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Wednesday, October 7, 2020

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U-M President: ‘Things are not heading in the right direction’

Schlissel comments on rise in COVID-19 cases among students, recent strikes EMMA STEIN, DOMINIC COLETTI & CALDER LEWIS Daily News Editor & Daily Staff Reporters

MADELINE HINKLEY/Daily The University announced criteria that would lead to reevaluating campus operations on Wednesday.

Washtenaw COVID cases exceed ‘U’ threshold for review of operations

Cases per million in county repeatedly top 70 per million in September, breaching one of University’s metrics for reevaluation of campus protocols amid pandemic SAYALI AMIN & LEAH GRAHAM

Managing News Editors

One of the University of Michigan’s metrics for reevaluating campus operations amid the COVID-19 pandemic has been triggered, University

President Mark Schlissel confirmed coming two days after the guidelines were published online. Schlissel acknowledged the trigger in a Friday email to faculty members concerned about the spread of the virus in the surrounding community. “Yes, the metrics were triggered,

and as per the new policy, our public health and medical advisors are discussing, based on the details of the cases and overall context, which next steps are most appropriate,” Schlissel wrote in the email obtained by The Michigan Daily. “As we stated, there are many options for interventions that must be tailored to the exact

circumstances. (sic) involved.” On the University’s Campus Blueprint website, the criteria include Washtenaw County seeing more than 70 new cases per million, sustained test positivity rates of 10% or 3 consecutive days of a more than 10% case increase. See METRIC, Page 3

The Michigan Daily sat down with University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel to discuss the University’s COVID19 response, increasing testing availability at UHS, why the University sought an injunction against GEO, the role of policing on campus, the Faculty Senate vote of no confidence and whether he’s still friends with Jim Harbaugh. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. Mark Schlissel: Obviously, (the election is) getting closer and closer. We’ve been working for years now trying to drive voter registration at the University, particularly among students, (and we’re) doing many things trying to make it easier. The county clerk and the Secretary of State here in Michigan have collaborated on letting us set up (a satellite office) in the art museum, a very convenient site where students can actually go vote today if they want to, there’s early voting in the state of

Michigan, they can register, or they can drop off their absentee ballots in person, removing any anxiety that somehow the post office will slow them down or lose them … You know I think everybody on campus who’s eligible to vote should vote. And that’s what we can do to make a difference. The Michigan Daily: So, first on COVID-19. There have been mixed responses to the University’s protocols and resources for addressing the COVID-19 pandemic on campus. Students, parents and faculty have voiced concerns about quarantine housing, outbreaks on campus and a lack of testing to name a few. How do you think the University has handled the first few weeks of school, and do you think the reopening plan has been successful so far? MS: I think COVID-19 is the biggest challenge that we face as a community, at least in this generation, and certainly in my career. There is a lot of uncertainty, so we make our best plans based on our knowledge and our judgments and our values. And then we modify them as we learn more and as the situation changes. See SCHLISSEL, Page 3

COVID-19

Students weigh options between getting tested on campus or heading outside of University People face restrictions with accessing testing at University Health Services DOMINIC COLETTI & JENNA SITEMAN Daily Staff Reporters

Though the University of Michigan provides free COVID-19 testing to symptomatic students, some asymptomatic students are opting to get tested offcampus. Engineering senior Maya Getachew was tested at University Health Service as well as an outside urgent care center. Getachew said the UHS process was faster, but the restrictions on who is eligible for testing frustrated her. “I kind of had to lie on my form to get an appointment,” Getachew said. “But once I actually went in for the test, really fast, I was in and out of the building within like five minutes. With urgent care, there was a little bit of a wait, but it was pretty much the same thing, once I got the test I was out in like 30 seconds.” Getachew said she got her results back from UHS in less than 24 hours, while it took the urgent care about three days. The University is currently

testing all symptomatic students through UHS. Students with symptoms can fill out an online survey to see if they qualify for testing, and a UHS employee is supposed to call and schedule an appointment usually on the same day. Other local testing sites are run through the Washtenaw County Health Department, and vary from local urgent cares to pop-up testing locations across town. Andie Ransom, who co-leads COVID response at UHS, told The Michigan Daily that the University’s testing capacity has significantly increased from the beginning of the year. According to Ransom, the requirements have changed so that any student who has been exposed to the virus can get a test at UHS. “When COVID first started, we were very limited in what we could do,” Ransom said. “And so this new expanded testing feels really good for us because we want to do what’s right for the student. And ( being exposed is) worrisome. We want to make sure that these students are getting the testing that they want.”

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Bernie Sanders stumps for Joe 2 Biden at campaign event in A Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders visits Ann Arbor to campaign for the Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden Monday afternoon.

Vermont senator and former presidential candidate makes case for Democratic ticket at small rally in Kerrytown, argues country needs new style of leadership SARAH PAYNE

Daily Staff Reporter

The University of Michigan’s chapter of Biden for President hosted Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., in Ann Arbor’s Kerrytown Monday afternoon. More than 75 people attended the rally in person, while more than 500 supporters logged on to the virtual livestream. Sanders started the event by emphasizing the importance of continuing to make progress in a thoughtful, informed way.

“We can keep our country moving forward if we do so in a way that is disciplined, not dangerous, that is responsible, not reckless,” Sanders said. “And we (need to) listen to science.” U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., spoke to supporters about her excitement for the election. “(It’s a) really exciting, important day for me,” Dingell said. “We are four weeks out from the most important election of my lifetime. I’ve been talking to Bernie about

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things we care about … we both know how important the young people are in this election.” Sanders appealed to young people, saying they are leading activists in many social justice issues. “This is a generation that is leading the fight against systemic racism and police brutality,” Sanders said. “It is a generation that is leading the fight against xenophobia, a generation that is leading the fight against sexism. A generation that is leading the

fight against religious bigotry, a generation that is leading the fight against neverending wars and a bloated military budget. And this is a generation, unlike the current president of the United States, that knows that climate change is real.” Sanders said despite young peoples’ achievements, they have one “major political shortcoming:” low voter turnout.

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Beginning October 12, U-M will allow all undergraduate students to return to in-person research.

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All undergrads eligible to resume in-person research in mid-October University allows labs to let younger students back inside buildings to work KRISTINA ZHENG Daily Staff Reporter

Starting Oct. 12, the University of Michigan will allow all undergraduate students to return to in-person research and scholarship, according to an email update sent to the research community from Rebecca Cunningham, vice president of research at the University. Previously, the policy on undergraduate research only granted seniors with prior research experience to return to an in-person lab setting. This new policy, however, will expand the previous guidelines to allow all undergraduates — including those with no research experience — to engage in in-person research. “Recognizing that our research productivity is not yet back to 100 percent, this next phase will allow for increased laboratory density, an expansion of human research participants and increased access for undergraduate researchers, who play a critical role in our research mission,” Cunningham wrote. This new policy will also allow labs to increase the capacity from 45 to 60 percent as long as social distancing and face covering guidelines are maintained on

any given shift. Cunningham underscored the importance of continual monitoring of virus transmission as this new policy is put in place. “Research leadership will continuously monitor virus transmission rates over the next 4-6 weeks to ensure our research community can safely maintain this expansion,” Cunningham wrote. “The health and safety of our research community will remain our top priority.” As of Sept. 29, nine total researchers have tested positive for COVID-19 since May 21, according to the email update. Based on contact tracing of asymptomatic individuals where a fellow lab member has tested positive, no sign of virus transmission has taken place in research settings. LSA sophomore Kylie Schache conducts research in two labs — a microbiology lab and an Alzheimer’s lab. She said though this policy will technically allow her to return to in-person research, the capacity limits will still prioritize the graduate students and post-doctoral fellows in her lab. “If the option were open for me to work in person, I would certainly take it,” Schache said. “Right now, the issue is letting undergraduates return

to research labs would take time slots away from graduate students or postdoc researchers because of the capacity limits. And so, I understand they have seniority, since it’s their fulltime job to do research.” Schache noted that even if she were to return, she would not have concerns with safety or spreading COVID-19, given that many of the procedures within research settings already account for cleanliness and sanitation. “If there was a way that I could return to in-person work, I wouldn’t have any concerns in terms of safety regarding the virus just because labs are under so many safety restrictions normally, since we work with dangerous chemicals and what not,” Schache said. “The safety regulations in place right now especially — I mean they’re maintaining distance very strictly, they’re keeping limits on how many people can be in the same space, PPE (personal protective equipment) guidelines are followed very closely, so I won’t be concerned about returning from that standpoint.” LSA sophomore Nicholas Cemalovic shared similar sentiments in that graduate students are often prioritized when assigning shifts, since

they depend on the research setting for their degrees. Cemalovic said he is involved in an environmental toxicology lab with the School of Public Health. “I also understand that every year, there are new grad students rotating and there’s graduate students who need to get their degrees by being in there, so I understand the hierarchy, but I think introducing undergrads slowly would be great,” Cemalovic said. Back in March, when Cemalovic had to transition into a remote research setting, he said he found other ways to stay engaged with the research community, despite not being able to return to in-person work. “I found a way to transition into research in a different way,” Cemalovic said. “I found a lot of different methods that I could still be active. So, during that first bit of quarantine, I was still going to talks and lectures, I was doing a little bit of literature review. A good thing about a lot of wet lab biomedical research is that there’s always data being produced, so there’s always data to be analyzed.”

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Mayors discuss ways to address COVID-19 crisis Virtual roundtable features leaders of major U.S. cities BEN VASSAR For The Daily

MADDIE FOX/Daily Nursing students Reagan Cloutier and Maureen Kozlowski stand in front of C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital Monday afternoon.

Nursing students attend in-person clinicals amid coronavirus pandemic

Curriculum requirements bring future nurses to the frontlines, with no virtual options for certain training ALEX HARRING Daily News Editor

As part of her requirements to graduate from the University of Michigan, Nursing junior Kaitlyn McDonald goes to Michigan Medicine like she would any other school year. But this year, her clinicals — the component of the School of Nursing curriculum spent in the field — are taking place against the backdrop of an ongoing global pandemic. “I never thought that something like this would happen,” McDonald said. “But I’m really proud to do this and I’m really proud to be learning this profession to be able to help people, especially during times like this.” COVID-19 has touched nearly all facets of American life since its onset in March. University leadership announced a “public-health informed” hybrid fall semester, which began at the start of the month, with nearly 80% of coursework delivered remotely. The Nursing School has, in turn, adapted its curriculum to match the moment. Students reported many of their lectures now take place online, as do the post-clinical ref lection meetings that offer a chance to ref lect on their experiences in the field. However, students are completing in-person clinicals as they would any other semester, but with some changes to protocol. Students wear masks on their shifts — some of which can last up to 16 hours — and they are not required to treat patients who have tested positive for COVID-19. During a clinical, students will work with staff on day-to-day tasks to better understand the specific area of medicine they study and how nurses fit in. Nursing students have multiple clinical experiences before graduating, with placements ranging from emergency rooms to assisted living facilities for senior citizens. Winter semester clinicals

were canceled in March because unprecedented circumstances arose that were outside the school’s control, according to Nursing Dean Patricia Hurn. She said the school and clinical partners now have a better understanding of the risks associated with the coronavirus, allowing them to provide in-person clinicals. Students in joining the

I never thought that something like this would happen ... I’m really proud to be learning this profession to be able to help people, especially in times like this. front lines are also gaining necessary clinical hours to become state-certified nurses. There is no option for students to complete clinicals virtually, Hurn said, but the Nursing School will work with students who need to step away from any part of their studies. And students are seeing what it’s like to be in a hospital when the unexpected happens, Hurn said. “It’s one thing as a student to think about how difficult things could be if there were a pandemic, if there were a major disaster,” Hurn said. “It’s another thing to be working in the reality where that’s the case.” But there is still risk associated with going to clinicals, McDonald said. Nurses might interact with patients who have gotten inaccurate COVID-19 test results, for example. McDonald, who worked at Michigan Medicine over the summer as a patient care technician, also said patients could test positive after she already worked with them and she would not know if she had been exposed. Some seniors work in departments like emergency rooms where they may not

know if a patient has the virus upon first interaction. Other Nursing students will also be assisting in contact tracing efforts this semester. Nursing students typically begin clinicals during their sophomore year. The number of hours spent on these rotations largely depends on what year they are in the program and their scheduling. Some seniors in the program have tried to schedule additional hours at the beginning of the semester to ensure they can still meet graduation and certification requirements if school moves online, Nursing senior Reagan Cloutier said. “Most of us are going to graduate, obviously, with this pandemic still happening,” Cloutier, who is also president of the Student Nurses Association, said. “It’s good for us to experience what it’s like right now, as a student. That way, once we get out into the real world, we’re going to know what to expect and how to operate under these circumstances.” Nursing students have felt a sense of pride and usefulness in being able to provide medical care as the pandemic rages on. McDonald said she felt helpless in March when their rotations were canceled, wishing she could do something to help. But in being back, they are also learning a lesson about their future profession: nurses have to expect the unexpected in medicine. When they began their clinicals again this fall, students said they felt excited to receive the hands-on training. Regardless of the changes brought on by the pandemic, students say much of it feels the same. They still get to work with medical professionals and interact with patients. Despite the risks, these students agree that they are where they are meant to be. “It’s inspired me,” Nursing junior Maureen Kozlowski said. “I look at all this chaos that’s going on in the world, but I’m still going to provide the exact same care for my patient because they don’t deserve anything less.” Daily News Editor Alex Harring can be reached at harring@umich.edu.

Cities and local leaders across the country have faced economic and social turmoil throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. On Wednesday morning, the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning welcomed mayors Jacob Frey of Minneapolis, Lori Lightfoot of Chicago, Libby Schaaf of Oakland, Calif. and Michael Tubbs of Stockton, Calif., to a panel titled “America’s Mayors on Crisis and Change.” University President Mark Schlissel opened the event by describing cities as “laboratories for democracy.” He thanked the Poverty Solutions Initiative and Taubman for collaborating on hosting the event. Taubman Dean Jonathan Massey introduced the panel’s members. He noted that Lightfoot is the first Black woman and first openly gay mayor of Chicago, while Tubbs is Stockton’s first Black mayor and the youngest mayor of any city with more than 100,000 residents. Massey asked Tubbs and Schaaf about their Universal Basic Income initiatives, which would provide an “unconditional periodic payment” to their cities’ poorest residents. Tubbs said the pandemic reaffirmed his plans to provide a UBI, adding that poverty is the result of policymakers’ decisions. According to Schaaf a UBI would encourage socioeconomic mobility. “People spend this unconditional cash on basic needs,” Schaaf said. “In fact, sometimes people take this little extra pillow so that they

can quit their third job and look to upgrade their skills.” Massey’s next question focused on how mayors can simultaneously appease constituents protesting police brutality while maintaining a good relationship with their police forces. Frey, whose city was at the center of this issue this summer after police officers killed George Floyd in Minneapolis, said mayors have to uphold freedom of speech. “It is incumbent on mayors to be ardent defenders of our First Amendment,” Frey said. Frey then denounced property destruction and looting that took place in the wake of Floyd’s murder. He was met with pushback in the comments section, where some people demanded he acknowledge that most protests were peaceful. One of the people tied to the looting was later connected to a white supremacist group and “specifically sought to inf lame racial tensions,” according to police. Massey asked about strategies to dismantle white supremacy. Frey pointed to redlining in Minneapolis. “We literally have maps at city hall dating back 80 to a hundred years that define North Minneapolis as a slum for Blacks and Jews,” Frey said. Frey continued, advocating for homeownership as a method to generate intergenerational wealth. Other cities have pursued different avenues of economic revitalization. In East Oakland, Calif., Schaaf said community members proposed the creation of an aquaponics farm in an abandoned greenhouse and a bike-share program where bikes could

serve as art to be decorated. Schaaf said she was excited the project had recently won a $28-million grant from the Transformative Climate Communities program to move forward. Schaaf noted how her city implements a communityoriented design process for some of its construction projects. “This year for the first time we’re actually inviting communities to propose capital improvement projects,” Schaaf said. The panel took questions from the live comments section. Rackham student Nana Andoh asked if any of the mayors enacted policies during the pandemic that they hope to keep permanently. Lightfoot, who started a Racial Equity Rapid Response Team at the beginning of the pandemic, said she hoped some of those programs would stay. Established in April of 2020, the team is meant to “address the disproportionate impact of the coronavirus pandemic on AfricanAmerican communities.” “I don’t want to build temporary scaffolding around anything,” Lightfoot said. Public Policy graduate student Kyle Slugg asked how the mayors are making sense of the current crisis. Tubbs said a large part of his job is “reckoning with whether the status quo is truly untenable.” Massey closed the panel by asking what leadership principle each would bring if they ran for president of the United States, to which Lightfoot answered, “never, ever, ever.” Daily News Contributor Ben Vassar can be reached at benvasmich.edu.

AG office to investigate group with ties to Weiser Unlock Michigan collects petition signatures criminally BEN ROSENFELD Daily News Editor

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Monday that her office would be opening an investigation into Unlock Michigan, a state political action committee alleged to have criminally collected petition signatures to repeal a state law. The statute in question is a 1945 Emergency Powers of Governor Act being used by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to address the ongoing COVID19 pandemic in the state. According to a press release from Nessel’s office, a number of residents complained that Unlock Michigan obtained their signatures illegally, telling them that the petition was for another cause. “The Attorney General’s office has received complaints from residents who report they were deceived by petition circulators who were gathering signatures to support the efforts of Unlock Michigan, which is trying to repeal the 1945 Emergency Powers of the Governor Act,” the release read. “Residents said they were told the petitions were to support LGBTQ rights, for medical marijuana initiatives or to help small businesses, among other things.” Founded in the wake of Whitmer’s March 23 “Stay Home, Stay Safe” order, Unlock Michigan’s goal has been to roll back the governor’s COVID-19 quarantine and social distancing policies. According to its website,

the PAC sees Whitmer’s orders as unconstitutional and damaging to individual freedom. “Unlock Michigan is a coalition of concerned Michiganders who believe that Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s crushing lockdown of life and business across Michigan is a dangerous threat to our livelihoods and constitutional liberties,” the website reads. Unlock Michigan spokesman Fred Wszolek told The Daily the investigation was politically motivated. “It’s a partisan political farce, which is to be expected from this partisan political Attorney General,” Wszolek said. “This sham investigation is designed to deprive Michigan citizens of their constitutional right to initiate legislation, but we’re not going to allow that to happen.” One financial supporter of the PAC is Ronald Weiser, the former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party and current member of the University of Michigan’s Board of Regents, who gave a direct contribution of $100,000 to the organization on July 27, according to documents filed with the Secretary of State. In a message sent to The Michigan Daily, Weiser said that he was not familiar with Unlock Michigan or its activities at the time of his donation. “I know nothing about the investigation. I (know) nothing about Unlock Michigan,” Weiser wrote. “I made the contribution because of who asked me.” He declined to name the

person who asked him to make the contribution. Weiser was elected to the board, which serves as the University’s governing body, in 2016. He is currently the only Republican regent; two of the Democratic incumbents — Mark Bernstein and Shauna Ryder Diggs — are up for reelection in November. They will face Republican challengers Sarah Hubbard and Carl Meyers. According to a Sept. 22 report from the Detroit Free Press, a secretly recorded video of an Unlock Michigan training session for signature collectors on Sept. 4 showed that a trainer for the group “coached paid petition circulators on giving voters false information, illegally collecting signatures without witnessing them, trespassing on private property, and even lying under oath.” In a statement, Nessel said the group’s alleged practices represent a clear violation of the law, and as such fall under the purview of her office. “Our democracy is firmly rooted in the principles of an informed electorate which makes decisions at the polls based on reason and beliefs over lies and deception,” Nessel said in the press release. “Our ballot initiative process allows efforts with strong public support to be presented to the Legislature. But that process becomes tainted when petition circulators manipulate and cheat to serve their own agendas.” Daily News Editor Ben Rosenfeld can be reached at bbrosenf@umich.edu.

