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Wednesday, October 5, 2016
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GOVERNMENT
Sen. Bernie Sanders to visit campus Thursday ARNOLD ZHOU/Daily
George Shirley, Music, Theatre & Dance professor, leads faculty and staff in a moment of silence on the Diag Tuesday.
Faculty gather in silent protest against racially charged messages
More than one hundred professors express solidarity with students CARLY RYAN For the Daily
Faculty members gathered in solidarity with students on the Diag Tuesday morning in response to racially charged messages found on campus over the past week.
The gathering, which was organized by University of Michigan Provost Martha Pollack, invited faculty to stand for 15 minutes in silence to protest against what organizers called messages of hate speech, aiming to demonstrate these messages are not reflective of the University’s ideals.
BUSINESS
Literati, Espresso Bar adjust to merger Owners plan to streamline store and coffee shop moving forward KAELA THEUT For the Daily
Last week, after sharing the same building space on the corner of South Fourth Avenue and East Washington Street for almost two years, The Espresso Bar officially became a part of Literati bookstore. Literati owners will now oversee the business and management for the downtown coffee spot, taking over for former owner Sandy Bledsoe. Literati owners Mike and Hilary Gustafson started their bookstore in March 2013, and it has since turned into one of Ann Arbor’s most well-known. They said they have always emphasized being a welcoming and inclusive community and, taking ownership of the Espresso Bar will further that goal. “I’ve loved The Espresso Bar since before they moved into our building,” Mike Gustafson said. “What Sandy created is truly special. It gives me a sense of community. I see friends there. I see all sorts of people come up and have a See LITERATI, Page 2A
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“As a campus we have been working for a whole year to address issues of diversity, equality and inclusion,” Pollack said. “Unfortunately, within the past week we have seen these horrible displays of hatred and it has really saddened and angered many of us. We wanted to publicly show our support
for our students and show that hatred has no place on this campus.” Posters found around campus Monday included antiBlack, anti-Muslim and antiLGBTQ sentiments. Other posters, distributed last week included “reasons why women See FACULTY, Page 2A
Clinton surrogate also slated to make stops in Lansing, Grand Rapids, Dearborn CALEB CHADWELL Daily Staff Reporter
The Hillary Clinton campaign announced Tuesday morning that U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) will be visiting the University of Michigan Thursday at 1 p.m., with doors opening at noon, to campaign on the Democratic nominee’s behalf. Sanders is expected to touch on topics including sustainability, criminal justice reform, raising the minimum wage and making public colleges and universities tuition-free in his speech, according to a press release. Before being ousted in the
Democratic primaries and conceding the nomination, Sanders last visited campus on March 7 and held a rally at Crisler Center a day before he upset Clinton in Michigan’s primary on March 8. Polling before the vote showed Clinton led Sanders by 20.4 percent, before he defeated her by a 0.4 percent margin. Clinton did not visit campus during the primary season. Sanders will also make stops at Michigan State’s campus, UAW Local 600 in Dearborn and Central High School in Grand Rapids Thursday. Both Democrat and Republican surrogates have had a heavy presence in See SANDERS, Page 2A
CSG to distribute survey on perception Voice Your of mental health on campus to faculty Vote aims ELECTIONS
Body also discusses ways to increase number of freshmen representatives ALEX COTT
Daily Staff Reporter
At its Tuesday assembly meeting, Central Student Government announced a new mental health survey that will be distributed to University of Michigan faculty and brought a resolution to the floor that aims to attract more freshmen students to the body. The mental health survey aims to gauge faculty perception of student mental health, and is the first year the faculty has conducted one on issues of mental health. The results will be publicly available at a date to be announced. The survey was postponed from last week due to the events of the previous week, when racially charged fliers were found around campus, inciting students to protest. Earlier that day, faculty members collected on the Diag in solidarity with Black students. The body also heard from the president of Building a Better Michigan, a student advisory group providing input on various new renovations on campus, about planned renovations to the Michigan Union. Diversity and first-year students The body also considered a resolution to increase the number of freshmen students on the assembly. LSA representative Joe
Hansel, an LSA senior who helped to author the resolution, said increasing new student perspectives on the body is crucial for its diversity. “We want a first-year voice inside these divisions,” Hansel said. “I would love to see legislation for these students related to orientation, I would love to see legislation related to transfer student experiences, in terms of academics and student
life.” Increasing first-year students’ presence was also discussed at the body’s first fall meeting in September. At the time, CSG President David Schafer, an LSA senior, mentioned it as part of its overall plan to increase diversity on the body. Renovations LSA senior Anna Wibbelman, president of Building a Better
Michigan, addressed the assembly about plans for future renovations of University of Michigan buildings over the next several years. The Michigan Union will be renovated the year after the bicentennial celebrations conclude in 2018. The NCRB will be the next recreational building to be enhanced, and the CCRB will be the last See CSG, Page 2A
JEREMY MITNICK/Daily
LSA senior Anna Wibbelman speaks about building renovations at the Central Student Government meeting in the Michigan Union Tuesday.
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Vol. CXXVI, No. 5 ©2016 The Michigan Daily
to register freshmen
Student volunteers go door-to-door in anticipation of Nov. 8 ALEX COTT
Daily Staff Reporter
With the presidential election only weeks away, Voice Your Vote, a Central Student Government commission, organized a residence hall crawl last where volunteers went door to door in freshman dorms to encourage students to register to vote. The commission has organized a crawl each semester for the past six years with the financial support of CSG. LSA junior Sara Lebow, chair of Voice Your Vote, said visiting dorms is just one part of their coordinated voter registration plans. Voice Your Vote and other political clubs across the University of Michigan have also done multiple registrationrelated events on the Diag, in Mason Hall and in the Shapiro Undergraduate Library, starting even before students returned to campus. Lebow said the Voice Your Vote commission has found that many upperclassmen students already registered or don’t know to change their address each See VOTE, Page 2A
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2A — Wednesday October 5, 2016 The same sentiment was stated on posters handed out at the beginning of the stand. George Shirley, Music, Theatre & Dance professor, began the moment of silence as the chant dispersed, and reinforced the effectiveness of silent protest to the crowd. “One of the most powerful things we can do in this place, is to observe a moment of silence for those who have been victims of hatred and violence,” Shirley said. Nursing Prof. Patricia Coleman-Burns said faculty wanted to show they stand with affected students. She said the recent acts of hatred do not align with the goals she has for the University. “We stand as a community, with our core values, with our beliefs in social justice, and our long history of standing for justice.” The gathering attracted faculty from all areas of the University. Faculty from the Department of Classical Studies held signs with the Latin word for hate, “odium,” crossed out. Classical Studies Prof. Sara Forsdyke tailored the
FACULTY From Page 1A shouldn’t date Black men” and explanations of “race differences in intelligence.” Their discovery came amid preparations for the launch of the University’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion strategic plan, a year-long initiative started by University President Mark Schlissel last September and slated to be revealed Thursday. Pollack began the gathering by thanking the more than 100 faculty members in attendance and encouraging more action within the community. “We’re going to need to work together on this in the days and weeks to come,” Pollack said. “We are going to need to support our students. We are going to need to support our staff. We are going to need to support each other. We cannot allow hatred to continue on this campus.” Soon after her opening remarks, faculty began to chant “spread ideas, not hate.”
signs to specifically indicate her department’s stand. “They are indications of our dismay at recent events, and we used Latin for ‘hate,’ ” Forsdyke said. “The idea is to ban hatred of all kinds.” Thomas Choi, research technician in the Department of Psychology, said he attended the gathering not only in response to the racially charged issues, but to combat anti-feminist messages as well. “Anti-feminist sentiments have been circulating around campus, and that is a part of this stand as well,” Choi said. The faculty plans to continue to combat hatred on campus. Thursday will announce the diversity strategic plan which will involve many new initiatives. Educational events and seminars are also being organized for the coming weeks and months. Pollack reiterated that their efforts are not over. “We want this to be a place that makes the world better,” Pollack said. “We want to be a place that is welcoming, fair and inclusive. We do not tolerate hate.”
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LITERATI From Page 1A conversation. We have always wanted to have a bookstore that generates dialogue and would be a community space, and I think the fusion of these two businesses does just that.” Despite the change in ownership, coffee shop employees said they’re confident the quality of the Espresso Bar, which was voted best coffee shop in Washtenaw County in 2015, will be consistent. Jess Harmon, the new manager of The Espresso Bar, has worked in the coffee business for more than six years, said she believes the shop sets the standard for customer service in the area. She added that the transition will help align the businesses. “It’s difficult when there’s two M.O.s operating in the
VOTE From Page 1A time they move, but freshmen still need to register before Michigan’s Oct. 11 registration deadline. “A lot of times it is easier to register freshmen since they know it needs to happen,” Lebow said. “A lot of other people on campus don’t know they need to change their address every time they move, so they will forget to. Overall, people have been way more excited about registering this year than when we do it during an off-season.” Along with the nonpartisan Voice Your Vote commission, College Democrats and College Republicans at the University of Michigan both say they are working to get students registered to vote. LSA junior Collin Kelly, president of the University’s chapter of College Democrats, noted that the political club has
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said. “For instance, making special menus for events and readings, or, hopefully one day, smoothing our system so gift cards can work at both the bookshop and the coffee shop.” Despite the change, students, like LSA sophomore Amber Mitchell, said they were supportive of the merge and the environment Literati creates for its customers. “My favorite thing about Literati and The Espresso Bar, besides the world’s best vanilla latte and an outstanding collection of literature, is the community atmosphere,” Mitchell said. “Although the businesses have operated separately up until this point, the location as a whole feels full of individuals who are friendly and passionate about what they do — whether that be academically, in the literary field or as a staff member of The Espresso Bar itself.”
also been hosting its own events on campus. “This year we have already hosted several amazing speakers on behalf of Hillary Clinton, most prominently the next vice president of the United States, Senator Tim Kaine,” Kelly said. “With Michigan as a potential battleground state for the first time in years, we are expecting to have many more prominent politicians and celebrities coming to campus.” LSA junior Enrique Zalamea, president of the University’s chapter of College Republicans, said their organization has hosted similar events to support Republican candidates. “We also foster an inclusive community of young conservatives through social events such as debate viewing parties and nonpartisan and partisan guest speakers,” Zalamea said. The two partisan groups differ slightly in approach and outcome — Kelly said registering
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voters has also benefited their organization, because many students on campus support Democratic candidates. “Voter registration is a nonpartisan effort, but because students are overwhelmingly Democratic, getting them engaged directly benefits our club and progressive causes in general,” Kelly said. College Republicans has taken a different strategy by promoting its political party in the larger picture, according to Zalamea. “During election years, we help students get registered to vote, but given the large liberal population on campus, this year we have decided to focus on working with the national, congressional and state campaigns,” Zalamea said. Lebow added that since Voice Your Vote is not affiliated with either political party, it has the ability to register students in a way that other groups may not be able to. “Since we are nonpartisan and with student government, we are the only group that can go door to door in the dorms,” Lebow said. “That’s where it is really advantageous because we can go straight to people’s rooms and ask them to register.” Though the residence hall crawl only goes on for a week, the commission has already registered 800 new voters before the presidential primaries, which Lebow called a success. “We are an effective group because we are pretty close and goal oriented, so we get a decent amount done,” Lebow said. “You can see in increases in registration rates from what we are doing.” She added that the students who volunteer for Voice Your Vote are a mix of individuals on the commission and also members of other political groups on campus. Volunteers from political groups on campus serve as nonpartisan volunteers when they work with Voice Your Vote in the dorms. “The people who do it are mainly our commission, but anyone on campus is allowed
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same place, but when it’s one cohesive unit, we can all sort of be achieving the same goals,” Harmon said. Harmon also noted that the day to day operations have not changed much so far and will be kept fairly similar for a while, though changes may come down the road. “You know, a lot of things are going to stay the same, especially our staff — we’re not losing anyone,” Harmon said. “We may do some remodeling of things. We might get some varied seating and stuff like that. Hopefully find a way to get people different nooks and crannies to sit in.” However, for the future, the Gustafsons have plans to better streamline the store and the coffee shop in order to enhance the experience of shoppers and readers alike. “There are little things we can do to make the space more cohesive,” Mike Gustafson
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to get involved,” Lebow said. “We reached out to a number of political and volunteer groups all across the political spectrum and we got several volunteers.” College Democrats is one of the political groups that has been working directly with Voice Your Vote during its residence hall crawl. “We are working with the coordinated campaign office in Ann Arbor, and between our groups we are out on campus every day, registering thousands of students,” Kelly said. “Voice Your Vote is doing tremendous work in the dorms, and we have been working with them to get College Democrats volunteers to help out with their efforts.” College Republicans has also been volunteering with Voice Your Vote in addition to its own registration events throughout the semester. “We still continue to host voter registration drives three times a week in addition to informing all our members about the Voice Your Vote initiative last week,” Zalamea said. Lebow said she thought the commission allows CSG to create a stronger presence on campus and build connections with new students. “I think that a lot of freshmen don’t even know what Central Student Government is, so this shows that there are commissions that do these kind of things and get things done,” she said. She added that while registration is an important factor, voter turnout on election day is even more significant in the end, noting that the commission plans to encourage turnout through social media campaigns and raffles. LSA senior Blake McCarren, a member of the commission, said he thinks Voice Your Vote’s success lies in the ease they lend to the registration process. “We make the registration process as easy as possible,” he said. “Someone moves two feet and they’re like, ‘Wow I don’t have to do anything. We take everything difficult out of the equation.’ ”
CSG From Page 1A building to be improved between 2021 and 2022. The organization works with students and architects to improve facilities on campus, including the North Campus Recreation Building, the Central Campus Recreation Building and the Union. “We want spaces that have a lot of light and energy in these buildings and not spaces where we feel trapped and uncomfortable,” Wibbelman said. She said the Union renovations will primarily focus on the first and second floors, adding in more functional work spaces that meet student needs. “There will be places for student orgs to reserve rooms for big meetings to work and bounce ideas off one another and see that visual connectedness, see what another organization is doing right next to them and maybe talk to them about collaborating on an event,” Wibbelman said. She noted that while these buildings are in need of more large-scale updates, there is not enough money in the budget to support these more significant renovations. She added that most of the budget
SANDERS From Page 1A Michigan over the past few weeks. Former President Bill Clinton visited Flint on Monday, and Chelsea Clinton visited Flint on September 23 as well as Michigan State on September 22 to campaign . Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine also made a campaign stop at the University on September 13,
will go toward improvements that do not affect students, and only 30 percent of the renovations will directly affect the student experience. “A lot of the money that we are paying is going toward things like contingencies, architect fees, to fix the plumbing and the walls because the buildings are so broken, and so we are only realizing that 30 percent of the money that we are giving to these funds are going toward things that we are going to feel,” Wibbelman said. Wibbelman added that, due to the lack of funding, the NCRB will be a lower caliber renovation compared to the IMRB improvements. By increasing University investments, student fees, fundraising and student support through student government, the budget can be expanded, according to Wibbelman. She also stressed the importance of student voice in Building a Better Michigan’s future initiative, noting that the organization has arranged for the architect of the projects to meet with 25 to 30 student clubs on campus to hear their opinions. “If we don’t consult students who actually use the buildings, then they aren’t going to function for students,” Wibbelman said.
though Clinton herself has yet to visit campus. Her last visit to the state was August 11 in Warren, Michigan. Her opponent, Republican nominee Donald Trump, last visited the state Friday for a rally in Novi. In Michigan, Clinton currently leads Trump by a margin of 5.3 percent, according to a polling average by RealClearPolitics. Those interested in attending the event can RSVP on Clinton’s campaign website.
