University of Michigan Central
Student Government President
Anushka Sarkar, an LSA senior,
signed the assembly’s resolution
AR 7-019 that calls for the
University to investigate possible
divestment from companies that
violate Palestinian human rights.
In a secret ballot vote last
Wednesday
morningat
CSG’s
meeting,
the
#UMDivest
movement passed for the first
time on the University’s Ann
Arbor campus with 23 votes
in favor, 17 votes against and 5
abstentions.
The
resolution’s
passage, and the tumultuous
history of the #UM Divest
movement, has sparked action
from students on both sides of the
issue. Last Wednesday’s decision
has since further divided the
campus.
In
a
statement
released
Tuesday night, Sarkar expanded
on her personal beliefs that the
University should not invest in
companies allegedly endangering
the lives of Palestinians.
“I
believe
the
intent
of
this resolution is to elevate a
marginalized community’s voice,
voices that have been muffled and
diluted, year after year,” Sarkar
wrote. “I believe the students who
The University of Michigan
has seen countless acts of hate
targeted
against
people
of
color and other marginalized
communities in recent years.
The University administration
has responded to such acts in
a variety of ways. In October
2016, the University launched
its five-year Diversity, Equity
and Inclusion strategic plan to
foster a welcoming and inclusive
campus. However, the plan has
been criticized for failing to put a
stop to racist attacks.
These issues are not unique
to the University of Michigan.
Across the country, university
administrations
and
campus
communities have struggled to
address issues of diversity, acts
of hate and negative campus
climates.
This article is part two of a
series in which The Michigan
Daily looks at colleges similar
to the University of Michigan
on the issue of reacting in a
tense campus climate. As the
University
administration
and students face their own
numerous bias incidents, The
Daily will look at other schools to
compare and contrast incidents,
administration
response
and
student activism, whether it is
a difference in religion, culture,
politics or policies. This article
will feature schools from the
Midwestern
region
including
University
of
Wisconsin-
Madison,
Northwestern
University
and
Indiana
University.
There
is
a
theory
that
prominent, progressive schools
are targets for bias incidents
— the University of Michigan
among them, as Washtenaw is a
blue county in a newly turned red
state. In an earlier interview with
The Daily, University President
Mark Schlissel said there might
not be a way to mitigate the target
on the University’s back.
“I think that part of being a
prominent
university,
taking
clear positions on things, having
large numbers of very successful
graduates out there in the world,
being on TV all the time, being in
the media all the time means that
what happens here gets noticed,”
he said. “That’s the sort of other
side of this double-edged sword
of being famous and prominent.”
According to enrollment data
from University of Wisconsin-
Madison’s Office of the Registrar,
approximately 2.9 percent of its
student population is African
American as of fall 2017. Kevin
Helmkamp, the assistant vice
provost and associate dean of
students at UW, explained how
the demographics of the state
lead to this.
“I think every institution is
the same in these regards, I think
every institution is different as
well with that,” he said. “We
all have our thing with that. I
think Michigan … (has) a broader
number of cities and communities
with a strong African American
population than what Wisconsin
does, which really is kind of
Milwaukee. You have to look at
Milwaukee Public Schools and
issues that exist there, that’s all
part of our dynamic.”
Though Donald Trump won
Wisconsin in the 2016 election,
71.4 percent of voters in Dane
County, where UW is located,
voted for former presidential
candidate Hillary Clinton.
According to the 2016 U.S.
Census Bureau, the state of
Wisconsin has a 6.7 percent
Hispanic or Latino population,
a 6.6 percent Black or African
American population and a 2.8
LGBTQ+ Michiganders may not
be protected from discrimination
under the Michigan Constitution,
a gap in civil rights now fervently
trying to be patched.
Under
the
Elliott-Larsen
Civil Rights Act, discrimination
based on sex is prohibited.
However, the definition of sex
under this statute has never
fully been fleshed out. Because
of this, Equality Michigan, a
LGBTQ+ advocacy organization,
asked the Michigan Civil Rights
Commission to issue a ruling on
the definition back in September.