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Wednesday, October 7, 2020 — 5

Employees at Om of Medicine allege harmful work environment, backlash after forming union

Workers say management fired three prominent pro-union employees, upped surveillance and stricter standards at store CATER HOWE & KRISTINA ZHENG Daily Staff Reporters

Employees at Om of Medicine, a recreational and medicinal cannabis dispensary in downtown Ann Arbor, have received backlash from management for forming a union, according to both former and current employees. Employees allege this backlash has included the firing of three prominent pro-union employees along with increased surveillance and stricter standards for employees still at the store. On Sept. 23, employees at Om sent a letter of recognition to the company’s leadership, requesting the company acknowledge the formation of the union. This would allow employees to create a formal unit to bargain collectively with management to secure wages and benefits, create a safe workplace environment, discuss racial injustices and address other issues important to the workers at Om. In the letter, employees urged the company to swiftly recognize their union and refrain from holding compulsory employee meetings espousing anti-union rhetoric. “We ask that you commit to a fair and cooperative process as we move forward together,” the letter reads. “This means avoiding outside anti-union consultants and lawyers who might attempt to bully, threaten or instill fear among us. It means not scheduling compulsory captive audience meetings where we are forced to listen to anti-union rhetoric. It means respecting our rights and our carefully considered decision to unionize.” Om leadership denied the demands to recognize the union and will instead initiate a fair and anonymous election process under the National Labor Relations Act to formally recognize the union. Shortly after the letter was delivered to management, three Om employees were fired from the company. Lisa Conine, former Om community outreach coordinator for more than four years and one of the employees let go from the company, said the employees hoped management would recognize the union as a way to open discussion around employee working environments. Conine said the decision to fire employees for sending the letter was a strong message to the community that

they no longer supported the employees’ involvement in social justice work. “They fired us and tried to escort us out almost like criminals,” Conine said. “I’ve been there for four years, and they tried to make me leave out the back door with an escort, and it was very, very painful.” That same day, the cannabis store closed early, and employees protested outside of the store, leading many to question the future of the company. A current employee at Om, who requested to remain anonymous due to fear of retaliation from their employer, said the workplace environment

Passerini wrote. “We strive to make our Omies proud of their place of employment.” In April 2019, Om was acquired by 4Front Venture Mission Dispensaries, a nation-wide cannabis investment company. Since the new transition, Conine said there has been difficulty in maintaining Om’s values to remain focused on the patients, the medicinal side of care and educating customers on cannabis treatment. “Quickly, it became pretty evident that the goal of the company was to be more just operations-focused, efficientlyfocused, focused on revenue,” Conine said. “And so we’ve been

wrote. “Om of Medicine strictly prohibits conduct from anyone — including customers — that violates this policy. While we do not comment on personnel matters, our employment decisions are consistent with our mission, values and policies.” A key reason for deciding to unionize has been issues surrounding race at the dispensary, particularly in light of the summer’s protests surrounding the police killing of George Floyd, says Ana Gomulka, the former social equity program coordinator at Om and one of the three employees let go from the company. A flashpoint for employees

to talk about what actions we needed to see from corporate moving forward in order to feel safe and secure in our own workspace.” Gomulka and other employees were eventually successful in getting managers at the store level to undergo implicit racial bias training, but not in getting members of the board and corporate leadership to do the same, as they had hoped. In addition to the episode with the delivery driver, another point of tension Gomulka and other employees have had with the board and store leadership has been their refusal to put out a statement in support of

RYAN LITTLE/Daily Former and current Om of Medicine employees allege the dispensary facilitates a toxic workplace environment.

completely shifted when the letter of recognition was sent to management. “We know they’re watching us constantly,” the employee said. “It makes me personally feel very paranoid. I feel like I can’t step the wrong way without being told I’m doing the wrong thing.” Mark Passerini, co-founder of Om, told The Daily in an email statement that providing a safe and fair working environment for Om employees is a critical point in their mission as a company. “Our Omies are not only valued members of our community, they are the people vital to fulfilling our mission,”

speaking up and kind of pushing back on a lot of changes, ever since the beginning.” 4Front directed The Daily to Passerini’s statement. Passerini said Om is one of the longest operating dispensaries in the country and is dedicated to advancing cannabis reform and serving its patients and customers with quality cannabis products in a safe and responsible manner. “Om of Medicine is also committed to equal employment opportunity, treating everyone fairly and maintaining an environment free of discrimination, harassment and intimidation,” Passerini

came this summer when a former delivery driver, who was Black, asked for permission to forgo a delivery to a more conservative suburb in the area because he worried about his safety as a Black man who would be carrying multiple ounces of marijuana in a vehicle, even though it was legal. The manager at the time, however, refused the request and made the delivery driver complete the delivery anyway, after which employees decided to start organizing and having conversations. “We took action as a team, the employees and said, you know, this is not okay,” Gomulka said “We held a space for each other

Black Lives Matter, something dozens of companies did in the aftermath of the George Floyd protests. For Gomulka, the lack of a public statement surrounding Black Lives Matter was particularly concerning given the racial makeup of the leadership of the company. “All leadership in this company is white and this is a national company,” Gomulka said. “The entire board is white, all the investors are white, and we confronted them and we said you know this is a problem for us because there’s no representation. We need representation and we need an

actual public statement about Black Lives Matter, and the company refused to put it out. They told us that they didn’t want to be political.” 4Front Ventures CEO Leo Gontmakher eventually sent out a company-wide email, which was obtained by The Daily, commenting on Black Lives Matter and the protests. While the statement acknowledged the disproportionate incarceration of people of color for drug crimes and said the company “stand(s) in solidarity with the peaceful protestors helping bring large numbers of people out of their state of complacency,” employees like Gomulka were upset by the statement’s final paragraph in which Gontmakher seemed to argue that people of differing viewpoints smoking cannabis together could help to heal the racial divide. “This letter was very insensitive … it basically said, you know, at the end of the day, if we could all smoke a joint together, racism would go away,” Gomulka said. The final paragraph of the statement read, “And not to trivialize the matters at hand, but one is left to wonder what would happen if some of these communities in opposition could sit down and share a joint and talk it out, taking advantage of one of the appealing attributes of cannabis. We all have so much more in common than we have in difference.” The unwillingness of 4Front and Om to make public statements about Black Lives Matter, even if in an effort to refrain from being political, is particularly upsetting to Gomulka because the issue of the prohibition of cannabis and racism are fundamentally connected. “They’re making money off of a plant that has really devastated Black communities, and all they have to do is acknowledge and give back, and their refusal to do that has really made it an uncomfortable and unsafe environment for their Black (and) Brown employees,” Gomulka said. “When Black men are going to prison at unfathomable rates, things we’re still dealing with to this day, but we have large corporations buying everything up and demanding that they refuse to be political because of their white power, because of the position and privilege they’re in, it becomes a very large issue.” Daily Staff Reporters Carter Howe and Kristina Zheng can be reached at tcbhowe@umich.edu and krizheng@umich.edu.

STEM students face overtime lectures, extra work

Asynchronous courses present unique difficulties for certain fields at the Universities after the shift to remote learning LILY GOODING

Daily Staff Reporter

With the majority of classes being taught virtually this semester, some STEM students are reporting overtime lectures and unfair work expectations, despite having regular schedules with assigned class times. Pharmacy student Sihyun Kim is currently enrolled in the course Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. According to Kim, her instructor regularly exceeds the allotted lecture time by 20 minutes. “When some students told her that she needs to end the lecture on time so that students can get to their next (in-person) classes, she simply told them they can just leave and watch the recording later,” Kim said. LSA junior Maddy McPherson shared Kim’s concerns regarding lectures going overtime. McPherson is currently taking a fourcredit biochemistry course

with multiple lectures and a discussion each week. This semester, the course is formatted so that students can listen to prerecorded lectures when it is convenient for them. During the assigned lecture time, the professor holds an optional Q&A discussion that is also recorded for any student who is unable to attend. McPherson said this format has affected most of the duration of the course’s lectures by allowing instructors to teach over the time allotted. McPherson also expressed feeling obligated to attend the Q&A session in order to fully understand the material taught during lectures. “In a normal semester, we’re supposed to have lecture for two and a half hours and a discussion that’s about an hour and a half hours (per week),” McPherson said. “Now that the class is online, lectures are now going over time. Office hours are optional but

help clarify the material, so it feels mandatory if you want to do well.” With two lectures and a discussion that should each last 80 minutes, class time is expected to total to four hours each week, but McPherson said she found that she devoted nearly six and half hours of her week attending that single class, not including study time. LSA professor Randy Stockbridge is one of the two instructors of an introductory biochemistry course. According to Stockbridge, about 20 percent of the class chooses to attend the instructor-led discussion portion of the course synchronously. More students choose to watch the recording later. Stockbridge said the instructing team decided to format class time this way because they were hoping to give students another way to engage with the material and the professors. “Normally during a class

period, we do active learning activities like iClicker questions and there’s the opportunity for the instructor to ask, ‘OK, does this make sense? Are there any questions at this point in the lecture?’” Stockbridge said. “We just don’t have that with the format where we just record lectures. We thought it would serve the students better to have sort of a standardized format in which these questions could be taken.” Stockbridge said she was unaware of any complaints from students, but mentioned that the instructing team intends to hold a discussion later in the semester to address any concerns from students about the class format. Introduction to Electronic Circuits is another class that often extends over its allotted time, Engineering junior Emily Grim said. The course is four credits, and includes two lectures, one discussion and one lab

to complete each week. The course instructor also posts pre-recorded videos for students to watch in advance of the lecture. Grim said the main issue with this format is a lack of clarity regarding what components of the class she should prioritize to succeed. With both pre-recorded videos and synchronous lectures, Grim said she has been struggling to keep up with the intense workload. “After a week of it, it was way too much work for me, so I decided to only watch the pre-lectures. The professor made it sound like they were the majority of the material, and the Zoom lectures were just doing examples,” Grim said. By not attending the synchronous lecture portion of the class, Grim believed that she had actually missed crucial information she would need to know to pass. “Turns out, the Zoom lectures had become the place where he was doing

examples and covering important topics in more detail, despite saying you could asynchronously do the class with only the prelectures,” Grim said. As an Engineering student with an already challenging course load, Grim said she was stressed about balancing her other courses given how much time she devotes to Introduction to Electronic Circuits. Grim said she feels like the workload would be lighter if she were taking the class during a normal semester. “I wonder how different this class would be in person,” Grim said. “My professor mentioned that some material will be skipped over compared to previous semesters, yet it seems like there’s way more content in videos I have to parse through compared to the time I would’ve spent in person.” Daily Staff Reporter Lily Gooding can be reached at goodingl@umich.edu.

Michigan In Color

6 — Wednesday, October 7, 2020

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The harm of the Haram Police EMAN NAGA MiC Columnist

Let me preface this with a quick but important disclaimer. This piece is not fodder or proof that Islam is misogynistic or oppresses women. I will not be feeding into the guiltridden stereotypes created by liberals who are ashamed about their bloodthirst for innocent Afghans and Iraqis post 9/11 or attempting to justify drone attacks in Muslim parts of the Global South. I will also not paint for you an image of a weak and fragile Muslim female population, for we are anything but frail. If you clicked on this based on that assumption, you will be sorely dismayed and should close the page. If you would like to read about a strong system of male patriarchy in the Muslim world and the harm it causes women as well as its detrimental effect on the fight for political resistance, please carry on. Also, to my Muslim brothers, if you feel like I have to say not all Muslim men, you are a part of the problem. Once during Sunday school I had dropped something on the f loor and bent to pick it up, only to quickly get scolded that I should not be bending down so seductively, surely I did not want to give a man that sort of invitation. I was only twelve. However horrid the scolding may appear, these microaggressions are the festering effects of the Haram Police, a patriarchy attempting to acquire power amid the rise of global feminism. Haram; meaning strictly forbidden by Islamic dogma and police are two specific words that combined emphasize a growing male dominance on Muslim women. Starting off as a mere joke within Muslim diaspora, the phrase has embodied active misogyny hell-bent on exerting control over Muslim women and is prevalent throughout the entire Muslim world. The Haram Police, aptly named for the violence it has inf licted on Muslim women around the globe, has reigned terror on the very women they claim to protect and care for. Often and arguably rightfully so, Muslim women focus on imperial threats rather than looking among those within our spaces, but unfortunately the silent oppressor of the Haram Police cripples our missions with its

deadly misogyny. Inaccurately masqueraded as religiously driven, the Haram Police continues to tear down women, both hurting their sisters in faith while hindering their collective fights against political injustice. The internet, like other hate groups, is the Haram Police’s weapon of choice. Facebook and Youtube accounts meticulously crafted to feature women shaming as their main monetized content. Pretending to care about religion, the Ben Shapiros of the Muslim world log on to their platforms to shame Muslim women about their clothing, their mannerisms and if applicable, their romantic relationships. Often times, they play a video or clip they deem to be sinful — which seems awfully counterintuitive to their brand — and use their social prowess to argue why they believe the Muslim woman is a sinner. They closely monitor Muslim inf luencers on Instagram and if they post a photo as innocuous as a headshot, they portray the image and claim that these women are devilish, purposefully enticing men to sin. Committed to a brand of demonizing their own sisters, they do not discriminate against which woman to attack. Veiled, unveiled, married, single, Arab, Desi, Black, their commentary is universally applied as they defend their argument that every Muslim woman who does not wholeheartedly commit to their Islamic interpretation of femi-

Tinder and Tokenism: JESSICA KWON MiC Columnist

After the sad realization that I won’t be able to meet anyone new “organically” in the near future sank in, I finally caved last week and joined some of my friends on Tinder. I wasn’t looking for love: It was one of those pointless activities I did in order to avoid the mass of assignments I would eventually have to plow through at break-neck speed. Tinder is essentially a way to make dating a mindless game with no hard feelings and no real stakes. It’s an innovative marvel for the bored and lonely community, of which I am a long-standing member, whose cultural implications instantly fascinated me. Also, it was just fun. But at some point in the midst of desultory swipes and disappointing openers, every person of color on a dating app asks themselves the question: Is my race affecting my matches? I have to come to terms with the fact that there are people everywhere, not just within the confines of Tinder, who will like me less or a little too much solely because I am an East Asian American

woman. I understand it’s naive to assume that people are colorblind, and I also don’t want them to be colorblind. I want my race to be recognized, heard and celebrated. I want people to acknowledge that my experiences are different from theirs and these experiences have inf luenced the way I see the world, but they like me still, maybe even more because of it. I want them to care enough to listen to me and try to empathize with a life, an entire culture outside of their own. I detest people who “refuse to see color” because my color matters to me. I am proud of it and I need it to be seen. I also don’t want to be considered a novelty. I don’t want my appeal relegated to an otaku’s fetish, and I don’t want to receive kimonos for my birthday. I hate feeling exoticized and the sneaking suspicion that I am just a new experience for these men rather than a human being. Eventually, you learn the ropes and search for signs in people’s profiles. Self-proclaimed “sushi and boba lovers” are on probation and anyone who’s chosen to include “lets watch

ninity is a woman determined to rot in the depths of hell. While this may seem dramatic to a majority American audience, this type of language is broadcasted daily to constant viewers all over the world, with view counts as high as in the millions. Like all social commentary, it has had a direct impact on society and in this case, Muslim women are the chosen victims. A painfully prevalent example is a current case in Egypt. Nine women, mostly in their

like starvation, rape and stark humiliation. As they squash voices of opposition, the Egyptian government has been determined to appear to care about so-called family values to hide their classist oppression of Egyptian civilians. In the eyes of a court designed to uphold the wealthy and crumble the impoverished, these women, similar to Charli D’Amelio in their TikTok content, are guilty solely of angering the conservative sect of the Egyptian population, a popula-

20s, have been detained by Egyptain courts for “violating family values.” This absurd claim has been a raging result of a long standing culture war over belly dancers and Egyptian pop stars, the TikTok case the most severe retaliation against claims of westernization. Two women have already been indicted and have been given a two year prison sentence, merely for enjoying their time on the social media powerhouse. The Egyptian prison system, like America’s, is a system designed to control every voice the government wants to subvert. Orwellian in its cutthroat oppression, the court system utilizes unjust tacticts to torture civilians

tion the government seeks to appease politically. Increasingly heartbreaking, some of these women, severely affected by government-driven poverty, turned to TikTok as a money making mechanism to support their families. Their imprisonment does not just affect them, rather it leaves homes without their breadwinners, starving not only the alleged offenders but their families: a true violation of family values. Symbolic of the blatant endorsement of rape culture and victim blaming within these corrupt goverments as well as a persistent class war, these women remain tangible proof that Muslim women are suffocated by an obsessive patriarchy. In their

blood f low endlessly, the state of freedom so dire that I may be barring myself from visiting my family as an Egyptian citizen just writing this fact. Muslim Egyptian men weaponizing the courts against their fellow female comrades are only strengthening the power of a dominating elite. By heightining government power, they are actively engaged in tightening the noose around their necks, effectively cutting themselves from any possibility of desperate change. Rather than standing side by side as they have during massive political revolutions such as in the Arab Spring, some cowardly, insecure men have chosen to empower their oppressor to silence their allies rather than stand with their Muslim sisters in solidarity. By stabbing them in the back, the Haram Police effectively cuts itself as well, their misogyny an unintentioned yet skillful silencer of necessary political revolutions. Egypt is only a case study as the Haram Police continues to terrorize women who have already been dealt a politically gruesome hand worldwide. Americans are not immune from the Haram Police’s wrath with even strong Muslim leaders like Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib getting harped on for not wearing a hijab, or not wearing their hijabs “properly.” Their misogyny clear, the Haram police is only Habib Dadkhah via Unsplash furthering sexist chauAbdel Fattah El-Sisi, contin- vinism against Muslim women ues to reign Egypt by ruthless- rather than promoting piety, ly slaughtering political deepening the Muslim counteropponents and their children. part of a worldwide patriarchiWith one US dollar equating to cal system. Like other cultural approximately sixteen Egyp- apparatuses, the Haram Police tian pounds, the poverty rate is have been exploited by their only increasing and infrastruc- oppressors as an inner poiture is severely lacking as the sonous dynamic. If the Haram wealthy, including the politi- Police genuinely want a more cal elite such as El-Sisi, prof- just world as Islam dictates, iting off of the labor of poor they need to give their fellow Egyptian citizens. Constantly sisters their support rather crushing male and female pro- than their venom. Until then, testers against the regime with Muslim women are strong a hardened military, Egypt enough to look into our own solidified itself as a military spaces and fight two ardent state and has caused irrepara- oppressors; our brothers alleble damage to the nation. Men giant to the Haram Police and and women alike have f led to our colonizers. the streets aching for desperate change only to have their attempt to quiet these nine women, Egypt’s government, in tandem with the Haram Police, have scarred their lives to purposefully and politically prop them up as examples for any woman who dares have a voice that does not mirror the patriarch’s. The Haram Police does not only harm Muslim women, it is a double edged sword slaughtering possibilities of political resistance. Continuing the case study on Egypt, Donald J. Trump’s “favorite dictator”,

Dating for East Asian American Women anime together” in their bio is an instant red f lag. If they’re cute and they seem to check out, you swipe right, and maybe they’ve swiped right back on you. These matches are generally followed by awkward conversations via in-app messaging. Being a woman of color on Tinder, you tend to amass horror stories. I am asked out to “pho or sushi” dinners, I have been super-liked by a man with “free match if your asian” in his bio. Non-Asian men proudly text me “i like me a asian girl” with heart-eye emojis or “tbh i prefer asians to white girls” as if they’re civil rights heroes. When someone once told me he’d never been with an Asian girl before and he was “tryna break the seal,” I had to make a conscious effort not to throw up or throw my whole phone in the trash. Seeing my heritage, my proud history, my rich culture, my parents’ sacrifices and my people’s constant struggle reduced and watered down to one man’s “idk something bout yall just does it for me” makes me feel sick. We did not come here for this. It is disrespectful and just plain wrong to steal away our humanity with

your tokenism. But I am happy to report that my experiences with messaging men on Tinder have largely been free of unnecessary mentions of my race or the size of their penises. Messages are, however, assailed by awkward miscommunications about intention and physical boundaries — “i dont do hook ups sorry king ” — and annoying insistences on asking for socials. (Real adults shouldn’t use Snapchat, but I digress.) On the off chance that talking actually goes well though, you end up going on dates, and those are an entirely different anxiety behemoth altogether. A good friend once told me that going on dates with strangers is “terrible — so, so, so terrible — but kind of fun.” Dating during a pandemic is even worse. It’s preceded by the awkward, yet obligatory “uh do you have coronavirus LOL” text you send to assuage your fears that this is a horrible idea. Wearing masks is a necessary precaution whose main side-effect is creating situations that feel almost purely platonic. Dating now is even more difficult for women to navigate because our prevailing logic surrounding first

dates is to go to public spaces where there are a lot of people around for safety. As someone who has spent the last half decade on a steady diet of “Law and Order: SVU,” I’m thoroughly freaked out when I find myself in a secluded park off-campus on date number two. Thankfully, no one has tried to murder me yet, but dates are often bogged down by excruciatingly f luff y, insipid conversation about favorite rappers and TV shows. If race comes up on a date, which isn’t often, I feel the other person over-compensating for our differences in ways that make me uncomfortable. I’ve heard that “the only race is the human race,” and I don’t know how to open my mouth and say that, yes, we are biologically the same, but we have cultural differences and are, indeed, separated by racism. There is more that connects us than divides us, but we are not one and the same. There should be nothing to fear in that gap, but there is so much to learn. I know it’s pointless, but I still scroll through Tinder once in a while out of boredom. I feel g uilty for participating in this superficial system

and I hate swiping right on a g uy whose best bio, of all the phrases in the English lang uage, is “6’1” since that counts as personality.” Trying to walk that fine line between platonic and corny texts stresses me out, and the sight of sunburnt men who genuinely believe women go wild over pictures of them holding fish on a boat frustrates me. But, while I don’t take Tinder seriously, I do care about my racial identity, and I am tired by the knowledge that my race plays a factor in every experience I have, dating certainly being no exception. My agency in these situations, however, gives me hope: I can unmatch with every creep I encounter or aim expletives at men with classic cases of yellow fever. An odd satisfaction lies in this power to refuse. Online dating is annoyingly uninhibited at times, but the ability to instantly pick and choose at one’s discretion, free of any consequences, is an invaluable tool for women of color in the dating realm, because the real world is rarely so kind to us. And in the words of Luke, 21, less than a mile away from me, I just think that’s “pretty cash money, cute little fine thang.”