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Michigan in Color
Wednesday, October 5, 2016 — 3A
Demario Longmire Toni Wang Alyssa Brandon Sabrina Bilimoria Christian Paneda Ashley Tjhung
Managing Section Editors Senior Editors
Walking the walk: Five guiding principles for diversity strategic plans We are the Multicultural Leadership Council, a coalition of graduate student leaders committed to the well-being and success of students of color at the University of Michigan. Last year, the University’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion strategic planning process increased campus dialogue surrounding diversity goals that our constituencies have worked toward for decades. This week, University-wide and unitspecific DEI strategic plans will be released. While some units have had high levels of community engagement, many have failed to meaningfully incorporate student feedback in the development of their strategic plans over the past year. We call on you, as members of the UM community, to evaluate your unit’s strategic plan once it is released according to these five guiding principles. After listening to the concerns raised by our constituencies across various disciplines, departments and school units, we have concluded that the following five components are vital to the integrity of any DEI plan: 1. Resources: DEI plans require both human and monetary resources. Even the most determined units cannot implement change without
Explaining the mission and philosophy of the group Students4Justice LAKYRRA MAGEE
Michigan in Color Contributor
Students4Justice is a group specifically created as a coalition for students of color, by predominately Black and brown students. Initially, given the current campus climate, we mainly focused on anti-Black racism on campus, but our efforts go beyond anti-Black racism and bring together students of color who are affected by the lack of inclusivity of this campus. Our mission is to build coalitions with groups of students of color, always acknowledging the anti-Blackness that can occur in non-Black student of color spaces, and to combat racism at this institution. How do we give voice to students? There seems to be a misunderstanding that we, as Students4Justice, wish to speak on behalf of the Black community (in this case, any community of students of color). To dispel those beliefs, we operate under a system in which we believe it is not our job as Black students, as students of color, to present the administration with just one avenue to create change. Speaking specifically as a queer Black woman, I can say that the Black community is in no way a monolith, and that even with majority of Black cis/ straight people agreeing on what the community needs, that leaves room for further marginalized Black folks to not have their voices heard. What we believe in is a paradigm shift. Students4Justice is not fighting for a seat at the table with a limited number of chairs, we are fighting for a table with an infinite amount of seats. We, as students of the University of Michigan, create the seats and it is the administration’s job to follow our lead. Now this method may seem as if it lacks the concreteness of previous movements, but it does provide a different route than
previously tried before. With our demands such as “create a space for Black students and other people of color without white students, before the launch of the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Plan,” we are trying not to speak on behalf of Black students or any other students, but demanding that the administration does more to give voice to students beyond identified student leaders. Outside of the reality that unifying is fighting for our voices to be heard, the demand for unity demonstrates an expectation that we have to have one voice in order to make change. The problem is we do not operate with one voice. Asking the administration to do a better job at inserting itself into the communities of students of color and requesting they bridge the gap themselves creates the potential for a more in tune, interconnected and institutional change. The reality is that the idea of us needing to have one set of demands even within our respective communities, when we are thousands of different students, by nature allows for the administration and for members of our own communities to continuously silence voices of students. How else do we create an intersectional movement and have intersectional change without tokenizing students of color, if the administration is not coming to us? Our goal has never been to make decisions for any group of students, but to fight for ways that help bridge the gap between administration and students of color, demand accountability from the administration and create continuous engagement with students of color and the administration. When University President Mark Schlissel says the only way we can make change is by working together, I wholeheartedly agree. The difference is our working together has to be on the terms of the students and not the administration.
financial support. Schools must have budgetary line items dedicated specifically towards DEI programmatic activities and capacity-building. Campus units have been asked to take on the challenge and responsibility of doing diversity labor, but this work tends to fall disproportionately on those most affected by climate issues. Without funds to implement programs and increase the capacity to do DEI work, women and people of color will continue to bear the unequal burden of ensuring that the University of Michigan is a diverse, equitable and inclusive space for all — on top of their existing responsibilities. The solution is clear and simple. Resources must be made available to pay those who are implementing DEI plans, including students who have historically carried the burden of this work without fair compensation. Pay for DEI work shows that it is valued as a form of labor. It furthermore frees up time and energy for those who sacrifice their health and academic progress while working toward a more just university.
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I am not an oxymoron NICOLE KHAMIS
Michigan in Color Columnist
After parking my car, I walk toward the main street of my downtown. I pause and look at the scenery I haven’t seen all summer. The buildings are straight out of a “Pretty Little Liars” set, fit with Victorian finishings and fresh paint. Among the facades of the buildings, images of my summer flash back to me. I was just halfway across the world, and now I am here. How do I reconcile here with there? I wonder. Why am I here, anyway? How am I so lucky? I wonder about all the people I left behind — the father who lost his family in a Russian barrel bombing in Aleppo, the shop owner who fled from Iraq and would insist on giving me free ice cream when I would come by his sadiliyya (pharmacy) or Omar from Damascus who refused to ever go to school again after his own was bombed. Remembering the present I was buying for a friend, I quickly walk into one of my favorite stores, a cute boutique specializing in unique clothing. Looking through clothes, I begin talking to the sole woman working in the small space. She asks about my summer. I say I was in Jordan, working with refugees. She interrupts me quickly. “Aren’t women treated really badly there?” I pause. Grabbing tightly onto the hanger of an outfit I had just picked out, I freeze in the moment. How can I reply to this in a way that doesn’t shame my own culture? Does she even know where I am from? That I am Arab? Or that the West Bank is my favorite place on Earth and that I love it and that worse things have happened to me here, but it wouldn’t matter because.... I can’t even remember what I said next. I paused in this moment because I quickly uncovered the biases behind this question. When one asks, “Aren’t women treated badly (in the Middle East)?” this directly implies that women from the Arab world are oppressed, devoid of freedom and that others (in the
West) are treated better. Now that I’m a senior, I find that it’s only necessary that I retrace all the moments in which I have been asked questions about my Arab identity, felt ashamed for it or had to defend it at this University: Last year a friend asked me why I wore a cross around my neck (I’m Antiochian Orthodox Christian). I have also been asked why I do not wear a hijab (see above), why I wear things that may show my shoulders sometimes and why my skin tone is “so white.” I have been asked multiple times if my parents’ marriage was arranged (nope). If my mother was forced into a marriage in any way (she wasn’t). How old my mother was when she got married (older than you), if she has a job (she does) and that I should protect myself from the prospect of early marriage. Recently, on the way to meet the parents of a male friend, a different male friend threatened that if I came back with a ring on my finger, he would be very upset. Recently, at a party, I was called exotic and was asked if I knew how to belly dance. Perhaps these questions are out of good intention, but I always wonder why these questions or assumptions arise in the first place. It is no secret that people who consider themselves American have accepted a very easy explanation of a world that I hail from — one that is complex, intricate and could never be reduced to simple sound bites on CNN (but has). These hegemonic ideologies suggest the Arab world is one where no Christians exist, only veiled women devoid of any rights or autonomy who need saving from brown men by white ones, but who are also over-sexualized and erotic. It is one that is conservative, patriarchal and unchanging. And most importantly, that to use the words Arab and Feminist in a sentence is an oxymoron — that this combination could never exist by Western standards. When a store clerk asks me, “Aren’t women treated badly (in the Middle East)?” there are several assumptions that come with this characterization. First, what is “bad” and what are we
measuring it by? What is “good” and does this mean how women are treated in the Western world? Is there room in this discourse to propose that one’s Western-centric idea of feminism may not be allencompassing of what feminism may mean to women of different cultures or national identities? Throughout my time here at the University of Michigan, I have grappled with the two most important parts of my identity, being Arab and also being a feminist, and have always been told that these two identities could never exist simultaneously. And even more so, that feminism did not apply to me because my culture and traditions that I held so dear were inherently patriarchal. As long as I am Arab, I, and the rest of my culture, will always be oppressed. In classes about the Middle East during my last year on campus, I increasingly hear comments from white women about the Middle East being less developed, specifically in regard to women’s rights. Debates about women’s rights in the Arab world have been swirling around for the past 110 years. Compare this unacknowledged history to the recent debacle of Congress defunding Planned Parenthood, and an assumption of the Western standard of treatment of women as something to aspire to becomes a particularly weak comparison. Yes, real sexism does exist in the Arab world. But it is not that different than sexism in the United States. In any community, cultural and moral life and how they intersect in certain societies are extremely nuanced and are impossible to be reduced to words such as good or bad. Choices of women and circumstances they find themselves embedded within are part of a socio-historical context and are conditioned by power through varying structures. Just as Muslim and Christian women choose to veil due to certain contexts, American women can choose to show skin due to certain pressures of a hyper-sexualized American society. Let me be clear: The consistent and systematic infringement and abuses of women’s rights and bodies should be acknowledged
everywhere. Catcalls on South University Avenue on Saturday nights are just as damaging as sexual harassment in the side streets of Amman, Jordan. Simultaneously, though, we must recognize that everyday forms of suffering that women endure are not always specific to particular cultures or religious communities. We can and should desire justice and rights for women. However, these rights and ideas may be different than the rights we proclaim for ourselves — is this a challenge we can accept? Those who are not from these regions should pause when they think they can claim they know how I, and other women from the Middle East, should be treated — because they don’t. Our lived experiences, and thus priorities, are different than others based on our socio-historical contexts. Once we realize this, it becomes impossible to fully understand, let alone lay claim to, the desired rights of any woman. Not every woman, despite what some may believe, aspires to fit into the Western notion of feminism, such as short skirts and bare skin. My feminism is embodied in the strong women I know who are resisting occupations and wars and have strength unparalleled. My feminism is my mother, who was born in and survived a war and occupation ongoing, narrowly escaping for a better life for her children, or my grandmother, who traversed waters only to find a country that never loved her back. These struggles experienced by the women before me have informed the way I see the world and why I believe in gender equality; our collective identities of being Palestinian have shaped us, taught us and given me courage — a lesson in feminism unknown to many. Despite what you think you know about my culture, or your “legitimate” self-proclaimed mission to save Arab women from oppression, you will never know my lived experiences of being a Palestinian woman. But you can better understand it by respecting my feminism. A feminism that has been learned through my culture of resilience, and I would never let you rescue me from that.
Opinion
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
4A — Wednesday, October 5, 2016
CJ MAYER | COLUMN
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ISAIAH ZEAVIN-MOSS | COLUMN
I
Kanye, gods and politicians
am an avid concert-goer. I I have ever attended, I felt my love to watch the artist and mind racing at the show, asking how they respond to the questions about Kanye as an pressures of a live show, where artist and about artistry or there is potential for any snafu to celebrity more generally. manifest in a moment I came away from of humiliation, where the show believing the veil of celebrity that West was making and perfection a statement: There which we, the is no difference audience, have between himself and created, might be his audience. That is, seen through. Kanye is only and all Our collective of what we imagine construction of this him to be. If Kanye veil pertains not believes this, then his ISAIAH only to figures in ZEAVIN-MOSS songs take on entirely the entertainment new meanings. industry, but in the political For example, his 2013 track arena as well. Which beckons “I Am A God,” in which Yeezus the question: How different are proclaims himself to be a deity. the two realms — entertainment In this song, who, in fact, is a and politics — at all? god? Who believes themselves to On Sept. 28, I attended Kanye be a god? West’s performance at Joe Louis Kanye’s naysayers (of whom Arena in Detroit. I had seen there are plenty) believe that Kanye twice before, and both this would be Kanye himself concerts were awesome. I felt — that Kanye’s obnoxious ego like he really vibed with the is so totalizing, it is all Kanye audience and put himself out will ever be. But I believe this there for all of us to see, through reading to be far too simplistic. ostentatious and daring rants I assert that Kanye might be and stunts — at his Yeezus tour, calling us, the listeners, gods, for example, a character dressed in his title: that we take on the as Jesus came onstage and role of “I.” He instructs us: christened Kanye. You, the mass audience, act like But this time, I was deeply gods, demanding that I, Kanye, disappointed. I was sitting in mimic the god you want to be. pretty good seats, but for most The admissions of fragility of the show, I could not see the and self-consciousness in this man whom I had come to see. song — which come across in Sure, I could still sing along erratic, extended interludes with him, but I already do this of West frantically screaming in the shower or sitting in the and breathing heavily into the Fishbowl. microphone — represent West’s What could I see? Mostly wilting under the pressure of the audience beneath West’s demands. floating stage, which had a The track finally asserts set of lights attached to it, that I, Kanye, allow you, the which were set on the general audience, to construct me, admission audience under god-like, so that you can then him. These people were surely celebrate your power, and I entertaining to watch, as they can simply be your vessel. This moshed and shoved each other song, then, mixes both Kanye’s in celebration of West’s music. private, internal struggle — to Was this what I was supposed which the public otherwise to be watching? The audience? has very limited access — More than any other rap show with his much more common,
expectedly ignorant public persona. And, finally, it indicts us, the audience, for our power-hungry relationship with celebrities, as we build them up as deities and wait as they affirm our collective strength. And this is where I would like to turn next: away from Kanye, specifically, and toward a conversation about how our public figures — in both the political and entertainment realms, which, I posit, have merged into one indistinguishable conglomerate — become objects of our projections and desires. In our political discourse, we note Trump’s evil rhetoric. Clinton supporters tout that her campaign is not so divisive or hateful. Tim Kaine is known as America’s stepdad. A 2006 study demonstrated that Americans who saw two photos, side by side, of political candidates running against each other, could predict the outcome of the race almost 70 percent the time. In other words, how we perceive certain candidates to look, how they dress or how they speak or whether or not they have spray-tanning solution on their faces — these perceptions of entirely superfluous traits that determine how we vote, and, in turn, they determine the direction of our country. Our demand on Kanye West that he fulfills the standards of the god we have imagined him to be, it seemed on Wednesday night, has forced him into a more subdued, invisible role, thereby questioning if there is any real distinction to be made between us and him. And while Kanye, being the genius that he is, is able to take this and make a bold artistic statement, we ought not regard our political establishment in this way.
