Since Oct. 8, survivors of late
University of Michigan athletic
doctor Robert Anderson have been
camping outside of University
President Mark Schlissel’s house
in protest against the University’s
handling of the nearly 1,000 indi-
viduals who have come forward
with sexual assault allegations
against Anderson. Over the past few
months, survivors have appeared in
front of the Board of Regents, rallied
students and community members
at numerous protests on the Diag
and testified at hearings in support
of legislation protecting survivors.
Protestors say the University has
failed to adequately address their
presence outside of Schlissel’s house
for the month they have been camp-
ing through rain and increasingly
frigid temperatures. Schlissel has
apologized to survivors indirectly
at Regents’ meetings and in the
press, but the survivors are asking
Schlissel and the Board of Regents
to hold a formal conversation with
them about the University’s role in
perpetuating Anderson’s abuse as
well as the larger culture of sexual
assault at the University.
In a statement to The Daily, Uni-
versity spokesperson Rick Fitzger-
ald wrote that the University is
currently in the process of confiden-
tial mediation and that they have
been hearing from Anderson survi-
vors since allegations surfaced.
“We will continue to meet in
mediation with the attorneys the
Anderson survivors have hired to
represent them and we will con-
tinue to heed the judge’s direction
not to discuss the process outside of
the mediation sessions,” Fitzgerald
said.
To document the day-to-day
of protestors, the encouragement
they receive from the University
community and the challenges they
face in making their voices heard,
reporters, photographers and vid-
eographers from The Daily sat out-
side of Schlissel’s house from 10:00
a.m. on Friday, Nov. 5 to 10:00 a.m.
on Saturday, Nov. 6. Here is what
we observed, hour by hour.
Friday, 10:00 a.m.
By 7:00 p.m. on Nov. 5, Jona-
than Vaughn, the Anderson
survivor and former Michigan
football player who has been
leading the protest, will have
been camping out in front of
President Schlissel’s house for
28 days.
On a normal day during the
protest, Vaughn wakes up in
his tent around 6:30 or 7:00
a.m. and heads to the Michigan
Union, where he orders a coffee
and breakfast sandwich from
Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea. One
of his favorite parts of the day is
enjoying a morning cigar with
his coffee.
The University of Michigan
Graduate
Employees’
Organization announced in a
tweet March 27 that they will
begin striking. The strike will
officially start Wednesday, March
29 at 10:24 a.m., which will be
initiated by a walk out at that
time. This announcement comes
after GEO members authorized
leadership to call for a strike in
their meeting a week earlier, with
95% of members voting in favor
of a work stoppage. The last GEO
strike took place three years ago
in fall 2020.
The strike comes after five
months of negotiations with the
University without a compromise
reached on a new three-year
contract agreement. In a press
release, GEO claimed that striking
is the natural next step in their
ongoing
activism,
including
protesting
Ono’s
inauguration
and filing unfair labor practice
charges against the University
in March. In the press release,
GEO said they hope it will help
encourage the University to meet
their demands.
Throughout their negotiations,
GEO has asked that graduate
employee salaries increase to
$38,537 per year, claiming that
what they are currently being
paid is not a liveable wage in Ann
Arbor. They have also asked for
improvements in their current
health care plan and for the
University to make alterations to
campus security.
In response to GEO members
authorizing a strike, University
President Santa Ono and University
Provost Laurie McCauley sent
out a joint email statement to the
campus community March 24. In
the statement, Ono and McCauley
alleged that a strike would not
only be a breach of GEO’s current
contract with the University, but
would violate Michigan state law.
Ono and McCauley expressed the
University’s intent to take legal
action against GEO if necessary.
“The
University
will
take
appropriate lawful actions to
enable the continued delivery of
our educational mission in the
event of a work disruption,” the
email said. “Those actions will
include asking a court to find
a breach of contract and order
strikers back to work, stopping
the deduction of union dues, filing
unfair labor practice charges,
and not paying striking GSIs and
GSSAs for time they do not work.”