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Michigan In Color

Remembering RBG AAKASH RAY MiC Columnist

By now, the death of 87-yearold Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Sept. 18 has reverberated across hundreds of millions of American homes, leaving many filled with anguish, uncertainty and concern about the state of the highest court in the nation. Inducted in 1993 by President Bill Clinton, Ginsburg was the first Jewish female, and second female ever, to serve on the Supreme Court. With Ginsburg’s death and lifetime terms for Justices, the Supreme Court is at risk of having a partisan and ideological unbalance for generations to come. Judge Amy Coney Barett, President Trump’s nomination to replace Justice Ginsburg, is almost entirely noted to be conservative on immigration, abortion, racial equity and a host of other interrelated issues. While confirmation hearings for Judge Barett are set to be held in October, today, we can mourn the loss of an incredible activist. In Jewish tradition, the Kaddish, a Jewish prayer recited during Jewish prayer services and associated with death and mourning, is traditionally recited by immediate family members, yet an outpouring of grief for Ginsburg led to a recitation by hundreds on the steps of the Supreme Court the Friday of her passing. In a similar vein, we can all take a moment to remember Justice Ginsburg, most powerfully by looking at three of her most notable impacts in her time on the bench. A mere three years after Ginsburg joined the Supreme Court, a 1996 case challenged the all-male admissions policy at the Virginia Military Institute, which was at the time one of the last remaining all-male public undergraduate colleges in the country. This all changed when Ginsburg came. With her leadership, Ginsberg wrote a majority opinion ensuring that the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution was constitutionally practiced and the abolishment of the gender-exclusive policy at Virginia Military Institute. The impact of this ruling continues to stand today, allowing opportunities for persons of all genders to enter public institutions without the fear of de jure gender discrimination on their heels. The court, led by Ginsburg,

JUSTICE GINSBURG VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

would require the state-funded school to accept women for admission as well as an enforcement of equal considerations of all genders. In the opinion of United States v. Virginia, Ginsburg wrote “neither the goal of producing citizen soldiers nor VMI’s implementing methodology is inherently

unsuitable to women,” leading the way for women across the country to apply to universities they would have never been able to in the past. Three years after this case came the landmark case that focused on a strict violation of the “integration mandate,” which, under the Americans

with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), requires state and local governments to “administer services, programs, and activities in the most integrated setting appropriate to the needs of qualified individuals with disabilities.” In this situation, two women plaintiffs with mental illnesses and develop-

The Deliberate Miseducation of America SARAH AKAABOUNE MiC Columnist

The very existence of the United States of America presents itself as perhaps one of the most confounding paradoxes. A country that claims a perfectly veneered foundation of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, interstate highways tarred with gold and a guarantee of the ever-fleeting American dream. This is a country that is simultaneously founded on the backs of Indigenous peoples, immigrants and Black Americans — on marginalized communities whose contributions constitute the leather binding that establishes this nation’s narrative. While the pages of this narrative are slick with their blood, sweat, and tears, I’ve found that the complexities and intricacies of their history are consistently excluded from the story that has come to define All-Americana. Nonetheless, the majority of U.S. History courses I’ve taken seem to accept this account as a baseline standard in the classroom. This begs the question of whether neglecting to rawly and honestly teach said communities the jarring truth that this nation was once a colonizer state — deriving its power from ethnic cleansing, the bloody bondages of slavery, and widespread imperialism — is a product of pure altruistic intent, an attempt to shield our children from the harshness of reality. Or rather, is this ahistoric failure a

tragic and deliberate miseducation of the masses; a strategic maneuver bred from the knowledge that a thorough education serves as the unofficial language of revolution, capable of deteriorating the power that characterizes a modern day portrait of America At the forefront of a growing movement towards rectifying the falsities that countless Boards of Education have deemed a proper recollection of American history is the African American Integration Initiative (AAII), a new student organization at the University of Michigan. AAII aims to draft state legislation that would require increased hiring of educators of color, an unreserved and forthright teaching of African American history, and racial ethics in order to emphasize an essential truth: that there is simply no American history without African American history. I spoke with LSA freshman AAII founder, Shelbie Taylor, and LSA freshmen team leaders Vicky Wang and Monica Khalique to gain a full understanding of what led to the conception of AAII, its organizational hierarchy, and how such a student organization fits within the complex framework of a predominantly white institution. In the wake of George Floyd’s murder,riots soon followed. Taylor spoke to me about activism fatigue and a summer of America on fire. Taylor tells me she was compelled to make a tangible change, to drive a new sort of racial reckon-

ing. Much more deeply though, for Taylor, the genesis of AAII was not only a testament to the reality that racism is an early product of ignorance and the manifestation of an education gone wrong. It was also an amendment to a childhood of gritted teeth, clenched fists, and inky blue lonelinessbecause more often than not, Taylor had lived a grating existence of being the only Black student on any given day in any given room. AAII is a well-oiled, complex machine, consisting of three parts: Data Gathering, Networking and Allyship, and Marketing and Public Image. Taylor leads Data Gathering, in which members collect budding statistical data, surveying students on the extent of their knowledge surrounding African American history. The goal is to build an all encompassing curriculum tailored to their responses. Taylor tells me she expects these results to serve as tangible proof of an education system in need of dire reform. Monica Khalique is team leader of Networking and Allyship, the sector of AAII dedicated to reaching out to professors and administrators at the university with the intent of establishing a presence and gaining endorsement and mentorship opportunities. Vicky Wang is co-leader of the Marketing/Public Image team, which aims to amplify AAII’s presence as a student organization on campus through social media and campaign initiatives. A typical AAII meeting consists not

only of brute groundwork through data gathering and analysis, it also serves as a safe haven for many of those shunned by the dividing lines of America. It is a space to discuss the disturbing stratifications of race and occurences of racism that have been shoved in the backs of filing cabinets and under yellowed manila folders. Moreover, Wang and Khalique speak of a life riddled with microaggressions and a lack of representation. Both describe grappling with the difficult task of defining what it means to be a woman of color amid the perils of a world that seemingly wasn’t designed for them. Wang tells me that even in Ann Arbor, a community that lauds itself as one of the epicenters of social change and progression in the midwest, her run-ins with prejudice are still potent. Only here, though, they are slyly leveled under the table, presenting themselves in shifty eyes, altered body language and ultimately a crippling sense of discomfort in every corner of the city. Looking forward, AAII aims to go beyond drafting a new curriculum and passing state legislation, solidifying its place at the University of Michigan as a student organization that serves as the next generation’s counselor, mentor and teacher that Taylor, Wang, Khalique, and young kids like them had never had. AAII and similar alliances are crucial in rearing the broken and racially skewed American education system.

mental disabilities were kept confined in the state-run Georgia Regional Hospital for years even after being deemed medically ready to move to a community-based program. Ginsburg penned a fiery majority opinion that ruled in favor of the two women and emphasized the extreme

Wednesday, October 7, 2020 — 7

1933 2020

importance of rights for all persons with disabilities, including but not limited to mental, developmental and physical disabilities. In her words, Ginsburg noted that the isolation of the two plaintiffs unjustifyingly “perpetuates assumptions that persons so isolated are incapable or unworthy of participating in community life.” This adherence of the ADA, led by Ginsburg, allowed persons with disabilities to continue living integrated lives in a society that is so conditioned to the able-bodied individual. More recently, in 2015, another landmark case put Ginsburg in the history books as same-sex marriage became a right across all 50 states. Ginsburg all her life had been a major advocate for LGBTQ+ rights and even officiated same-sex weddings here and there, making this case in particular of special importance in her illustrious career. The case revolved again around the 14th Amendment and its ability to ensure persons rights to equal protection and due process, in light of state bans in Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee which denied marriage between people of the same sex. Though she did not write the majority opinion this time, Justice Anthony Kennedy noted in his own majority opinion, “the limitation of marriage to opposite-sex couples may long have seemed natural and just, but its inconsistency with the central meaning of the fundamental right to marry is now manifest.” This ruling was especially notable because Ginsburg directly called out the regressive attitude of John Bursuch, the lawyer representing the states, and was able to convince Justice Kennedy to f lip, overturning his questioning of marital tradition. In doing so, hundreds of thousands of LGBTQ+ Americans are able to be married today. While these cases are three out of dozens of cases Justice Ginsburg had a positive role in, Ginburgs stands for more than just her decisions in the legal realm. Her long career stands as a reminder that qualities that were once deemed as undeserving of equal treatment are truly valuable. From fighting for gender equality and marginalized communities whose voices often aren’t heard to battling against anti-Semitism, Ginsburg has inspired a generation of activists for decades to come.

‘500 years of damnation, let me stand’ ATAIA TEMPLETON MiC Contributor

Help! My name is gone and I can’t breathe Let me stand, please! Shh… Let us stand Now that he is dead let’s degrade His only human mistakes Let’s put him on a pedestal And play God Recount his sins Tattoo his broken neck He shall not see the sacred kingdom Of white Jesus If I have anything to do with it He resisted nearly 500 years of damnation and police badges Let me remind you that law is in my hands And I ruled the death penalty But please don’t praise me yet There’s only so much I can do To protect white America From being taken by slaves. They’ll be dead before judgement day Or imprisoned for their Black crime. We are all doing our parts Take up your MAGA hats To praise Trump for refusing To put that n*****’s portrait in our history And let us race over Black Lives Matter Leave it sprawled on the streets like roadkill For Justice is only a white man’s affordance And our system proves that they Never belonged here in the first place

Opinion

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Wednesday, October 7, 2020 — 8

JORDAN HUNTER | COLUMN

On the consumption of Black deaths

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FROM THE DAILY

MI Healthy Climate Plan lacks crucial details

n Sept. 23, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order that intends to cut carbon emissions, create clean energy jobs and achieve carbon neutrality in Michigan by 2050. The order charges the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy with the task of drafting a plan to achieve these goals, which would need to be submitted to the governor by Dec. 31, 2021. While The Michigan Daily Editorial Board welcomes such a plan, the devil is ultimately in the details, and this order contains almost no details. We believe that an effective plan should clearly identify sources of emissions and clean energy alternatives, improve public transportation, have provisions to hold corporations accountable and address environmental racism prevalent in the state of Michigan. The Energy Information Administration estimates that utilities are the biggest source of carbon emissions in Michigan at 36.5%. Within utilities, the EIA estimates that 92%of the state’s electricity is produced from nonrenewable energy sources, with 4 out of 10 power plants running on coal. Even though wind energy production, the largest source of renewable energy in Michigan, has more than quadrupled between 2012 and 2019, wind energy still only amounts to an abysmal 5%of the state’s electricity production. EGLE should come up with a clear plan on helping utilities generate more renewable power and have legal provisions to hold utility companies accountable to their goals. While it helps that Michigan’s two largest utilities announced plans in 2017 to cut down carbon emissions, with DTE Energy in particular stating it would go carbon neutral by 2050, such targets will remain unachievable without sound regulatory support and oversight through instruments like tax breaks, carbon pricing or power purchase agreements. The executive directive doesn’t give any insights into these policy elements. Beyond utilities, transportation is the second largest source of emissions in the state at 32.4 percent. This high percentage poses two problems. First, Michigan has limited public transportation facilities and is highly dependent on automotive vehicles for personal travel. To significantly reduce emissions, Michigan either has to provide an exhaustive and efficient public transportation system or promote the use of electric cars with an extensive charging infrastructure. Both options require targeted and rapid action by the government and auto manufacturers. Second, the Michigan auto industry directly employed 291,000 workers in 2017 and contributed to $157 billion to the state’s economy. With California, New Jersey and several other states recently announcing plans to promote electric vehicles, these jobs are likely to be affected if auto manufacturers do not invest in electric cars. Michigan will also lose a portion of the $4 billion in state and local corporate taxes the auto industry pays (as of 2017) if the industry fails to adapt. EGLE’s plan should therefore carefully balance public convenience, employment opportunities and economic impact while still pursuing an aggressive path towards carbon neutrality. While it is encouraging that the executive order asks the Department of Treasury to “explore taxation and revenue strategies to fit Michigan’s changing energy production mix” and minimize loss of employment, it remains to be seen if the plan will deliver on those directives.

Additionally, one thing that any environmental plan needs to consider is the disproportionate impact that environmental damage has on people of color and low-income communities. Just this past August, EGLE began an investigation into whether it violated the civil rights of East Detroit, a primarily low-income, non-white area, by allowing the expansion of a massive toxic waste plant that had already violated numerous safety regulations in the area, endangering the residents of the community. While this instance does not directly involve climate change, it shows a blind spot within EGLE to the hazardous effects of environmental waste and pollution that are disproportionately placed in poor and minority communities. It is of utmost importance that if EGLE undertakes the large project of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, which it absolutely should, EGLE also makes a concerted effort to combat environmental racism in all of its forms, as environmental justice must be a part of any effective plan to address climate change. Apart from policy measures to curb emissions from corporate bodies, the plan should also encourage citizens to take individual steps to reduce emissions. An example of an individual step is reducing use of private vehicles by carpooling or using public transportation. Michigan should take inspiration from California’s High Occupancy Vehicle lane policy, for instance, which encourages citizens to carpool and drive electric cars. Another personal step is reducing per-capita meat consumption. The meat industry is responsible for 14.5% of greenhouse gas emissions annually. This high number is because, first, making space for farms and livestock clears trees, which results in a large amount of carbon being released. Second, cows, sheep and goats release high levels of methane through feces and burps. Third, 99% of farmed animals live on factory farms, which use fossil fuels to power their machinery, make fertilizer and ship their products around the world. Even if completely cutting out on meat is not a viable option for each individual, just reducing beef consumption can make a huge difference: For each 50 grams of protein, beef production emits 17.7 kg of CO2 compared to 2.9 kg for poultry or 1.0 kg for tofu. Even when compared to reducing the use of unsustainable food packaging, reducing meat consumption is more effective at lowering GHG emissions. One would have to avoid all food packaging for 11 years to reduce the same amount of CO2 as one year without meat. If everyone reduces their meat consumption by 25%, which is equivalent to avoiding meat about two days a

week, it could lead to a reduction of 82 million metric tons of GHG emissions per year. Consciously choosing to avoid meat on specific days each week is a simple way individuals and families with the means to do so can address their own carbon footprint. In their emissions reduction plan, EGLE should include such practical measures that citizens can take on a day-to-day basis along with incentives and penalties to encourage compliance. The timing of Whitmer’s executive directive also raises questions about the strength of the commitment. With the highly contested and polarized U.S. presidential election just a month away, it is conspicuous that the Democratic governors of several states released their plan to tackle climate change around the same time. California Gov. Gavin Newsom released an executive order on the same day as Michigan to end in-state sales of gasoline-powered automobiles by 2035. However, there are significant legislative barriers these states have to overcome in order to actually enact these plans, calling into question the efficacy of these orders. In Michigan, for example, the state legislature is controlled by the Republican Party, who will likely be unwilling to approve sweeping emission reduction plans during an election year, particularly given that the Republican-controlled U.S. federal government withdrew from the Paris Climate Agreement. Such legislative barriers, combined with the executive order’s striking lack of details, begs the question if this is merely a tactic to swing undecided voters. But regardless of the potential political motives behind the executive order, climate change is a timely issue and deserves action now. Even if Whitmer’s order was only meant as a publicity stunt, the state of Michigan should use the opportunity to fully address carbon emissions and create a plan for a clean energy future. While the commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050 is encouraging in an era when the existence of climate change is not agreed upon in national politics, the quality of the eventual plan will vary wildly based on what it contains. A plan that contains real solutions for public transportation, renewable energy, corporate abuse and environmental racism will be effective — one that is vague on these issues will be a waste of time. Ultimately, we will not be able to pass judgment on the actual plan until it comes out at the end of next year. For now, we encourage individuals to look for personal ways to reduce carbon emissions to the best of each person’s ability and urge the EGLE to create a plan that will address the real threat climate change poses to humanity.

ast Wednesday, the cops who killed Breonna Taylor got away with murder. It’s not lost on me that the announcement that only one cop would be charged — with “wanton endangerment” for shooting into neighbors’ apartments and not Taylor herself — came out on the 65th anniversary of the day Emmett Till’s murderers were declared not guilty. I saw the posts on social media, with the photos of Till and Taylor held up together to remind Black Americans that nothing has changed. Sixty-five years and Black Americans still have our lives taken from us while our murderers live out theirs. In this country, Black lives don’t matter; not to the health care system and certainly not to policing bodies across the nation. But certainly, Black deaths do. In the age of social media and the Internet at large, visuals of Black people both dead and dying seem to be readily available. A quick Google search of the video of George Floyd’s murder warrants upward of 8.3 million results, 8.3 million ways to watch a man die a horrific death over a “counterfeit” $20 bill. The worst part? Floyd isn’t the first Black victim of police brutality to have his final moments filmed and broadcasted for the world to see. One of the first instances of police brutality to ever be caught on camera caused enough outrage to spark the 1992 Los Angeles Uprising, and the victim, Rodney King, survived. The ones who would follow wouldn’t be so lucky. In 2014, we watched Eric Garner die in a chokehold on Staten Island, N.Y. Two years later, it was Alton Sterling being shot point-blank in Baton Rouge, La. and Philando Castile in St. Paul, Minn. These videos are posted, reposted, retweeted and saved

over and over; but why? Raising awareness and sparking outrage appear to be the biggest reasons. It’s necessary, some insist, to make sure this irrefutable proof of the violence of policing bodies is seen by as many people as possible. Without these videos, they cry, how will the world know of this horrible evil that has only plagued our country since the advent of the camera capable of recording film? In their choice to utilize —and in some instances, capitalize off of — Black deaths to potentially raise awareness and spark outrage, wellmeaning social media activists are perpetuating the same violence against Black people that led to the gruesome events caught on tape with no reward. We have 30 years of visuals of Black deaths at the hands of the police, do we really need more of it? Char Adams, a reporter who focuses on race, gender and identity issues, argues that we’ve gained nothing from all of this. These pictures and videos haven’t gotten us any closer to ending police brutality. Floyd was still suffocated to death despite the viral status of the Garner, Sterling and Castile videos. Jacob Blake was still shot by police in Kenosha, Wis., which is only a five-hour drive away from where Floyd was murdered three months before. The circulation of the Floyd video didn’t stop Kenosha police officers from shooting Blake in the back seven times. So Black deaths, posted on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and elsewhere, are not going to save us. To share or repost these videos, especially without warning, is to perpetuate the same anti-Black violence that is put on full display. It’s traumatizing especially for young Black Americans, who must watch someone who could be our brother/sister/mother/father/aunt/

uncle/cousin or even us suffer for the whole world to see. It’s traumatizing to see that white America can ignore decades of Black Americans’ dismal relationship with the police, only paying attention once our suffering is put on gruesome display. We have no videos of Taylor’s death and some could say the three officers of the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department won’t face charges for her death because we cannot see what Taylor did as they stormed into her apartment. What we do have, however, is the continued consumption of Black deaths. Taylor’s name became a war cry, demanding the immediate arrest of the officers who took her life. Now? It’s a meme, and not a single one of the three officers involved have been arrested for her death over six months later. Taylor was an emergency room technician and an aspiring nurse. She was someone’s daughter, someone’s cousin, someone’s best friend. Now she’s a quirky caption for Riverdale stars to use on their risqué Instagram posts and the name of a convention where she barely appears on the promotional flyer. All of it done in the name of raising awareness and provoking outrage for Taylor’s benefit, but Taylor is still dead and the three officers have only faced consequences for damaging plaster walls. Taylor, Floyd and countless other victims of police brutality are given T-shirts before they are given justice and that’s tiring. I’m tired of watching people who look like me, who could be me being killed with no repercussions for their killers. I’m tired of watching their deaths on loop just for nothing to happen. And for our sake, I hope you are, too. Jordan Hunter can be reached at jhunterr@umich.edu.

LIZZY PEPPERCORN | COLUMN

The normalization of frat parties in Fraternity & Sorority life

ince the University of Michigan welcomed its students back to campus for the 2020 fall semester, many students have felt torn between risking exposure to COVID-19 and remaining isolated. Even when people make the choice to stay in, some still risk exposure if those they live with attend large indoor gatherings with no masks or distancing. The COVID-19 pandemic has complicated social pressures from friends, tensions with roommates and the natural desire to socialize. Amid these complications, Fraternity & Sorority Life’s life’s tight-knit, socially competitive community intensifies groupthink and places undue social pressure on members. In order to better understand the experience and decision-making of FSL members, I interviewed three members whose approaches to socialization vary greatly: one sorority member, whom I will call Rachel, who is not going to fraternity parties; one sorority member, whom I will call Julia, who is going to parties at different fraternities; and one fraternity member, whom I will call Zach, who is attending his own fraternity’s parties. All three FSL members told me that one of the greatest factors driving their social decisions is a fear of missing out. They said fellow members often talk about the parties and social events they attend, and not attending parties can make members feel they are missing out on important chapter bonding. “It seems like everyone I live with has accepted that getting COVID-19 is inevitable and are just partying while they can,” Rachel said. “Everyone I talk to says that since other people in the house are, there is no point in not going. It’s hard because I feel like everyone is getting closer and making these memories together, but I have to remind myself that close, real friendships are rarely formed at parties.” The members I interviewed seem to count the risk of catching COVID19 as analogous to other risks that young people take, like drinking or smoking. However, the disease’s high transmission rate means that if one person in a living community adopts the risk, they raise the risk factor for their entire community. Members of FSL who entered the school year planning on social distancing said they now feel burdened by the risk of COVID-19 exposure but without the upside of getting to socialize. However, this creates a dangerous feedback loop wherein people put themselves at risk based on the notion

that they are missing out. They go out, making more people feel like the odd one out for not doing so, and then they contribute to the culture of partying with little regard for the greater implications on the University community. Julia, who regularly attends indoor parties at fraternities, explains that while she does not believe fraternities are safe to visit, her “frat guy friends are getting tested regularly and being super open and honest, so I feel safe in those specific situations.”

One of the greatest factors driving their social decisions is a fear of missing out. Fraternity party attendees may feel relatively unconcerned about transmitting COVID-19, as testing and symptom checking provide a sense of security. However, there is still high inaccuracy in testing, especially the rapid testing that many in FSL are opting to take, and the average incubation period for an infected person with COVID-19 is 4-5 days. This means that an infected individual could test negative, continue to socialize with multiple circles of friends and spread the disease. Infected individuals are most contagious in the 24-48 hour period before they start showing symptoms. This means that frequent testing and symptom-checking are not effective measures for preventing an outbreak in indoor settings. According to those interviewed, many fraternities are currently holding under-theradar mixers with multiple different sororities weekly. It only takes one person at one party to spark the spread of COVID-19 into multiple houses in just one week. Elle Jimenez, President of the University of Michigan’s Panhellenic Association, commented that “The Panhellenic and IFC Executive boards ... decided together that it would be in the best interest of our immediate Panhellenic and IFC communities, as well as the University of Michigan community, and the surrounding community of Ann Arbor to keep our social moratorium in place from March

11, 2020,” and that “The Panhellenic Association at the University of Michigan actively discourages attending gatherings that violate the current Washtenaw County Health Department public health order.” With a similar script-like tone, Ian Ross, President of the University of Michigan’s Interfraternity council, described multiple ways that Inter-Fraternity Council (IFC) is attempting to remain in control of fraternity social events: “The social responsibility committee (SRC) is carrying out community checks on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights while remaining in vehicles and documenting and/or reporting and inappropriate gatherings ... We have maintained a line of communication with the Ann Arbor Police Department and University of Michigan Police Department to discuss our goals for a public health informed semester, including effective reporting and enforcement strategies for off-campus facilities.” While the Presidents of both IFC and Panhel claim to be actively enforcing compliance with public health guidelines in their chapters, the measures they are taking are ineffective with no serious consequences for members that choose to attend unsafe social gatherings. When questioned about possible underground mixers that may be occurring, Jimenez did not comment on the subject. Additionally, Ross, while acknowledging that attending these large gatherings is “unnecessary and harmful,” chose to note that it is “unfortunate that individuals, regardless of involvement in FSL organizations, chose to attend social gatherings that are not in alignment with public health guidance,” framing the issue as one that the larger U-M community is responsible for, not just IFC. For Zach, there is no guilt or worry of contributing to the spread of the virus. He places much of the blame on the University for imposing unrealistic rules and regulations and on those who attempt to photograph and expose partiers. “Things have been pushed inside out of fear of mob retaliation here, which I understand, but it is not conducive to making things better. People are not going to stop partying. They will just do it more secretly, and therefore more dangerously,” Zach said.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com Lizzy Peppercorn can be reached at epepperc@umich.edu.