Isaiah Zeavin-Moss can be reached at izeavinm@umich.edu
CONTRIBUTE TO THE CONVERSATION Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor and op-eds. Letters should be fewer than 300 words while op-eds should be 550 to 850 words. Send the writer’s full name and University affiliation to tothedaily@michigandaily.com.
“
NOTABLE QUOTABLE
We can’t substitute our own views for everybody else in society, regardless of their views.
—Vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine addressing his state’s death penalty policy during his time as governor of Virginia during the vice presidential debate Tuesday night.
”
L
Coming together on climate
ast Monday, in the first leader of our country rips up an presidential debate, Trump international trade agreement, we and Clinton quickly may never have a chance to enact sparred on climate change: such worldwide change again. As a Clinton: “Donald thinks that negotiator of the Paris Agreement climate change is a wrote in a Washington hoax perpetrated by Post op-ed, climate the Chinese. I think change has the ability it’s real.” to disrupt national Trump: “I did not. security and economic I did not. I do not say security more than that. I do not say that.” any issue other than In case anyone’s nuclear conflict. A confused, that was global effort is our only a blatant lie. He has chance — the Paris called climate change a Agreement is our only CJ “total hoax,” “bullshit” chance — and Trump MAYER and tweeted that would rip it up. “the concept of global In contrast, Hillary warming was created by and for Clinton has concrete goals she the Chinese in order to make U.S. wants to hit. By the end of her manufacturing non-competitive.” first term she wants half a billion Yeah, wow. In case it needs to solar panels installed and to be said, NASA and 97 percent continue President Obama’s CAFE of actively publishing scientists standards for vehicles, which are all in consensus that Earth has dramatically increased fuel is undergoing global warming efficiency and helped promote and other climate change cleaner and even electric cars, consequences, and that the driving as part of her plan to adhere factor for much of the increase is to the Paris Agreement and to human activity. reduce carbon emissions by 30 While a commander in chief percent in 2025. who denies science and fact is But in reality, it’s not the smart worrisome, it’s what he will do with political move for Trump to deny this kind of closed mindset that climate change. The polling is will be scariest. First and foremost, overwhelming — 64 percent Donald Trump says he will of Americans care a great deal “cancel” the Paris climate change or fair amount about climate agreement, a deal between 195 change, 90 percent of Americans countries that has been negotiated say the effects of climate change for the past five years, aiming to have started or will start soon, 41 decrease global emissions. The percent view it as a serious threat single most important worldwide and 65 percent blame human step ever taken to mitigate the activities for the accelerated rate effects of climate change, it is of climate change. Even 40 percent “unlikely” India and China would of Republicans care a great deal adhere if the United States were or fair amount. Big states like to back out. Those three countries California and critical states like combine for roughly 45 percent of Florida are already beginning to the world’s emissions. feel the effects of climate change. Trump, if successful in pulling Liberals and conservatives can the country out of the agreement, find common ground. The major would endanger decades of work argument against taking action is at a time when scientists fear that it will cost jobs and hurt our we could be approaching a “red economy. But the jobs don’t have line” for climate change unless to disappear as long as we make we take significant action. Here, the investment in clean energy. the United States must set an And not only can we maintain our example and lead the world. If the jobs by investing in clean energy,
it might be crucial to save jobs. As the bipartisan “Risky Business” project led by Henry Paulson (George W. Bush’s secretary of the treasury), Michael Bloomberg and Tom Steyer argues, the economic risk of not dealing with climate change will be even more catastrophic. Damage from rising sea levels and worsening storms could cost up to $35 billion in the next 15 years, while heat waves could cost Americans $12 billion more per year and could cost farmers 10 percent of their yearly crop yield. These are the top projections, but this is all to say simply: Not dealing with climate change, in the long run, is more damaging to our economy and our country than taking action ever could. Not taking action is dangerous to our country, and investing heavily into the clean energy industry will help save jobs in the near term and will save our economy in the long run. This is something I believe, like the Risky Business project, can bring together both sides of the aisle in common sense action. Unfortunately, in our current situation with Trump at the helm of the Republican party, we will never get there. He uses climate change to help his international golf course, yet when it comes to the American people will refuse to do anything. We can take smart, economically sound actions and we as a world can come together and enforce the Paris Agreement, our greatest chance ever to mitigate climate change. With Clinton, we will adhere to the Paris Agreement, continue Obama’s efficiency goals and increase expenditure on clean energy. With Trump, oil will reign supreme and the world’s last united effort to fight climate change could dissipate. If you care about climate change, this election is a no-brainer.
CJ Mayer can be reached at mayercj@umich.edu
LEAH SCHNECK | OP-ED
S
For women, this election is it
ince the beginning of this election cycle, my women friends and I have frequently had conversations about what would happen to our rights if a Republican is elected as our next president. Where would we be able to get birth control? Would groups on college campuses receive support from federal initiatives like the It’s On Us campaign to help create a healthier sex culture? Will Title IX be challenged? If any of us unintentionally got pregnant, would we be able to seek help from University Health Service? Would Planned Parenthood still exist? It may be difficult to conceptualize what is at stake in this election. The hate and polarization that have evolved throughout this presidential race obscure the policies, beliefs and platform pieces that are usually the cornerstone of political discourse. What we may not realize is that progress on entire categories of issues that encompass millions of people’s well-beings hang in the balance this time around. One such category is women’s rights, where Democrats and Republicans differ most in their response or strategy for change. This includes reproductive justice, equality in the workplace and gender-based violence. For years, but particularly in this election cycle, Clinton and the Democratic Party have highlighted issues of sexual assault on college campuses, abortion access, family leave, police brutality and equal pay, among others. Each of these issues directly affects the physical and emotional safety of women, our ability to decide if and when we want to have children, the kinds of educational and occupational opportunities we have, and our abilities to participate in economic and political realms of society. All of this may be overwhelming, but it’s for that
very reason these points are so important to understand. While state laws have tremendous ability to shape the everyday experiences of women, the White House yields heavy power to influence federal, state and international policymaking. Democrats have proven time and again that they will stand up for and protect women and families. In fact, many issues that pertain to supporting women and families are the centerpiece of the 2016 Democratic platform, Clinton’s campaign and down-ticket campaigns across the country. In a category of his own, Donald Trump — once publicly pro-choice — has since declared himself anti-choice, going so far as to suggest that women who choose to get an abortion should be punished for it. Trump has also made countless sexist comments directed at individuals and about women as a group. He has joked about the assassination of Clinton more than once and allowed a woman reporter to be beaten at one of his rallies. He has suggested that his daughter would not let herself be subjected to sexual harassment in the workplace and has been completely silent regarding campus sexual assault. Not only will electing Trump alienate more than half of the population by devaluing women in public discourse, but it will significantly decrease women’s access to health care and prevent progress on issues including family leave, scheduling stability, interactions with law enforcement and sexual assault prevention — issues that particularly affect lowerincome women, queer women and women of color who more often lack resources to seek help outside the public system which is stacked against them. It is important for me to acknowledge the privileges I bring to the table when writing this piece. Growing up as a privileged, white millennial
woman, I have understood my right to vote, my right to be treated as an equal in public spaces, and my right to access comprehensive health care as concrete and the remaining fight was to make those legal rights a reality for all women. Of course, there would be times when I would be treated differently by individuals — in the classroom, on the soccer field, at drivers ed — but I thought that my basic rights would be unchanging in the law. Mr. Trump poses a threat to that understanding — one that generations before us worked so hard to achieve, one that we are not willing to lose. Perhaps that is why this attack feels so extreme and so particularly offensive. My friends and I are part of a developing fourth wave of feminism that aims to bring the reality of intersectionality and systemic, institutionalized oppression to the forefront of our theories, actions and solutions. To be truly inclusive, we must understand that encroachments on women’s rights affect all women differently, but do affect all women. One way to support women is by electing candidates — Democrats — who share that understanding and who will include our varied interests in all policies, not just the few in which we are specifically enumerated. So, here’s to women taking time off from the classroom, the chemistry lab, the basketball court, family life, the tech company and whatever else we are choosing to do to be vocal about and vote for candidates that will respect us as human beings ensure us those basic rights for decades to come. Register to vote or update your address by Oct. 11 and get to the polls on Nov. 8. It’s your responsibility if you have the right.
Leah Schneck is the outreach director and social media coordinator for the University’s chapter of College Democrats.
Arts
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Wednesday, October 5, 2016 — 5A
FILM COLUMN
When bad people make good art As “The Birth of a Nation” premieres across the country, consumers wonder if they can seperate the film from the accused
DIOR
The last time I was in a line this long, two hours later I got my ass grabbed at Rick’s :/
Style round-up: SS17 FW Daily writers recap highs and lows of International Fashion Week EMMA KINERY Daily Arts Writer
TESS GARCIA For the Daily
SARAH AGNONE For the Daily
“Fashion Month” finally comes to a close, and with it comes the need for a candid illustration of the intriguing innovations (or lack thereof) that the fashion industry’s gentry have had the opportunity of showcasing. To aid in that, our Daily Style writers compiled their raves and critiques (and everything else in between) of some of more noteworthy showings this month in fashion. Dior For her inaugural collection at Christian Dior, Maria Grazia Chiuri reminded the fashion world of what put her on the map during her nine years at Valentino: dainty embellishments, billowing fabrics in soft neutrals and a sense of whimsy that may only be matched by her craftsmanship. However, Grazia Chiuri did not merely capitalize on her strengths. Dior’s spring 2017 collection is as “Maria” as it is classic, yet sellable, Dior. Tailored trousers are paired with blouses reminiscent of fencing gear. Elastics emblazoned with “J’ADIOR,” a spin on the classic slogan “J’Adore Dior,” are attached to visible undergarments and ballgowns alike. Kitten heels and flashes of bright cherry red ruled the runway, as Monsieur Dior surely would have hoped. And yet so did tee shirts, high-waisted panties and monogrammed slide sandals. Both millennials and lifelong devotees could rejoice. Grazia Chiuri’s collection perfectly combined more masculine, contemporary touches — fencers were a muse, remember — with the feminine flair she is so known and admired for. She is also the first woman ever to take the helm at Dior, making a graphic tee that read “WE SHOULD ALL BE FEM-
INISTS” (paired, of course, with a beautifully embroidered maxi skirt) feel all the more special. Lest you forget, Dior will let you know: girls run the world, Paris Fashion Week included. — Tess Garcia Dolce & Gabbana No matter the season, Dolce & Gabbana knows their customer and their brand. Looking through the designs, the collection feels like something I’ve seen before but not in the tired way trends can lean towards. I loved the lace dresses and high waisted two piece sets of heavy embroidered jackets paired with short shorts. With over 90 looks and patterns ranging from fish and roses to pizza sauce, one would expect to feel overwhelmed, but it rings cohesive: Italian, bold and chic. — Emma Kinery Balmain Balmain’s Olivier Rousteing has been riding the coattails of his supermodel army, his label’s legacy and the Kardashians for far too long. His spring 2017 collection is rich in tacky jewel-tones and snakeskin textiles in shapes that your great-aunt would call “darling.” In other words, supermodel Jourdan Dunn looked like a tent, and not in a cool way. Each model’s sharply contoured cheeks and smoldering scowl felt alarmingly reminiscent of the designer himself, who seems more concerned about his Instagram following than he does about increasing sales. As I watched footage from the show, even Gigi Hadid’s famous stagger-walk couldn’t keep me from coming to one clear conclusion: Rousteing’s Balmain looked cheap. Really cheap. Shimmery striped dresses with cutouts and sheer panels? Hasn’t Forever21 been doing that since the beginning of time? A pink and purple satin kimono? I have no witty response for that level of atrocity. Though once known for its innovation and shameless sex appeal, Balmain’s current “aesthetic” feels like a sad mixture of gaudy
fabrics and trends that originated on Instagram. The show’s dimly-lit tropical backdrop reinforced that the world of Balmain is one seriously chaotic jungle. If it’s survival of the fittest, I’m not sure this collection will make it out alive. — Tess Garcia Puma x Fenty Before it even debuted, Puma and Fenty’s collaboration was already adored by practically every rabid Rihanna fan, and her sway as a popstar could easily carry most collections to stardom. That being said, Puma and Fenty’s latest iteration spoke for itself — the collection combined romantic lingerie, vintage French elegance and loose, subversive streetwear (slightly reminiscent of Yeezy’s latest collection). Some models wore bare heads, most covered in caps and hoods. Satin lingerie and corset shapes were paired with dainty hoodies and floor length jackets. Mesh detailing softened baggier shapes while maintaining the clothing’s trendy street chic attitude, and a color palette of pastels (especially soft pink), off white and olive green permeated much of the lineup. The line’s penchant for juxtaposing elegant pearl jewelry with Rihanna’s signature rugged attitude (and her influence over Fenty) asserted an elegant contrast, subtly channeling romantic aspects of 17th century France, while still maintaining a signature sense of individuality. — Sarah Agnone MSGM The collection was very hit or miss, but nevertheless one which made a statement. Some pieces I absolutely loved — the first four white baby doll pleated ensembles with orange and blue watercoloresque circles. Others went too far — the layered cropped argyle was a lot. Nevertheless the collection felt cohesive in its universal noise with loud patterns, structures and colors, fresh and very spring. — Emma Kinery
T
