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VOLUME 45, ISSUE 32

Monday, February 3, 2014

Wienermobile seeks fresh meat UW alumna pilots 27-foot-long hot dog advertising Oscar Mayer brand Rachel Jones Print Campus Editor Two recent college graduates are relishing their time seeing the country aboard Oscar Mayer’s iconic wiener. Madison residents will still be able to catch a glimpse of the 27-foot-long hot dog cruising the streets of the University of Wisconsin this week. Molly Segall, who goes by “Honey Mustard Molly” with the Wienermobile on the road, said the vehicle brings smiles wherever it goes. “I remember being a little girl and being fascinated by the Wienermobile every time I watched it drive by,” Segall, a UW alumna, said. Segall said she sought the “hot dogger” position from an early age because she lived

in Madison close to the Oscar Mayer plant. She applied for the position as a junior for the ﬁrst time, and was eventually hired on as a hot dogger in her senior year, she said. Segall said she has received the opportunity to travel the country from the experience. The typical workweek for a hot dogger begins with the road on Monday, Segall said. Once the rolling wiener has reached its next destination, the crew takes a “touristy Tuesday,” she said. “It’s perfect. No one is in line for tourist attractions on Tuesdays,” she said. The parties and appearances for the position fall between Thursday and Sunday, Segall said. Every day is different for the hot doggers, Hannah Carlson, another crew member, said. Some days they spend handing out flyers in front of a grocery store and some days they spend visiting children’s hospitals, she said. Carlson, who as goes by “Hungry Hannah,” said the job has allowed her to meet

hundreds of different people all across the country at these events. “I originally applied for this position because I wanted to travel, specifically to the northeastern part of the country,” Carlson said. “I’m now on my 24th state this year.” Carlson said the job offers more than just the opportunity for travel, and hot doggers cannot get too comfortable. She said the job has taught her about how she functions both as a professional and as an individual. “It’s a learning experience because your bosses aren’t holding your hand … you’re responsible for getting your own work done,” Carlson said. Segall said the most gratification from the job comes with knowing they are making people smile. The Wienermobile has attended weddings, birthday parties, anniversary parties and many more events, she said. At one

WIENER, page 4

Square plan looks to extend nightlife Community members concerned whether city project to expand ‘vibrant Capitol Square’ will return investments Alex Arriaga Print City Editor As plans for the Judge Doyle Square Project near ﬁnalization, city members are concerned whether the amount of money invested into the project will be returned. The project will be a significant undertaking in 2015 to transform the blocks that currently house the Madison Municipal Building and the Government East Parking Garage, on the block between Martin Luther King Boulevard, King, Doty and Wilson Streets. Project Director George

Austin said the large size of the investment has been a top concern for the committee. He said the proposed density of the developments is significant, including additional hotel rooms, apartments, offices, parking and retail. This parking and multistory building project is expensive and drives a need for public investment, he said. Mayor Paul Soglin said his main concern with the project is the ratio of the public investment to the return on that investment. He said while many of the project costs are known, it is unknown what any of

the returns could be. Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said one of his biggest concerns with increasing affordability is the cost of underground parking. He said he proposed building a parking ramp above ground instead that would wrapped in retail space so the parking is not clearly visible. “In a perfect world, we had hoped to have all of the parking built underground,” Verveer said. “However the cost of underground versus above ground parking

DOYLE, page 2

Bill targets compensation for victims of sex traﬃcking Female legislators seek to highlight human traﬃcking concerns in state Beth Klassen Herald Contributor A new bill that would allow victims of sexual exploitation to sue for compensation is the latest piece of legislation to curb sex trafficking, which lawmakers say is a growing problem in the state. The bill would alter current Wisconsin law to give victims

the right to sue those who exploited them for physical damages to their bodies, punitive damages and any revenue accrued from their sexual exploitation. Acts that fall under “commercial sexual exploitation” include soliciting a prostitute, involving a child in prostitution, buying or producing child pornography and hosting a place for prostitution, according to the bill. Rep. Jill Billings, D-La Crosse, said she introduced the bill last week after she learned the weight of Wisconsin’s