Opinion

9 — Wednesday, October 7, 2020

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

JENNA SCHEEN | CONTACT CARTOONIST AT JSCHEEN@UMICH.EDU

LILY CESARIO | COLUMN

The psychedelic renaissance: discovery or appropriation?

ith the Decriminalize Nature movement happening in Ann Arbor and other cities around the country and the birth of psychedelic research centers at major universities like Johns Hopkins and UC Berkeley, it seems as if the United States is entering a new wave — what some are calling the psychedelic renaissance. While both new research and ancient wisdom continue to point to the healing potential of entheogenic medicines for mental and physical ailments, the question remains: To what extent are psychedelics just assimilation of old medicine? If we are to create a healthy and sustainable relationship with these substances in years to come, we must not turn a blind eye to their history, both dark and light. When colonization of the Americas began in 1492, so did the commodification of plants like tobacco, cacao and coca by moneyed interests. Once regarded and used as sacred medicines, these substances were at first feared, then eventually watered down, processed and commodified for European markets, losing their cultural and medicinal value in the process. While it may be true that cigarettes, chocolate and cocaine are addictive, it should be recognized that their plant derivatives, as they were used before colonization, were not. As the tobacco, chocolate and cocaine trade have since blossomed into multibilliondollar industries, so have societal illnesses of addiction and incarceration; from the dire health consequences of cigarette use, to the chocolate industry’s reliance on child labor, to the drug war’s brutal impact on Colombia, the way in which U.S. citizens consume these substances

today is both dangerous and counterproductive. While the U.S.’s solution to addiction has largely been to enforce stricter drug laws, it is clear now that this policy is not only ineffective but also dangerous, costly and racist. Since the 1960s, politicians have argued that stricter drug laws are the solution. Yet a top adviser for the Nixon administration even admitted that the war on drugs began as a political tactic against antiwar leftists and Black people. Indeed, drug laws have been enforced more harshly for Black and Latinx communities than for white communities. Today, people of color, despite equal rates of use, are 13.4 times more likely to be imprisoned than white people due largely to current drug laws; additionally, the number of Black men in prison today (792,000) equals the number of enslaved men in 1820. The war on drugs itself has even been referred to by the American Civil Liberties Union and others as “The New Jim Crow.” Despite its disproportionate and harmful impact on communities of color, the war on drugs has been a failure as far as addiction rates go. Of the nearly 21 million U.S. citizens living with at least one addiction today, 9 in 10 will not receive treatment. Of the people who are able to afford and complete rehab programs, only about 30% will have success in treating their addiction. Given this low access and quality of treatment, U.S. citizens are being increasingly drawn outside of the country in search of other options. In the realm of psychedelics, one of the most notable options is Ibogaine therapy, which, though originally used as an ancient and sacred medicine in West Africa, has emerged

as a glimmer of hope for its potentially risky, often unregulated, yet powerful use in treating serious addictions to substances like heroin and opium. On one hand, success stories boast of its compelling ability to address the root causes of addiction through a psychedelic journey inside one’s self. On the other, evidence is still largely anecdotal; a deeper look into success rates reveals that relapse still poses a challenge to long-term recovery. In this light, while our new cultural awareness of psychedelics may represent hope, our attitudes also point to a long history of colonization. Had the sacredness of these medicines been considered at the beginning of the colonization era, perhaps the harmful commodification and addiction patterns we see today could have been avoided. Additionally, as we proceed with the new science of psychedelics, we must also recognize that these new discoveries are in many ways rediscoveries of traditional medicines and spiritual rites of passage for indigenous communities. In the meantime, as we continue to explore potential treatments like Ibogaine for addiction, it is worth looking into a deeper understanding of how traditional use could improve not only the efficacy of treatment but also our relationships with the people who have used these medicines for thousands of years. As we move forward, we should keep in mind that if we do not acknowledge our past and act differently, we may only be bandaging wounds that require much deeper healing.

ELAYNA SWIFT | COLUMN

Mental wellness deserves attention now more than ever

Lily Cesario can be reached at lcesario@umich.edu.

ALEXANDER NOBEL | COLUMN

The West Coast is on fire: Here’s why Michiganders should care

hen Americans living on the West Coast woke up on Sept. 9, they were met with a concerning reality. From northern California all the way up through Oregon, the sky was an apocalyptic shade of reddish-orange. The western United States is once again engulfed in flames, as hundreds of wildfires have ravaged forests and disrupted the lives of millions throughout California, Oregon and Washington. While California generally has wildfires every year, this is no ordinary fire season. Five of the ten biggest fires in California’s history have happened this year, and thus far this fire season has claimed the lives of almost three dozen Americans, burnt millions of acres of forest and have displaced hundreds of thousands. Smoke from these fires has reached all the way to the East Coast and Europe, and thanks to the blazes, Portland recorded the world’s worst air quality earlier this month, forcing residents to remain inside. So why should Michiganders care about something so far away? Empathy aside, smoke from these fires affects our air quality, and while Michigan has not had large forest fires in its recent history, there have been massive fires before, and there likely will be again. Forest fires can start for numerous reasons, but the National Park Service estimates that 85% of forest fires are caused by humans. Specifically, human activities such as leaving campfires unattended, burning debris and arson are some of the most common causes of forest fires. These common causes have led many climate deniers, including President Trump himself, to claim that the record fires throughout the West are the result of bad forest management. In a recent press conference with California Gov. Gavin Newsom, California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot and other environment and fire officials, Trump stated that “It’ll start getting cooler, you

just watch” when confronted by Crowfoot over blaming vegetation management. After Crowfoot dryly commented that he wished the science agreed, Trump responded, saying “I don’t think science knows, actually.” This approach is incredibly dangerous, and will only contribute to even greater ecological destruction. The science behind wildfires is rather simple and is just a quick Google search away. According to the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, fires are more likely to occur and grow bigger when there are higher air temperatures and drier soil conditions. Climate change contributes to both of these conditions by warming the earth and drying out the organic matter that burns, which has led to the number of large forest fires in the western United States to double between 1984 and 2015. The California state fire department recently added to their website that “warmer spring and summer temperatures, reduced snowpack, and earlier spring snowmelt create longer and more intense dry seasons that increase moisture stress on vegetation and make forests more susceptible to severe wildfire.” So yes, Mr. President, the science does know, actually. Following the extremely hot and dry summer of 1871, forests burned throughout the Great Lakes region. Scientists believe that the fires in northeast Michigan were sparked by dry lightning strikes or even meteor showers. After the fires had ceased, it was estimated that 2,500 lives were tragically lost and just over 2 million acres of forests were destroyed. Michigan has suffered through catastrophic wildfires in the past and, unfortunately, climate models project that Michigan will continue to get warmer and drier. In 2000, Michigan had just over ten heatwave days per year. A heatwave day is when the temperature is higher than the historical average for that day and region. Just ten years from now, in 2030, that number is projected to increase to 35.

By 2050, summer droughts in Michigan are projected to triple, making the drought severity index greater than Texas’ current level. As temperatures increase and droughts become more frequent, Michigan becomes much more susceptible to forest fires similar to those currently devastating the western U.S. If something isn’t done to slow temperature rise, the California, Oregon and Washington fires could be just a preview of what the climate crisis will bring to Michigan and the rest of the Midwest. In a time where the planet is, quite literally, on fire, our elected leaders have failed us. While Republicans echo Trump’s talking points that the fires are due to poor forest management, Democrats rightly acknowledge that climate change is the leading cause of the destruction, but refuse to adequately meet the moment. The most egregious case of this is Newsom. He has recently taken to Twitter to declare that “climate change is REAL” while having approved 12 new permits for Chevron Corporation to continue hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in Kern County, Calif. — just north of Los Angeles County — bringing the total new fracking events to 360 for the year. Newsom can’t have it both ways. Acting in a manner that fails to account for science — the same science he claims to follow — is a form of climate denial. Staring down the monster of the climate crisis is something that many people — myself included as someone studying the environment — find incredibly intimidating. It can be hard to know where to start and often feels hopeless. Joining youth-led organizations such as Sunrise Movement or Climate Action Movement will bring you together with other like-minded young people who share a common goal. A better world is possible, we just have to fight for it.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com Alexander Nobel can be reached at anobel@umich.edu.

ust more than six months have passed since the first two cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Michigan. The identification of these cases quickly prompted extreme yet necessary reactions, as the following day, University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel shut down the Ann Arbor campus and urged students to return home. Eleven days later, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued her Stay Home, Stay Safe order, closing all services deemed nonessential and sending the state of Michigan into quarantine. Undeniably, all of our lives have undergone enormous changes since those first cases were identified — and these changes naturally induced additional stress. Our social interactions are fewer and further between, requiring masks and social distancing with most, if not all, people outside of our households. Most of our classes are online, with those that are in person requiring face masks and social distancing upon entering campus grounds. Students have been advised to avoid out-of-area travel throughout the semester, including trips to visit family. Even if we choose to disregard the latter, we still live with the constant anxiety of exposing vulnerable family members to the virus spreading rampantly on our campus. We now live with an overwhelming number of rules that, while meant to keep us safe, inhibit our ability to fulfill our needs as inherently social creatures. Exacerbating our stress arising from the pandemic and our extremely limited social interactions is the chaos emanating from all aspects of our world. The wildfires currently ravaging the West Coast, one of which has now burned more than 103,000 acres, becoming one of the largest fires in Los Angeles County history, in addition to the Creek fire which has burned 304,604 acres. The National Hurricane Center is, for the second

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time in history, starting to use Greek letters to label this year’s hurricanes because they exhausted their list of traditional names. Furthermore, this summer was characterized by protests as much as it was by the pandemic, with a much needed anti-racism movement finally gaining popularity by virtue of the leaders of Black Lives Matter and spurred by recent incidents of police brutality. Closer to home, the fall semester welcomed strikes by the Graduate Employees’ Organization and the residential advisors of University Housing regarding university reopening plans and policing on campus. Throughout all of this turmoil, we, as students, are still trying to deal with the typical stresses of college life: maintaining our GPA, involving ourselves in student organizations, applying for jobs and internships and planning for our future after graduation. The immense weight of all of this, coupled with the chaos of the external world, is indisputably harmful to our mental health. Prior to the pandemic, one in five college students reported experiencing one or more diagnosable mental disorders; during the pandemic, the rate of depression among college students was found to have increased. This isn’t shocking, as so much is yet to be known about the pandemic and the coronavirus itself, making this an inherently anxietyinducing situation. Additionally, students are left to worry whether the quality of the education that they are paying so much for will remain the same when received over Zoom. Even more, graduating students are anxious about whether they will be able to find a job upon graduation. Now more than ever, it’s crucial that we take care of our mental health. Mental health issues are associated with twice the likelihood of dropping out of school entirely, and with all of the chaos that currently characterizes our campuses, headlines and news feeds, college

students are bound to experience more mental struggles than they have in the past. Consequently, the coming months will see a surge of students seeking mental health services, potentially overwhelming the University’s Counseling and Psychological Services — which already faces the issue of understaffing, leading to long wait times for students in need. It’s important to note, however, that CAPS is still open to students during the COVID-19 pandemic, with both in-person and virtual options available. At the time of writing this column, the current wait time for the next available initial consultation is 15 business days. While this is a long time for those seeking mental health services, there are emergency resources available as well — and it’s still worth scheduling the initial consultation if it means that you will eventually end up receiving the help that you need. Outside of CAPS, the Wolverine Support Network, a student-led organization, offers virtual weekly groups meant to empower its members to support each other’s well-being. Still, though, the University must place more emphasis on recruiting counselors and specialists so that this wait time can be reduced. Until then, as we enter the colder months, which already tend to see increases in the number of people seeking mental health support, we must do what we can to take care of ourselves. Try to keep a consistent routine, talk about how you’re feeling with someone you trust and make a goal to do something for yourself each day, even if it’s something small. As always, be sure to check in with those that you care about — they’re probably going through something similar.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com Elayna Swift can be reached at elaynads@umich.edu.

Opinion

10 — Wednesday, October 7, 2020

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

DAVID LISBONNE | COLUMN

KEITH JOHNSTONE | COLUMN

The Supreme Court: locked and loaded by the Senate

n the wake of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s passing last week, the national discussion has pivoted from the pandemic to the Supreme Court, and the moves Senate Republicans and President Donald Trump are making to fill the vacancy on the high court. Democrats are absolutely correct in calling out Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., for reversing his position from 2016, and Republicans are absolutely correct arguing that filling the Court’s vacancy is the constitutional obligation of the president and the Senate. However, while these two positions occupy the vast majority of headlines, the most vital lesson to be learned is that of prudence, of restraint and of the harm of nearsightedness. Yet before launching into the present day, it is important to consult the annals of history. Article III of the Constitution establishes the judicial branch of the federal government to consist of “one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish.” Critically, the Constitution does not mandate a set number of justices to preside over the Court. The first Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, which established the federal judiciary and set forth specific rules for the Court. Notably, it declared that “the supreme court of the United States shall consist of a chief justice and five associate justices, any four of whom shall be a quorum.” Only after the Judiciary Act of 1869 did the Court adopt the current distribution of judges –– one chief justice and eight associate justices. While the Supreme Court is the least political branch of the government, both in theory and in practice, it certainly has not remained impervious to

influence. In the 1930s, amid the Great Depression and President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal, the Court faced a difficult position. After rulings against the constitutionality of various sections of F.D.R.’s New Deal, the President proposed the Judicial Procedures Reform Bill of 1937, more famously known as “the court-packing plan.” The bill ultimately did not succeed, thanks to thenSenate Judiciary Committee chairman Henry F. Ashurst, but it introduced the possibility that the executive might forgo prudence and enact sweeping changes to the most stable branch of government. No president since has attempted such a radical move, but recent moves by the Senate have dramatically destabilized, and subsequently politicized, the appointment process for judges and justices. In 2013, during former President Obama’s second term, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., enacted something many labeled “the nuclear option.” Under Reid, the Democratic Senate approved changes to the rules in which the Senate, as an institution, dealt with judicial nominations. These changes prohibited the filibuster from being deployed as a means to delay confirmations, as well as reducing the number of votes needed to confirm a judicial nomination from a supermajority to simple majority –– from 60 votes, down to 51. However, this rule change did not affect Supreme Court nominations, only cabinet posts and federal judgeships. That alteration to the rules came in 2017, after Republicans had successfully halted Judge Merrick Garland’s nomination, taken back the White House and a Senate majority. Current Senate Majority Leader McConnell deployed the

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nuclear option to remove the supermajority requirement for Supreme Court nominations, successfully appointing Justice Neil Gorsuch to the bench. By virtue of timing, Justice Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed under the same rules, and now we arrive at the predicament today. Nearsightedness and the temptation to tip the scales in favor of current partisan objectives has run rampant through the Senate in the last decade. The nuclear option, so-called for its previously unthinkable ramifications, has been enacted twice in the last seven years, resulting in countless judgeship confirmations as well as two Supreme Court confirmations. Such destabilizing actions would’ve been inconceivable a half-century ago. Yet now, we may be on the verge of again neglecting history’s valuable lesson. Both the president and the Senate are fulfilling their constitutional duties in nominating Judge Amy Coney Barret –– on this point, there is no debate, “Biden rule” or otherwise. However, consider the present situation had Democrats not unleashed the nuclear option in 2013, and Republicans not extended it in 2017. Judge Barret would be nominated, yet since the Republicans do not have a super-majority –– and very few, if any, Democratic senators would be in favor –– Barret would not be confirmed. Problem solved for the left. Ultimately, this results in a painfully obvious conclusion: Rash changes to the fundamental operating procedures of the Senate, in pursuit of short-term partisan goals, greatly endanger the stability of our institutions. To assume Democrats expected they’d be the only party to reap the benefits of their rule changes is hysterically foolish.

However, to expect the same naivety from Republicans, this time regarding Supreme Court nominations, is similarly absurd. I am confident, however, that the Senate will right the ship. I believe the Senate rules will be changed back in the interest of stability, though under which party’s leadership I don’t know. There remains, however, the possibility of a future rife with instability beyond the Senate, which would be guaranteed if the Democrats, upon sweeping in November, look to F.D.R. for inspiration. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said recently that “nothing is off the table” if the GOP fills Justice Ginsburg’s seat. The allusion to court packing is clear as day, though its ramifications have apparently gone out the window. Understand, the tumult resulting from the nuclear option’s evocations resides solely in the process for nominating and confirming judges and justices. It would be appallingly naive to fundamentally alter the constitution of the Supreme Court to directly benefit shortterm political ambitions. The Supreme Court should embody stability. Set apart from the political tidings of the legislative branch and the campaigning of the executive branch, the judicial branch ensures the rights of the citizenry persist. Inscribed in the stone facade of our own University’s law school is the phrase, “The Supreme Court: Preserver of the Constitution; Guardian of our Liberties; Greatest of all Tribunals.” For our current leaders to presume such superior motives as to justify the modification of the judiciary’s fundamental rules is as David Lisbonne can be reached at lisbonne@umich.edu.

Release Date: Wednesday, October 7, 2020

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis ACROSS 1 Something to pay 5 “Nothing’s broken” 9 Lawn game 14 Fir fellers 15 Cool off in a shallow stream, say 16 Weasley family owl 17 Substantial return 20 Popeye’s nemesis 21 Zagreb native 22 Salon creations 23 NCR product 24 “You betcha” 26 Mohel’s rite 28 Color named for a dancer 34 Dodger who befriended Jackie Robinson 35 Peter of “The Maltese Falcon” 36 Word of regret 39 Sudden burst 42 9/11 Commission chair Tom 43 Star transports 45 Emulated Van Winkle, after 20 years 47 Bleeping 51 Toni Morrison novel 52 Reluctantly absorb, as a loss 53 Little bite 56 Admiral’s rear 59 Toon duck triplet 61 “Fame” singer Cara 63 Making a killing in Vegas ... or what happens in 17-, 28- and 47-Across 66 Do the Thanksgiving honors 67 Start to scope 68 __ fixe 69 Pulled a fast one on 70 Beef bourguignonne, for one 71 Old geopolitical states: Abbr.

DOWN 1 Flintstone word 2 Hold in awe 3 Anesthetize 4 Air Force NCO 5 __ Jima 6 Italian noblewoman 7 Dump feature 8 Jedi Master Obi-Wan __ 9 Brutish 10 Uranus, for one 11 Scummy deposit 12 Gabrielle Chanel, 9familiarly Fabled slowpoke 13 Fraternal order 18 British detective played by Michael Kitchen 19 Deserve 25 Lager alternatives 27 Like many 23addresses Pasta preference 26Incendiary Warming periods 29 acts 27 Source pliable 30 Race for of four, commonly 31 Dander 30Gun Relatively risqué 32 lobby org. 33 “Jeopardy!” whiz Jennings 35Priest’s Big tin exporter 36 white garment

37 Unlike Abner, really 38 Geriatrician’s gp. 40 Bug on the road? 41 Dancing girl in “Return of the Jedi” 44 Moved stealthily 46 Journalist Couric 48 Wells’ sci-fi race 49 Bully’s array 50 Works with dough

54 Word with tube or circle 55 Some toys, briefly 56 It’s sung to the same tune as “Twinkle, twinkle” 57 Lady of the Haus 58 Md. athlete 60 “__ a Kick Out of You”: Porter song 62 Slugger’s stats 64 Latin greeting 65 Fell, as firs

ANSWER ANSWER TO TO PREVIOUS PREVIOUS PUZZLE: PUZZLE:

10/07/20 09/30/20

WHISPER “I’ve made my peace with college, it is what it is.”

“I’m in love with Lucás.”

10/07/20

The Notorious ABC: Unqualified, undemocratic and full of grievance

his is not about religion. This is about oppression. On Oct. 11, 2019, the crowd gave a standing ovation for their famous — some might say infamous — guest from Washington, D.C. The mostly Catholic law students of Notre Dame sat back down as Attorney General Bill Barr began by thanking his hosts. However, his actual speech was anything but gracious. For the next half hour, Barr — sounding more like a Fox News host caught in the breakroom on a hot mic than the leader of the Department of Justice — painted a fundamentally inaccurate and detached portrait of this country. The attorney general raved about the “steady erosion of our traditional Judeo-Christian moral system,” which he claimed was under siege by militant secularists on a “campaign to destroy the traditional moral order.” He cited examples of our “moral upheaval” ranging from the rise of illegitimate births to record levels of mental illness to the opioid epidemic. Now it’s easy to dismiss these comments as the views of one singular right-wing nut, but dismissing Barr’s beliefs out-of-hand allows speeches such as that one to go ignored, all while the Republican Party has undergone a seismic shift that now imperils the country. Before we go any further, let me make this crystal clear. As a practicing Catholic myself, I have no issues with religion or the Church. I have an issue with the false grievance politics present in modern conservatism, which are poised to drive the installation of an unqualified religious zealot on the Supreme Court, despite there being plenty of more qualified and equally, if not more, conservative judges on appeals courts across the country. This is not about religion or conservative ideals, this is about the Republican Party’s strategy of characterizing white Christians as oppressed and preying on the group’s fear of being replaced in order to win elections, erode our democratic institutions and retain power, despite representing a slowly shrinking minority of the population. Amy Coney Barrett was born in 1972 in New Orleans, La. The eldest daughter of a lawyer for the Shell Oil Corporation, Barrett grew up comfortably before obtaining a B.A. from Rhodes College and a J.D. from Notre Dame Law School. From there, she went to clerk for a circuit court judge from 1997 to 1998 and “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” opponent Antonin Scalia from 1998 to 1999. Then, following a brief stint in private practice, Barrett settled in law school in 2002, developing a breadth of controversial scholarship. After Barrett, a lifelong member of the conservative Federalist Society, was nominated by Donald Trump to sit on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, this scholarship formed the basis of several legitimate claims opposing her nomination. These claims were specifically amplified through a contentious exchange with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., which instantly made Barrett a conservative media sensation. When questioned about one of her own law review articles, which argued that Catholic judges should recuse themselves in cases regarding the death penalty, Barrett claimed that her views had evolved. The two sparred for a couple more minutes as Feinstein probed further into Barrett’s religious beliefs, and the exchange ended with Feinstein saying, “the dogma lives loudly within you, and that’s of concern.” The statement — a de facto insinuation that one cannot be both a Catholic and an impartial judge — incensed right-wing media, going viral on Twitter

and being plastered across Fox News and other conservative outlets. However, this outrage was completely manufactured and, at its core, untruthful. Feinstein, who, herself, went to Catholic school, has voted to confirm hundreds of Catholic judges to the courts and had never shown an anti-Catholic bias in her five terms before then. Similarly, Catholic Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., questioned Barrett during her confirmation about her self-identification as an “orthodox Catholic,” identifying as Catholic himself. However, those comments received next to no coverage by conservative outlets. Why? Well, simply put, that question from a fellow Catholic does not fit with the narrative that those networks and the party they support would like to portray. Fox and other conservative media outlets wanted to portray the hearing as the powerful, scary, elderly Jewish senator attacking the young Catholic judge because of religious hatred, despite this narrative clashing violently with reality. However, the conservative audience, which loves to see themselves as victims, did not examine the coverage closely, instead succumbing to confirmation bias and rallying around Barrett. This popularity made Barrett the apple of Trump’s eye, and, on Sept. 26, Scalia’s golden child — despite having next to no experience in the judiciary and next to no belief in voting rights — was announced to replace the notorious RBG. Normally, in the profile of a political figure, this is when I would talk about Barrett’s draconian judicial philosophy — which we should all examine more closely — or maybe poke fun of her Karen-esque persona, but that’s not really the point. The point of this article is much larger than just Barrett. It is about the system that put her in a position of power. It is not the Federalist Society or her clerkship with Scalia. It is not her short stint in the federal judiciary or her conservative credentials as a judge. It is about the false grievances of the few white Christians who feel threatened by the societal advancements made by minorities and other “untraditional” groups. Sadly, these increasingly disconnected people have corrupted the ranks of the Trump administration from top to bottom. The current vice president is a far-right conservative who supports conversion therapy and opposes “Mulan.” The secretary of state is a climate change denier who believes that Trump was sent by God to save the Jews from “the Iranian menace.” Even the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director — a scientist — doubts the efficacy of condoms in slowing the spread of AIDS. These radicals have led executive agencies to embrace conspiracy theories, reject science and wage a protracted war against the progress marginalized groups have made in this country over the last 50 years in order to benefit the racist, nativist and white supremacist portion of their base. Next time Trump emboldens the Proud Boys, remember the people surrounding him. This administration is the result of a decades-long concerted effort by conservatives to transform the federal judiciary and degrade our democratic institutions through constant attacks on voting rights. The crowning achievement of this movement will be in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Oct. 12, and likely on the Supreme Court by Nov. 3. Though she did not earn this seat, much like her counterpart Justice Brett Kavanaugh, conservatives think she’s entitled to it. Now, we all must ask ourselves what she would be willing to do to keep it.