he question isn’t decision. whether it can hapOn Friday, “The Birth of a pen. It can happen Nation” will open at movie the— it happens all the time. The aters across the country. I don’t canon of male genius is full of know if boycotting the film is rapists, abusthe right way to recers, racists and oncile the evils of its anti-Semites. creator. Art is not its The question is artist, but it must be what are we — viewed through the as consumers lens of its artist. “The of art — supBirth of a Nation” is posed to do not Nate Parker’s rape with it? What case. But understandhappens to ing the pieces of an good art when artist’s life — whether MADELEINE criminal or otherwise its creator is a bad person? — is necessary to fully GAUDIN At the 2016 understanding the art Sundance Film Festival, “The that person creates. Nate ParkBirth of a Nation” was bought er and the art he makes is the by Fox Searchlight Pictures for product of everything that has a record setting $17.5 million. ever happened to him, the sum The film instantly shot to the of all his experiences, both the top of award show conversation good and the bad. and hyped as one of fall’s best I understand people who films. won’t see this film in theaters Seventeen years earlier, the because they don’t want Parker film’s director and star, Nate to get any of their money. That Parker, was accused, along makes sense to me. I support with the film’s co-writer Jean the camp of people who would Celestin, of raping an uncon- rather save the eight dollars scious classmate while at Penn- and find the movie online. But sylvania State University. The I don’t agree that because the news resurfaced around the filmmaker is a “bad” person, time of the film’s acquisition by their art should not be conFox Searchlight with the added sumed. information that the victim, Part of my disagreement, who remains anonymous, had I think, comes from the fact committed suicide in 2012. that this widespread uproar The tone surrounding the hasn’t been pointed in the same film changed dramatically. degree towards the art of other Posters advertising the film accused rapists. Nate Parker in L.A. were spray-painted isn’t the first man to commit with the word “Rapist.” Peo- a sexual assault, and he’s not ple wrote op-eds and penned the first man to make a movie. Facebook statuses. The world He’s also not the first man to do tweeted, texted and did some- both. Convicted rapist Roman thing they almost never do: Polanski won an Oscar 25 years they believed the victim. after his victim first came forCalls were made to boycott ward. Accused child molester the film, and that’s when things Woody Allen is still around got even more morally complex. and sometimes people still pay That call asked the question: attention to him. No one boycan you separate the art from cotts either of these filmmakits artist? ers. I’m going to break all the Perhaps it’s Parker’s youth, rules of making a good argu- and even more likely it’s his ment with this one, and say race, that stirs such an intense both “yes” and “no.” Art can (although not wholly undestand on its own. You don’t served) reaction from the pubneed to know who directed lic. I’m happy that people are a movie or wrote a story or upset about an issue that so painted a painting to recognize often and so easily gets excused it as good art. Art stands alone when it comes to celebrities. through anonymity born of But I’m having a hard time ignorance all the time. For the believing this anger comes knowledgeable consumer, the from a pure place of support for distinction is harder to make. survivors of sexual assault. It becomes more of a conscious Perhaps still, the anger is
though, and the band has been “Tame.” It resurrects that nailsburning through replacement against-the-chalkboard charm, female bass players somewhat if only for a few minutes. desperately. These two songs, along with 2014’s embarrassing the pounding, gritty “Oona,” comeback EP mark most of the Indie Cindy album’s highpoints. featured Kim There are a few B-levShattuck, who el goodies: “Might Head Carrier marred its glossy As Well Be Gone” ’s songs with razory chorus has the kind Pixies vocals. However, of resolve and the Pixies Music Head Carrier’s kind of downward Paz Lenchantin melodic inflection seems like she’s that feels like an OK here to stay: day’s indifferent midthe Argentinian rocker does a night. “Tenement Song” is also satisfactory job on the album, fair — the “Hey man!” ’s sound filling the Pixies’ feminine very “Suffragette City,” and the aorta with much needed, fresh- guitars are revved up. flowing blood. And yet, still, Then, there are the oddballs. she’s lacking. There’s no Deal- “Um Chagga Lagga” is pseudoian bite. edge at its worst. Permeating Head Carrier plays out the this mess is, alas, desperation; same way — good, but not great. the song is a Hail Mary to any Upbeat, but not biting or grip- kind of progress and coherence ping in a lasting way. The title Head Carrier had built up until track tricks the listener into this point. What is “um chagga being hopeful. As Francis sings lagga on the side of the road”? “I’m going down the drain Is it a metaphor for sex, or did again,” Santiago’s guitar bends Black Francis’s car just run out in that sad, albeit gorgeous, of gas? There will never be an fashion, and these words seem answer. (at first) a kitschy harbinger for “Talent” is equally as a return to form. embarrassing. It’s a nod to the “Classic Masher” is saccha- Pixies’ surf-rock influences, rine excellence — Francis and to be sure, but too much of a Lenchantin’s harmonies are nod — more like a failed head sunny and effortless, and the butt. Francis and Lenchantin song’s lyrics nestle into a famil- enunciate “talent” in the chorus iar territory of wittiness, bilin- like a first grade teacher would, guality and obscure references. carefully tapping each T. 1989 Only Francis could have a “tête- Black Francis wouldn’t have a-tête with his haberdasher,” cared. He would’ve hollered it whatever that means. “Baal’s without the T’s. (A fun game: Back” continues strongly, with take a shot every time you hear screams galore a la Doolittle’s the word “talent” in the song.
C+
PIXIES MUSIC
Mr. Clean needs you to join the Church of Scientology!
Pixies’ ‘Head Carrier’ can’t carry the band’s legacy of off-beat edge Even the biggest Pixies’ fans can’t get on board with this album MELINA GLUSAC Senior Arts Editor
There’s a moment during every concert when you become a pleasantly swaying body. The lights are low; your eyes have adjusted to the fluttering environment; and the sweaty bodies (you’re sweaty, too) somehow feel like family now. The band is in between bangers, buffering their mega-hits with two to three-minute ditties, maybe from that one album you pre-
tended to like, but didn’t really. But still, you sway your body to the song, pleasantly. Because you’re at the concert — it’s been years — and it’s that band. That’s what listening to Head Carrier feels like. The Pixies only left us for 11 years, in the grand scheme of things. Hell’s favorite quartet formed back in ’86, with original members Black Francis, Kim Deal, Joey Santiago and David Lovering. While they lasted, these Bostonians released some of the best albums the last 50 or
so years have seen: 1987’s freaky prototype Come On Pilgrim, 1988’s harsh and nuanced Surfer Rosa, 1989’s classic Doolittle, the extraterrestrial Bossanova and the steady Trompe La Monde. By the time 1993 rolled around, though, tensions between Francis and Deal came to a head, and the group (one of Kurt Cobain’s favorites) disbanded. But now the Pixies are back, and they have been since 2004, technically. Francis and Deal still aren’t on oh-myGod-let’s-grab-coffee terms,
aimed less at Parker’s crime and more at his — and by extension his film’s — failure to do everything it was supposed to do. “The Birth of a Nation” was supposed to be revolutionary, it was supposed to win awards, it was supposed to change the way people think. But then its creator was outed as the type of person we like to think is incapable of making something that does those things. But that does not mean the film is no longer what it once was — what it was before we knew who its creator was. Nate Parker may be a bad person, but he is a bad person who made a good movie. Because as awful as it may feel to admit it, those two things can coexist. If you want to be mad, be mad. I’m mad. I’m mad that Parker’s victim was made a victim; I’m mad she wasn’t supported or believed. If you’re angry, ask yourself what you are angry at. Are you angry that Parker sexually assaulted his college classmate or are you angry that his art suffered because of it? Why do we pursue art— watch Polanski movies, listen to Wagner, read Eliot — unless to feel something, some fleeting emotion that brings us closer to the center of ourselves? Art is the most beautiful gift that can be given to a species of narcissists. It’s a unique experience to look into something that isn’t a mirror and see ourselves. That’s why bad people can make good art, and that’s how we are still allowed to appreciate it. As a college-aged woman in 2016, I don’t expect to have an easy time watching this movie. I am never going to be able to separate the film, or any subsequent films made by Parker from what he did. But, I’m going to watch “The Birth of A Nation” and I’m going to try — to the best of my biased ability — to meet it on its own terms. Because ultimately the answer to the question “what happens when bad people make good art?” is: some people consume it and other people do not, but only those that do consume it allow themselves the opportunity to potentially feel something that only art can elicit.
You’ll be dead. And they’ll play “Talent” at your funeral, unfortunately.) Then, the mush. “Bel Esprit” is “Plaster of Paris” is “All The Saints” — everything begins to sound the same stale brand of ordinary. Not horrible, but ordinary. And banality is so against the foundational fiber of this band. Pixies are rooted in quirk, in the unexpected, the bizarre and the off-putting. Head Carrier tries and tries to gnaw its way back to this twisted, golden goo of yesteryear, but it just can’t break the plaster of convention. “All I Think About Now” rings toward the end of the EP. “The Apology Song” to Deal — undoubtedly the 21st-century Pixies’ missing link, missing everything — this track could’ve easily finished off the album. The listener jumps: the opening guitars sound almost identical to those of “Where Is My Mind?”, the band’s most wellknown single. And so now you’re just waiting for Deal. You’ve spent the whole concert, the whole album, pleasantly swaying your body but not rocking it. Where is she? Where are those “oooh, oooh”s? Black Francis telling her to “stop?” Where is one of the best rock songs of all time? The best bands of all time? None of it comes. “All I Think About” begins: “I try to think about tomorrow, but I always think about the past.”None of it comes. “All I Think About” begins: “I try to think about tomorrow, but I always think about the past.”
Arts
6A — Wednesday, October 5, 2016
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
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Son Lux brings electric goodness to ‘Stranger’ New LP epitomizes the sound of Denver trio’s evolution CATHERINE BAKER Daily Arts Writer
“For most of human history, music has been produced by the direct actions of human bodies, of people affecting their environments. Cognitive science has shown us that when we listen to music, we imagine the movements that produced the sounds and rhythms we are hearing.” — Rafiq Bhatia. When Ryan Lott released his first solo album in 2008, he had no idea it would transform into the electronic trio Son Lux. Composed of Lott, percussionist Ian Chang and guitarist Rafiq Bhatia, Son Lux collaborated with artists like Lorde and Sufjan Stevens and gained exposure by scoring soundtracks for films including “Paper Towns” and “The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby.” Released in 2016, Son Lux’s most recent LP, Stranger Forms, is a precise combination of all three member’s talents and explores topics of loss, survival and rebirth. Impossible to categorize and extremely
layered with complicated musical techniques, Stranger Forms epitomizes Son Lux’s electronic sound and encompasses what they hope to achieve in the future. The opening track, “Cage of Bones,” is oppressive, heavy and dark. Lott’s raw vocals rasp out lyrics that twist and question everything that is taken for granted when he sings, “Oh what a noise we’ll make / Drowning out our mistakes / We can’t erase.” Ending with a series of record scratches and staccato drums, “Cage of Bones” makes the listener uncomfortable, which seems to be exactly how Son Lux wants to start its LP. “You Don’t Own Me,” featuring Hanna Benn, sounds like something off a James Bond soundtrack, opening with bright and aggressive brass and spending the first full minute with a full swing band before the lyrics finally kick in. It showcases Son Lux’s unconventional approach to a traditional style of music and places more focus on the instruments, rather than the vocals. Intimate, heart
Classifieds
wrenching and ethereal, “Change Everything” shifts gears as Lott croons, “A stranger’s form, your skeleton / See the bones glow as they break free.” With a swelling and unapologetic chorus that sets the listener back on their heels, Son Lux releases a brilliant show of emotion in the span of ten seconds. The strained vocals of “We Are The Ones” juxtaposes the backing choir repeating, “We are the ones this time.” While the listener questions the message, lyrics of, “Now a breath / Now a name you’re calling / Mine is the one this time,” seem ominous and breathtaking as the background track of women chanting, “Now, now, now,” becomes overwhelming. Son Lux saves the simplest track to close the LP. “Breathe” employs an echoing piano and quivering violin to provide a fitting background to Lott’s uncluttered and innocent vocals singing, “Breathe in / Breathe out.” It serves as both a mantra and a nugget of advice for not only Son Lux’s listeners, but for themselves.
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RELEASE DATE– Wednesday, October 5, 2016
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
FOR RENT
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
ACROSS 1 One of seven in “Jabberwocky” 7 Shabbat celebrant 10 “Baby __”: 2008 Fey/Poehler comedy 14 Like some classroom aids 15 Angst-filled rock genre 16 Disembarked 17 *Project with many obstacles 19 Wheels for a star 20 __ Grey tea 21 Vacation abode 22 *E! talk show focused on celebrity outfits 26 Longest reigning Brit. monarch 28 Neighbor of Venezuela 29 Discriminatory, as in hiring 32 Pet adoption org. 33 Deg. for a suit 36 Annexation 38 Put on a pedestal 40 Morsel 41 Printed scorecard numbers 43 Went (on) monotonously 44 Monotony 46 Gp. with mail trucks 47 *Britannica, e.g. 52 Cutting 53 Leaderless 54 Strengthen 55 Team up ... or, literally, what the last words of the answers to starred clues can do 61 Giggly Muppet 62 To and __ 63 Poker challenge 64 Academic leader in NBC’s “Community” 65 Author Kesey 66 Kind of tax
5 Popular mall jewelry store 6 Mosque-goer’s deity 7 Like Cain, of Abel 8 Leading characters in “Mork & Mindy”? 9 Stir-fry pan 10 __ Yousafzai, sharer of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize 11 Cover story 12 Copycat 13 Make things right 18 Course where tangents are relevant 21 *1997 movie partly set on a plane called the Jailbird 22 Handy “Mr.” 23 “Master of None” star __ Ansari 24 “Law & Order” gp. 25 Couldn’t sit still, say 26 Exxon, once 27 Lustful look 30 *High-speed skiing event, familiarly 31 Discipline
33 Capital of Belarus 34 Honk 35 Tacks on 37 Green land? 39 Bridge table quorum 42 Vacuum effect 44 Ligament kin 45 Lo __: noodle dish 47 Threw a fit 48 Forced absence 49 Terra __
50 Cellphone selfpic of a group, slangily 51 Smells 55 N.Y. airport since 1963 56 Miner’s matter 57 Chinese zodiac animal 58 “The World Factbook” org. 59 Inexact fig. 60 Get
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DOWN 1 “Law & Order: __” 2 It often comes to those who wait 3 Volcanic fallout 4 Rapa __: Easter By Julian Lim Island ©2016 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
PARAMOUNT
Every Paul Metzler needs a Monica Lewinsky.
Reel Politics: ‘Election’ and the superficiality of U.S. democracy Exploring the sinister premise that underlies modern government DANIEL HENSEL Daily Arts Writer
There’s a sinister premise that underlies our system of government: we cherish the value of democracy, but willingly admit that certain elected elites are smarter and can govern more capably. A candidate for elected office, already likely to be someone with the ego to believe they’re the best at fixing problems, may claim to speak for the people, but as soon as they lose favor with the population they represent, their grasp on power tightens. Who, after all, readily abdicates power? “All the King’s Men,” a 1949 film adapted from the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Robert Penn Warren, tracks the rise and fall of Willie Stark (Broderick Crawford, “Highway Patrol”), a backwoods lawyer who becomes corrupted during a stint in power. The connections between Stark and Huey Long, a Louisiana politician of the time, are clear: both are populist Depression-era, rural governors whose corrupt terms in office are cut short. Stark campaigns as a truthteller, a man of the people who speaks to their concerns with unflinching honesty. His initial campaigns fail, a lack of institutional support from the establishment dooming any chance of success. He then becomes a successful lawyer who attacks graft in the statehouse. A tragedy elevates Stark’s profile after he leads lawsuits against the state. Eventually, Stark gets his shot when the same establishment decides to run Stark to detract votes from their main candidate’s opponent. Stark begins the campaign forlorn, beaten into submission by a party machine that uses him as a puppet. But then, in a drunken rage, he eschews a pre-written speech for an electrifying oratory that propels him forward. Stark still loses, but returns to the campaign trail four years later as a shoo-in for Governor. But then, he begins taking checks from various corporations to help him spend money in key precincts.