Though it was set to make a ruling
broadening
the
definition
to
explicitly include gender identity
and sexual orientation, the CRC
voted to table it and requested the
Attorney General’s opinion. Eli
Savit, a University of Michigan
law professor and legal aide in the
efforts, said he believes Michigan
Attorney General Bill Schuette —
a current Michigan gubernatorial
candidate— abused his power to
prevent this from happening.
michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Wednesday, November 22, 2017
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Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail
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INDEX
Vol. CXXVII, No. 35
©2017 The Michigan Daily
N E WS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
O PI N I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
S U D O K U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
CL A S S I F I E DS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 C
See RESOLUTION, Page 3A
CHUN SO/Daily
Students and faculty voice their opposition to Richard Spencer’s request to speak on campus at the Regents meeting in the Union Tuesday.
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
The University of Michigan
has agreed to proceed with white
supremacist Richard Spencer’s
request to speak on campus if the
University is able to ensure a safe
setting for the event. University
President
Mark
Schlissel
announced
the
University
will begin deliberations with
Spencer’s team regarding time,
place and nature of the event after
convening an emergency Board of
Regents’ meeting Tuesday night.
“We only today have finalized
plans for how we will proceed
on Richard Spencer’s request
to speak on the University of
Michigan campus,” Schlissel said.
University
spokesman
Rick
Fitzgerald said the University
has not determined a timeline for
negotiations. In a tweet following
Schlissel’s
announcement,
Kyle Bristow — an attorney for
Cameron Padgett, the University
of Georgia student submitting
requests for Spencer — tweeted
his deadline for the University’s
final response has been extended
to Dec. 8, at penalty of a lawsuit.
After refusing to allow Spencer
on campus earlier this year,
Michigan
State
University
officials are currently engaged in
a legal mediation with Bristow.
Fitzgerald
said
Bristow’s
ultimatum will have no effect on
See RESPONSE, Page 2A
GOVERNMENT
BLACK
WHITE
ASIAN
HISPANIC/
LATINO
ENROLLMENT DIVERSITY DATA
OVERALL ENROLLMENT OF 2017
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
THE DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION PROGRAM
NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
INCLUSIVE NORTHWESTERN
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN
OUR WISCONSIN
INDIANA UNIVERSITY
ENROLLMENT DATA
CASEY TIN/Daily
Crazy man
His teammates say he has
a few screws loose. They’re
not entirely wrong. But
without the madness, Chase
Winovich wouldn’t be what
he has become today.
» Page 1C
michigandaily.com
For more stories and coverage, visit
See REGENTS, Page 3A
Twelve
students
from
the
University of Michigan’s Climate
Blue organization just returned to
campus after attending the 2017
United Nations Climate Change
Conference earlier this month in
Bonn, Germany. This year marked
the 23rd meeting of the Conference
of Parties, held under the United
Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change; the UNFCCC
is an international treaty that was
signed at the Rio Earth Summit
in 1992 to mark the beginning
of international cooperation in
addressing climate change.
This year, the UNFCCC’s 197
parties came together to discuss
the implementation of the Paris
agreement. The agreement, which
was designed during COP21 in
2015, aimed to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions and curb the global
temperature rise. However, in June
2017, President Donald Trump
announced the United States would
withdraw from the agreement in
an effort to preserve jobs.
The Climate Blue student group,
which discusses climate policy
across southeast Michigan, began
See CONFERENCE, Page 3A
RESEARCH
Failure
to protect
LGBTQ+
rights in MI
MI AG was called upon
to define sex and gender
identity in early September
CARLY RYAN
Daily Staff Reporter
A look into adminstrative responses
and climate in Midwestern colleges
Wisconsin-Madison, Northwestern, Indiana, faced similar issues as U-M
JENNIFER MEER
Daily News Editor
‘U’ attends
UN climate
conference
in Germany
As part of the Climate
Blue organization, 12
University students went
JENNIFER MEER
Daily News Editor
CSG Pres.
signs off on
#UMDivest
resolution
University Board of Regents address
Richard Spencer request in meeting
Sarkar wrote in an attached statement
the resolution was a reasonable request
ALEXA ST. JOHN &
JORDYN BAKER
Managing News Editor &
Daily Staff Reporter
If the University is able to ensure a safe setting for the event, Spencer will be allowed
RIYAH BASHA
& ANDREW HIYAMA
Daily News Editor &
Daily Staff Reporter
Read more at
MichiganDaily.com
statement
THE MICHIGAN DAILY | NOVEMBER 22, 2017