IRENA LI Daily Staff Reporter In August 2021, “the Yak was back.” Popular anonymous social media platform Yik Yak reappeared in the Apple App Store after being shut down in 2017 due to concerns about cyberbullying and a rapidly declining user base. When Yik Yak returned, college students across the country flocked back to the application, and students at the University of Michigan were no exception. Compared to other popular social media applications such as Instagram or TikTok, Yik Yak is unique in the way it empha- sizes a connection with local communities, only displaying posts within a five-mile radius of the user. Yik Yak’s biggest distinction, however, is that its users remain anonymous. Users can “upvote” or “downvote” anonymous “yaks,” with the most popular content appearing on the “Hot” page. Addition- ally, in the updated app, posts with five or more downvotes are removed from the platform altogether. While yaks typically concern a multitude of topics, content posted within the vicinity of the University has focused on the ongoing sorority recruitment process since Jan. 5, the day of potential new member (PNM) orientation. Some of the most popular yaks during the week of Jan. 9 include “this sorority process is very humbling,” and “sororities have hired the FBI to downvote and delete any posts criticizing them.” Among the numerous sorority recruitment yaks is one recur- ring name — The PNM Princess. Described by many students as the “Gossip Girl” or “Radio Rebel” of sorority recruitment, The PNM Princess has a Reddit account she has been using to post somewhat confrontational statements about the Michi- gan sorority recruitment pro- cess and her individual desire — or lack thereof — to join each house. The Princess’s blog-style Reddit posts, entitled “The PNM Diaries,” have quickly dominated the “Hot” page on Yik Yak, prompting anonymous responses such as, “Pnm prin- cess better be typing fast I’m so excited for the (tea),” and “PNM PRINCESS I NEED U TO POST BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP.” In a Jan. 13 Reddit post rank- ing the sorority houses at the University, the Princess took a shot at “popular” sororities, claiming she was not sharing her personal opinions of the houses but rather ranking them according to the “values” they displayed in each round of rush thus far. “I’d like to preface this with a simple warning — this isn’t about *true* rankings,” the Princess wrote. “Obviously despite their racism, homopho- bia, fatphobia, and other general shittiness, the “top” sororities will remain at the “top.” Funny how the most hated people on campus still maintain their “popularity.” But hey, we’ve all seen Mean Girls; we know how this works.” In an interview with The Michigan Daily, the PNM Prin- cess revealed she is a freshman, but does not want her name pub- lished at this time. She told The Daily her original goal for “The PNM Diaries” was to have a way to organize her honest thoughts about the rush process. “Well, to be honest, it kind of was a way for me to write down my thoughts and opinions of each house (and) at first it just sort of helped me sort out my own thoughts,” the Princess said. “And then I (realized) I hear way too much about what the sororities are thinking, but you never hear the other side of the story,” the Princess said. “We never hear what it’s like to be a PNM.” The Princess said PNMs often feel as though they lack a voice during sorority recruit- ment because they are under constant pressure to “perform” well for each sorority. The Prin- cess said if she were not anony- mous, she would have been dropped from every sorority for publicly sharing her unadulter- ated thoughts about the differ- ent organizations. “So, really PNMs cannot be honest on a public platform… because every house would instantly drop you,” the Prin- cess said. “I don’t think that I would have been capable of telling my story if it weren’t for being anonymous. When asked if she ever plans to reveal her identity, the PNM Princess was doubtful, saying sharing that information would isolate her from whichever sorority she ends up joining. “This is actually a secret that I don’t really intend on ever tell- ing anybody,” the Princess said. “There are a select few people who I seriously trust to know my true identity and honestly, regardless of how close I will become with my future (soror- ity) sisters, I doubt I will ever tell anybody else because it’s not worth becoming a social pariah.” However, many members of “the herd,” as YikYak’s deni- zens are known, have criticized the Princess’s posts, including “can’t wait for one of the (com- puter science) majors to leak pnm princess’s IP address,” and “can’t wait to hear the pnm princess after she gets dropped from all the top houses.” LSA sophomore Alexander Manthous said the focus on sorority recruitment on Yik Yak is unrelatable and tiresome. “I’ve definitely seen a ton of sorority yik yaks, and hon- estly those … bore me to death,” Manthous said. “I can’t relate to them. (The posts) talk about specific things and specific sororities and I just feel like I don’t understand what they’re referring to.” LSA senior Hayley Sanders, the vice president of recruit- ment at Sigma Delta Tau, said she appreciated the posts from The PNM Princess. “I was pleasantly surprised with what (The PNM Princess) said about philanthropy and our DEI speech,” Sanders said. “We worked so hard to make sure we were saying exactly what we wanted to say. And we’ve been getting amazing feedback regardless of what the Princess says. So I don’t have any com- plaints at