The point of this article is much larger than just Barrett. It is about the system that put her in a position of power.

Keith Johnstone can be reached at keithja@umich.edu.

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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Wednesday, October 7, 2020 — 11

THE B-SIDE: ICONS

Icons: A love letter to River Phoenix Twitter stans and superfans MARY ELIZABETH JOHNSON For The Daily

compared to the likes of Jane Fonda (“Klute,” “Grace and Frankie”) or Marlon Brando (“Streetcar Named Desire,” “The Godfather”). He spoke openly and passionately about animal rights and environmentalism in a time before there was a vegan option on every menu. Maybe he knew that PETA booked him because of his name as the precocious 17-year-old nominated for an Oscar, but he swallowed his pride because it was what he believed in. Humility isn’t always included in definitions of masculinity. River could have performed the hypermasculinity of contemporary stars like Arnold Schwarzenneger, Sylvester Stallone, Patrick Swayze or Tom Cruise, but he didn’t. This isn’t to say that he wasn’t masculine; he could play a young Harrison Ford in “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” with all the heroism we knew from the action star, but with this added fragility that’s difficult to achieve in a short, tenminute cameo. River brought an intense, overwhelming amount

of vulnerability that would underscore, rather than negate, his strength in each and every one of his roles. He made male tenderness iconic. “Stand by Me,” based on the Stephen King novella “The Body,” is meant to be an ensemble film, but River’s performance as a tough but well-meaning kid from a dysfunctional family lit him up on everyone’s radar. The story started the “You wanna see a dead body?” trope as a group of middle school boys search for a local boy’s corpse in 1959. River may not be what most people remember most about the movie; it’s more recognizable as a clear influence of friendship-centered adventures like “The Sandlot” or “Stranger Things,” and as a parallel to other adjacent films like “The Goonies” or (of course, because of its source material) “IT.” Director Rob Reiner (“When Harry Met Sally”) captures the playfulness and devastation of childhood through the image of some boys walking down railroad tracks together with the dramatic irony of their knowledge that it was a

train that killed the boy they’re looking for. At its core, “Stand by Me” is about love. And while the other cast members did an amazing job, there’s just nothing that you can compare to River’s delivery of the line: “I just wish I could go someplace where nobody knows me.” He admitted to using fake tears in the scene (he was only 15 years old and it was his first major role in a feature film), but you believe it when he says it. Maybe it’s that boyishness that had everyone magnetized to the screen. He was a kid in 1986 pretending he was in 1959, and you wonder if he was thinking of himself as his father, if this spoke to that feeling when you first see your father cry, when death stares you in the face, when, for the first time, you really, truly understand empathy. I can’t help but wonder if “Stand by Me” was River’s way of reckoning with his childhood in the same way it is for everyone who watches the film.

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THE B-SIDE: ICONS

Icons: It’s Dolly Parton’s world CLARA SCOTT Daily Arts Writer

If you asked any American to draw a picture of Dolly Parton, they’d probably scribble the same thing down. Big lipsticked smile, big blonde hair, big gaudy heels and, of course, her iconic big boobs. She is the image of camp in a way that only someone with her sass, confidence and incredible charisma could pull off, much less trademark in the way she has. She may have made her mark on the music industry with a song called “Dumb Blonde,” but Parton is nowhere near it. She knows what she’s doing at every moment — building her legacy step by step with a vigor which mirrors that of competitive cheerleaders and pageant Pomeranians. In Dolly’s words, “It takes a lot of money to look this cheap.” Her sparkling individuality (and rhinestones) may have set Parton out at the beginning of her

career, but it is what has kept her on the map as times have changed. The enduring image that Parton has created over her long career has permeated every era, surprisingly even this one, as her star rises with those who grew up listening to her and those who follow her on Twitter alike. For someone so brash and unapologetic, it is impressive that Parton has maintained this universal appeal throughout the years, especially given the polarizing nature of celebrity today. She’s a classic American icon with an even more American story: from the one-room cabin she was born in to a multimillion-dollar empire including theme parks and cookware, she’s the poster child for working your way up, no matter the obstacles. Everyone loves Dolly, and if her track record means anything, they will continue to love her forever. On the heels of her recent holiday release, A Holly Dolly

Christmas, Parton has been on a lot of minds lately. It’s the first Christmas album she’s recorded in 30 years and reminds us of the overwhelming warmth that her clear, beautiful voice brings to listeners. The songwriter began her career as country musician Porter Wagoner’s “girl singer” on his variety show, developing a working relationship that lasted decades, but soon found her own path and eventually split to build her career as a solo artist. In fact, Parton wrote “I Will Always Love You” after leaving Wagoner’s side, reportedly during the same session that “Jolene” was also thought up. Parton shows up like this constantly in the history of country and pop music, permeating the industry with her charm and sass, no matter the occasion. She has hundreds of compositions that bring in millions of dollars a year, a theme park called Dollywood in the Smoky Mountains for family fun and classic Southern hospitality,

TAURUS

Unexpected news from your partner puts your relationship in the spotlight, but there should be cause for joy mixed with the shock. A tumultuous week is in the cards, Taurus, but there are memories to made here too.

YOUR WEEKLY

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GEMENI

LEO Tensions between your work and home life decrease, finally, thanks to a boost in your income which makes it easier to balance your competing priorities. Look ahead with confidence, Leo – it just might be possible to have it all, after all.

News travels fast, Pisces, but double check your facts before you spread gossip which may or may not be true. There’s an air of excitement as you wait for an announcement – and it should hopefully be good news. Changing circumstances benefit you hugely.

Chaos at work subsides into something more doable and normal, but there’s still a lot of hard work to be done. Fortunately, Aquarius, your loved ones are very understanding and will back your need to spend more time on your career. Don’t lose your focus.

CAPRICORN

“Even cowgirls get the blues, but I’d be happy with you.”

CANCER Events in your social circle take a surprising turn and you may find yourself wondering if you really know someone at all, Cancer, given their odd behavior. Give everyone the benefit of the doubt. There’s method in their madness.

michigandaily.com

AQUARIUS

“I’m in love with my best friend.”

Expect strange coincidences or fleeting corner-of-the-eye glimpses of otherworldly beings. Your spiritual growth is moving quickly, Gemini, and help on this topic from a sympathetic and encouraging family member is very welcome.

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PICES

ARIES Financial ups and downs cause headaches this week, Aries, but it’s within your control to get your money better organized. Working on your time management may free up time to indulge in a lucrative side hustle, which will help.

a spa, a deal for personalized greeting cards with American Greetings and, soon, a cookware and home decor line with Williams Sonoma. The woman does everything, and her personality has eclipsed her music in some ways, despite its legacy and importance in the development of American country. Her singing voice may have established Parton in the public eye, but now her speaking voice is what keeps her there. Dolly Parton is a person, sure, but she is also an image, a feeling and a brand. These business ventures and Parton’s hold on the public sphere have spurred somewhat of a Dolly renaissance in the past few years, even as the singer hit 74. For an older woman to keep that kind of relevance in the increasingly sexist and ageist world of celebrity is quite a feat, and her popularity doesn’t seem to be waning anytime soon.

Fun is very much a team effort this week, so say yes to invitations and don’t be afraid to join in. If a travel opportunity presents itself, Capricorn, you’ll be busy weighing up the pros and cons – but don’t take so long that you miss out on an incredible chance.

SAGITTARIUS

“Whoever’s reading this: you’re doing amazing & I love you.”

VIRGO You’re changing your mind so often this week that you’re struggling to keep up with yourself. This intellectual instability is a good thing though, Virgo, in as much as it shows that you are keeping an open mind. Don’t be afraid to revisit old opinions.

LIBRA Someone forgives you out of the blue – but do you forgive yourself? The energies this week encourage you to look ahead and to stop fretting about the past, Libra. You may have made a mistake, but so do we all. Be kinder to yourself.

A happy accident or fortunate coincidence works in your favor, Sagittarius, but you’re reminded that you could create more of your own luck if you were better organized. Work on clearing your clutter so that you can spend more time manifesting your dreams.

SCORPIO Romantic surprises and passionate encounters – what’s not to love about this energy? It’s set to be a very loving week, Scorpio, whether you’re in an existing relationship or looking for new love. If you’re single, a friendship may turn into something much more.

Read your weekly horoscopes from astrology.tv

DYLAN YONO Daily Arts Writer

Growing up, one of my favorite songs of all time was Eminem’s hip-hop classic “Stan,” which tells a twisted tale from the perspective of a genuine superfan (or perhaps “stalker-fan”). Stan as depicted in the song is not the kind of fan anyone would want to identify with — he doesn’t get a happy ending. It came as a surprise to me when I started high school and saw the word “stan” had entered the lexicon of celebrity fandoms. Stanning is a level of devotion to an artist beyond that of your everyday fan. It’s not quite the devotion of the term’s namesake; most stans firmly disapprove of stalker-like behavior. So what does it mean to be a stan? “It’s kind of unhealthy to be honest,” Engineering sophomore Sophia Do said between laughs. “It’s a bit of an obsession.” To stan means to love and support an artist in everything they do. It can take the form of supporting their music doing well on the charts, or feeling happy when they see their favorite artist do anything, down to the most innocuous activities. Stan communities exist for virtually every popular artist, and they even have their own demonyms. Justin Bieber stans are Beliebers, Taylor Swift stans are Swifties, Harry Styles stans are Stylers and BTS stans are ARMYs, just to name a few. Do, a K-pop fan, stans artists like BTS, Red Velvet and BLACKPINK. K-pop fans in particular have a reputation among other fandoms; they’re widely perceived as some of the most devoted stans. According to Do, it’s a consequence of the Korean idol industry tightly controlling their artists’ images. “Idols have a persona they put on,” she explained. “It’s not actually them. Which makes people more curious.” The limited genuine interaction that K-pop idols can have with their fans gives them an air of mystery, and it bolsters their stans’ enthusiasm. Where K-pop stans revel in every glimpse of their idols, if you’re a Justin Bieber stan, he might just Cash App you. “The Biebs follows me on Twitter,” Engineering senior Isha Mishra said. “That was exciting. I remember I cried when it happened.” To promote the release of his latest single, “Holy,” Bieber partnered with Cash App to give away 250 thousand dollars. Mishra tweeted her Cash App, and Bieber sent her 500 dollars. “I was over the moon. I was crying, crying, crying.” Mishra is a part of Stan Twitter, a subgenre of Twitter in which stans connect to talk about their favorite celebrities. They’ll share their favorite celebrity’s pictures, talk about their music and stay up to date with what their icons are doing, often on a day-to-day basis. It’s a boiling pot of tweets ranging from fiery hot takes and firm opinions to impassioned celebrity adoration. Much of the dialog is between people who don’t know each other in real life, but connect online over their common stanhood. It contrasts with “local Twitter,” stanglish (stan slang) for “normie Twitter” where users follow their real-life acquaintances (locals). For Mishra, Stan Twitter is a home, a place to escape to. “It gives me a sense of community,” she said. “I tell them my everyday life, any time I have a problem or something, they’re one of the first people I’ll go to.” Even if she only gets to see her friends from Stan Twitter at concerts, their friendship is genuine. “I love them so much. We send each other things for our birthdays. We talk all the time. I just consider them my friends, not just like, ‘oh, I met them on the internet.’” Harry Styles stan and Nursing freshman Delanie Schreiber echoed Mishra’s fondness for Stan Twitter. “It’s nice to be in a community of people who feel the same way that you do and are excited about the same thing,” Schreiber said. Like Mishra, Schreiber has also made long-time friends on Stan Twitter only to

meet them years later at concerts. Making friends and finding a community is as big a part of stan culture as the idols themselves. For many, friendship with other stans naturally goes deeper than a shared interest. “Harry Styles isn’t just music, you stan for Black Lives Matter, you support gay rights, because so does Harry Styles,” Schreiber explained. “If somebody supports an artist that supports those, you know that you have the same views and interests on things.” Even though most of these artists are hugely popular, for a long time, being a stan was sort of like a niche hobby. Stan communities on Twitter or other social media help bring like-minded people together, but finding that space in real life can be tricky. Do always felt some judgment from her peers for listening to K-pop. But today, K-pop is at the forefront of mainstream — BTS’s “Dynamite” is sitting comfortably at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. When she first came to the University her freshman year, Do joined a K-pop dance group on campus with her roommate. She didn’t end up sticking with it, but her roommate did and made lots of friends through it. There are numerous K-pop dance groups on campus, and though not every person in a dance group is necessarily a devout stan, it’s still a great way to find people who appreciate the same artists. For stans of Western artists, finding other stans doesn’t even need a dedicated space for it: Stans are everywhere. Even in her first month on a mostly virtual campus, Schreiber has already met other Harry Styles fans. “I’ll meet people that I won’t know that they’re a Harry styles fan, and then they’ll mention a little thing,” she said. “And I’m like, ‘Oh? Are you a Harry Styles fan?’ and we just click.” Recently she connected with another Nursing major who recognized her Harry Styles t-shirt. Amid all the usual freshman year small talk — the tiresome monotony of who-areyou, where-are-you-from, what’syour-major — finding someone with a shared interest was a breath of fresh air for Schreiber. “You’re immediately in a different conversation, it’s not awkward, you have something to talk about,” she said. Stan culture and the stan community is a place of comfort for many. Still, like any large community, it’s not without its problems. LSA freshman Pranav Balachander stans artists like Dua Lipa and Taylor Swift, but he’s hesitant to call himself a stan. “I don’t necessarily engage in the typical stan culture behavior that you see on Twitter, but I am a stan of these artists,” he explained. Though they find solidarity in their respective stan communities, all of my interviewees acknowledged the capacity of stan culture to be toxic, both for the stans and the celebrities they follow. Balachander has seen that toxicity play out on Twitter in many forms. One of the biggest provocateurs of conflict and competition among stans is actually the Billboard Hot 100. “Stan culture almost unilaterally focuses on charts without looking at the bigger picture,” Balachander said. Charts like the Hot 100 or Billboard 200 rank singles and albums by somewhat objective measures of record sales and streaming numbers. When artists don’t do well on these charts, “they’re automatically branded as flops,” he said. (When they do rank highly, they’re “smashes.”) For stans, it’s natural to want to see your artist do well. “The whole fanbase kind of rejoices at their success,” Do said. “And then you feel like it’s a big community and connected to all these people.” But by the nature of the charts, for one artist to be at the top means displacing another. And if an artist doesn’t chart, or their rankings slip, then competing stans are quick to call them a flop.

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12 — Wednesday, October 7, 2020

THE B-SIDE: ICONS

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

THE B-SIDE: ICONS

Taylor Swift runs music Bob Dylan: Queer icon? ANDREW WARRICK

SABRIYA IMAMI

Daily Arts Writer

I was seven years old when “You Belong With Me” came out, and it still gives me an indescribable rush of sheer happiness. It’s the song I play in the car with the windows down, letting everyone else on the road share my joy. It’s the song that I dance around to in my pajamas, feeling like I’m at a concert. Every time I hear it, I have to stop what I’m doing to give it the devotion it deserves. That’s how I feel with every Taylor Swift song. That’s how so many people feel with every Taylor Swift song. Barbara Walters once said “Taylor Swift is the music industry.” She said this in 2014, after Taylor’s recordbreaking album 1989 was released. Six years later, Taylor Swift is still the music industry. She’s released eight albums since the beginning of her career, and they’ve nearly all broken records. From her self-titled debut album to her most recent, surprise release folklore, she has never let the world down. It’s a shame, though, because the world has let her down on more than one occasion. From accusing her of writing only about her ex-boyfriends to the #TaylorSwiftIsOverParty to losing her master license over her recordings to having beauty standards forced on her that led to an eating disorder, the world has let her down because the world wants to hate Taylor Swift. What makes her amazing, though, what makes her a true icon, is that she rises above it all. She forgives, but never forgets. She proves the world wrong. When the world said that she relies on the talent of others to write her own songs, she released self-written Speak Now (my absolute favorite album of all time). When the world said she was “just” a country artist, she released 1989, for which she became the

REPUBLIC

first female artist to win the Grammy’s Album of the Year award twice. When the world turned on her and called her a snake, she embraced it and released reputation. When the world said that she could only ever be a cookie-cutter pop star, she released the indie folk album folklore, which has led her to surpass Whitney Houston’s record for most weeks at number one on the Billboard 200 charts. Taylor Swift sits among the most revered stars. She refuses to let herself be torn down by haters or the media. As she herself said during the 1989 World Tour before her performance of her song “Clean,” “you are not the opinion of somebody who doesn’t know you or care about you.” And she’s not. The number of haters Taylor Swift has is the same number of people who refuse to give her a chance. They see a talented, young female star and refuse to give her any of the credit she is due. The people that do love her — her fans, her Swifties — have never just sat by and let the world tear her down. And in return, she loves them. Taylor Swift invites her fans to her house and plays them songs before an album’s release. She bakes them cookies, sends them Christmas gifts, shares inside jokes on Tumblr. How many artists do that? How many artists let their fans into their homes, into their hearts, the way she does? At the core of her being, Taylor Swift is an artist. Her songs, her words are, for lack

of a better word, iconic. So many people have proposed to their significant others while “Love Story” was playing. So many people’s 2014 and 2015 Instagram bios read “darling I’m a nightmare dressed like a daydream.” Everyone knows that when you turn 22, it’s your “Taylor Swift Birthday.” So many people declared 2020 saved when folklore came out. She has proven time and time again that she doesn’t need the f lashy concerts, gorgeous music videos or vast number of awards to be successful. She needs her voice, her songs and her fans. Taylor Swift appeared at the (socially distant) 2020 Academy of Country Music Awards to perform the song “betty.” That award show had more viewers than the 2020 VMAs despite the fact that country music isn’t a widelylistened-to genre. The other performers played a part for sure, but it hardly seems a coincidence that the first time she showed up at the ACMs in seven years was the time that millions of people tuned in. She sat on a stage with her guitar, accompanied by a harmonica player in the background, and just sang. There was no audience, no light-up bracelets, no showmanship. It was just her, happily returning to her country roots. And she still managed to capture everyone’s attention. That’s the power of Taylor Swift. Daily Arts Writer Sabriya Imami can be reached at simami@umich.edu.

“Wearing high heel boots, a tailored pea-jacket without lapels, pegged dungarees of a kind of buffed azure, large sunglasses with squared edges, his dark, curly hair standing straight up on top and spilling over the upturned collar of his soiled white shirt,” an icon stepped off an airplane. It was November 1964, just outside Columbus. On the tarmac, “Businessmen nodded and smirked, the ground crew looked a little incredulous, and a mother put a hand on her child’s head and made him turn away.” Bob Dylan had arrived. *** If you asked the average person in 2020 about Bob Dylan, they would probably note his unconventional voice, his 2016 Nobel Prize for Literature or ’60s hits such as “Like a Rolling Stone” and “The Times They Are A-Changin.’” What they probably wouldn’t acknowledge is his relation to queerness. While not queer himself, two of Dylan’s most profound literary infleunces, poets Allen Ginsberg and Arthur Rimbaud, were uncompromisingly so. Their poetry reflected that. Since these two writers were vital to Dylan’s creative process, his most powerful albums are intimately related to the idea of queerness. While rarely, if ever, considered, a queer framework is vital to understanding Bob Dylan’s music and place as an American icon. Wild Electric Visions “Old lady judges watch people in pairs, limited in sex, they dare, to push fake morals, insult and stare . . . And if my thought dreams could be seen, they’d probably put my head in a guillotine” —“It’s Alright Ma (I’m Only Bleeding),” 1965 After stepping off the airplane, Bob Dylan was chauffeured to Kenyon College for a concert. When he learned that students were required to wear uniforms during the show, Dylan exclaimed “Ties? Well, I’m gonna tell them they can take them off. That’s what I’m gonna do. Rules — man, that’s why I never lasted long in college.