sexual exploitation issues through a series of disturbing “wake-up calls.” Billings said she felt it was her duty to bring the issue into legislative light after attending a conference in La Crosse in the fall, where women shared their experiences in human traﬃcking. “There were women who were coerced into this for decades,” she said, adding civil action could help compensate these victims for the “years or decades of their lives stolen from them.” Billings said she was also prompted to introduce the

legislation after learning about a disturbing event that occurred in a La Crosse hotel room this past summer, involving a man and two underage girls who had been pressured into sexual exploitation. This event, along with other FBI investigations, prompted Billings to take a stand, she said. Like Billings, Rep. Melissa Sargent, D-Madison, said she saw a lack of protection for victims of sexual exploitation under current state law and signed on to support the bill with a similar sense of duty to ﬁll this void.

“I’m trying to advocate for those young people and make sure they have a pass out and hand up,” Sargent said. According to Billings and Sargent, Wisconsin is often overlooked in terms of human trafficking, but has a much stronger hold in this multibillion dollar industry than anticipated. A report compiled by Fox6Now Milwaukee ranked Wisconsin among the top 10 states in the country for human traﬃcking incidents. Rep. LaTonya Johnson, D-Milwaukee, another sponsor of the bill, said this

report provided a strong motivation to sign onto the bill. “Wisconsin needs a lot of laws regarding human trafficking,” Johnson said. “This is basically just a springboard or a step in the right direction.” Johnson also recently proposed a bill that would require police investigation into reported cases of human trafficking. According to Johnson, Wisconsin is a “feeder state” for human traﬃcking. Perpetrators from

EXPLOITATION, page 3

Student funding up for revisions Keeping student fees low could become ‘impossible’ under new system, critics say Rachel Jones Print Campus Editor

Kirby Wright The Badger Herald A WiscAlert was sent when three suspects entered an unlocked residence on the 400 block of West Miﬄin Street Sunday night before ﬂeeing on foot.

No lead on Miﬄin robbery suspects Aliya Iftikhar Print News Editor An armed robbery occurred on the 400 block of W. Mifflin St. Sunday night, sparking a WiscAlert urging students to avoid the neighborhood as three armed suspects remained at large. Three black male suspects, all under 30 years old, entered an unlocked residence around 7:10 p.m., according to a report from the Madison

Police Department. The two victims in the house were not injured in the robbery. One of the suspects included a male wearing a Harvard sweatshirt and armed with a small handgun, the report said. The University of Wisconsin issued a WiscAlert at 7:40 p.m. warning students to avoid the area. MPD Sgt. Kimba Tieu said the UW Police Department was not involved in the case, but were

notified because of the close proximity to campus. Upon entering the residence, the suspects demanded the victims’ cell phones and wallets and ordered them into a closet before fleeing the scene on foot. A second WiscAlert, sent at 8:30 p.m., said it was believed the suspects had left the area. The police report said a K-9 unit was involved in an attempt to track

down the suspects but was unsuccessful. As of 10 p.m., the K-9 track had ended and was no longer searching the area, Tieu said. The stolen phones were tracked and recovered from a nearby area. The victims were a 20-year-old, of Madison, and a 22-year-old, residency unknown, according to the incident report. Tieu said he did not if the victims were UW students.

The University of Wisconsin’s student government is weighing changes to the eligibility requirements for student organizations to receive funding, but some say the proposed changes would only act as a “band-aid” that does not address the major underlying issues. The General Student Services Fund, which is money distributed to student organizations that provide student services, has been a topic of discussion since the beginning of the fall semester, David Gardner, Associated Students of Madison chair, said. GSSF funds are allocated by the Student Services Finance Committee. SSFC has been taking the time to discuss GSSF policy

and eligibility criteria to decide what is helpful and what is not, Gardner said. Some of the current requirements seem to deter some student groups from applying, he said. ASM Rep. Devon Maier said he is worried that if the proposal is passed, keeping student segregated fees low will become “impossible.” The current GSSF policy is a two-tiered system, Maier said. The proposed changes up for consideration do nothing to address this problem, he said. “Last year, the 18 GSSF groups received $1.4 million, while the other 800-plus student organizations fought for $500,000,” Maier said. “I would fully embrace this proposal if we capped individual budgets at $5,000 to $10,000 to allow all student organizations access

GSSF, page 4