,241 per year, and 31 percent
between the ages of 18 and 24 live
in poverty. Still, nearly 15 percent
of the population of high school
dropouts reject school because they
just don’t like it?
Do they know the alternatives?
If we want to keep kids in school,
we should teach them just what
constitutes the alternative: a labor-
intensive, physical job that makes
them wish they hadn’t ditched that
air-conditioned classroom.
I appreciate this because I
worked a part-time job at UPS
this summer, one that is nearly
identical to many entry-level labor
jobs that you could get without a
high school diploma.
The workday at UPS would
last about five hours. We’d start
at a set time announced toward
the end of the previous day. I’d
pull into the parking lot every
workday 15 minutes before start
time with a sinking feeling in
my stomach. I wasn’t nervous. I
wasn’t afraid. I wasn’t angry. But
it felt like my gut was being pulled
down by some package-induced
gravitational force.
Before I entered the complex, I’d
have to go through a metal detector
— no phones are allowed in the
building. They say it’s because the
metal or the signal or something
interferes with the scanners, but we
all knew that the supervisors just
didn’t want us getting distracted.
Walking into the guard office a
hundred yards from the complex
was almost the worst part of the
day. It always smelled like yogurt.
Probably because the guard ate a lot
of it — the vanilla kind, I think. He
had a mustache, salt- and pepper-
colored with specks of yogurt in it.
After passing through the shack,
I walked to the main building where
all the packages moved from semis
to sorters to actual UPS delivery
trucks. I really don’t know how the
whole system worked, actually; I
liked to get in, do my job and get out.
Speaking of my job: I was on
“the unload,” so I had a number of
responsibilities that ranged widely
in scope and needed to be handled
in a timely and reliable manner.
Just kidding. I picked up packages
and I put them on a conveyer belt.
No, really, that’s pretty much it.
They were heavy, I had to be fast
and I had to make sure the label
was facing up, but that was my job.
I remember when I interviewed
and the lady said I’d probably be
unloading packages. That can’t be
too hard, I thought. That seems cool.
I thought.
The trailers we unloaded were
jam-packed with boxes and hot air.
A steady smell, one of sweat and
cardboard, blanketed each truck.
We’d extend the conveyer belt into
the truck and place the packages
one by one on the moving belt.
Sometimes I got to unload
trailers with a partner. This was
easier, and the conversations could
be interesting. I met nice guys at
UPS; they all liked sports and music,
and we shared a bubbling hatred for
the job.
We’d get a 10 minute break
around halfway through the night.
This was when a mass of people
would march out of the east exit
and smoke cigarettes. The non-
smokers, like me, went to the break
area, a small room that looked like
a 1970s diner. It had orange booths
and wood-paneled walls, with a TV
that always played grainy Chuck
Norris movies.
When the night ended I would
clock out and head to the guard
shack, where the mustachioed
yogurt man bid everyone farewell
with his metal detector. An empty
yogurt cup lay by his clipboard. I
smelled like sweat and cardboard.
My arms felt heavy and my eyes
stung from all the dust in the
trailers. My fingers were sticky
with ink. I longed for an air-
conditioned classroom, where all
the ink went onto blank pages and
dust was found only in the library,
on the books no one ever checked
out. There was yogurt, but only a
little, and only in the lunchroom.
I wanted the classroom back. Why
would anyone leave school?
Billy Stampfl can be reached at
bstampfl@umich.edu.
SUBMIT TO SURVIVORS SPEAK
The Opinion section has created a space in The Michigan
Daily for first-person accounts of sexual assault and
its corresponding personal, academic and legal
implications. Submission information can be found at
https://tinyurl.com/survivespeak.
Whoever has
privilege has the
responsibility to use
that power to help
those who are less
privileged.