Opinion
S
hould annual reports be
published annually? For the
University
of
Michigan’s
Office of Institutional Equity, this is
apparently a difficult question. OIE,
the office that handles investigations
of sexual misconduct within the
University,
estimates
that
their
annual report for the fiscal year that
ended on June 30 will be ready in
mid-January 2021. The last report
was published on Nov. 11, 2019.
Spokesman
Rick
Fitzgerald
attributed the delay to the “new
umbrella policy” (effective Aug. 14,
2020) and “other matters (that) were a
higher priority.” The umbrella policy is
the University’s policy for addressing
sexual and gender-based misconduct.
It applies to the University’s Ann
Arbor, Flint and Dearborn campuses
and
encompasses
faculty,
staff,
students and third parties.
Granted, timeliness has never
been OIE’s strong suit, nor has
transparency, a fact acknowledged
recently by Regent Denise Ilitch (D).
Transparency is a priority in a year
marked by multiple high-profile
instances of the University utterly
failing to address sexual misconduct
and then further marred by distrust
from faculty, students and staff.
These annual reports are supposed
to provide some measure of clarity,
as previously indicated by Fitzgerald.
It is simply unacceptable that the
University of Michigan community
will go at least 14 months without any
measure of accountability from OIE.
OIE has a tendency to be sporadic
with their annual reports. They have
been published in September (2018),
October (2016) November (2014, 2019)
and January (2016). Multiple calendar
years have elapsed without an annual
report, so this is not a problem that
can be chalked up to any one year’s
increased
responsibilities.
It
is
important to note that OIE estimates
that their next report will be ready in
January — there is not a hard release
date. As a student at this institution, I
would be expected to communicate
with my professors if I were to turn in
a paper a day late, let alone give myself
a five-month cushion.
For
comparison’s
sake,
the
University’s Annual Fire and Safety
Report is published every single year
at the beginning of October. This year,
they have been given an extension, a
date clearly noted on the front page of
their website.
Another 2020 shocker — OIE is late on something
JESSIE MITCHELL | COLUMNIST
I
n September, Ann Arbor City
Councilmember
Elizabeth
Nelson presented the idea
that the University of Michigan
open vacant campus housing to
Ann Arbor’s homeless population.
Shelters in Ann Arbor lack the space
to adequately house the homeless,
but on-campus housing will only
house up to 3,000 students for the
winter 2021 semester, leaving plenty
of empty rooms.
Many in Ann Arbor support
Nelson’s proposal, but others are
skeptical.
Comments
in
some
University
of
Michigan
parent
Facebook groups reflect frustration
toward the situation: Why will the
University house the homeless in
dorms for free when students, who
were willing to pay full price, were not
given the opportunity to live there?
Though the frustration is warranted,
it does not overshadow the argument
for housing the homeless population
in University of Michigan dorms.
Using vacant on-campus housing
to house the homeless promotes
public health in Ann Arbor, balances
the University’s contribution to
the increase in Ann Arbor housing
prices and reflects positively on the
University’s commitment to the
surrounding community.
Providing the homeless population
with
stable
housing
options
minimizes their risk of exposure to
COVID-19, therefore minimizing
the risk of everyone in Ann Arbor.
Homeless people are at high-risk of
contracting COVID-19, as they do
not have the resources necessary
to follow many CDC guidelines.
They do not have shelter in which
to isolate or quarantine, and social
distancing often is not an option. The
homeless experience even greater
risk in Ann Arbor, given the increase
in population density during the
academic year and frequent student
gatherings that break COVID-19
guidelines.
In providing more of the Ann
Arbor homeless population with
housing stability, we give them the
necessary resources to better adhere
to CDC guidelines, minimizing their
own risk of contracting COVID-19
and, as a result, the whole of Ann
Arbor’s risk.
We cannot discuss homelessness
in Ann Arbor, though, without
discussing the University’s role in it.
The University of Michigan has an
enrollment of approximately 48,000
students, many of whom reside in off-
campus housing. This large demand
for housing in Ann Arbor results in
an increase in housing prices, making
it unaffordable for many Ann Arbor
residents. Ann Arbor real estate has
appreciated by 67.85% since 2000,
while that of the state of Michigan
has appreciated by only 46.20% since
2000. While this increase in value
has made housing expensive for
many students, it has made housing
impossible for many residents, and
many become homeless as a result.
The University’s presence in Ann
Arbor is a catalyst for homelessness,
so it makes sense for the institution to
help to solve the problem it helped to
create.
Still,
opponents
to
Nelson’s
proposal view the use of University
dorms as housing for the homeless
population as unrealistic, unsure of
how the University will implement
the plan. They will be relieved to
know that the University of Michigan
will not be the first to house homeless
residents in their vacant dorms.
Suffolk
University
opened
a
residence hall to Boston’s homeless
population in March of 2020. With
help from a local hotel and the
Boston Public Health Commission,
the University was able to offer 172
rooms to those who needed shelter,
and the few students in the dormitory
were relocated. Providing isolated
spaces to members of the homeless
population minimized the spread of
COVID-19 among the community.
Similarly,
Sonoma
State
University
opened
facilities
to
the
Sonoma
County
homeless
population in April of 2020. In
tandem with Sonoma County, the
University provided residents with
food and water, healthcare, and
access to government benefits.
The areas in which they lived
were fenced off in order to allow
residents to adequately shelter in
place in accordance with the state’s
guidelines.
BRITTANY BOWMAN
Managing Editor
Stanford Lipsey Student Publications Building
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
tothedaily@michigandaily.com
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890.
CLAIRE HAO
Editor in Chief
ELIZABETH COOK
AND JOEL WEINER
Editorial Page Editors
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS
Jessie Mitchell can be reached at
jessiemi@umich.edu.