No longer the squeaky clean, honest politician, Stark, once elected, becomes embroiled in controversy. His stunningly productive government is marred by corruption and graft. Abandoning his populism, Stark sides with the same special interests he once railed against. Instead of speaking directly to the people, he now begins to maintain considerable distance from the public. Somewhat ironically, Stark loses the favor of the elites around him once he spurns his populism for cronyism. The Depression seems to be an era of honest governance, or perhaps Stark surrounded himself with decent people. Still, Stark retains a fan base that has grown loyal to him as he enriched their communities. Like Al Capone, he may have dirt on his hands, but he’s
The eternal paradox: deep down nobody cares. doing right by the people. Just don’t cross his path. In the 1999 film “Election,” Tracy Flick (Reese Witherspoon, “Wild”) is a precocious teenager running for student body president. She’s the kind of student everyone despises: she knows every answer to every question in class, shooting her hand up quickly and with enough force to punch a hole in the ceiling. “I’d seen a lot of ambitious students come and go over the years, but Tracy was a special case,” laments her teacher and Student Council supervisor, Jim McAllister (Matthew Broderick, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”) over a freeze frame of Tracy, mid-word in a hideous pose. Jim, terrified of the prospect of spending much of the next school year in close quarters with Tracy, decides to set up a rival candidacy, Paul Metzler (Chris Pine, “American Pie”), an injured football star
whose only qualification for office is that he’s available. Paul is dumber than a rock, but his genuine warmth and kindness to Tracy throws her off. In fact, she becomes enraged. Previously uncontested, her power is now in jeopardy. She storms over to his booth in the cafeteria, berates him for running, then angrily signs his requisite petition to appear on the ballot. Tracy’s candidacy might be based on listening to the concerns of generally disinterested students, but she’s more interested in an “enlightened” republic than a true democratic competition. But at least Paul cares. When Paul’s younger sister, Tammy (Jessica Campbell, “Freaks and Geeks”), decides to run, entirely to exact revenge on her brother, Tracy throws a fit, trying to disqualify Tammy from the election. Anxiety turns to anger for both Tracy and Principal Walt Hendricks (Phil Reeves, “Veep”), concerned about Tammy’s delinquency, when Tammy gives a rousing speech on the profound idiocy of student council elections that brings the crowd to cheering applause. Principal Hendricks tries to disqualify Tammy from the race. Tracy, in a fit of rage, tears down her opponent’s posters. Our elected officials are supposedly the best of us, but, more often than not, they become degenerates. This may be the eternal paradox of American democracy: deep down, nobody cares. But, unfortunately, democracy is pesky. And those who run for office know this fact better than anyone else: they may contemplate the merits of their policy proposals, but when Election Day arrives, most Americans choose their elected officials based on personality or some other superficiality. And, ultimately, we’re left with this strange system: a bunch of brown-nosers seeking power, feigning interest for the people they represent, and once they gain power, they willfully ignore their constituents, only to pretend two or four or six years later they had no choice. I’m for Paul Metzler.
10/05/16
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Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
T E A M
S T A T S MICH 44.4 23.0 209.8 4.9 16 234.2 63.9% 7.4 10 2 74.4 444.0 47.2 62.5% 4.0 15.5 21.5 43.4 4-9 4/1 43.8 33:05
Points/Game First Downs/Game Rush Yards/Game Yards/Rush Rushing TDs Passing Yards/Game Completion % Yards/Pass Passing TDs Interceptions Offensive Plays/Game Total Offense 3rd-down Conversions 4th-down Conversions Sacks/Game Kick return average Punt return average Punting average Field Goals-Attempts Fumbles/Lost Penalty Yards/Game Time of Poss
OPP 12.4 13.2 112.2 3.3 2 135.4 46.6% 5.2 5 6 60.6 247.6 15.4 41.7% 1.8 19.9 13.0 37.4 2-5 8/3 45.0 26:55
I N D I V I D U A L S PASSING Player Speight O’Korn Morris TOTALS
Cmp Att Yds TD 92 146 1094 10 5 8 32 0 4 4 45 0 101 158 1171 10
INT 2 0 0 2
Att Yds 56 325 37 247 41 198 22 145 7 56 7 44 2 24 11 19 2 17 2 16 2 11 3 7 1 2 1 1 1 -1 3 -4 1 -11 15 -47 214 1049
RUSHING Player Smith, D. Evans Isaac Higdon McDoom Chesson Peppers Hill Davis Morris Crawford O’Korn Hirsch Beneducci Hewlett TEAM Allen Speight TOTALS
Avg 5.8 6.7 4.8 6.6 8.0 6.3 12.0 1.7 8.5 8.0 5.5 2.3 2.0 1.0 -1.0 -1.3 -11.0 -3.1 4.9
Lg 42 43 25 40 19 17 17 4 10 14 11 3 2 1 0 0 0 9 43
TD 2 3 2 3 0 1 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16
No. 23 22 13 6 6 5 4 9 1 1 3 1 1 1 2 2 1 101
Yds Avg 335 14.6 265 12.0 197 15.2 114 19.0 47 7.8 33 6.6 28 7.0 25 2.8 22 22.0 21 21.0 20 6.7 18 18.0 15 15.0 12 12.0 10 5.0 6 3.0 3 3.0 1171 11.6
Lg 46 25 35 54 15 15 14 9 22 21 8 18 15 12 5 4 3 54
TD 5 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 10
No. 12 1 0 13
Yds Avg. Long 246 20.5 54 27 27.0 0 6 -6 279 21.5 54
RECEIVING Player Darboh Butt Chesson Perry Hill Poggi Evans Smith Ways Isaac McDoom Crawford Hirsch Jocz McKeon Bunting Asiasi TOTALS
Wednesday, October 5, 2016— 7A
Bushell-Beatty going home, looking for first start Redshirt sophomore New Jersey native is ‘Plan A’ to step in at left tackle in homecoming at Rutgers JACOB GASE
Daily Sports Editor
With the No. 4 Michigan football team traveling to Piscataway this weekend to take on Rutgers, Juwann BushellBeatty is scrambling to get tickets. The Paramus, N.J., native doesn’t get to come home very often, so he has been asking around to get as many of his family and friends to the game as possible. Despite competing with a number of fellow New Jerseyan teammates, like redshirt sophomore linebacker Jabrill Peppers and freshman defensive end Rashan Gary, Bushell-Beatty already has 10 to 12 seats locked up. And those lucky guests might get to see one of the biggest moments of the redshirt sophomore offensive lineman’s career: his first start. With sophomore left tackle Grant Newsome sidelined for the year with a serious knee injury, Bushell-Beatty is “Plan A” to replace him, according to Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh. As the primary backup at both tackle positions, he played the rest of the game at left tackle Saturday in relief of Newsome. “What happened with Grant was really kind of sad, and I’m hoping the best for him in his recovery,” Bushell-Beatty said. “I’m just trying to be a team player and step up to whatever the team needs me to do.” This is Bushell-Beatty’s first real crack at real playing time, and he has come a long way to get it. After entering 2015 fall camp at 340 pounds, he drastically altered his diet by replacing fried and fast food with things like protein shakes, and he also upped his effort in the weight room at Schembechler Hall. (“Lived in
AMELIA CACCHIONE/Daily
Redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Juwann Bushell-Beatty (right) relieved injured starter Grant Newsome in Saturday’s win against Wisconsin.
Schem, pretty much,” he joked.) A little over a year later, he has added a lot more muscle and weighs closer to 315 pounds. He also took advantage of having a new coaching staff the last two years, never hesitating to pick the brain of offensive coordinator/ line coach Tim Drevno. “I’ve learned a lot from him,” Bushell-Beatty said. “He’s an infinite source of knowledge towards football and even just life. I feel like he’s really helped me improve my football IQ, and just like moving forward in life, too. Just taught me a lot of life lessons.” All of those factors translated into on-field success as well, as
Bushell-Beatty gained enough trust from Harbaugh and Drevno that he earned a job as the first tackle off the bench. Bushell-Beatty felt so comfortable in his role that when Newsome went down, he barely had any nerves after being thrust into action. None of his coaches had to pull him aside — he already knew he was ready, and that his coaches had faith in him. His teammates knew he had the talent, too, as well as room to be even better. “Off (the field), he’s a great, guy, I love him,” said fifth-year senior offensive lineman Kyle Kalis. “On the field, though, nasty guy, how you want it. I
think especially with Juwann, the more and more he plays, the nastiness is gonna come out of him. He’s still kind of in his head — not in a bad way, he’s just wanting to make sure he does everything right, and that’s what you want out of a young guy like that. As time goes on, you’ll see more and more of the true Juwann. And I think he is a hell of a player, he’s gonna be even better.” Bushell-Beatty may be “Plan A” against Rutgers, but the Wolverines’ backup plan is a daunting option as well. Junior center Mason Cole, who was the first true freshman left tackle to start a season opener in Michigan
history before moving to the middle this season, has been the other lineman taking reps at left tackle this week. If Cole winds up taking the job back, redshirt junior Patrick Kugler would start at center and slide BushellBeatty back to the bench. Competition doesn’t scare Bushell-Beatty, though — not with a starting shot in his homecoming on the line. “I think I’m ready to go,” he said. “I’m excited for this Saturday, and I’m just doing everything I can to prepare. … I haven’t heard anything, but I’m gonna take it as if I’m competing. I’m gonna just practice like I’m competing for a starting spot.”
PUNT RETURNS Player Peppers Jocz Perry TOTALS
TD 1 0 1 2
INTERCEPTION RETURNS Player Stribling Hill, D. McCray Lewis TOTALS
No. 3 1 1 1 6
Yds Avg. Long 60 20.0 51 27 27.0 27 22 22.0 22 0 0.0 0 109 18.2 51
TD 1 1 0 0 2
Yds 9 9
Avg. Long 9.0 9 9.0 9
TD 0 0
Yds 95 28 21 6 5 155
Avg. Long 31.7 55 14.0 15 10.5 18 6.0 6 2.5 5 15.5 55
TD 0 0 0 0 0 0
FUMBLE RETURNS Player Hill, L. TOTALS
No. 1 1
KICKOFF RETURNS Player Peppers Henderson Lewis Hudson Hill, K. TOTALS
No. 3 2 2 1 2 10
KICKOFFS Player Allen Foug TOTALS
No. 32 7 39
Yds 2066 403 2469
Avg. 64.6 57.6 63.3
TB 19 2 21
No. 18 18
Yds 782 782
Avg. 43.4 43.4
Lg 56 56
PUNTING Player Allen TOTALS FIELD GOALS Player Allen Tice
FG Pct. 1-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50+ Lg 4-8 50.0% 0-0 1-1 3-5 0-2 0-0 39 0-1 0.0% 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-1 0-0 0
LEADING TACKLERS Player Gedeon Peppers Thomas McCray Winovich Gary Glasgow, R. Godin Wormley Hill Hurst Stribling Clark Kinnel Charlton Watson Lewis Bush Glasgow, J. Hudson TOTALS
Solo Ast Tot 13 31 44 24 11 35 18 11 29 13 15 28 4 15 19 6 11 17 2 15 17 8 8 16 7 9 16 8 7 15 6 8 14 4 6 10 6 4 10 5 3 8 1 6 7 4 3 7 6 6 2 3 5 3 1 4 2 2 4 154 182 336
TFL 6.0 9.5 4.5 4.0 4.5 1.5 1.5 4.5 2.0 4.0 0.5 2.5 1.0 47
SK PBU 2.0 1 2.5 1 2.5 4 2.0 1.0 1.0 1 1.0 4.0 1 2.0 5 3 2.0 2 20 19
2016 SCHEDULE
Kalis, Wolverines devastated by Newsome’s injury Fellow offensive lineman feels for injured left tackle in hospital, knows ‘that could be anyone’ MAX BULTMAN
Managing Sports Editor
It could have been anyone. That’s what fifth-year senior offensive lineman Kyle Kalis remembers thinking when he left Grant Newsome’s hospital room. Newsome, Michigan’s sophomore starting left tackle, suffered a season-ending knee injury — one coach Jim Harbaugh said was as serious as a knee injury could be — in the Wolverines’ 14-7 win over Wisconsin on Saturday. Tuesday, Kalis recalled visiting Newsome in the hospital recently along with fellow linemen Mason Cole and Erik Magnuson and quarterback Wilton Speight. Kalis was struck by seeing “everything he was hooked up to,” and when he left, it hit him that any one of them could be the one in his position. “After, especially, going to see him, and seeing what was going on with his leg and seeing everything he was hooked up to, I mean, it’s hard,” Kalis said. “It was me, Mason, Mags and Wilton (who visited) and we left the room, and it was just like, ah, like that could be any of us. And that’s just a bad feeling. I’m really sad it happened to him, and I do not wish that on my worst enemy.” Newsome has started every game this season at left tackle for the Wolverines, improving as the season has gone on. Harbaugh spoke Monday about Newsome’s character, suggesting his parents write a book on how to raise children. And for Kalis, the way Newsome’s injury happened didn’t make it any easier to swallow. “It was something he couldn’t control, and it was also kind of a
9/3
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HAWAII (2-3)
UCF (3-2)
COLORADO (4-1)
PENN ST. (3-2)
AMELIA CACCHIONE/Daily
Sophomore left tackle Grant Newsome (77) suffered a serious knee injury in Saturday’s game against Wisconsin and will miss the rest of the season.
cheap shot,” Kalis said. “When a defensive guy is supposed to chop, common courtesy is to go at your ankles so you know if they swipe out your ankles you go up. But no, this guy dove at his knees. It wasn’t a good thing the kid did. It wasn’t an illegal move, but it’s one of those things where it’s just like, ‘Come on, dude.’ You don’t do that kind of stuff.” Newsome lay on the ground for an extended period of time after the play, and just as they had one week before, teammates poured off the sideline to see him onto the cart that had come on the field. But Newsome never got on the cart. Instead, he limped off to the
10/1
10/8
WISCONSIN (4-1) at RUTGERS (2-3)
W, 63-3 (1-0) W, 51-14 (2-0) W, 45-28 (3-0) W, 49-10 (4-0) W, 14-7 (5-0)
7 p.m., Piscataway, N.J.
locker room. “He’s a tough son of a bitch,” Kalis said. “We went to go see him in the hospital and he was telling us about what all was wrong with him and stuff. … The amount of pain that kid was in was unreal. And the fact that — it wasn’t smart that he probably walked off, probably wasn’t the smartest thing — but the fact he did, you’ve gotta respect that kid. He’s a tough kid.”
