CELEBRATING OUR ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIFTH YEAR OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Friday, February 6, 2015
Ann Arbor, Michigan
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LET’S GET JAZZY
HEALTH
Outbreak energizes discussion on vaccines ZACH MOORE/Daily
Trumpet player Tomasz Stanko performs with the New Balladyna Quartet at the Michigan League on Thursday.
GOVERNMENT
Before budget presentation, lawmakers talk higher ed. Appropriations subcommittee considers funding history, financial aid By EMMA KINERY Daily Staff Reporter
LANSING — The Appropriations subcommittee on Higher Education met Thursday to discuss how the higher education budget will be laid out for the
upcoming year. Higher education advocates have expressed several areas of concern over the potential for a cut in funding in the upcoming budget, following both a projected deficit and a proposed change in where the University’s state funding comes from. Republican Gov. Rick Snyder is expected to announce his budget Wednesday. The deficit stems from an unexpectedly high number of businesses cashing in on previously allocated tax credits in the state’s general budget. Initial
estimates from the House Fiscal Agency put the deficit at $454.4 million, but more recent reports from Michigan Budget Director John Robert estimate about $325 million. Rep. Jeff Irwin (D–Ann Arbor), a member of the committee, said in an interview after the meeting that the deficit could have a significant impact on higher education institutions in the state. “The budget deficit certainly puts pressure on higher education funding, and that’s going to make
it more difficult for us to continue to make progress on funding our institutions of higher learning in a way that makes sense,” he said. In May, the state’s electorate will vote on a series of proposed bills that are intended to provide funding to fix Michigan’s roads. As part of the plan, the School Aid Fund will only be eligible for use by community colleges and K-12 programs. Public universities in the state currently receive close to 13 percent of their state funding from See BUDGET, Page 3
New state policy requires parents to receive education before opting out By IRENE PARK Daily Staff Reporter
Health officials declared measles eliminated from the United States in 2000, but the recent outbreak in December, originating in Disneyland, has resulted in 102 measles cases during January alone, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Common vaccines protect against serious diseases including measles, mumps, rubella, hepatitis B, polio, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus and chickenpox. In an interview with CBS on Sunday, CDC Director Thomas Frieden said the CDC has seen a growing number of people who are not vaccinated in recent years, which makes communities more vulnerable to such outbreaks. “That number is building up among young adults and adults in society,” Frieden said. “And that makes us vulnerable. We have to
HISTORY
ANN ARBOR
Proposal to approve solar panel farm passes
Race relations shape Detroit’s narrative City’s unique makeup prompted tension, clashes between residents By WILL GREENBERG and ALLANA AKHTAR Daily News Editor and Daily Staff Reporter
Even in a country shaped by race relations, Detroit stands out. The story of race in the city has its own complexity beyond that of many others. However, so often the story gets reduced down to one topic: the racial clashes in 1943 and 1967. Those events are notable moments in Detroit history, but the long-term circumstances and story surrounding them are often lost to oversimplification. Melba Joyce Boyd is a distinguished professor and chair of the Wayne State University Africana Studies Department, with a long list of literary accolades. Boyd grew up in Detroit. Her family started out in the southwest side of the city but eventually moved to Conant Gardens, where Boyd’s mother still lives. While discussing the racial history of Detroit overall, Boyd is quick to point out that the topic is nuanced. “It’s more complicated than outsiders understand,” she said.
WEATHER TOMORROW
make sure that measles doesn’t get a foothold in the U.S.” Richard Besser, ABC News’ chief health and medical editor, said on ABC News last month that unvaccinated children are at risk of falling sick with various diseases, and also put vaccinated people around them at risk because vaccines are not 100-percent protective. In an e-mail interview, Mary Tocco, director of vaccine research at Michigan Opposing Mandatory Vaccines, said unvaccinated children are not the problem. She said measles vaccines are ineffective and unvaccinated children are blamed to hide this reality. Tocco added that the media is overhyping how dangerous the outbreak really is. “This witch-hunt for unvaccinated children is a smokescreen for vaccine failure!” Tocco wrote. “(Measles) is not an epidemic! As of Jan. 23, 2015, there are only 101 people in 11 states that have measles!” Suzanne Waltman, president of Michigan Opposing Mandatory Vaccines, said the risks of vaccination outweigh the benefits, mentioning severe side effects, the See VACCINES, Page 3
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“Race relations in Detroit have sort of been dynamic depending what period of history you’re looking at.” From the outset of Detroit’s founding, race helped develop of the city, starting with the indigenous population who had already formed a society before the French arrived and created what is known as Detroit today. Boyd noted the unique racial dynamic of Detroit’s early years, pointing to both the role of free Black explorers accompanying the French in founding the city, as well as the fact that a large portion of the slaves held were Native Americans. Moving forward in the city’s history, Detroit played a significant role for Blacks during the Civil War because of its proximity to Canada. The city’s Underground Railroad network out of the country offered freedom from both slavery and oppression for free Blacks. Boyd said at the outset of the Industrial Revolution, the beginnings of the auto industry in the city and the subsequent appeal of plentiful work attracted both southern Blacks and whites to Detroit. That demographic trend meant that at the same time the city was seen as a source of prosperity for many Black families, a public sympathizer with the Ku Klux Klan was also elected mayor briefly in 1930. See DETROIT, Page 3
City Council to partner with DTE to increase city sustainability By GENEVIEVE HUMMER Daily Staff Reporter
ZACH MOORE/Daily
History Prof. Juan Cole speaks at the International Institute Round Table on Free Speech on the Front Lines at the Michigan League on Thursday.
‘U’ round table examines challenges to free speech Professors explore implications of ‘The Interview,’ rights restrictions By TANYA MADHANI Daily Staff Reporter
While buzz surrounding the release of “The Interview” may not have resulted from the movie’s merit, the cyber hack in response to its approaching release sparked a national conversation on freedom of speech in the face of a possible terrorist
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threat. Recent international challenges to free speech in pop culture and in print were the topic of the International Institute’s Round Table on Thursday evening at the Michigan League. The round table included Prof. Juan Cole, director for the Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies; Daniel Herbert, associate professor of screen arts and culture; and Law Profs. Herzog and Steven Ratner. Prof. Karla Mallette, director of the Center for European Studies and Islamic Studies Program, served as the modera-
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INDEX
tor for the discussion and said the panel was held to consider recent challenges to freedom of speech, which she characterized as the “conceptual cornerstone of liberal society.” To open, Mallette cited the recent controversy over “The Interview” and how its plot, which revolved around the assassination of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, resulted in a cyber attack on Sony Pictures. “The movie essentially blew up in Sony’s hands, making Sony Pictures a target in one of the most successful cyber-terrorism See ROUND TABLE, Page 3
Vol. CXXIV, No. 61 ©2015 The Michigan Daily michigandaily.com
Here comes the sun. At the Ann Arbor City Council meeting Monday night, councilmembers approved a contract between the city of Ann Arbor and DTE Energy to build a solar panel farm at the Ann Arbor Municipal Airport. Nearly 14 acres of city-owned land, located just south of Ann Arbor, will be used to create the solar farm. Councilmember Sabra Briere (D–Ward 1), Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor (D) and Councilmember Mike Anglin (D–Ward 5) co-sponsored the initiative. Briere wrote in an e-mail interview that the 20-year contract is renewable and all revenue produced will go directly toward funding airport improvement projects like replacing aging hangars. According to the contract, DTE Energy will be responsible for building and maintaining the project. “DTE will build the array, and will pay the City based on solar energy produced — between $41K See SOLAR, Page 2
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