University Spokesperson Rick
Fitzgerald wrote in an email
to The Michigan Daily that the
University hopes to come to an
agreement with GEO as soon as
possible, but that they believe the
decision to strike is both illegal
and unethical.
“Beyond
any
legal
considerations is an ethical one: if
collective bargaining is to retain
its value, all parties must honor the
terms of the contract they signed,”
Fitzgerald wrote. “We urge GEO
to
reconsider
breaching
the
agreement we reached through
good faith collective bargaining.”
In a separate email sent out
to the campus community on
March 25, McCauley stated that
the University will take measures
to keep campus operations as
normal as possible and ensure
that undergraduate students will
receive academic support for the
duration of the strike. To do this,
McCauley said the University
intends to continue good faith
bargaining with GEO and working
to ensure that students receive
accurate final grades for their
Winter 2023 classes.
“Our
school,
college,
and
department leaders are planning
for
substitute
instructors,
alternative assignments, and other
means for delivering instruction
in
the
absence
of
graduate
student instructors,” McCauley
wrote. “Providing a high-quality
educational experience for every
student remains our top priority.”
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
ALUM BECCA MAHON/Daily
GEO strikes for the second time in
three years
Graduation Edition 2023 — 3
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
News
Robert Anderson survivors
protest outside Schlissel’s house
RILEY HODDER
Daily News Editor
Daily News, Photo and Video Staff
Book your travel at AmtrakMichigan.com.
Enjoy comfortable and spacious seating,
outlets to keep you charged and free
WiFi. Plus, Amtrak lets you bring up to
two carry-on bags for free.
Amtrak and Amtrak Midwest are service marks of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation.
SMART SAVINGS
Students Save 15% on Travel
The strike comes in response to frustrations with
contract negotiations with the University
Protestors are against the University’s handling of nearly
1,000 sexual assault allegations against Anderson
ARTS
over the
YEARS
Bis etum il ius eliquam usaerum eium
velicti comnit dunt, tota que consequo is
essunture dolor molesti beriore, il ea ne
plab ipsae excero te volorep tation re
videndunt omnihil ipienda veliqui nobites
et laboriame lantiossunt hil ius arumqui
dentibus, qui aliat pa qui simolessit, nes
escilit harum que volorit eicia con plis
everum fugitatur si quiae esto blaturem labo.
Itatas mos venis arumnihilla ntentotatem
aut etum hil il mod quam es est as endaesc
ipiendis escium lation cupta doluptam ab
2013
MARCH 14 - On March 13, 2020, the first
case of COVID-19 in U-M on or off-campus
housing is reported in the Vic Village
apartment complex.
JUNE 23 - After the murder of George Floyd
on May 25, 2020, protests erupt across
Michigan demanding an end to police
brutality.
JANUARY 31 - Ann Arbor sees decade-high
temperatures. The average temperature
is 6.8 degrees higher than the historical
monthly average due to a combination of
weather patterns and climate change.
MARCH 7 - Santa Ono is inaugurated as the
University’s 15th and first Asian-American
president. Ono’s inaugural procession route is
interrupted by GEO protestors as he reaches
the Diag.
2021
OCTOBER 21 - After receiving a record number
of applicants, enrollment at the University of
Michigan reaches an unprecedented high of
50,000 students for the fall 2021 semester..
APRIL 3 - To celebrate its 50th consecutive
year, Hash Bash alters its agenda to fit
with current public health guidelines while
continuing to advocate for progressive
marajuana policy.
NEWS
over the
YEARS
2022
2023
2020
SEPTEMBER 7 - In the first week of classes
for the fall 2022 semester, COVID-19 case
numbers are triple what they were this
time last year. Despite this, masks remain
optional and classes continue.
DECEMBER 5 - As students attempt to vote
in the 2022 midterm elections, they face
long lines and technical difficulties.
Read more at MichiganDaily.com