With as serious as the injury now sounds, it’s a wonder he didn’t just take the free ride and save himself the added strain. But Kalis, who said he once ran off the field after spraining his ankle, explained there was more at work than a simple assessment of pain. “In that kind of situation, where you’re in front of 110,000 people, it’s one of those things where you have
“I’m really sad ... I do not wish that on my worst enemy.”
10/22 ILLINOIS (1-3) 3:30 p.m., Michigan Stadium
10/29
11/5
at MICH. ST. (2-2) MARYLAND (4-0) East Lansing, Mich.
Michigan Stadium
a lot of adrenaline going through you,” he said. “So you don’t really feel that much pain until you get out of that environment. So I’m sure he was feeling it after it happened, but I’m sure he wasn’t thanking himself for it.” Now, the Wolverines are tasked with replacing a key member of their line. But given the tragic way Newsome’s season ended, it can be hard to think about football. “Grant didn’t do anything wrong,” Kalis said. “He was playing a hell of a game until that point, and it just happened. “Didn’t deserve it, it just happened.”
11/12
11/19
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at IOWA (3-2)
INDIANA (3-1)
at OHIO ST. (4-0)
8 p.m., Iowa City, Iowa
Michigan Stadium
Columbus, Ohio
Sports
8A — Wednesday, October 5, 2016
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Back from injury, Pastujov ready for season Freshman forward just returned to full-contact practice last week, scored Sunday ORION SANG
Daily Sports Writer
MARINA ROSS/Daily
Greg Ryan’s team is 5-0 in the Big Ten, off to its best start in program history.
Chemistry, balance leading Wolverines Four players have scored at least four goals for a team now 5-0 in Big Ten MAX MARCOVITCH For the Daily
After finishing off a 3-1 victory over Mayland and cementing the best conference start in school history (5-0), the Michigan women’s soccer team (9-1-1 overall) exited the field together, arms around each other, smiles abounding, singing “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” in unison. It’s safe to say that after a seventh consecutive win, things are going pretty well for the Wolverines. And it’s that happiness and team chemistry that has keyed their success. “We’re just best friends and we enjoy spending time together,” said senior forward Nicky Waldeck. “I think that shows on the field.” Added coach Greg Ryan: “(Team chemistry) is fantastic this year, I see an amazing, positive outlook every time we step out on the field. They have fun. … It’s as good as it’s been since I got here.” That camaraderie has also led to a widespread distribution of goals throughout the season. Coming into today, Michigan led the Big Ten with 2.20 goals per game, despite not having a top-10 goal scorer in the conference. Sophomore Reilly Martin, junior Ani Sarkisian and Waldeck share the team lead with five goals each, with sophomore Abby Kastroll just behind with four. In addition, each has at least three assists. Ryan thinks the widespread balance and unselfishness is what makes them so difficult to gameplan for. “The fact that we have so many kids (who can score), you never know who’s gonna show up on a given night,” Ryan said. “It’s tough to shut down when you have this many goal-scorers.” On Wednesday, it was Waldeck
scoring a hat trick in a crucial road win over No. 17 Rutgers. Against Nebraska, it was Martin and Kastroll tallying the goals to spearhead a 2-1 victory. Against Michigan State, Sarkisian scored the late winner. And on Sunday, two first-time goal-scorers, sophomore Jackie White and junior Emma Groffsky, keyed the victory over Maryland to give a surging Wolverines team its seventh win in a row. “Everyone’s sharing the ball, nobody is trying to be the star. We’re all just trying to find a goal together,” Ryan said. As was on display against Maryland, those goals have not been too hard to find lately given Michigan’s team-wide willingness to make the extra pass. In the 23rd minute, Waldeck darted into the box and, despite having an angle at goal, laid the ball off to White in front of the net for the easier finish. And yet again before half, Martin had her defender beat on the right post, but found an open Groffsky in front of the net, who finished to the left corner. Their chemistry also allows the Wolverines to hold each other accountable when need be. After Maryland scored a goal to make the score 3-1 with just under 15 minutes remaining, the entire team huddled to discuss continuing to play hard despite its lead. “This year, we’re just focusing on maintaining our focus,” Waldeck said. “That’s reminding each other on dead plays to just get back into the mindset of whatever we’re doing.” And they did, seeing through the 3-1 victory and a spot atop the Big Ten standings. If they continue to play with the offensive balance and unselfishness that has led it to this record start, there may not be a mountain too high for the Wolverines to climb.
It would have been hard to tell from watching the No. 11 Michigan hockey team’s exhibition game against Windsor that Nick Pastujov had been cleared for full-contact practice just last week. The freshman forward wasted little time in making an impact on the ice, scoring what proved to be the winning goal in the first period of Michigan’s 2-0 victory on Sunday. “It was a power-play goal, and it kinda came from a broken play,” Pastujov said Tuesday after practice. “Usually I’m not the one turning it up. (I went) up the ice trying to take a couple steps in to lure the defense. Made a pass to Tony (Calderone). I was expecting him to chip it in — that was what we practiced — and I didn’t expect him to pass it back, but he made just an unbelievable pass to get it back to me. “I figured I might as well throw back in on net. Didn’t think it would go in, but it did.” Things haven’t gone nearly as smoothly for Pastujov in the past few months overall. Shortly after finishing his final season with the U.S. National Team Development Program last spring, Pastujov underwent shoulder surgery to fix a recurring problem with his labrum. The recovery process took six months, and Pastujov was unable to play any hockey for most of that time. In fact, Sunday was the first time he had played in a real game since finishing his time with the USNTDP. It just so happened to be his first at Yost Ice Arena with his new team as well — something Pastujov admits caused a few early jitters. “If you were watching me
SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily
Freshman forward Nick Pastujov scored his first career goal in Sunday’s exhibition against Windsor.
during warmups, I didn’t make one good pass,” Pastujov said. “So I think that was definitely when it hit me. In warmups, you’re thinking too much. But once the puck dropped, the game got going and you kinda lose everything and go into it. “That was the first game back for me obviously, and I think that when you’re coming back from (an) injury, you’ve just gotta play confident. You can’t think about it. You’ve just gotta play as if it never happened. I think I did well with that. I was playing physical, it wasn’t bothering me at all, and I think I’m ready to go with the season.”
Michigan coach Red Berenson was more reserved in his evaluation of Pastujov, saying he thinks the freshman has a lot of catching up to do after his extended absence from the ice. But Berenson still had high praise for Pastujov, calling him a “heady player.” “I think he’s got good hands and he sees the ice well,” Berenson said. “That’s what I’ve seen so far. I haven’t seen the speed yet that we’re hoping to see, and the playmaking and defensive awareness. “But I like what he does have. He has things you can’t
“I think he’s got good hands and he sees the ice well.”
teach. Just the vision on the ice — if a car is coming at you, and it’s all you see is that car and you don’t see the truck that’s passing it, when you’re jumping into the way of the truck, then you don’t have the vision that a smart player has. And I think he’s got that kind of vision, so that’s important. “I think he expects to be a scorer. I don’t think he had the two years in the (USNTDP) that we anticipated. I think his best hockey is still ahead of him.” With his vision and quick hands, Pastujov’s game seems to be a good fit for what the Wolverines need this year: new offensive contributors. And since it’s so early in the season, there’s a good possibility Pastujov will be given every chance to catch up to the rest of his teammates and continue to build upon his game.
MEN’S GOLF
WOMEN’S GOLF
Mueller, Carlson finish in the top 15 to lift Wolverines after 290 in first round
Van Dievoet shoots 211 as Wolverines earn best fall finish in Dowling’s tenure
‘M’ salvages eighth Michigan takes sixth after sluggish start place out of 22 teams ROBERT HEFTER Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan men’s golf team started its trip down to Alabama for the Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate Tournament on a mediocre collective score of 290. But the five Wolverines competing rallied in the second round, salvaging an eighth-place finish out of the 12 competing teams. “We did not play as well to start off the competition,” said Michigan coach Chris Whitten. “It was not as sharp as it needed to be.” The Wolverines came back
after the first round to shoot a 282, behind Auburn, UAB and tied with Florida State. Junior Kyle Mueller and sophomore Nick Carlson led the comeback in the second round, shooting 69 and 70, respectively. Mueller and Carlson have been consistent in the past two tournaments, putting up averages of 70.44 and 70.77 per round, respectively. “I played the same game this week, and a couple holes snuck up on me,” Carlson said. “We were playing a tough course under tough conditions, and we took this week and learned from it.” However, seniors Reed Hrynewich and Tom Swanson tied for 51st place, and freshman Brent Ito finished just behind them in 53rd place. The group went plus-16, plus-16, and plus17 on the weekend, respectively. Heading into the final round of the tournament, Michigan stumbled, in part due to the conditions. “It was very hilly, and the wind began to pick up yesterday,” Carlson said. “They were tough shots as is, and we didn’t know exactly where the ball would end up.” But just as hopes were high after the second round, the Wolverines shot a 291 in the final round, one shot worse than their first. This allowed for Charlotte and Alabama to jump past them in the standings. “There were a couple really hard holes,” Whitten said. “The course was fun to play, but there is a learning curve.” In the Wolverines’ first trip to this course, some of the players fell victim to the windy, hilly conditions. Michigan is looking to improve its team standing and strengthen the bottom of its lineup as it heads to the Dayton Flyer Invitational next week.
NATHANIEL CLARK Daily Sports Writer
Legendary golfer Ben Hogan once said, “The most important shot in golf is the next one.” The Michigan women’s golf team followed Hogan’s advice and shot its way to sixth place out of 22 teams. The Cougar Classic was the Wolverines’ best finish in a fall tournament since Michigan coach Jan Dowling took over in 2013. “Our ball striking was very, very good,” Dowling said. “That set us up for some great opportunities, which we capitalized on.” Sophomore Elodie Van Dievoet led the way for the Wolverines, taking eighth place out of 110 golfers with 211 shots — five under par. Van Dievoet completed the first round in 69 strokes and notched birdies on the second, third and 12th holes. “I think we prepared really well for this tournament,” Van Dievoet said. “We love the tournament, but we work even more so that we can do our best.” Added Dowling: “(Van Dievoet) is a great ball striker and always has been. This golf course demands good ball striking, particularly coming into the greens. She’s been working really hard on our putting and she’s been really motivated on improving that part of her game.” Senior Grace Choi was not too far behind Van Dievoet, placing 17th with a score of 214. She finished the first two rounds under par and made 10 birdies in the process. Choi’s birdie total would ultimately reach 13. “(Choi) is an incredibly calming force,” Dowling said. “She’s also a very good course manager. She’s able to put a lot of things into perspective and I think that helps
the younger golfers.” Not wanting to be left out of the fun, junior Megan Kim turned in a strong performance in her own right as she finished 31st with 218 strokes. Her rounds included scores of 73, 72 and 73, respectively, and she tallied four birdies in the final round. “(Kim) has been working really hard on her golf swing,” Dowling said. “She’s gaining some distance, and I think she’s gaining confidence there. She’s got a great short game, which prevents her from having a lot of ball-striking miscues.” Junior Kathy Lim joined her teammates in the top 50 when she used a 71-shot second round — which featured three birdies — to propel herself into 50th place with 221 strokes. Fellow junior Emily White finished 71st, and completed round one in 73 strokes and birdied twice. The Wolverines’ strong finish at the Cougar Classic, along with their 5-0 victory over Nebraska on Sept. 20, has them thinking of lofty goals for the 2016-17 season, a far cry from where the program was when Dowling arrived in Ann Arbor a couple of years ago. “I think our first goal should be winning a tournament,” Van Dievoet said. “Then I think the whole team would love to win the Big Ten Tournament, just because it’s such a special tournament.” But before any of those dreams can be realized, Michigan will finish up its fall schedule by competing at the Ruth’s Chris Invitational next weekend and the Trinity Forest Invitational next month. With those tournaments on the horizon, the Wolverines might modify Hogan’s quote to say, “The most important tournament in golf is the next one.”
