2016-01-27

Page 1

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Ann Arbor, Michigan

michigandaily.com

CAMPUS LIFE

Panel looks at injustices within the food system ANDREW COHEN/Daily

LSA senior Brittney Williams performs her monologue, F Words, for Body Monologues, a performance for members of the UM community to share stories focused on body image, embodiment, and acceptance at the Lydia Mendelssohn theater on Tuesday.

Body Monologues highlight experiences with self-image Community members share stories through spoken word performances By TANYA MADHANI Daily Staff Reporter

The Lydia Mendelssohn Theater was filled to capacity for the fifth annual Body Monologues

Tuesday night, featuring spoken word narratives from 12 performers. Inspired by the Vagina Monologues, the event featured stories by students about their sexuality and body image. The participants varied in age, gender identity, ethnicities and race, covering topics including lymphedema — a disease that causes blockage in the lymphatic system — and gender identity. LSA senior Brittney Williams shared her experiences with

online dating and how she was often exploited for her body. She received requests from men who would seek women fitting her height and build, she said, which made her feel uncomfortable. “I think that it’s a story that’s not really shared as often, at least where fat bodies are concerned,” Williams said. “There’s this idea that we don’t get a lot of attention. So, I wanted to talk specifically about receiving that attention and how it can be fetishized and how

that can get really frustrating at times.” Williams said she decided to take a humorous route with her narrative to engage the audience with the familiar experience of online dating, even if they don’t relate to all the aspects of her story. She said her journey was reflective of other college students’ in experimenting with dating apps such as Tinder, a site that touts more than 9 billion matches See BODY, Page 3A

Speakers discuss solutions to racial inequalities in the industry By BRANDON-SUMMERS MILLER Daily Staff Reporter

A coalition of University organizations examined inequalities in the food industry during a food justice panel Tuesday night. The discussion, which served as a part of the University’s Martin Luther King Jr. symposium, featured remarks from representatives with various campus organizations on current racial injustices within the food industry, as well as a brainstorm on innovative ways to solve them. The discussion was hosted by several organizations, including the Food Access in Michigan Project, the Residential Col-

STATE

ACADEMICS

Flint executives seek to address lasting effects of water crisis Officials say the city is shifting relief efforts to tackle health concerns By LYDIA MURRAY Daily Staff Reporter

Multiple individuals within state government, local government and the Flint community are leading initiatives to remedy the ongoing water crisis — and respond to the storm of media attention — the city faces. The crisis began in April 2014 after a water supply switch from Detroit city water to Flint River water. In the weeks and months following the switch, residents began reporting adverse health effects including hair loss and rotting teeth. Both Gov. Rick Snyder (R) and President Barack Obama have declared states of emergencies for the city. The long-term health effects,

especially on young children, are one of the largest concerns for the citizens of Flint. Sharon Swindell, assistant professor of pediatrics at the University, said the primary concern for young children is that lead poisoning will cause developmental issues, which can lead to poor academic outcomes. “There is no safe level of lead in a person’s body,” she said. “Children, who have a lot of brain growth and development in the first six years, are vulnerable to cognitive and developmental effects. The things we worry about long term include decreasing IQ, poor academic achievement and problems with attention.” In Flint itself and in the state legislature, local leaders have taken multiple steps to resolve the crisis. Earlier this month, Flint Mayor Karen Weaver met with Obama and White House advisers to discuss how to best handle the situation. See WATER, Page 2A

lege and the Michigan Community Scholars Program. Student Food Co., a group that aims to provide students with affordable produce, both helped organize the discussion and offered free produce to audience members. The discussion featured several speakers who represent leaders and members of foodthemed organizations within the Ann Arbor and greater Detroit areas. During the event, panelist Shane Bernardo, a representative from the Earthworks Urban Farm in Detroit, told attendees that historical, institutionalized racism is the main reason for the racial inequities within the food industry. According to Bernardo, policies like redlining — a practice used by some banks to deny credit for individuals living in urban areas — have created current inequities in the food supply by dictating who could get credit based on where they live See FOOD, Page 3A

‘U’ faculty members to recieve seed grants Funding will sustain ongoing gender-related research projects By ALEXA ST. JOHN

ALLISON FARRAND/Daily

Daily Staff Reporter

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at a rally at Muscatine High School in Muscatine, Iowa on Sunday, eight days before the Iowa Caucuses.

In lead-up to caucuses, Trump focuses on rhetoric

Protesters, supporters assembled outside rally site By SAM GRINGLAS Daily Staff Reporter

MUSCATINE, Iowa — The first thing you notice is the line. On Sunday, it stretched from the front doors of Muscatine High School down a sidewalk that

hugged the building’s front side. Like a lot of people who attend campaign rallies, many of the people in line arrived here clad in logoed shirts and hats. Some held signs. They clutched paper tickets printed on white computer paper and moved forward as the Secret Service funneled them through a bank of metal detectors set up in the lobby. For a campaign rally, this was all pretty normal. But only once you look past the line, and absorb the full spectacle that surrounds it, do you begin to comprehend all

that is a rally for GOP presidential candidate Donald J. Trump. Alongside the line Sunday, vendors hawked buttons, T-shirts and Trump dolls. On a table with “Make America Great Again” hats for sale, a watercolor drawing of Trump rested next to a poster depicting Adolf Hitler holding a health care bill and saying, “Obama, you’ve gone too far.” In between the two, a foam finger touting the Second Amendment has a thumb drawn to look like a semi-autoSee TRUMP, Page 7A

Six University faculty members received Faculty Seed Grants from the Institute for Research on Women and Gender this month for their research projects focused on women, gender and sexuality. The grants ranged from $500 to $10,000. The Faculty Seed Grant program was established by IRWG in 1996 to support both disciplinary and interdisciplinary projects relating to women, gender and sexuality, according to the institute’s website. This year’s recipients ranged from projects on individuals with disabilities, to ones on social mobility and HIV testing. See GRANT, Page 3A

the statement How Literati has changed independent bookselling in Ann Arbor

» INSIDE WEATHER TOMORROW

HI: 36 LO: 20

GOT A NEWS TIP? Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail news@michigandaily.com and let us know.

NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM Suspect in hit-and-run arrested MICHIGANDAILY.COM/SECTION/NEWS

INDEX

Vol. CXXV, No. 60 ©2016 The Michigan Daily michigandaily.com

NEWS......................... 2A OPINION.....................4A S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7A

SUDOKU.....................2A CL ASSIFIEDS...............6A S TAT E M E N T. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 B


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.