ILANA MERMELSTEIN | COLUMNIST
We cannot continue to ignore
homelessness in Ann Arbor
Ray Ajemian
Zack Blumberg
Brittany Bowman
Emily Considine
Elizabeth Cook
Jess D’Agostino
Jenny Gurung
Cheryn Hong
Krystal Hur
Min Soo Kim
Zoe Phillips
Mary Rolfes
Gabrijela Skoko
Joel Weiner
Erin White
Stanford Lipsey Student Publications Building
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
tothedaily@michigandaily.com
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890.
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
Wednesday, January 20, 2021 — 7
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Ilana Mermelstein can be reached
at imerm@umich.edu.
MADELYN VERVAECKE | CONTACT CARTOONIST AT MIVERVAE@UMICH.EDU
YOUR WEEKLY
ARIES
How you interact with the wider
world becomes a focus for you this
week, as the Sun leaves your
career zone and heads into your
social and community zone
instead.
AQUARIUS
GEMINI
Lots of deep thinking this week.
The Sun is starting to transit your
philosophy zone now, so you are
opening your heart and your
mind to alternative views.
SAGITTARIUS
CAPRICORN
SCORPIO
CANCER
This week you may well be
overcome by a desire to do
something ‘useful’ or ‘meaning-
ful’ for the world, or for your local
community.
TAURUS
Expect an upsurge in energy this
week, as the Sun shifts into your
public and career zone. Feeling
more ambitious and more
confident, you’ll want to think
about your future plans.
VIRGO
PISCES
LIBRA
LEO
The Sun begins to transit your
love zone this week, which should
help you to feel centered, loved,
nourished and cherished in a
relationship.
Read your weekly horoscopes from astrology.tv
The Sun transits your health zone.
Although you’re normally a
creature of habit, you are a
mutable sign at heart, flexible and
ready to change.
This could be a deeply passionate
week for you, Libra, as the Sun
begins to transit your dating and
fun zone.
The Sun now shines its warmth
from your family and domestic
zone, healing rifts and bringing
plenty of laughter and family
togetherness.
Mars conjuncts Uranus in your
everyday routines zone,
suggesting that if you don’t
actively seek change, change may
be imposed upon you regardless.
Everything about you is normally
pretty risk-averse, but this week
it’s anybody’s guess what you
might feel inspired to get up to!
It’s all change on the domestic
front this week, as Mars conjuncts
Uranus in your home zone and
brings surprises right to your door.
You can expect to be extremely
busy this week as unforeseen
tasks, chores, duties or responsi-
bilities are headed your way.
WHISPER
“Mushu!”
“Samoyed’s are clouds.”
“Kim and then Kimmy. I’m so
sorry!”
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
W
hether for a competitive
match, a networking
outing with colleagues
or just to catch up with friends,
Americans love the game of golf. In
2017, over 24 million Americans took
to vast, green stretches of land to drive
around in a cart and hit a ball with
a club. While golf courses may look
pretty on the outside, a deeper look at
them tells a completely different story.
Between the valuable fertile land
that they currently occupy, the billions
of gallons of water used every day and
the drastically high use of pesticides,
golf courses are ecological and health
disasters. Golf has surpassed its
expiration date and should go the way
of the dinosaurs. Americans must put
environmental and human health
before pleasure and leisure.
To build a golf course, companies
must obtain the rights to a large
chunk of land. In the United States,
the average size of golf courses
ranges between 110 and 190 acres.
For reference, this is larger than the
world’s smallest country, Vatican City,
which takes up just over 100 acres.
According to ESPN, there are more
than 15,000 golf courses in the U.S.
This brings the grand total of acreage
of American golf courses to over two
million acres — larger than the state of
Delaware.
The land used for golf courses
is sometimes located in valuable
areas situated near oceans or lakes.
Building golf courses in these places
takes away from the agricultural
opportunities that could be used
to feed local communities. Besides
occupying potentially fruitful land,
development of golf courses ravishes
native ecosystems. Following the
allocation of the land, all of the
natural vegetation is cleared to
allow for the course to be built. All
of the trees, plants and habitats for
the animals that lived there are
wiped out — forcing them to migrate
into other ecosystems, creating a
hazardous cycle.
Golf courses also use an incredibly
large amount of water. According to
the United States Golf Association,
water usage from daily golf course
irrigation totaled 2,312,701 acre-feet
per year, which equates to an average
of 2.08 billion gallons of water per day
between 2003 and 2005.
In
comparison,
an
Olympic
swimming pool holds just over
660,000 gallons of water — this comes
out to over 3,000 Olympic swimming
pools of water per day. This immense
amount of water could be used for
farming or treated and provided for
households that do not have access to
clean running water.
This issue became increasingly
relevant during California’s drought
in 2015. California is home to over
1,000 golf courses, so when there was
a lack of water and public officials
had to decide where to allocate the
water, the choice should have been
obvious. California should have shut
down the golf courses and made sure
that every resident had access to
clean drinking water.
However, this was not the case.
As many as two-thirds of Californian
golf courses stayed open and the
average 18-hole course continued to
use 90 million gallons of water each
day. While Californians all over the
state were struggling to find clean
water to drink, cook or clean with,
golf courses were using enough water
to fill 136 Olympic-sized swimming
pools daily.
Another major health risk posed
by golf courses comes in the form
of pesticides. Researchers surveyed
former golf superintendents and
found that four types of cancer —
brain, lymphoma, prostate and large
intestine — were more common in golf
superintendents than people working
elsewhere.
It’s time to say goodbye to golf
ALEXANDER NOBEL | COLUMNIST
Alexander Nobel can be reached at
anobel@umich.edu.
Read more at MichiganDaily.com