statement TH E M I CH I GAN DAI LY | OC TO B E R 5 , 2016
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Wednesday, October 5, 2016 / The Statement
t h e s t at e m e n t
the tangent
Magazine Editor: Karl Williams
Editor in Chief: Shoham Geva
Deputy Editors: Nabeel Chollampat Lara Moehlman
Managing Editor: Laura Schinagle
Design Editor: Shane Achenbach Photo Editor: Zoey Holmstrom
Copy Editors: Emily Campbell Alexis Nowicki Taylor Grandinetti
Creative Director: Emilie Farrugia
Copy That: Why I Love Copy Editing B Y TAY L O R G R A N D I N E T T I
E
very now and then, people ask me whether I actually enjoy my job. They point out that I spend hours at The Michigan Daily every week making others look better and ask me if, deep down, I’d rather being doing something people actually cared about and recognized. While these questions usually surprise me, I admit I can see where they’re coming from. To someone not involved in copy editing, it may seem like a tiresome, time-consuming, overlooked job that couldn’t possibly be enjoyable, especially when compared to the other sections of the paper, in which people write about the things they love. However, one article is only enough for me to scratch the surface of how much I love copy editing. When I joined the Daily during the winter of 2015, I had been interested in multiple sections of the paper but ultimately chose to join the copy desk because it seemed most relevant to my future career goal: being a book editor. I knew that I would improve my grammar and fact-checking skills all while gaining valuable editing experience. Now, though — hundreds of articles later — this job is not just one that intersects slightly with my desired future profession; rather, it’s exactly the type of job I want in the future. In fact, I like it so much that I want to keep it for the next 40 to
50 years. The reasons for my passion for copy editing are many. I guess I’ll start with my affection for the little details — the ones that often go unnoticed but are nevertheless important. I love making sure that everything is done correctly, and, I confess, I find pleasure in knowing things others might not. Consequently, I have always been one of the “bad cops” on the grammar police squad, habitually correcting friends and family members’ grammar. Copy editing therefore provides me with at least 10 hours a week to make use of this particular facet of my personality. The small details involved in copy editing also include ensuring articles conform to AP style. While I can’t claim to like every rule — e.g., the usual lack of an Oxford comma — I do appreciate the common aesthetic it provides. Without AP style, every article would look different based on the preferences of the authors and the editors, making the overall paper look messy and unprofessional. AP style averts this issue and, most of the time, quite simply makes the articles look better. Frankly, I’m glad there are rules for these small but definitely noticeable details. Copy editing, however, involves more than just checking for grammatical and stylistic errors. Often,
ILLUSTRATION BY ELISE HAADSMA
THOUGHT BUBBLE: FIRST TIMES
ZOEY HOLMSTROM/DAILY
“Actually pretty recently, I decided to rush Epsilon Eta. I was attracted to it because it required passion and commitment to a cause that I cared about so I was willing to do something I’d never done, rush, in the hopes that it would make me a better professional in my future field and a better, more environmentally conscious person.” – Engineering sophomore Lyndsey Covert the most tedious aspect of copy editing is the factchecking, though it’s also the most important. I would be lying if I said I loved this part of the job, but, then again, I’d also be lying if I said I hated it. Most of the time, fact-checking involves looking for people’s titles on LinkedIn or using Control + F to find the necessary quotes and figures in a recent press release or scientific study. I struggle to think of reasons why anyone would feel strongly about either task. However, while I am emotionally indifferent toward fact-checking, I appreciate the responsibility that comes with it. As with any publication, the Daily’s reputation is closely linked to how it presents the facts. Therefore, we copy editors have to do everything we can to verify the information in the articles we read. What we do matters, and that’s a great feeling. Finally, I would be amiss if I failed to mention how much I enjoy simply being a part of the Daily’s newsroom. Even when I was a primary copy editor, I spent all my time working for the Daily inside the newsroom — something I didn’t properly appreciate initially. When I worked at the Daily over the summer, I edited a significant number of articles remotely, and it just wasn’t the same. There’s something special about being a part of the production process that enlivens the work and makes it hardly seem like work at all. Years from now, when I look back at my time here at the University of Michigan, I know that I’ll remember my nights here with nothing but fondness. Thankfully, though, I have 15 more months before I get nostalgic. It’s a common adage that you should “Find something you love to do and you’ll never have to work a day in your life.” While this quote, of course, must be taken with a grain of salt, I think it describes my experience as a copy editor so far. Every time I walk to 420 Maynard St., I don’t look at it as walking to work — I look at it as walking to do one of my favorite activities here at the University. I’ve found a job that I love to do, and, because of that, I’m extremely lucky.
Wednesday, October 5, 2016 / The Statement
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on the record: elena ferrante “I don’t protect my private life. I protect my writing, I protect it from the same urgency to publish.” — ELENA FERRANTE, the pseudonymous author who was recently “outed” by the New York Review of Books, on the reason she publishes under a false name.
“Physical absence from the public sphere makes the writing absolutely central. In the writing itself—be it a book or this interview—which one organizes and structures, the presence of the author becomes coherent. The rest is uninteresting private life.” —ELENA FERRANTE on her choice to remove the authorial persona from her writing.
“When readers think they are meeting the author, in reality they’re meeting a man of a woman, rich or poor in humanity, but who has already left their role as author. The author—and his capacity to develop the quality of the linguistic material to which he resorts—is present only in the works.” —ELENA FERRANTE on the difference between the author present in the work and the author in reality.
Life is A Mixtape: Rainy Day Women Part 1 BY MELINA GLUSAC
I
t starts the moment you open your eyes — this morning just feels different. The air is cool, and it’s still a little dark outside your window, and the sky intends to stay that way for the rest of the day (again, you can feel it). And you let it. Go ahead, sky. Cry. It’ll give me an excuse to wear more black, and it’ll bring everything to life. Blue in Green - Miles Davis These are my favorite kinds of days: rainy ones, or as I like to call them, old friends who just don’t visit enough. An occasional holiday, sure — sometimes rain will stop by on Thanksgiving, but he changes when Christmas rolls around and won’t return to his best self until spring. That’s OK. We’ll give him his time. Maybe his infrequency is precisely what makes him so alluring to me, anyway — so scrumptious. Brandy Alexander - Feist Splashing my black loafers in a quasi-shallow puddle is relief. Exiting my apartment building and popping up my black umbrella straight away, allowing it to stretch its arms around my bust and head, on top of which sits a frizzy black moss of human land, is comfort. My umbrella embraces me. It interacts with the rain — a durable mediator, not shield, through which nothing penetrates and everything sings. She, my umbrella, lets me listen to him, the rain. And he whispers to me, chitter chatter, pat pat, everything is going to be OK.
It’s OK. Grey Room - Damien Rice So, I walk to class. It’s a Wednesday, and I feel quite alive, like everything else around me, and I’ve never been more thrilled to be uncommon. It’s been like this all week: steady water, tiny teardrops on windows who are prone to wandering, like me (they always try to glisten). It’s a pity to sit in class, I think, but when I get there I’m happy to be nestled in some lower-level room, discussing Virginia Woolf, rain still there for me when my eyes and my ears need a 30-second holiday.
Coffee. I walk to the warm, yellow square to get some, and its windows have teardrops, too. I’m still thinking about Jacob and his Room — the Woolf novel, of course, because the real Jacob on my mind is not a Jacob and I miss the room of his chest, his arms around me, better than a black umbrella. But she’ll do for now. And the brown potion hits my lips, and I take a break from listening to the rain for a bit, and I think about Friday night’s wine hitting my lips. I feel as if I’ve had a little wine already, though. That’s what the rain does to me. It cleanses, it cleans, it calms. Jeff Buckley does that, too.
Lilac Wine - Jeff Buckley Drunk as drunk I walk to my next class, bouncing from puddle to puddle, and I talk about poetry for an hour or so. I volunteer a few words. This girl reads a Frank O’Hara poem all about splitting a Coke with someone you love, and I feel like crying because it’s perfect and conversational and if I had cried right there I would’ve matched the sky, the gray sky, my favorite sky. Coney Island Baby - Lou Reed The glory of love, Lou Reed sings, and the rain sings it, too. It’s steady, and the smell is blank and crisp and somehow exposes all the other smells on the street. Most of them are nice, a cup of coffee, a bit of garbage, the punch-inthe-face perfume of a passerby. My umbrella is hugging me again and I have to go to work, and I’m happy to have its company, to have my own company. The rain reminds me of that as I run across the street to my next place in this city, this world, and for some reason I smile as I’m running and the mystery and the wonder and the uncertainty and beauty — all drops of rain the umbrella can’t block as it shifts, and it always shifts — hit me. But they don’t so much as hit me as they do play with my moss, land on me, drop, drop, gently. And they glisten. And they’ll glisten until I close my eyes that night and hope the next morning feels just as different as today’s different. ILLUSTRATION BY EMILIE FARRUGIA COVER BY SHANE ACHENBACH
Wednesday, October 5, 2016 // The Statement
Wednesday, October 5, 2016 // The Statement
The Price of Silicon Valley Over the last several decades, Silicon Valley has become a hotbed for innovation. Seen as one of the top research and development centers in the world, it attracts some of the brightest minds and the most ambitious startups. Much of our generation’s most impactful technology — the iPhone, Google and the desktop computer, to name a few — were born in what was once known only as the Santa Clara Valley. However alluring and mystifying the region has become, the Santa Clara Valley’s transformation into Silicon Valley — at first adopted in reference to the region’s high number of silicon chip innovators and manufacturers — did not happen overnight. Historians have attributed Silicon Valley’s rise to a wide range of circumstances and events. For one, during World War II the San Francisco Bay Area became a hub for developing and manufacturing weapons. The military continued to be the sole customer of semiconductors and vacuum tubes produced in the Bay Area throughout the 1950s. With funding from the Department of Defense, the region was able to develop state of the art manufacturing facilities and attract top innovators. The military, however, was not the only institution cultivating technological talent. Nearby Stanford University was focusing its efforts on the research and study of electronics, spearheaded by Frederick Terman, the dean of the engineering school. In 1939, two Stanford graduates who were mentored by Terman, David Packard and William Hewlett, founded an electronics company in a Palo Alto garage. Their company, Hewlett-Packard, would go on to become one of the largest information technology firms in the world, and that garage would be considered by some to be the birthplace of Silicon Valley. Terman then focused his efforts on luring top tech companies to the Bay Area. One of the founding fathers of the Stanford Industrial Park, Terman designated a 700-acre plot of land owned by the university and to be rented to high-tech firms. HewlettPackard, General Electric and Varian Associates were among the first firms to move into the park, helping to create a culture of innovation in Silicon Valley. But despite its allure, all that the modern Silicon Valley has to offer comes with a price. In 2015, the median home price in the San Jose-Santa Clara County metropolitan zone, which includes the affluent towns of Palo Alto and Los Altos, hovered around $1 million. This means that for burgeoning companies the cost of operating is steep. Given Silicon Valley’s vast startup ecosystem and funding opportunities, it remains an enticing place to be a young company. New York City and Boston are popu-
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“By 2022, computer science is the only discipline where there will be more jobs available than there are students with that degree.” Just weeks ago I sat down for my first day as a student in Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering 183, the University of Michigan’s introductory programming class, and was confronted with the facts: Getting a job after graduation is not easy, but it might be easier if you major in computer science. Though the United States’ unemployment rate is the lowest it has been in eight years, millennials are still struggling to find jobs. The U.S. Census Data show that 40 percent of our nation’s unemployed are millennials. In the face of rising college tuition prices, statistics like these are frightening to many students. While that first EECS 183 lecture did not persuade me to abandon my economics major, I was struck by the vitality of the tech industry. Though the number of new computer science majors peaked around the time of the dot-com bubble, that number has again been on the rise in recent years. “I think the first time I taught as a TA in 2009, EECS 281, which is kind of like the seminal computer science course, that course was probably numbering around almost 200 students,” Hector Garcia, the computer science professor teaching my EECS 183 course, said. “Now, seven years later, the 281 course is up to almost 400 students. So there’s been great growth.” The resurgence of the tech industry is reflected in the increasing number of startups nationwide. Startup is a broad term used to describe an emerging business, but is most often applied to tech companies. While many of these startups are concentrated on the coasts, Ann Arbor has begun to cultivate a startup ecosystem of its own. In 2015, Ann Arbor SPARK, an organization focused on developing the economy in the Ann Arbor region by assisting fledgling businesses, assisted 266 startups, according to their annual report. Though not all startups are tech startups, tech startups tend to garner a great deal of funding and attention. In 2016, citing a business growth rate of 12 percent and an employment growth rate of 13 percent, livability.com ranked Ann Arbor as the sixth best place to be an entrepreneur. Over the past 10 years Ann Arbor has ranked highly on lists published by the likes of Forbes, MSNBC, and U.S. News and World Report naming the brainiest, most inventive and healthiest places to live. Given the extensive ties between this hip town and its well-endowed, researchoriented University, it’s no surprise that Ann Arbor has begun to cultivate a vibrant start-up culture of its own.
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Startup culture in Ann Arbor By Genevieve Hummer, Daily Staff Reporter
lar among startups for similar reasons. Some entrepreneurs, however, are starting to look beyond Silicon Valley, New York City and Boston in search of more affordable headquarters — which is where Ann Arbor comes in. College Towns Hip, affluent and cutting-edge, the college towns that hold some of America’s most wellknown and well-funded public universities — Boulder, Austin, Charlottesville, Chapel Hill, and Ann Arbor — have become attractive alternatives to the typical startup hubs. College towns, rife with intellectual talent and hefty endowments, offer appealing amenities for startup companies. After all, Stanford University and Harvard University have been partly credited with transforming Silicon Valley and Boston into the startup hubs they are today.