Too many rules.” Dylan himself was about to break a whole lotta rules. He would soon pivot from his acoustic folk style, pick up an electric guitar and embark on a run of iconic albums now known as his Electric Trilogy: Bringing it All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde. On top of this sonic reinvention, Dylan’s lyrical voice sharpened to a surrealistic, satirical switchblade, and slashed artistic and social conventions to tatters with every song. Key to this shift were two queer poets. “Allen Ginsberg is the only writer I know,” Dylan said in ’66. “He’s just holy.” Ginsberg was a Beatnik notorious for his surrealistic poetry and blatant homosexuality, both of which challenged the norms of post-World War II American life. In the ’56 poem “America,” he asserts, “I won’t say the Lord’s prayer / I have mystical visions and cosmic vibrations” and asks the nation “When will you take off your clothes?” Ginsberg stood alone, championed being different and challenged the United States of America to do the same. Predictably, he was dragged into court. After the ’56 publication of his masterpiece “Howl,” Ginsberg was “canceled” nationwide: Many bookstores banned his poetry and he was even put through an obscenity trial. Though the judge ruled in his favor, Ginserg was no national hero, and still relatively risqué, at the time of Bob Dylan’s Electric Trilogy in the mid-’60s. Yet Dylan called him holy. He also brought Ginsberg on tour and put him in one of the first music videos of all time, “Subterranean Homesick Blues.” More importantly, though, Dylan emulated Ginsberg in his songwriting. Allen Ginsberg’s wild, satirical style is all over the Electric Trilogy. One of the most potent examples is “Ballad of a Thin Man,” which, like “Howl,” blasts holes into midcentury America’s traditional facade. In the song’s chorus, Dylan mockingly tells a character named Mister Jones, and by proxy masculine, upper-class white America, including those

businessmen who laughed at him on that tarmac in ’64, “Something is happening here, but ya’ don’t know what it is, do you, Mister Jones?” While scholarship has dissected the rebellion of “Thin Man,” the song’s relation to queerness is almost never mentioned or, if it is, isn’t taken very seriously. Yet a queer reading adds radical, perhaps even vital, shades to the song. “You walk into the room,” it begins. “With your pencil in your hand, you see somebody naked, And you, you say, ‘Who is that man?’ You try so hard, but you don’t understand.” By the time Dylan tells Jones “the sword swallower, he comes up to you, and then he kneels, he crosses himself, and then he clicks his high heels,” it’s almost too obvious. When viewed with Ginsberg’s context, it’s easy to see how the song challenged ’60s heteronormativity years before the Summer of Love, Stonewall and glam rock. Dylan shoved queerness into mainstream America’s face and mocked its privileged, prejudiced ignorance. Another Electric Trilogy piece, “Maggie’s Farm,” similarly resisted American boundaries through a symbolic character, this time named Maggie. Her overbearing conservatism is similar to that of the mother who turned her boy away at the airport in ’64: “I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more … I try my best to be just like I am, but everybody wants you to be just like them … I just get bored.” Most critics view “Maggie’s Farm” as a general rebellion against American conventions, capitalism and authority. Yet a queer reading is relevatory; one oppressor at Maggie’s farm is Maggie’s mother, who “talks to all the servants about man and God and law.” Clearly paralleling Ginsberg’s refusal to say the Lord’s Prayer, this line will be familar to anyone who grew up queer in puritanical America. Subsequently, Dylan’s speaker escaping Maggie’s Farm becomes not just rebellion, but a necessary, touching escape.

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THE B-SIDE: ICONS

Icons: David Foster Wallace, beyond the windbreak JULIAN WRAY For The Daily

It was a year ago when I walked into the Dawn Treader Book Shop and squeezed past a few other patrons to reach the fiction section. On a low shelf in the Ws was a faded copy of Wallace’s debut novel “The Broom of the System.” I took the book to the counter and a man rang me up. I asked him if they had any of Wallace’s other books. “No, his stuff always sells fast.” I said that was too bad, as I had just read “Infinite Jest” and I was looking to read more of his work. It was an admittedly pretentious brag, and he was not impressed. He smiled at me and dismissed me with a thin cheerfulness. “Mm-hmm, well have a nice day.” And that was that. To those that do not like his style, Wallace was an overblown mess of a writer — arrogant and too frequently labeled a genius, despite his books being bloated and forcefully intelligent. I suspect that the man at the counter at Dawn Treader was in this camp. But I think Wallace was something else: a deeply troubled pop-hero who left his mark on the world through his art, his terror and his public presence. Before I say anything else, I want to present the first of Wallace’s words that I ever read, from the short story “Good Old Neon.” Keep them in mind: “My whole life I’ve been a fraud. I’m not exaggerating. Pretty much all I’ve ever done all the time is try to create a certain impression of me in other people.” *** As far as icons go, Wallace is one of the most quintessential. He wrote across multiple genres of literature, publishing fiction, nonfiction, speeches. His work is often unapproachable, his books so dense and overwritten that they

almost feel actively averse to being read, and that’s what makes them attractive. Like many of Wallace’s readers, I made the mistake of jumping into his magnum opus “Infinite Jest” too quickly. I went from that first 40-page short story to a 1079-page brick of a book with little regard for the health of my corneas. “Infinite Jest” is more a monstrosity than a book. The pages are large and imposing, their combined weight dragging your hands to the floor. Following the 981 pages of the main story is another 90 pages of “Notes and Errata.” The endnotes are vital to the reader’s experience, though they sometimes left my head spinning as I flipped back and forth, back and forth. The book is simply too chaotic and byzantine to summarize, but I will say this: the story mainly takes place in a tennis academy and a halfway house, and it deals with topics such as addiction, daddy issues, pervasive consumerism, a secret service of wheelchair-bound Quebecois assassins and a film so entertaining that its viewers watch it over and over again until they starve to death. It is as strange as it sounds, but Wallace embraces strangeness gracefully. In the mess of gaudy and sometimes grotesque language there is an undeniable humanity — Wallace touches on just about every emotion imaginable, every corner of human life from athletic stardom to copping cocaine to the loss of a loved one. And it isn’t his best work. Don’t get me wrong, a thousand pages of wonderfully complex fiction is a fantastic achievement, one that would put any other writer at the top of 20th Century Classics lists before they retired to a villa somewhere. But Wallace wrote better stories. “Good Old Neon” is a masterclass in experimental structure and pacing, and you can read it in about an hour instead of a month. His most refined work,

“The Pale King,” was published posthumously. Before we get into that book, I want to take a look at Wallace as a person. Don’t worry, we’ll come back to his writing, but I first want to look at an interview that Wallace did with Charlie Rose. At about three and a half minutes into the interview, Rose cuts the small-talk and asks Wallace, “Respect means a lot to you? Sort of the sense that ‘I’m taken seriously and respected for my work?’” Wallace straightens in his chair and bites his lip before responding, “You can read this in my face? … Show me somebody who doesn’t like to be respected.” Wallace then speaks to the public response to “Infinite Jest”, saying that he didn’t believe every reviewer finished the book before giving their verdict on it. At one point he interrupts his response to say, “... I’m sorry that I’m essentially stuttering, umm…” Rose reassures him, in a voice like that of a seasoned therapist, “No you’re not, you’re doing just fine.” Wallace is taking the lead reluctantly in this dance. He doesn’t make much eye contact. He occasionally grimaces at his own comments. His voice sounds almost dreamy as he speaks low and quickly, like his thoughts are already loaded and he’s just letting them out. But they are just thoughts; he doesn’t try to imbue them with any special authority. Perhaps unknowingly, Wallace is acting out his every-man-but-not-just-anyman persona. This is the person we can see in interviews, the man who flexes his talent yet at the same time seems to almost repress it. But this is not the person who woke up every day and made coffee and walked the dogs. For a glimpse of that man, I’d like to share a story from my high school English teacher, Hunter Dunn. Pasadena, 2005. Dunn sees a flyer for a workshop on teaching

writing. There are three names on the list of speakers, including David Foster Wallace. Why did such a famous author appear at a workshop in a high school classroom for 40 people? Dunn doesn’t know, but he suspects that it was a favor for a friend. The workshop is held in a classroom in a high school across the street from Pomona College, where Wallace taught creative writing. The two other speakers go first, presenting their prepared materials and giving readings of their own work. Wallace has nothing prepared. He says something like, “I would never read my own work to students like that.” At the end of the presentation, Dunn asks Wallace a question that he has since forgotten. But he still remembers Wallace’s response: “Okay, I’m going to answer your question, and then I want to know what you think.” The workshop ends; everyone files out of the building. As he walks out, Dunn spots Wallace walking across a courtyard, probably back to his office at Pomona. He calls out, “Hey! Dave!” Wallace turns around and sighs heavily, “Yes?” Dunn asks him about an essay he wrote on the tennis player Michael Joyce. Wallace looks at him intently and says “Interesting player, isn’t he?” The rest of the conversation has been lost in 15 years of memories, but Dunn recalls some key things about Wallace. He was an excellent listener, working out his thoughts before responding. But he was also curt, approaching every question as an argument, a game he wanted to win. He did not appear at all uncomfortable or self-conscious — he was a confident presence. Unlike in his interview with Charlie Rose, Wallace did not sound conflicted in-person. Perhaps when confronted with affirmation of the public belief in his brilliance, such

as during a high-profile interview, his normal identity clashed with that expected of a genius. That struggle is also present in his writing, but in a different way. Let’s return to “The Pale King.” The story takes place at the IRS Regional Examination Center in Peoria, Illinois, a setting as boring as one can imagine. In a cool 550 pages, Wallace breathes life into the banal and maddening world of tax return examination as if he were Tolkien constructing Middle Earth. It was in “The Pale King” that I first started to find some clues of the real Wallace. The ninth chapter is labeled as “Author’s Foreword.” Wallace writes, “Author here. Meaning the real author, the living human holding the pencil, not some abstract narrative persona.” He explains, “what follows is, in reality, not fiction at all, but substantially true and accurate. That The Pale King is, in point of fact, more like a memoir than any kind of made-up story.” Of course, Wallace never worked for the IRS and the events in the book are completely fictional. But that doesn’t mean he is lying when he says the story is true, in a manner of speaking. Wallace places himself in the story as a young IRS recruit who is mistaken for a high-level executive also named Dave Wallace. Scared to face the consequences of impersonating someone so well-respected, Dave Wallace (the character) goes along with the mistake and is swept into accordingly high-level meetings. Dave Wallace (the character) has no idea what is going on in these meetings. He sweats profusely and fumbles the few words he speaks. There is intense discussion of the tax code that the man he is impersonating should be intimately familiar with, but of course Dave Wallace (the character) knows nothing about the tax code. He stays silent so as not to reveal that

he is not who people think he is. He writes down notes constantly, filling pages so that he will be perceived as a quiet but diligent observer, a focused participant in this world in which he knows he does not belong. If ever an author had spoken so clearly to their reader. *** Wallace committed suicide in 2008. He left behind many books and essays, and in the continued publishing of his work he has become an icon. The dark sides of his life, drug addiction, his struggle with depression, have only added to his impression as a tortured genius. In his 2013 biography “Every Love Story Is a Ghost Story: A Life of David Foster Wallace,” D.T. Max briefly mentions our subject’s relationship with the poet Mary Karr. Karr volunteered in a halfway house in Boston, where Wallace was living due to addiction and a suicide attempt. There is one particularly alarming sentence: “One night Wallace tried to push Karr from a moving car.” Wallace’s relationship with Karr was mostly left in the dark, and it has fallen to Karr herself to speak out about it. He stalked her for years, even though she was married and had a child. He once showed up to a party with bandages on his arm, and revealed to Karr that he had tattooed her name on his skin. It is very easy to dismiss this kind of darkness as part of the complications that come with genius. After all, is it not uncomfortable to think about the heinous acts committed by someone we like? To extend my consideration of a person past the safety of the products of their brilliance requires more emotional work than does reveling in the refined, beautiful things they gave to the world. That is what it is to be an icon.

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Wednesday, October 7, 2020 — 13

A love letter to Mr. Phoenix MARY ELIZABETH JOHNSON For The Daily

The world has a thing for martyrs. People treat it like a rite of passage if you make it into the 27 Club with Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain. But River Phoenix never even got to see his 27th year. Phoenix died from a drug overdose on Halloween when he was only 23. His death was, and remains to be, so sensationalized that you can even watch the guys at Buzzfeed Unsolved try to contact his ghost. National news stations aired the 911 call that his brother Joaquin Phoenix (“Joker,” “Her”) made from the Viper Room, the club owned by Johnny Depp (“Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Edward Scissorhands”) where River had collapsed. Long before social media, River’s life and death were treated like a sideshow attraction between commercials. River was a reluctant icon. He hated his own celebrity (and the idea of celebrity at all), but he used it as a platform for his activism that could only be compared to the likes of Jane Fonda (“Klute,” “Grace and Frankie”) or Marlon Brando (“Streetcar Named Desire,” “The Godfather”). He spoke openly and passionately about animal rights and environmentalism in a time before there was a vegan option on every menu. Maybe he knew that PETA booked him because of his name as the precocious 17-yearold nominated for an Oscar, but he swallowed his pride because it was what he believed in. Humility isn’t always included

in definitions of masculinity. River could have performed the hypermasculinity of contemporary stars like Arnold Schwarzenneger, Sylvester Stallone, Patrick Swayze or Tom Cruise, but he didn’t. This isn’t to say that he wasn’t masculine; he could play a young Harrison Ford in “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” with all the heroism we knew from the action star, but with this added fragility that’s difficult to achieve in a short, ten-minute cameo. River brought an intense, overwhelming amount of vulnerability that would underscore, rather than negate, his strength in each and every one of his roles. He made male tenderness iconic. “Stand by Me,” based on the Stephen King novella “The Body,” is meant to be an ensemble film, but River’s performance as a tough but well-meaning kid from a dysfunctional family lit him up on everyone’s radar. The story started the “You wanna see a dead body?” trope as a group of middle school boys search for a local boy’s corpse in 1959. River may not be what most people remember most about the movie; it’s more recognizable as a clear influence of friendshipcentered adventures like “The Sandlot” or “Stranger Things,” and as a parallel to other adjacent films like “The Goonies” or (of course, because of its source material) “IT.” Director Rob Reiner (“When Harry Met Sally”) captures the playfulness and devastation of childhood through the image of some boys walking down railroad tracks together with the dramatic irony of their knowledge that it

was a train that killed the boy they’re looking for. At its core, “Stand by Me” is about love. And while the other cast members did an amazing job, there’s just nothing that you can compare to River’s delivery of the line: “I just wish I could go someplace where nobody knows me.” He admitted to using fake tears in the scene (he was only 15 years old and it was his first major role in a feature film), but you believe it when he says it. Maybe it’s that boyishness that had everyone magnetized to the screen. He was a kid in 1986 pretending he was in 1959, and you wonder if he was thinking of himself as his father, if this spoke to that feeling when you first see your father cry, when death stares you in the face, when, for the first time, you really, truly understand empathy. I can’t help but wonder if “Stand by Me” was River’s way of reckoning with his childhood in the same way it is for everyone who watches the film. River was born to hippies who joined the Children of God cult when he was three. The cult was known for its interpretation of God’s love through sex, and particularly shared sex partners; cult members were coerced to sleep with recruits in order to convert them. Many cases of childhood sexual abuse have been reported by ex-members. It’s reported by Vanity Fair and supported by “Stand by Me” co-star Corey Feldman (“The Goonies”) that River was a victim of child sexual abuse. Joaquin Phoenix has since insisted that River’s confession to

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Details magazine was a joke made “because he was so tired of being asked ridiculous questions by the press.” We can’t know if River was a victim of abuse. It is a fact, though, that as the firstborn son of a family of seven, he often took his early acting jobs in order to provide for his family. It is a fact that the Children of God was a cult that attracted sex offenders, and even if River didn’t experience it firsthand, it’s not unlikely that he may have witnessed some of it. When his family left the cult, they left their given surname of the Arlyns behind and renamed themselves after the phoenix. In interviews, both River and Joaquin have looked fondly on their family life, describing a late’60s openness and an early-’70s closeness that kept them together after whatever may have happened

while they were in the cult. That openness is most apparent in “My Own Private Idaho.” Based loosely on Shakespeare’s “Henry IV” and “Henry V,” River plays Mike, a narcoleptic male prostitute hopelessly in love with his best friend Scott (Keanu Reeves, “John Wick”). Directed by Gus Van Sant (“Good Will Hunting”), it quickly became a cult classic and was inducted into the New Queer Cinema movement of the 1990s. River completely holds his own acting toe-to-toe with arguably the biggest action star of the ’90s. It’s like seeing fireworks for the first time: the thump hitting deep in your chest, the colors lighting up an otherwise dark night, and then that strange feeling when the show ends and you’re left with silence. And that’s without the knowledge that River himself

wrote the iconic campfire scene where Mike confesses his love to Scott. Mike tries to talk about their friendship, asks what he means to Scott; Scott is confused, and maybe a bit put off. “I only have sex with a guy for money. And two guys can’t love each other,” Scott says. Mike stutters out a noncommittal response, eventually admitting, “I love you and you don’t pay me. I really wanna kiss you, man.” Scott doesn’t say anything. Mike curls in on himself, hugging his knees until Scott holds him and a wolf howls in the distance. It’s complete, utter, unguarded love. It frames the film in a completely different light than the original script.

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Thinking of female film directors as famous icons SAMANTHA CANTIE Daily Music Editor

From the screen of a dark movie theater, a white horse stared at me, and I stared right back. At the time, I was 20, “LA dreaming,” working in California for the summer while taking classes at night, watching “Fish Tank” (2009) by Andrea Arnold in UCLA’s Mendelson theater. I sat with my arms wrapped tightly around my legs, pulling them into my chest so that my chin was imprinted red from being stuck between my knees. All my weight rested in my dirty-white Reeboks — they left a mark of muck on the leather seat beneath me. A bit later, the white horse died. It got shot on the day Mia (the main character) turned 16. It was the same day her dreams of becoming a dancer died, because a promising audition turned out to be a seductive scheme. It was the same day her mom’s friendly boyfriend turned out to be sexually deceitful towards Mia, with her birth control tossed aside when she needed it most. “Fish Tank” came to a close with Mia, her mother and her sister in the living room, mirroring each other, as they danced to Nas’ “Life’s a bitch.” The blood vessel in my left eye popped — I forgot to blink. With my eye bloodied up, the lights turned bright and I felt my blood rush back into my feet, with red imprints on my chin and legs and cheeks from holding on too tightly. I sat squarely in the dirt my Reeboks left on the chair. I felt gritty and wrecked. I felt like Mia’s white horse was still there, with all her dreams and vulnerabilities staring at me. It felt

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like Arnold had changed the way my blood was flowing. When I turned to my left to face my best friend Kemo, whom I’d met at the beginning of summer, I knew he felt this bloodied, tender rush too: He was looking at me with the smallest of smirks, which fell quickly into a more serious, contemplative look.

The blood vessel in my left eye popped — I forgot to blink.

I wanted to dance, I wanted to call my mom and I really wanted to take the birth control pills I had missed for the past three days. *** Andrea Arnold — director of “Fish Tank” and “American Honey” (2019) — captures fleeting beauty and the essence of young women who are tightly stuck in the whirlpools of poverty they find themselves in, who bear the full brunt of babies and children and lost dreams and sexualization. She does this with delicacies: turtles let

free in the ocean, white horses, flies and wasps stuck to honey — I fell utterly in love with Arnold’s work that summer. She wove herself into the helix of my DNA. After watching “Fish Tank” in UCLA’s theatre alongside Kemo, we plowed through Arnold’s films “American Honey” and “Wasp” that same week. He and I would meet in the Common Room of our dorm to make those two bean bag chairs and that tiny TV our bitches. The vending machine always came first: I’d get two strawberry Nutri-Grain bars and he’d get fruit snacks. When other students would open the door to try and study, they’d usually see us throwing our favorite fruit snack flavors at each other, talking shit, with our eyes peeled on the screen. They would know they were intruding, and then they’d promptly leave. In that over-air-conditioned common room we talked about our dreams, mostly. Who we wanted to be, what we wanted to create and be a part of. And maybe that’s why my love of Arnold is so strong: she makes films about what it means for young girls to have dreams, and she scares you just enough about what those dreams are susceptible to. She’s an icon to me, but definitely not an icon to others, let alone known by others. And I find it extremely hard to distill my isolated idolization of Andrea Arnold down to a matter of “personal taste,” when not a single female is listed when you google “famous directors,” or when my friends can’t name a single female movie director.

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Balanchine: the forgotten parts of his complex legacy NYC BALLET

ZOE PHILLIPS Senior Arts Editor

The first time I understood George Balanchine was watching “The Nutcracker.” More precisely, it was while watching a recording of Act 2’s “Waltz of the Flowers” on YouTube, with New York City Ballet’s Ashley Bouder as the leading Dewdrop. The sixminute dance is the culmination of the Christmastime ballet’s divertissements and the music builds with undulating waves of grandeur. Tchaikovsky sure knew how to write a good crescendo, but Balanchine knew how to dance it. In the video, Bouder does not jump, bounce or even float. She flies. Her movements, explosive and luxurious, stretch past the edges of her limbs. Her dancing leaves sparkles in the air — the kind that feel so pleasing to the eye that one might start to believe they are literally seeing the music in front of them. I grew up away from Balanchine, raised in dance studios that emphasized classical European ballet technique. Everything was square, everything was measured, everything was perfect. This system has its benefits and its beauty, but this moment on YouTube taught me (much like Balanchine taught the world) that sometimes those rules are overrated. When ballet first came to life long ago in the French courts of Louis XIV, it was a tool for control; court members showed dominance over their body’s motion to assert power. Balanchine’s immigration to New

York City in 1933 reversed course on that centuries-long rule. Suddenly, hips didn’t need to be square and shoulders weren’t always straight. Fingers were splayed, knees could bend, and the need for restrained power came second to the need to match the music’s speed. The change was radical, but American concert dance loved it. Balanchine co-founded the New York City Ballet and its attached School of American Ballet with philanthropist Lincoln Kerstein. He choreographed 465 ballets in his lifetime and agitated the very existence of ballet in America. San Francisco Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Utah’s Ballet West, Miami City Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, Boston Ballet and Dance Theatre of Harlem were all created by artists touched by George Balanchine. By the time of his death in 1983, the world seemed to have already decided: He was a genius, and not in the hyperbolic sense of the word. This is all true. He is, by all accounts of the word, an icon. But there is inherent danger in words like these — in simple lables slapped onto complex people. Such categorizations encourage us to forget that Balanchine was a man, as flawed as the rest of us, living and working in the imperfect, nongenius structures and systems of the 20th century. “Ballet is woman,” he said — but what kind? His muses were young, often still teenagers. They were skinny with small breasts and no butts, and their success created the silhouette of a dancer’s body that still wreaks havoc on women today. Floating beneath the surface of Balanchine’s legacy are eating

disorders, body dysmorphia and an industry that makes casting decisions based on costume fittings rather than actual talent. Also beneath the surface rests ballets like “Le Chant du Rossignol,” an early Balanchine work that told the story of a sick Chinese emperor and relied heavily on destructive Orientalist tropes from its 1925 origins. When Ballet West revived the work in 2019, Final Bow for Yellowface co-founder Phil Chan spent the better part of his year facing off against historians who seemed to be too invested in respecting Balanchine’s genius to recognize the need to respect their Asian American peers. But perhaps the most notable, yet overlooked, factor complicating Balanchine’s legacy is Balanchine’s use of Black dance in his formation of American ballet, a point for which scholar Brenda Dixon Gottschild deserves immense credit. The opened chest, bent knees, increased speed and syncopated rhythms did not come from the singular mind of a European immigrant — they came from the street and social dances of Black Americans across the country. And yet, the master narrative of Balanchine’s memory often frames him as the inventor of such techniques. To this day, Black dance remains marginalized and belittled by the same white concert audiences that praise Balanchine’s innovation. In a 1996 book, Dixon Gottschild explains this under the title “Stripping the Emperor,” a phrase indicative of such erasure.