all.” Still, Sanders cautioned PNMs to avoid pursuing sorori- ties based on reputation or social rank according to online forums. “As hard as it is to separate yourself from (what the Prin- cess writes), you will be so much happier when you like being (a member) of a sorority,” Sanders said. Daily Staff Reporter Carlin Pendell can be reached at cpen- dell@umich.edu. News Wednesday, January 19, 2022 — 3 ADMINISTRATION XOXO, The PNM Princess: the rise of anonymous social media during the UMich sorority rush cycle CARLIN PENDELL Daily Staff Reporter Popular online platform Yik Yak becomes hotspot for Greek life commentary during recruitment season The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com DESIGN BY SAM TURNER BECCA MAHON/Daily Proposed legislation will allow Anderson survivors to sue the University Bills to provide a 30-day window to file lawsuit outside of the statute of limitations, remove use the defense of government immunity Trigger warning: Mentions of sexual assault On Jan. 4, State Senator Tom Barrett (R-Char- lotte) announced plans to introduce legislation that would aid victims of former University of Michigan athletic doctor Robert Anderson in pursuing legal action against the University. These bills would provide Anderson survivors with a 30-day window to sue the University for its role in the abuse outside of the statute of limitations. The legislation would also remove the University’s ability to use the defense of government immunity. In a Jan. 4 press release, Barrett emphasized Michigan lawmakers’ responsibility to take action against sexual abuse. “As lawmakers, we have a moral duty to update our laws to protect survivors and provide them with legal recourse against institutions that enable abus- ers, even when those institutions are agents of the government,” Barrett said. “The university has not denied these tragic events happened, therefore, we are obliged to provide a path forward to justice for the victims.” White Law PLLC, a law firm located in Okemos, Michigan, represented over 160 victims of former Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar and currently represents doz- ens of Anderson survivors. Alexander Rusek, a senior associate attorney with White Law PLLC, said in an interview with The Daily that Barrett’s proposed legislation would provide an opportunity for survivors to pursue legal action decades later. “(These bills) will give survivors of Dr. Ander- son the opportunity to bring their case in the court because many times in Michigan, our statute of limitations limits survivors from bringing lawsuits only because of how long ago the abuse happened,” Rusek said. “The science and research shows us that survivors, in general, of childhood sexual abuse don’t come forward — if they ever do — until approx- imately age 48 to 52 … (T)hese bills (would) allow survivors to have access to justice going forward … (and) remove the statute of limitations.” Nassar survivor Grace French founded The Army of Survivors, an organization dedicated to raising awareness about the systemic sexual abuse of ath- letes and protecting victims by creating a system that holds perpetrators accountable. The Army of Survivors works to create and allocate supportive resources for survivors of sexual violence, accord- ing to their website. French said Barrett’s legislation would be a great step forward in helping survivors find justice. “I think the legislation is a win for survivors and it’s really giving access for these survivors to come forward and … get the justice that they deserve,” French said. “This is definitely not the end of what we hope to do in the future for survivors in Michi- gan, because there’s so many more people that we want to make sure that have access to justice, but it’s a really good step in that direction.” Julia Schettenhelm, LSA junior and Communica- tions Director for the University of Michigan’s chap- ter of College Democrats, wrote in an email to The Daily that College Democrats approve of the legisla- tor’s efforts to support survivors. “We stand with the Anderson survivors and con- tinue to support the Hail to the Victims movement,” Schettenhelm wrote. “As such, we agree that offering this kind of support to survivors is the right thing to do.” In an email to The Daily, Margaret Beste, LSA senior and vice chair of College Republicans at the University of Michigan, said they also support the legislation. “Legislation that supports survivors of sexual abuse, assualt, and harrassment, especially in navi- gating the emotional and material challenges of the judicial system, is a wholly worthwhile pursuit,” Beste wrote. “The presently outlined pieces of the proposal, including a 30-day window for survivors to file suit against the University and the removal of procedural obstacles, appear to be sensible and meaningful steps to help survivors obtain justice. We look forward to learning more about the phras- ing and implementation of the details outlined in the proposal and how we might help move the legislation forward.” Rusek weighed in on the importance of this leg- islation to people with a wide range of backgrounds and political affiliations. “I think that it’s important that people know that… – no matter what your background or politi- cal affiliations – this is legislation that everyone can get behind,” Rusek said. “Bipartisan effort is really powerful and sends a message to the enablers and perpetrators of sexual abuse in the state that we’re not going to stand for it anymore. And (they’re) going to be held accountable for it.” Read more at MichiganDaily.com