Between 2011 and 2015, Boulder, Austin, Charlottesville, Chapel Hill and Ann Arbor all reported business growth rates between 5 and 15 percent and employment growth rates between 10 and 87 percent, according to Entrepreneur Magazine. In recent years, top research universities, including the University of Michigan, have devoted a number of resources to encouraging entrepreneurialism and innovation. A number of private tech companies have moved to Ann Arbor in recent years. Garcia, the professor who lectured about the virtues of a degree in computer science on my first day in EECS 183, later explained that these private companies might be the key to keeping startups and top students from leaving Ann Arbor. “There’s a lot of start of start-ups, but eventually it gets to the point where they can’t get
enough funding here so they have to take it to another place,” he said. “That is still going to be the case for a good while. Ann Arbor is in need of one additional tech company. Right now, since there’s not enough competition to keep them in the Ann Arbor area, most good computer science students when they’re done, they move away. That’s another reason why startups don’t really stay here, because the top talent moves away.” Garcia, in addition to lecturing, works as a software engineer for Thinkorswim, a startup company bought by TD Ameritrade. TD Ameritrade’s Ann Arbor office is an innovation hub and increasing collaboration with the University. “My idea is to have this connection between the software development that we do and then also teach to help with engagement, offer internships to top students and communicate the sort of initiatives that we might be running in the office that might appeal to both undergraduates and graduate students,” Garcia said. According to Garcia, Ann Arbor SPARK, the organization working to develop the town’s economy, is a big reason TD Ameritrade decided to open an Ann Arbor office. Google also recently expanded its presence in southeastern Michigan by constructing a campus in Plymouth. Business incubators — organizations which provide client companies with economic development resources that focus on everything from product commercialization to investment — have become popular on college campuses. In 2012, the National Business Incubation Association reported that nearly one third of the 1,250 business incubators in the United States are at universities, compared to one fifth in 2006. The University’s Contribution Since the turn of the 20th century, the University has overseen a number of entrepreneurship initiatives. The University’s entrepreneurship website counts eight student organizations, five centers and institutes, and seven incubators and accelerators as a part of its entrepreneurial ecosystem. Aside from providing resources to local startups, the University has spent the last five years developing academic programs focused on the study of entrepreneurship. Since the fall of 2011, the University’s College of Engineering and Ross School of Business have jointly offered a master’s in entrepreneurialism program. In the winter 2015 semester, LSA introduced a minor in entrepreneurship program open to all undergraduates. “Our students are known for their interest in applying their talents and creativity in
response to a need or problem,” University President Mark Schlissel said in a statement when the program launched. “This program will provide students with knowledge they can use to further ignite their imaginations and pursue creative solutions to real world challenges.” Though the history of entrepreneurialism at the University dates back to the 1920s when the University first offered a few courses in business management, the turn of the 21st century brought entrepreneurship to the forefront of the University’s mission. In 1999, Samuel Zell and Ann Lurie donated $10 million to create the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies. The family pledged another $60 million to further the program in 2015. Stewart Thornhill, a professor of entrepreneurial studies and executive director of the Zell Lurie Institute, said entrepreneurial activity has been increasing on campus in recent years. “As entrepreneurship has become a dominant theme across campus, and so much more entrepreneurship has emerged from the School of Information, to Public Health to Music, Theatre & Dance, we’ve all looked for opportunities where we can get together so that we can do things that share all of our collective purposes which is to get people to talk about entrepreneurship,” he said. When it comes to creating successful startup companies, Thornhill said the University has cultivated a culture of innovation that benefits Ann Arbor’s startup ecosystem. “On the good side of things, you are sitting on top of this incredible research factory that is the University of Michigan, and the amount of new technology and smart people that you will find is incredible, so just to be nestled in with all of that new thinking, new technology and innovation and interesting, exciting people coming from all over the world — and that’s how we get new ideas: We combine a whole bunch of diverse points of view and then you come up with a new way of doing things,” he said. “The critical mass of innovation around the University is huge.” However, Thornhill also acknowledged that there are challenges to being a startup in Ann Arbor, in spite of the University’s support. “The downside is that one of the ingredients to starting a lot of companies is investment dollars and the Midwest is notoriously conservative,” he said. “In the national spectrum we always talk about the two coasts, whether it’s San Francisco, Boston or New York, there’s simply more investment opportunities there.” This lack of funding plagues many Midwestern startups, as investment opportunities
tend to be concentrated on the coasts. Ryan Gourley, the director of TechArb, the student venture accelerator co-founded by the College of Engineering’s Center for Entrepreneurship and the Zell Lurie Institute in 2010, echoed Thornhill’s sentiments. “There’s certainly no dearth of talent or University support here, so it’s a great place to be a student entrepreneur or even a University entrepreneur because we have such a large ecosystem of resources and talent here,” Gourley said. “What we currently lack that the coasts have is the investor ecosystem isn’t as built-out and so that’s the piece that is yet to fall into place. It’s certainly building and developing.” One of TechArb’s graduates, Neurable, a company that has invented a brain wave interpretation system that allows those with disabilities to control devices such as toys and TVs, relocated to Boston in August to be closer to its funding partner. During the company’s time in Ann Arbor, it received support from different parts of the University, including Tech Transfer, another University venture center aimed at transforming student and faculty research into viable businesses. In Tech Transfer’s 2015 impact report, the organization announced 422 invention reports, 160 patents issued, 19 new business startups and $78.8 million in revenue. Despite the high numbers, Ken Nisbet, the associate vice president of Tech Transfer, said the venture center is focused on quality, not quantity when it comes to creating new businesses. “This is focused around research-oriented technologies that can form very viable startups, and the student entrepreneurship movement is a little different,” Nisbet said. “A large component of it is an educational process it’s wonderful, in the end you’re probably not going to form a company and live off it.” Nisbet also pointed out that there is a difference between innovation and entrepreneurialism. Innovation, he said, involves coming up with a new idea, but entrepreneurialism involves turning that idea into a viable business. TechTransfer seeks to bridge that gap by offering licensing assistance to University researchers. “We have a team of about 10 licensing specialists,” Nisbet said. “It’s a combination of having some technology understanding because you have to work with the faculty to understand this discovery. So these people are specialists in not only being able to talk on the technology side but trying to understand in the market place ‘Who cares?’ In addition, they have skill sets in protection, often patenting, so they have to understand if it’s worth investing
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and what the best approach is for investing.” After a company is licensed, TechTransfer seeks to connect the founders with industry experts outside of the University. “We put the elements of a company together and then we’re inviting founders, or other resources who then take it out and they finish the development,” Nisbet said. “Often when a startup is licensed, they’re years away from revenue and lots of investment.” Nisbet also acknowledged that Ann Arbor still has a long way to go if it wants to compete with the country’s most popular startup hubs. “The availability of talent, funding — we don’t have a deep, robust set of investment firms, which is true of most parts of the country it’s really concentrated in Boston, New York and the Bay Area for the most part,” he said. “But we have some very good ones here. And I think reputation, to be honest. When people think of a great company they go, ‘California!’ and we’re changing that. We’ve decided what we need to do is develop better opportunities, and to do things that other universities like MIT or Stanford might not need to do and don’t do.” Though staying in Ann Arbor is not ideal for every startup, Nisbet said the University’s resources entice many startups to stay. “We realize that not every startup should stay because, in the end, you have to do what’s best for the technology,” he said. “Saying that, we definitely want people to stick around here and we’re lucky because most do. The connection to the University, if we can introduce local entrepreneurs and local funders or funders who are partners with others, they’re more likely to stay. So probably three quarters of the companies stay in the region, mainly in Ann Arbor. It’s a goal to maximize that, but it’s also not mandatory.” As the cost of living in the country’s startup hubs continues to rise, companies will be looking for less expensive alternatives. The state of Michigan is also keen to attract talent to the region, hoping it will help to revitalize the economy. So for any students sitting in their first day of EECS 183 contemplating a startup idea or a career in computer science, they might not have to look much further than their own backyard.
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Wednesday, October 5, 2016 // The Statement
Defining Myself
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have written this essay multiple times: when I young, when I was 18, when I lived in the woods and again the other week. Quite frankly, I feel as though I write this in my mind every day. The reason for this essay struck me on the streets of Cambridge, Boston five months ago, where a homeless man sat on the street holding a cardboard sign that read: I am ________. Help. Tell me who I am. Was he asking for a name? A noun? How about an adjective? With this man’s compelling question, I had to stop and ask myself: Who am I? And so the hellacious mental journey began. Subjectifying the complex and fascinating creatures that we all are makes no sense to me. People change and adapt — humans cannot be categorized. Maybe our peers don’t understand why we question ourselves, but it strikes me even more when our own minds can’t understand why these things happen. I learned a great deal of all this when I attended the New England Literature Program (aka NELP). Through this experience, I lived in the woods for six weeks with 52 other people, studying classic American literature and having no access to technology. I could not have found a better space to genuinely reflect on the person I was and the person I was about to become. Identity has become my biggest mystery, as I am sure it has for others. If identity is this powerful, concrete possession that each of us hold so close and so gingerly, then how is it constantly changing? We are always bending this valuable label. We change our hair style, gain new hobbies, receive nicknames, gain/lose weight, experience new places with fresh ideas, adapt to our environments and the people within them. Identity is not as permanent as we may think. For all of time, we have categorized ourselves into specific groups: age, gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, ability, sexuality, religion, etc. And as beneficial as these groups can be, I believe they create quite a bit of frustrations, restrictions and questions. A friend once told me, and I believe it to be true, is that who we are not is just as noticeable as who we are. And with that, these categories represent just the surface to this iceberg situation. However, it was here where my community pulled out a side of me I never knew existed. I was cheery and giddy, quizzical and self-analytical. I was surprised at the multitudes of personality and happiness I had possessed. And when six weeks of explorative Erika came to an end, I was ejected back into reality. The reality of home (Philadelphia area) where people might give you a funny look because you open the door for them or cut you off on 95 because of their road rage. Positive, peaceful Erika soon turned back into negative, on edge
by Erika Shevchek, Daily Arts Writer Erika. I was a stranger in my own skin. So I asked myself: Why is this happening to me? Code switching turns on and motives shift drastically when we fix ourselves in a new environment. My personality and identity clearly has no limits — it’s fluid. It adjusts as I move from place to place and live with one type of community to another. As much as I tried to fight this subconscious action, I was defeated and I now abide to it. But, maybe this idea of a mold-less identity is not as scary as it seems. I find myself learning a great deal from these new situations I throw myself in. Whether that be living in the woods, living in Philly or living in Ann Arbor, I don’t have to be confined to the labels that others put on me and that I put on myself. Because in the grand scheme of things, identity is not a product, it’s a process. One day, the future me might lose her love for sushi or The Vaccines or find that she belongs in the city more than she belongs in the woods (I truly hope none of those happen). Because who I am now will probably not be the same person in six weeks, six months or six years. With some friends I’m relaxed and timid, meanwhile with others, I’m like an overexcited molecule bouncing with excitement and spontaneity. I do not believe we have to be the same person everywhere we go; however, it’s still so important to know
where you came from, where you are and where you are going. All the Erikas I have ever been form the person I am today, and the person I am today will help form the Erika I become tomorrow and so on. I was raised on three religions; my socio-economic status has changed drastically through the years; I was once a blonde and am now a brunette. We physically, mentally and emotionally transform due to different factors. Though we will shift, grow and conform to new sides of our identities, it does not mean we should lose touch with who we are. As harmful as labels have been on all of us, they are powerful and vital to most. Identity makes us original and gives us something to be proud about. Some labels are easier to erase than others, but even those labels should never fully define the in-depth creatures that we are. So here I am, five months later, pondering the miniscule but mighty question that was written on that piece of cardboard. If I could go back in time, I would take the marker and fill in the blank with the words whoever I want to be and cross out the Help. Tell me who I am. Maybe the homeless man would smile at my action or maybe he just wouldn’t care. But his sign would read I am whoever I want to be. For all the people who passed that sign and even those who have not, I hope they question and accept their idea of themselves just as I do every day.
ILLUSTRATION BY EMILIE FARRUGIA
Wednesday, October 5, 2016 // The Statement
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When Will I Feel Like an Adult? by Eliana Herman, LSA Junior
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rowing up is strange. Most of us do it, yet we have no idea what is going on. Maybe that’s why there are so many Buzzfeed articles about how to “adult,” maybe that’s the reason I click on all of those articles and maybe that’s the reason “adult” has become a verb — we are all trying to figure out this whole adulting thing. The first time I remember being aware of growing up (as opposed to just getting birthday cake all over my face every February) was when I turned 10. I remember walking home from the bus stop on an unseasonably warm day and pondering the fact that I had officially reached double digits — I was 10, and I was overwhelmed by the idea of not being nine. It wasn’t a bad feeling, just a new one. While I write this, it blows me away that my walk home was more than 10 years ago. I’ve lived double the life the 10-year-old me was so amazed by. And I’m sure in 10 more years I’ll be even more shocked to turn 30. But the strangest part of all this inevitable passage of time is I don’t really feel that different. I mean, sure, as a 20-year-old, my typical day is very different from what I was up to in fifth grade. But, fundamentally, I feel the same. I still love taking long walks back from the bus, I still think dumb jokes are funny, I still love trick-or-treating and Disney Original Channel movies. I even still have the same best friend — but I feel like I must have changed over all these years, because how couldn’t I? And at the very least, if I haven’t changed, then I know I have to, at least a little bit, be a functioning human in the world. Working as a camp counselor this summer really got me thinking about all of this. I worked at the camp I attended for six weeks in 2011 in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. When I was a camper, I thought my counselors were the most inspiring, strongest people I’d ever seen; they
could portage miles without taking breaks, they wore cool thrift shop clothes and were totally confident about it, they knew exactly what to say to make us laugh, to make every day amazing. They inspired my love for nature and helped me learn to love myself. And this summer, I had their job. I had big shoes to fill, and it still seems surreal to me that I did it. I just can’t imagine that my campers feel about me the way I felt (and still feel) about my counselors, and part of it is because I just can’t believe I’m old enough, grown up enough, to have that role. As the summer passed by, I assumed there’d be a moment when it clicked for me and I’d think, yes, I am a Kennedy counselor. On a basic level I knew that I was one — I mean, clearly that’s where I spent eight weeks this summer. But it didn’t seem real that I was watching these campers, that I was keeping them safe and helping them have an experience like the one I had five years ago. So I started wondering, did my counselors feel that way when I was their camper? And if so, when do you feel like a real grown up? Is it only once you stop working at summer camp? Do you ever? I still hadn’t found an answer to these questions when I moved into my house on South Division Street this fall. For the last two years I basically lived on campus: Markley freshman year and my sorority house last year. So this fall was the first time I really had to think about cooking, cleaning, broken washing machines and omnipresent landlords. At first I was extremely overwhelmed. I had no idea what cooking utensils I needed, how much water you use to make rice (I still just eyeball it), and the first week of school I forgot I needed milk and ate cereal plain every morning. But slowly over the course of this month I’ve gotten into a routine. I make my own meals, clean up
my dishes, actually do my laundry, while still being a student. Being in charge of my own well-being has made me feel like more of a “grown-up,” but at the same time I still ask my mom to make my doctor’s appointments, and don’t clean up the kitchen as often as I should. There’s the old folk saying “It takes a village to raise a child.” Well, I think it takes village to transition into adulthood. There’s no way I’d be able to complete all of my adult responsibilities without having friends along my side going through the same thing, and my older friends and parents who have been through this before. It really helps living in a full house this year. We teach each other little things we’ve picked up from our parents. For example, I never realized the importance of ice cube trays until this year. But more than just sharing housekeeping tips, friends and family keep me sane as I struggle to figure out where I fit in life at this time of transition. They assure me that it’s OK I still sleep with a pillow pet, and pick me up when I feel overwhelmed. Hopefully I can do the same for them, and we’ll help each other ease into this whole “adulting” thing. I’ve talked to my parents about this, and they say they still feel like kids on the inside, so maybe you never feel grown up, but as you deal with the responsibilities of “adult” life — working, plunging toilets, paying bills, making doctor’s appointments and your own dinner, and a million other things that I have no idea about yet — you become an adult. But if you’re lucky, you can hold onto that sense of wonderment I felt walking home on my tenth birthday, and live every day like a 10-year-old who knows how to plunge a toilet.
ILLUSTRATION BY EMILIE FARRUGIA
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Wednesday, October 5, 2016 // The Statement
V I S UA L S TAT E M E N T:
THE QUITO PROJECT PHOTOS BY MARINA ROSS The Quito Project is a University of Michigan organization that grants students the chance to travel to Quito, Ecuador and work as a teacher with 5 through 12-year-old kids at Fundacion dejando huella, an elementary school. This trip was truly amazing and the friendships and relationships I built with my students and fellow teachers are irreplaceable. The Quito Project allowed me to continue my passion for Spanish, travel and humanitarian work in a unique and rewarding way. This opportunity taught me more than I could have ever imagined, and Quito and Fundación dejando huella will always have a special place in my heart.
During the trip, we hiked Machu Picchu in Peru.
Students Manuel and Mateo play on the swings during recess at at Fundación dejando huella, an elementary school, in Quito Ecuador on July 29.
People cross the bridge in front of El Pailon del Diablo waterfall in Baños, Ecuador.
One of the students, Anghely, stands at at Fundación dejando huella in Quito, Ecuador on July 29.
Later in the day, we hiked farther up Machu Picchu in Peru.