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Intimacy Denied: Reopening theaters during a pandemic T

he vigorous string melody halted, and the film came to an abrupt end. Dazed, my friend Haoyu and I sat silently in the darkness of State Theatre without moving an inch of our bodies. When we heard the sound of clapping from below us, we subconsciously clapped along too. A warm yellow light slowly re-illuminated the theater. While people started getting up and preparing to leave, Haoyu and I were still glued to our seats, reluctant to let go of the beauty we just collectively experienced. “That was Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, wasn’t it?” A blonde woman sitting to my right asked her partner. “I wonder which one.” “Summer,” I replied to her in a quiet and nasally voice, still wiping the tears from my cheeks and cleaning my glasses. We had just finished watching “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” a French historical romantic film that I couldn’t wait to see ever since its initial release in the United States. While walking back from State Theatre to East Quad, through the Diag and the stage set up for the Bernie Sanders rally, Haoyu and I talked nonstop about the film: Its absence of background music and male characters, its exquisite focus on facial expressions and the queer female love. The experience felt like a pilgrimage, where we exposed our most vulnerable inner selves in a dark room of strangers. Our lonely hearts, hardened by worldly affairs like the tense political climate, depressing job prospects and pressure from family, opened up and were graced again by passion and love. Before we parted, Haoyu and I promised each other to attend more local film screenings together in the future. Neither of us knew that it would be the last time we saw each other for six months. In less than one week, on March

BY LOLA YANG, STATEMENT CORRESPONDENT

13, the University had advised students to return home as soon as possible. Two days before, the Big Ten had then canceled the remainder of its winter season, all study abroad programs had been suspended until April 21, and the spring commencement had been canceled. I had to pack up all of my belongings and say goodbye to all of my friends within the span of two days, flying back to Toronto before the borders closed. Haoyu, struggling to find a plane ticket back home to China, moved into her friend’s house near Ann Arbor. After 14 days of quarantine back in Toronto, I regained control of my own room and made it my sanctuary. Behind my shut bedroom door, I took refuge in cinema, as it provided me with a sense of comfort and detachment from the atrocities outside my room. Sometimes at a friend’s house, though most of the time alone, I wandered through my Netflix recommendations. From Hirokazu Kore-eda’s direction in heartwarming family dramas to Ghibli animations to Billy Wilder’s black and white classics. These films, whether sad or bittersweet, acted as my shield from the outside world’s worsening xenophobia, racism and violence, allowing me to escape from reality and to the safe haven of cinema. Though I thoroughly enjoyed all the films I watched on my own, the “bedroom theater” experience was still unequal to the in-person ones I had in Michigan. Throughout the entire summer, I was looking forward to when things returned to normal and theaters would open again without masks required upon entry. A drive-in movie simply would not suffice. Though the leather seats and air conditioning are able to provide the viewers with a false sense of comfort, the cold hard metal separates us from the rest of the audience, rendering a supposedly col-

lective experience an isolated one. There is something about a crowded, dark room and the tiny, red seats that foster something personal yet surreal. I have always found consuming good art a very demanding process because it requires me to exhaust my emotional energy to truly understand and empathize with the artist or artist’s characters. Therefore, to expose myself in such a vulnerable state and undergo such a process is both intimate and valuable to my viewing experience. To me, the audience in the theater are time travelers who happened to stumble upon the same time machine. Our bodies get sucked into the black hole of cinema as our souls distort and mesh with each other. By the time the credits roll and light refills the room, we leave and return to our ordinary lives, but we carry with us a shared sentiment and love unique to the stories we witnessed together. I remember when my friend Sarah and I went to a “Parasite” screening together, excited for the Korean film’s debut in Ann Arbor. As the film’s climax approached, we looked at each other with our mouths opened in a silent scream and clutched each other’s hands tightly like little kids tucked under the same blanket. I remember how the entire theater held their breath as (spoiler alert) Mister Kim picked up the knife from the lawn and stabbed it through Mr. Park’s chest. The deafening silence was nowhere near awkward or uncomfortable, but rather an embodiment of how a room of strangers can be united through an immersive experience in art without verbal interaction. In this case, the audience communicated through their silence. It was our collective affirmation in the film’s shrewd yet harsh portrayal of our society — a silent echo of our common humanity.

hen Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced that theaters, bowling alleys and other performance venues will be able to reopen on Oct. 9, I was shocked. While I am delighted that theaters will be back in business and welcome movie fanatics back to their venues, I still hold a sense of skepticism about the policy’s feasibility. Though the theaters will only be allowed at 20% capacity, the local Ann Arbor theaters are still narrow spaces with possibly inadequate air circulation, especially since smaller theaters have less funding to upgrade their buildings. Many questions come to mind: Will people’s temperatures be taken upon entry and concessions be allowed during the film? Will I be able to enjoy the films the same way I did before the pandemic? The most important element of attending a film in person is not the moving pictures playing on the big screen, but rather the memories I make with my friends and the collective experience that I share with the other viewers. The effectiveness of the public health precautions largely depend on the viewers’ choice to follow them, but with the University of Michigan’s drastic increase of weekly COVID-19 cases, I must regretfully admit that I feel unsafe in our community. Every so often, I daydream about the next time I will have an intimate experience at a movie theater, just like when I went to see “Portrait of a Lady on Fire.” I picture the lights dimming, the pictures pulling me in like a warm blanket, gently wrapping around me, gradually lulling the audience while we embark on a journey to the mystic dreamland of cinema. Yet now, as the pandemic rages and our country hurts, this daydream feels far away; the blanket remains threadbare and tattered, and I will not be tucking myself in for a long time to come.

ILLUSTRATION BY MAGGIE WIEBE

statement

15 — Wednesday, October 7, 2020

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Two generations, a hundred yards and six feet apart

ANNIE KLUSENDORF, STATEMENT CORRESPONDENT

ILLUSTRATION BY MAGGIE WIEBE

or the first 18 years of my life, I lived about a hundred yards away from my grandmother’s house. As a kid, I’d skip down the street to her house for a dinner of PopTarts and games of Kings in the Corner, “PBS NewsHour” always playing on the TV in the background. The TV volume muffled the sound of the back door, so I’d tiptoe as far into the living room as I could before announcing my arrival, to surprise her. We’d catch the end of the broadcast before dessert: white wine for her, an ice cream bar for me, “Antiques Roadshow” for us both. Throughout my childhood, I watched hundreds of hours of the evening news at her house. But somehow I remember very little — I can only hear the “60 Minutes” clock ticking away on Sundays and recall that I thought stocks were physical towers rebuilt each morning. I can hear her sharp, rocky voice commentating on the TV programs, in both agreement and dissent, and her asking me to turn the volume up. Beside this occasional analysis, our conversations mostly revolved around piano and school, two things she cares deeply for. At my own house, I spent years laying on the kitchen floor in front of the heating vent reading Newsweek. I remember election night 2008 — my parents sent me to bed before the results were announced, but my mom later snuck in to tell me that Obama won. I remember discussing Jennifer Granholm, the 2009 stimulus package and abortion at the kitchen table. The women in our family tend to be stubborn and opinionated and I grew louder in high school by writing, photographing and editing for the Wind-Up, my school’s newsmagazine. I had a byline and a habit of making the principal nervous. And while my views may have contradicted hers, my grandmother’s name remained faithfully at the top of our sponsors list — though I sometimes made sure her copy got lost in the mail. Today, my grandmother is 89 years old, and I’m a 21-year-old college senior at her alma mater. We keep our conversations limited to my classes, Ann Arbor and her health after her stroke last year. I see her much less often. She spends most of her time in a wheelchair, alone in her home, watching TV — but this time, instead of the British voices of “PBS NewsHour” or the juicy profiles of “60 Minutes,” Tucker Carlson’s voice reigns in her living room. My grandmother, now, spends all day watching Fox News. I’ll be honest. I don’t have many conservative friends, and almost zero Trump-supporting ones. I blocked the president on Twitter in 2016 for the sake of my anxiety, and like most of Gen Z, I don’t have cable TV. Other than the occasional clips that dot my Twitter feed, I almost never watch Fox.

Until her stroke, my grandmother read the Wall Street Journal every day and mostly watched PBS. She went to lunch with friends, ran errands on her own and we’d still initiate political conversations at dinner. But since her stroke, and especially since COVID-19, she hasn’t left her house, she’s only seen her home aides and close family and has stopped reading the newspaper. Her transformation from lifelong conservative to a person I didn’t recognize wasn’t solely because of Fox News, and I’m far from the first to “lose” a family member or friend to the network. But I felt I had to at least try. So this past week, I grabbed a notebook and recorder and walked the hundred yards to her living room. I asked her to tell me about Fox News and what she believed and why. We hadn’t talked politics in several years, aside from her calling me a socialist during a wine-induced conversation a few months prior. My mask helped hide both the exhaustion I’ve built up over the past four years and the smile I’ve been wearing since recently coming out — another part of me she’ll never know about. I sat in a brown wooden chair, six feet and a world away from her, captivated by the familiar — her language, distrust and fear — and the foreign: her. n an essay for the Atlantic, “Do You Speak Fox?”, Megan Garber explains how Fox has capitalized on an identity of fear. “Fox has two pronouns, you and they, and one tone: indignation. (You are under attack; they are the attackers.) Its grammar is grievance. Its effect is totalizing,” she explained. “Over time, if you watch enough Fox & Friends or The Five or Tucker Carlson or Sean Hannity or Laura Ingraham, you will come to understand, as a matter of synaptic impulse, that immigrants are invading and the mob is coming and the news is lying and Trump alone can fix it.” In an essay for New York Magazine, Bostonbased writer Luke O’Neil crowdsourced stories from people who’d experienced the same conversion with their loved ones. “No matter where the stories came from they all featured a few familiar beats: A loved one seemed to have changed over time ... At one point or another, they sat down in front of Fox News, found some kind of deep, addictive comfort in the anger and paranoia, and became a different person — someone difficult, if not impossible, to spend time with.” Nearly all of the respondents were adults writing about their parents, or someone describing a falling out with their spouse. Fox’s audience demographics are no secret: they’re 74% white, 44% middle class and 17% hold a college degree. They’re trusted most by Republicans and distrusted most by Democrats. And

of Americans 65 and older, 37% say Fox is their main source of political news. “Fox didn’t necessarily change anyone’s mind, so much as it seems to have supercharged and weaponized a politics that was otherwise easy for white Americans to overlook in their loved ones,” O’Neil writes. My grandmother’s politics were easy to overlook, for a while. We’ve never been more divided, and I’ve gone back and forth on whether our relationship can handle the conversations I’d like to have with her. I’m not sure we’ll ever see eye-to-eye on much, but as someone entering the journalism field in just a few months, it’s hard to watch her belief in truth slip away. I wasn’t there to fight with her or change her mind, which was good because I was about two years too late. I began by asking where she got most of her news and why she relied on Fox. Five minutes and 33 seconds into the interview, she began to cry. “I feel this country’s just going to pot with all these liberals wanting to burn the country down and start over,” she said. “I think that’s so wrong. I do believe in our Founding Fathers and they did a lot — they were very smart people and they worked hard, they had very good ideas.” She broke off, and I got up to find tissues. “You’re all not going to have as good a life as I’ve had,” she said, alluding to my generation. “They’re ruining your lives by burning the whole country down. And who wants to live through all these riots in every city?” She paused and took a deep breath, her voice flooding with anxiety. “I just wish Trump would go in with the National Guard and put those people in jail.” It was baffling to hear her distressed by things and events that I perceive so differently. I was thankful my mask could hide my shock and confusion — with that explanation, I wasn’t even sure where to start. I sat latching onto my shirt sleeve, quietly saying to her, “It’s OK, Grandma. Breathe for a second.” I silently reminded myself that this anxiety is a direct result of the bubble she’s in, not necessarily her whole character. In moments of despair at the state of our country, I’ve been wondering if some people really just don’t have empathy — do they truly not care about their neighbors? What about people they’ll never meet? My grandmother will never meet the people protesting for Black lives in Chicago or Portland. She’s not evil, but she’s been conditioned to be afraid of what she doesn’t know. The way she ingests news, she will only ever hear that Black Lives Matter protestors are rioters, intent on tearing down our cities. I believe a completely different narrative, informed by the places I get my news.

“Fox foments fear and loathing not really because of a Big Brotherly impulse, but because the network has recognized that fear and loathing, as goods, are extremely marketable,” Garber writes. A similar story to mine appeared in the Boston Globe, written by freelancer Linda Rodriguez McRobbie. She wrote about Jen Senko, whose father had descended into anger and fear after consuming hours of talk radio every day. “A man who’d made his children read for an hour before bedtime, who always told them that higher education was the most worthwhile thing they could do, became suspicious of universities as liberal incubators. A man who used to stop people on the street when he heard an accent he didn’t recognize to say hello now didn’t like immigrants or Hispanic people. A man who’d welcomed his children’s gay friends into his home ‘didn’t want it in his face’ anymore.” I wouldn’t say my grandmother used to stop people on the street to say hello, but she certainly wasn’t as paranoid as she’s become. Her idea of the truth has become so distorted that I had a hard time understanding her explanation. “Where does your trust in Fox come from?” I had to ask. “Just watching them,” she said. “I call that the real news and I call the other the fake news. I can’t say that I ever felt they were lying. Now you keep hearing the other side saying that Trump lies all the time. I said, I don’t know where he lies because I don’t have all the figures. And if he says, I made this much money for the country, you know, I don’t know those facts. So it might be that he exaggerated.” She believes liberals, like Nancy Pelosi, don’t use the facts and will lie about things all the time. We agreed that most journalists work to tell the truth — that the ideals of the profession still remain and it’s more crucial now than ever. We disagree on exactly who is doing their job correctly. We disagree on almost everything, really. It’s hard to comprehend how far apart we are, though the physical distance between us is usually less than a football field. I’m a college senior, dating a woman for the first time, preparing to plunge into the journalism world, seeking out new friendships and squeezing the last drops out of my education. My grandmother is largely alone in her house, with medical conditions, during a pandemic and with only one constant companion: Fox News. Our situation is a tangible example of the larger discourse happening in the U.S., one that’s exhausting and scary. My grandmother and I will never fully cross this divide together, though I know shouting from our respective sides of the chasm won’t do, either. We’re two generations, a hundred yards and now six feet apart, but in 2020, I’ll take what I can get.

statement

On making friends during a pandemic

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ver since I arrived on campus last year, vetting classmates in discussions, student organization meetings and informal gatherings, in hopes of creating more fulfilling human connections has become second nature to me. Prior to the new world created by the COVID-19 pandemic, typical student life provided numerous opportunities to spark relationships with those around us. This semester, 78% of undergraduate credits and many student organizations are taking place entirely online — the virtual format undoubtedly proposes a unique, less desirable situation for learning and student interaction than “normal” circumstances. Further, the benefits of the limited number of in-person classes, events and serendipitous moments are thwarted by differing levels of fear of a highly contagious virus, the spread of which is highly related to human proximity. Today, fewer conversations between classmates follow them out the door of their discussion room, no packed dining halls encourage interaction among students sharing a table and no fans in the Big House means no student season ticket holders will harmonize over a chorus of “Mr. Brightside” during the 2020 football season. LSA sophomore Samuel Levy told me about his entirely remote class schedule over email. “I’d say the obstacles I’ve faced are due to the very procedural and formal aspect of Zoom,” Levy said. “It just feels way too formal and everyone focuses on the work. Obviously, this is probably the best-case scenario in terms of class, but for making friends, it’s not.” Regardless of whether a student is a seasoned senior or clueless freshman, on or off campus, following or ignoring public health guidelines, outgoing or introverted, the ability to maintain and make new friends seems to be another aspect of student life that has been radically transformed by this virus. LSA freshman Makayla Beardsley shared her struggle to make friends after arriving on a campus unrecognizable to the traditional expectations of what college life looks like. “There was a long period of time when I first got here that I didn’t really try to meet any friends,” Beardsley said. “I (could not) really go to anyone’s dorm room and (could not) even see anyone’s faces unless we were eating due to masks, so I got stuck asking ‘What’s the point?’” This perspective is understandable, and I cannot imagine how difficult it is for incoming students to be starting their lives at the University of Michigan amid this pandemic. Even in normal times, it is hard enough to adjust to the college experience and make meaningful connections in a new place, but trying to become part of the University’s community virtually is not a challenge most incoming students anticipated or prepared for when picturing and planning their college years. Asked about the new aspects of life taking place virtually, Levy wrote, “A lot of people believe that making friends, or even dating, online is the last resort. Although I don’t necessarily agree with this, I think that the reason it is perpetuated so often is because there is a lack of ‘serendipitous moments’ when meeting anyone online.” There is something to be said about the comparative value of in-person connections. Looking back on my freshman year, the night I shared a twin XL bed with three friends in Markley for a “Riverdale” marathon and then sang Van Morrison’s “Brown Eyed Girl” to the 2 a.m. audi-

Wednesday, October 7, 2020 — 16

BY LEAH LESZCZYNSKI, STATEMENT COLUMNIST

ence in the communal bathroom is among my most treasured serendipitous moments of college. None of my fondest memories from my first seven months of college were made with Zoom, FaceTime or Snapchat. Today, these types of moments, marked by gut-wrenching laughter and togetherness, are more difficult to have. The opportunities to even make friends to share these experiences — whether virtually, or with masks — are few and far between. Levy himself has felt this. “After class is over, everyone just leaves Zoom and goes on with their lives,” he said. “If we were in person, just the physical act of being together when class ends and collectively walking out of class definitely makes it easier to strike up conversations with anybody outside of class.” LSA freshman Caitlyn Bloomburg told me about making friends in the dorms during the pandemic.

ferent colleges, we only interact through social media and phone calls, but we’ve tried our best to make it work while still trying to keep everyone safe.” Simply put, friends are important, to our social and academic well-being, our health and thus our quality of life. Friends provide support in all aspects of life, and in college, when family is often hundreds of miles away, friendships are often looked upon to share struggles and provide reassurance and comfort. Former Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy investigated the importance of human connection in his book “Together” by exploring loneliness as an epidemic itself, as well as its role in numerous national epidemics — thereby proposing the question of how the loneliness epidemic may be exacerbated by the current pandemic. Even before COVID-19 turned many of our lives upside down, the mental health of college students was particularly concerning to public health experts, with increasing rates of anxiety and depression among our demographic in recent years. Now, during a time of increased isolation and stress about the state and future of our world (and even the continuance of our democracy) brought on by the pandemic, the increased difficulty of making and maintaining friendships makes this time period a great test of our mental resilience. Notwithstanding the tribulations of life in a pandemic, students have pursued and created new opportunities to make friends and meaningful connections. Bloomburg told me about her efforts to make friends this semester. “I joined the Class of 2024 Facebook page, and people were posting bios about themselves … so if I had stuff in common with people I would add them on Snapchat or Instagram.” She also shared that her resident adviser has a “speed friending” Zoom call in the works to facilitate connections in her dorm hall. Needless to say, the role of social media is becoming more integral to the student experience with each passing week that this pandemic keeps study spaces socially distanced and a large number of students off campus altogether. Reaching out to find students with similar interests seems to have become commonplace on Facebook, and Reddit is no stranger to posts plainly asking for new friends. Regardless of how we manage to ILLUSTRATION BY EILEEN KELLY find friends and maintain friendships we are particularly grateful to “There are some people who will stop to have a con- have made before this pandemic, it is hard to find the same versation with you in the hallway, but there are also the joy and make the same connections on FaceTime calls people who will just look down and walk by, and try to and through Zoom breakout rooms. It is hard to navigate keep their distance.” the complex matters of making and maintaining friendOn top of the virus severely reducing the number of op- ships even without a pandemic forcing time spent with portunities to make friends, some students are finding it our friends and peers into one-dimensional squares on a harder to maintain relationships cemented by in-person screen. The most practical and, indeed, the only answer is interactions from six months ago before the full force of to make the best of it. the pandemic hit. Throughout my interviews for this article, I found reas“Most of the friends I have made aren’t on campus this surance in knowing that I am not the only one struggling semester, so the only contact that I do have with them is to find new friends and maintain my current friendships online,” Levy said. “As for the friends I have on campus, I right now. Over the past month, I have found comfort in can’t meet up with them because of COVID. I have been being met with unanimous enthusiasm after asking classinteracting with all of them through texting and some- mates to join a group chat for our shared class. Aside times FaceTiming, but other than that, nothing else.” from the placement of French pronouns and the themes Beardsley experienced a similar struggle. of Thomas Paine’s “Agrarian Justice,” the most valuable “Some of the friendships I’ve had have definitely got- thing I have learned so far this semester is that people desten tested due to COVID social distancing guidelines,” she perately want to connect — it is just a matter of someone said. “Because my current friends back home are all at dif- making the first attempt.

