112012 Chicago Maroon

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TUESDAY • NOVEMBER 20, 2012

SSN lays down landlord law Lina Li Senior News Staff The Southside Solidarity Network (SSN) and the Metropolitan Tenants Organization (MTO) provided a comprehensive overview of legal protections for renters and actions they can take against negligent landlords at a renters’ rights workshop last night. The workshop, which was led by MTO community organizers Noah Moskowitz (A.B. ’12) and Regina Rizzo, consisted of an outline of tenant rights followed by a discussion on move-in protocol, apartment conditions and repair, building security, leases, evictions, security deposits, and lockouts and retaliation. Third-year Aija Nemer-Aanerud, an SSN member who helped organize the event, said that the workshop was an effort to “bridge the gap between students and the community,” since housing issues affect both groups. Rizzo emphasized that renters should familiarize themselves with rights afforded under the Chicago Residential Landlord

ISSUE 14 • VOLUME 124

THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO SINCE 1892

CHICAGOMAROON.COM

INVESTIGATIVE SERIES

Part IV: Sexual assaults that don’t reach hearings Joy Crane Associate News Editor & Hannah Nyhart Special Contributor

This is the fourth installment of a quarter-long series on sexual assault, the first of which was published on Oct. 12. It can be found at chicagomaroon.com. Community Organizer for the Metropolitan Tenants Organization Noah Moskowitz (A.B. ’12) explains to students and Hyde Park residents how they can protect against problems with their landlords. PETER TANG | THE CHICAGO MAROON

and Tenant Ordinance (CRLTO), or the “Tenant Bill of Rights.” Under the CRLTO, all renters are entitled to substantial legal protection if they live in buildings with over six units and if the landlord lives separately. According to Rizzo, since 2009, MTO has developed a relationship with MAC properties, which is one of the biggest landlords of students in Hyde Park.

Though Moskowitz described the relationship as “tenuous,” Rizzo emphasized that collaboration with MAC allowed for smooth facilitation of housing disputes and avoidance of lastresort measures like picketing. “They have shown an interest in addressing tenant issues, specifically systematic tenant issues,” Rizzo said. RENTERS continued on page 6

Editor’s note: This content deals with an account of sexual assault and may be triggering to some readers. Less than five percent of sexual assaults suffered by college-age women will be reported to campus authorities or the police. While the U of C has developed a multifaceted system that encourages reporting of sexual assaults, most victims do not report or seek disciplinary recourse. In this installment we will be turning the lens on those who never go through

the University’s disciplinary process, the different points at which a victim stops seeking formal redress, and the wider factors contributing to why victims do not pursue disciplinary action against their assailant. Choosing not to report Two thirds of victims of completed or attempted rape tell someone about the incident, but many turn to a friend or family member before an official figure. Molly Liu, a fourth-year who was raped in the fall of 2010 by her then-boyfriend in University housing, made no official report. “I didn’t feel comfortable filing a report because it was something that was very difficult for me to talk about…. It was hard for me to talk about even with my closest friends, and even more difficult for me to talk about it with someone that I didn’t know ASSAULT continued on page 4

Don’t rain on the book parade ER visits prompt call to health dept.

Third-year Jason Kang peruses a book in the Seminary Co-Op’s new space in McGiffert House on Woodlawn between East 57th and 58th streets. SYDNEY COMBS | THE CHICAGO MAROON

Marina Fang Associate News Editor The Seminary Co-Op Bookstore held a parade Monday morning to commemorate the transfer of the last few books to its new location. Attendees also got a sneak preview of the larger, above-ground store, set

to open on Wednesday. Students, faculty, community members, and Co-Op staff, led by a bagpipe procession, carried the books from the entrance of the old store at East 58th Street and South University Avenue to its new home one block east on South Woodlawn Avenue. In addition, faculty authors, including Professor of American and African American History Thomas Holt; Professor of Anthropolog y, Linguistics, and Psycholog y Michael Silverstein; Professor of English and Comparative Literature David Bevington; and Dean of the College John Boyer, each carried one of their own books during the parade. Co-Op Manager Jack Cella introduced the faculty authors in a short ceremony after the parade. They placed their books on the Co-Op’s signature Front Table, which has welcomed customers at the entrance of the store for over 30 years and displays books by noted faculty and new academic releases handpicked by Cella. Also in attendance was architect Stanley Tigerman of Tigerman McCurry Architects, the firm that designed the new store. “Working with him has been a real pleasure, and I think you’ll see his handiwork when you walk inside,” Cella said. After the parade and brief ceremony outside the McGiffert House, the first floor and basement of which will house the Co-Op, everyone was invited inside to SEM CO-OP continued on page 4

Rebecca Guterman News Editor About six students fell ill early Friday morning with similar symptoms, prompting the U of C Medical Center (UCMC) to call the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) as part of Emergency Room protocol. The students went to the emergency room on Friday in “a small window of time,” according to Ana Campos, interim director of the Office of Undergraduate Student Housing. Because the students were all

presenting symptoms consistent with food poisoning or a stomach virus, including vomiting, the UCMC alerted the CDPH to investigate. Since then, all students have been treated and released from the emergency room. Campos also said that additional students presented symptoms, but did not need to go to the ER. The cause and exact nature of the illnesses are undetermined as of yet, but the investigation is ongoing, according to the CDPH. ILLNESS continued on page 5

Food trucks sue City for rights Janey Lee News Contributor The Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship (IJ Clinic) at the Law School filed suit against the City of Chicago last Wednesday morning on behalf of three food truck owners with the hope of resolving a dispute regarding the appropriate role of government in the regulation of mobile food vendors. The suit is on behalf of Greg Burke and Kristin Casper (A.B. ’08) of Schnitzel King and Laura Pekarik of Cupcakes for Courage. The IJ Clinic is suing the City on grounds that legislation regarding food trucks unfairly favors restaurants and is unconstitutional, as it does not grant equal legal

protection to businesses guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment. The website of the Institute of Justice (IJ), a national organization based in Arlington, VA, said the law is protecting the “few politically connected” brick-and-mortar restaurateurs and, as a result, depriving mobile food vendors of economic opportunity. U of C law students from IJ Clinic, which is a joint project of IJ, are advising the clients under the supervision of lead counsel Robert Frommer of IJ. Casper, Burke, and Pekarik chose to work with the Clinic after networking with them at a mobile food symposium hosted by the IJ Clinic called “My Streets, My Eats” at the Law School last April and learning that IJ’s Texas chapter was instrumental in TRUCKS continued on page 4

IN VIEWPOINTS

IN ARTS

IN SPORTS

What we’re thankful for » Page 7

Ross’s candid camera documents incarcerated youth » Page 9

The All-American kid does it again » Back Page

From Russia with architectural exuberance » Page 11

Chicago men grab first, women take second at Phoenix Fall Classic » Page 15

Not for your eyes only » Page 8


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