Sports

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Hunter Dickinson impressing his teammates and coaches early on

Wednesday, October 7, 2020 — 17

Players, coaches build chemistry as practice resumes

ALEC COHEN/Daily

Standing at 7-foot-1, freshman center Hunter Dickinson has impressed with his physicality and shot-blocking.

CONNOR BRENNAN Daily Sports Writer

According to 247Sports, Hunter Dickinson was rated as the 42nd-best high school prospect in the 2020 class. Just a few months ago, though, in a Michigan recruiting class that included five-star Isaiah Todd and was on the verge of adding five-star Josh Christopher, Dickinson was somewhat of an afterthought. It seemed back then that the 7-foot-1 center out of Maryland powerhouse DeMatha Catholic was going to be a noteworthy pickup for the Wolverines but wasn’t going to be the headliner of a loaded class. Then Christopher spurned Michigan for Arizona State and Todd opted for the NBA G-League in lieu of college ball. Suddenly, Dickinson was the featured name of a solid class. Though it’s early in Dickinson’s career, the Wolverines may already have a gem on their hands according to those around the program. “His abilities on the court though are why we went so hard after him in the recruiting process,” Michigan assistant coach Saddi Washington said. “Much like Jon (Teske), he just has a presence with his size and his length. He’s an elite-level passer, he can handle the ball and get his shot from

the perimeter. So he has all the attributes that coach Juwan has looked for in that position.” Added guard Mike Smith, a graduate transfer from Columbia: “It’s crazy how different it is from high-major to mid-major and lowmajor in terms of talent. Like with Hunter, having a 7-foot-1 dude who can stretch the floor like that and post-up. You don’t see that everywhere.” Dickinson’s offensive versatility is his strong point. While he can shoot the midrange jumper and has a soft touch around the basket, his 7-foot-1, 255-pound frame allows him to bully smaller opponents down low. As with most freshmen, though, his ability to learn and execute defensive schemes will likely dictate whether the Wolverines can keep him in the lineup. “Defending and rebounding are two things that it normally takes young guys a while to grasp,” Washington said. “Most freshmen come in pretty high level from an offensive perspective, but I think the guys that really understand early defensive principles, being able to defend without fouling, rebounding at a high level, those are the guys that get a lot of opportunities to play. So we’re definitely going to try and grow Hunter in those areas so that we can find ways to keep him on the floor.”

With center Jon Teske graduated, Michigan sorely needs a shot-blocker. Dickinson, who averaged 2.1 blocks during his senior year of high school, fits that bill. Dickinson will have to face a number of talented and imposing big men in the Big Ten — Luka Garza, Kofi Cockburn and Trevion Williams to name a few — so avoiding foul trouble is a must as well. In addition to Dickinson’s play on the court, his presence off of it has also impressed his coaches and teammates. “Man, the kid has swag and confidence,” Washington said. “That stood out from the beginning, just his belief in himself and his ability. But even as a person, he’s a very funny and outgoing guy. He’s just a fun young man to be around.” Added fifth-year center Austin Davis: “I love Hunter, man. He’s a character. He brings a lot to the locker room besides basketball. He gets along really well with everyone on the team and works his tail off.” Dickinson’s name may not have initially resonated with Michigan fans like Todd or Christopher’s, but the Wolverines’ top-rated recruit seems to have the skill set and now, opportunity to shine. “He’s going to be a tremendous asset to the team on both ends of the floor,” Davis said. “So I’m really excited to see what we can do with him this year.”

ALEC COHEN/Daily

Junior Forward Jimmy Lambert has been using Michigan’s four hours of practice to work on situational drills.

JOSH TAUBMAN Daily Sports Writer

Limited ice time, no locker room access and lots of Tik Toks. It’s been an unprecedented and longer-than-usual offseason for Michigan as it continues to await the announcement of a hockey season. The Wolverines will get ready to face tough Big Ten competition — and a lot of it. While no schedule is set, the expectation is to play a conference-only season at some point this winter. “When the game gets taken away from us in a situation like this did, it makes you hungrier,” associate head coach Bill Muckalt said. “I think there seems to be a genuine enthusiasm with our players to get back on ice.” The coaching staff has emphasized that they’ve been focusing on the things they can control. That doesn’t just mean staying in shape and keeping attitudes positive — it’s also about testing negative. The captains have created protocols to try to keep a bubble as much as possible. “So far they’ve done a great job,” Michigan coach Mel Pearson said. “I’m really proud of the job that they’ve done, and to this point.

They’ve been excellent.” At least some semblance of normalcy is returning to Yost Ice Arena. This week, Michigan will go back to a full 20 hours of ice time — up from just four hours per week allotted by the last round of COVID-19 restrictions. “Obviously with only the four hours you gotta select the things that you want to do and use all your time towards that,” junior forward Jimmy Lambert said. “We’ll have a little bit more time to work on systems, power play and other special teams stuff so that’ll be a benefit to get ahead of a couple other teams in the Big Ten.” Trying to practice amid the pandemic has been an evolving task. When they could get on the ice, they were playing in smaller groups with masks on. Outside of the rink, players prepared for the season by lifting in their garage and playing roller hockey. Michigan is working diligently to make up for the ice time they missed the past few months. But they also must be careful about staying safe because otherwise they’ll be set back further. “You know how important it is to do the right thing away from the rink, so that we can have a season and we don’t have to get shut down

like you’ve seen in some other schools and programs,” Pearson said. Another challenge for the Wolverines is preparing for a season when they don’t know the start date. The team wants to be ready for game action, but not over do it too quickly. “If you know when your start date is for your first game (you) usually work backwards. You know how much time (you have) and what you need to work on,” Pearson said. “But in this case, with not knowing what the start date is, it’s become a little more demanding and what you need to do is try to make sure we’re not burning them out here before we start.” It’s difficult, but the team is using its imagination to help make things work. The players and coaching staff are all committed to instilling the team culture and also holding everyone accountable to try and stay healthy. With the team being able to hold full practices again, there is at least some sense of normalcy returning to Yost Ice Arena. The next step is getting an actual season to prepare for. “We just want to get going,” Pearson said. “Tell us when and where and let’s drop the puck.”

Amid pandemic, ex-Michigan assistant Luke Yaklich finds his way as a head coach JARED GREENSPAN Daily Sports Writer

Ten months into his first season on a Division I coaching staff at Illinois State, 37-year-old Luke Yaklich created a Microsoft Word file on his computer. He named it “When I Become a Head Coach.” Yaklich divided the file into four sections: offense, defense, culture and recruiting. Tidbits of information — gleaned from picking the brains of other coaches and scouts, reading books, watching online clinics and just being around the game — were partitioned into the different categories. In terms of the college coaching circuit, Yaklich had only just dipped his toes into the water. Being a Division I head coach seemed like a pipe dream, but so had being an assistant coach at that level. It was impossible to know where exactly his journey would lead him next. “It was, ‘Okay, if I ever do get a head coaching job, I’m not going to have all the answers, and it’s going to change when I actually meet my team and figure out what we’re going to be good at,’ ” Yaklich said. “But you want to have a base of things that you can fall back on and say, ‘Okay, I like this, I like that.’ ” On March 26, Yaklich, age 44, got his chance. The former Michigan assistant coach was hired to be the head coach at the University of Illinois-Chicago, a middle-of-the-pack program in the Horizon League. With 14 seasons of high school coaching experience, 7 years in the college ranks, and a full portfolio of notes at his disposal, Yaklich was prepared. To an extent, at least. “None of that had COVID in it,” Yaklich said with a laugh,

FILE PHOTO/Daily

After a winding road, former Michigan basketball assistant coach Luke Yaklich is now in the head coaching role that he’s always prepared for.

taking a moment to relish in the absurdity of navigating his first college head coaching gig in the throes of a global pandemic. “There’s no manual or chapter in the head coaching book to figure out how exactly to put a program, a staff and a roster together in the middle of a pandemic.” To label it as too steep a challenge, though, would be a foolish exercise. He’s been through the wringer, no stranger to the grind requisite for coaching. Not too long ago, Yaklich spent countless hours traversing rural Illinois on a rickety school bus as the head coach of Joliet West High School. Before Joliet, he did the same at Sterling and then later La-Salle Peru Township, all while doubling as a high school history teacher. And before that, he took care of the thankless behindthe-scenes duties as a student

manager for Illinois State. Point being: For Yaklich, the pandemic is just another hurdle to climb. “We do what we ask our players to do, which is to respond and handle the situation that’s in front of you in the best possible way with everything that you have,” Yaklich said. “And that’s what our guys and our staff have done.” After taking the job at UIC, Yaklich wasted no time getting to work. Hunkered down in his new home-office in Austin, Texas, he rounded out his coaching staff, retaining one assistant from the prior regime and hiring two more from Bryant and North Dakota State. The four of them, spread out across four different states, set out to piece together a roster. UIC’s three top scorers from the 201920 season had graduated, leaving

sizable holes. Tackling recruiting through a computer screen and over the phone, Yaklich brought on six transfers to pair with a three-man freshman class. “The main thing that I tried to really establish is just getting to know everybody as people, rather than players,” Yaklich said. “I was making sure that the human connection was first and foremost. “We did some team activities over Zoom. It really ended up being a unifying thing, that going into it, you may not have seen it as such, but our guys grew. Then when they finally got together, there was a connection and an excitement to be in the gym together.” That came on July 6, 96 days after Yaklich was first hired. “We learned to appreciate the time together in the gym and the

opportunity to play together and to be a part of a team,” Yaklich said. “We realized how quickly that time can be taken away.” Once allowed to return to the gym, the offseason more closely resembled normalcy. Players worked out in pods. Defensive drills, Yaklich’s calling card, abounded. Seven years after he started typing in that empty Word document, Yaklich could finally see his ideas put into motion. When Yaklich got his first men’s high school coaching position at Sterling in 2000, he attempted to produce a carbon copy of the system he knew from his time at Illinois State. The experiment went poorly — “like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole,” Yaklich says. Twenty years later, Yaklich, now the disciple of Dan Muller, John Beilein and Shaka Smart,

has plenty to draw from while building his program at UIC. When instilling a program-wide culture — the preeminent item on his head coaching agenda — Yaklich turns to Beilein. “The one thing with Coach B was really having a culture that you can live out on and off the court,” Yaklich said. “You knew what to expect each and every day as a staff, and then as a player, because everything was grounded back to the core values that Coach believed in. It created an identity of the program and a sense of belonging to the culture. “So we’re just trying to grow our players one percent better as students, athletes, players and young men. I think if you really do that, you’re going to create a family culture because the people that you’re working with are going to know that you care and that’s going to carry over to what we call the three C’s: classroom, community and the court. And we want to create an environment where our guys are high achievers in all three of those areas.” With the season approaching, the unconventionality that defined Yaklich’s first six months on the job is in the rearview mirror. As the familiar rhythm of practices and games pick up again, he can lean on all he’s learned from his journey. “We’re just making the most of our eight hours together (per week) now that the NCAA has allowed us,” Yaklich said. “It’s been a great experience. Our guys have embraced everything like champions.” The focus now rests in organization, highlighting different aspects he’s implemented and marking off other details that still need to be contrived. And Yaklich, ever upbeat, is ready to continue giving it his all with whatever cards he’s dealt.

Sports

18 — Wednesday, October 7, 2020

For the Mattins, Michigan’s family atmosphere is only fitting

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Can there be a college hockey season?

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The Mattin brothers both chose Michigan because of its familial culture.

JAKE MOZARSKY For The Daily

In sports, your team is a family. Developing a relationship keeps the team together, and the closer it is to a family, the better. But the Michigan wrestling team is a step above the others, featuring three pairs of family members — the Amines, Corrells and Mattins. What has the program done to attract so many siblings? For the Mattin brothers, it’s the family connection. Their commitment to wrestling together started a long time ago. “Over time, our relationship has definitely changed because we used to fist-fight all the time when we were training,” redshirt junior Drew Mattin said. “Now, (Cole) is one of the best partners to train with, so it’s come full circle.” “I would say when we started off probably up until my sophomore year of high school, we used to fight about every single time we practiced together,” sophomore Cole Mattin said. “ … Definitely now, we can actually learn from each other instead of getting into fights every single time.” Drew was already in the program for two years, and when it was time for Cole’s commitment, he knew his brother was going to

have an influence. “He really did not have much word on my commitment because he wanted me to do what I wanted to do, not what he wanted me to do,” Cole said. “Obviously he wanted me there and thought it would be great to wrestle with him, which is a lot of why I came to Michigan, but in the end he did tell me he wanted me to come to Michigan, but he did not influence it much. But I definitely made the correct decision.” Last season was Cole’s first in the program and Drew’s third. When Drew decided to redshirt, Cole slid into the lineup, and Drew gave him pointers throughout the season. Cole won 16 of his 29 matches last year. “Drew and I are brothers by blood, and my teammates are basically my brothers, just not by blood,” Cole said. “Family is a very big influence on our team because we have a ton of brothers. Actually my brother Zack is a (high school) senior coming up to the program next year. There’s just a lot of things that draw you closer to Michigan and seeing like the family bond and how everyone is super close is just another thing that makes you want to go there.” All teams have a special bond, but according to the Mattins, there is something about a family relationship that just means more in their eyes.

COURTESY OF TIEN LE

On the Big Ten’s dime, Michigan hockey players will be tested for COVID-19 more frequently in hopes of playing a season in the winter. BRENDAN ROOSE Daily Sports Editor

More than anything, I want college hockey to start. But I’m not sure it should. On The Daily’s hockey beat, we cover hockey because we love hockey and we want to write about hockey. For the last month, we’ve covered a team we’ve never seen play in person. Nothing would make me happier than to spend hours at Yost scrambling to finish a flash gamer on time, transcribing interviews for way too long and staying awake until ungodly hours of the night putting the finishing touches on a story. Of course, the fact that I want the season to start is justifiably irrelevant. If for some reason I didn’t want to watch live hockey — and would instead prefer to spend the rest of the year searching for player highlights on YouTube to break down — nobody would care. They shouldn’t care. I’m not the one taking the ice. The only opinion that should matter is that of the players, and they’ve made it clear that they want to play. They’ve demonstrated it by following the rules and holding each other accountable, and the results show they’ve stayed responsible.

Beyond one positive test from when the team initially arrived back on campus in July, every COVID test — of both players and coaches — has come up negative. “Our players have done a great job taking care of themselves as far as that,” assistant coach Bill Muckalt said. “I know everybody’s negative right now.” The key to keeping the players safe is continuing and expanding that testing and contact-tracing. For the last few months, players have been tested three times a week. In accordance with the Big Ten’s fall sports reopening plans, that will be ramped up to daily testing in the coming weeks. So, to recap, people want to see hockey games, and players want to play hockey games. To achieve this, the players, coaches and even the Big Ten have come up with and followed responsible plans of action. Unfortunately, the rest of us have not. In Ann Arbor, we have failed to confront COVID-19 at every level. Individual students making poor decisions is one thing — it’s certainly bad, and students choosing to violate public health guidelines are selfish and entitled — but at least these individual failures can, to an extent, be contained. The unavoidable issue

Club lacrosse rises through pandemic CONNOR EAREGOOD For The Daily

As the COVID-19 pandemic raged through the summer, its presence loomed over the men’s club lacrosse team’s season. Members worried about whether they would even be able to practice as fall crept ever closer. The elimination of intercollegiate play proved a foregone conclusion. Then in late August, the University allowed the team to begin a public healthinformed practice schedule at Mitchell Field, a major stepping stone in the road back to competition. Like many Michigan club sports, the student-led lacrosse team faced a litany of uncertainties coming into the new year. With safety precautions impacting everything from practices to scheduling and recruiting to team bonding, the lacrosse team was forced to adapt in order to enter its ninth season in the National Collegiate Lacrosse League. Traditionally, fall means weekly practices and some intercollegiate play for the team to hone its craft for the spring season, during which the Wolverines compete in the NCLL’s midwest division. If the team wins its division, it finds itself in the national Elite Eight at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. However, those plans are up in the air due to the ongoing pandemic. There will be no intercollegiate play this fall, and the pandemic has prevented the planning of a schedule for the spring season. In order to stay in game shape during the ongoing

pandemic, the team has been practicing once a week to work on individual skills and team strategy, but the team prioritizes safety during practices, especially during drills with close contact. “When suiting up for practice on the sidelines, we try to be a little more spread out than usual,” club lacrosse vice president Harrison Gerber said. “Additionally, we highly recommend players wear masks whenever we huddle up as an entire team before and after practice to talk. However, during the actual drills we do not enforce any mask wearing beyond personal preference.” The team also limits the number of athletes who can attend the practices to a maximum of around 30. Club lacrosse has historically been a student-led endeavor, something which its president was quick to mention. “Practices are fully playerled with members of the e-board as well as captains usually taking the roles of coaches,” club lacrosse president Andrew Poulos said. “We pride ourselves that we are disciplined enough to run practices, games and whole seasons with oversight over ourselves. Everyone collectively knows our goals and wants to work toward them even without an authoritative figure.” Relationships with the University have been productive, according to Poulos. “We had to spend most of the summer waiting to see if we would be allowed to use the fields,” Poulos said. “But (the University) kept us updated on the process when we asked and let us know as soon as they could.

“We definitely had to be the initiator of most conversations with the University as they did not make formal decisions apparent right away, but they were good about responding and explaining the situation when we did ask.” Club sports assistant director Laurel Hanna and program manager Cybbi Barton did not provide comment in time for the publication of this article. But while the spring season remains uncertain, Gerber hopes some sort of working plan can be formulated. “Longer term, we really hope other teams can generate some sort of plan to return to play so we can have a real season this spring,” Gerber said. “At this point, it’s pretty much out of our hands. We can do everything in our power to stay game ready, but it’s up to the greater NCLL and our individual peer schools to determine if we can put together a schedule this spring.” Poulos believes the spring season’s future lies in the progress of fighting COVID19, especially the development of a working vaccine. “The biggest challenge with planning out a spring season is the uncertainty of how the virus will progress and what will be safe in the future months,” Poulos said. “We hope, along with the rest of the country, that COVID won’t be an issue by the spring, but we know that it is very possible that we will still be fighting it. “It is hard to plan a season when we have very little idea of what will be safe and what will be allowed at that time.” While many experienced players are more than willing to adapt to the new landscape of sports during the pandemic,

club lacrosse has found itself in a bind when it comes to attracting new members this fall. Gerber hopes that the more focused recruiting strategy during the pandemic will mean a higher retention of new players into future seasons, but Poulos worries about the impact of pandemic recruiting on the team’s future rosters. “For the future, the main issue is freshman recruiting and team cohesion,” Poulos said. “With virtual FestiFall and a lack of in-person communication, we have less freshmen than usual right now. While we still have enough players, we always like having a good group of freshmen that will carry the team into future seasons.” As COVID-19 limits the number of safe recreational activities, forming a strong camaraderie among team members — something usually fostered with team hangouts and social events — poses a difficult challenge for the team. “This season we feel that having team hangouts would be unsafe and irresponsible. However, we still want to make sure the community aspect is there,” Poulos said. “We are trying to figure out virtual ways to do this, but as most people around the country now know, it is much harder to make a connection with someone virtually.” Ultimately, the team’s focus lies on preparing for the uncertain spring campaign through drills and intrasquad competition. “Overall, we are happy that we can still play in a limited capacity,” Poulos said, ”and we hope we can still establish the community that makes me love this team.”

is that we’re nearly seven months into the pandemic, and testing scarcity is still making getting tested difficult for students. Every test we give to athletics is one that another vulnerable population isn’t getting. It’s especially problematic in the context of the University’s abysmal pandemic response. Right now, a student can’t get a COVID test from the University unless they are symptomatic or have had direct contact with someone diagnosed with COVID. According to the University’s own COVID-19 dashboard, more than half of student positive tests in September came from outside testing sources. That means we’re likely missing a huge chunk of positive tests from students without access to a car. Those who can get tested on campus — say, through the COVID-19 Sampling and Tracking Program, where a random sample of asymptomatic student volunteers are tested each week — will still have to wait two days for results to process. Fall athletes, meanwhile, will receive rapid antigen tests every day. This isn’t a guarantee that players won’t get the virus, it just means that when someone does, it’ll be easier to keep it from becoming an outbreak.

It’s not a problem that athletes are getting these tests; it’s a problem that everyone else is not. In fairness, the Big Ten, not the University, is shouldering the cost of these tests for athletes. But does that make it any more justifiable that tens of thousands of rapid tests will be conducted on athletes, while local communities may not have access to asymptomatic testing at all? Even if they’re not taking the opportunity for testing from the University specifically, the tests are coming from somewhere. Let me be clear on this: The Michigan hockey team deserves to have a season. The players have done everything right, and in a just situation, they would have a time and place already set for their first game. But nothing about this situation is just — for anyone. We have to play with the cards we’re dealt, and because of our failed pandemic response, we’re stuck with off-suit nines and tens. We shouldn’t have to ration tests seven months into the pandemic, but we do. And frankly, I’m not sure hockey’s worth it.

Roose can be reached at rooseb@umich.edu or on Twitter @BrendanRoose.

Blake using national team experience to bolster Michigan

ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily

Hannah Blake played for New Zealand, her home country, in the U20 World Cup.

GRAYSON BUNNING For The Daily

At 18, most students are just getting things figured out: graduating high school, pondering future career trajectories and wasting a little too much time on social media. But Hannah Blake isn’t most students. At 18, the Michigan women’s soccer team forward was representing her home nation, New Zealand, in the U20 World Cup — for the second time in her career. In 2016, Blake played for New Zealand in the Papua New Guinea U20 World Cup at just 16. In 2018, she again lined up for New Zealand in the U20 World Cup in France, where her highlight reel included an impressive goal from the far left corner of the box against the Netherlands “It’s a surreal experience you can’t really describe,” Blake said. “It’s completely awesome being able to represent all the hard work you’ve put in.” Blake is reaping the benefits of this hard work in more ways than one. Her stellar performances in tournaments like these were a significant factor in her being offered a significant role for Michigan last year. As a freshman, Blake started 19 of the team’s 24 games, scoring two goals and assisting three more. Despite these impressive achievements, Blake remains humble. While she acknowledges

that scoring in the World Cup was a personal achievement of significant magnitude, Blake was adamant that the disappointment of falling to the Netherlands 2-1 in that game outweighed the jubilation of scoring the goal, as the loss meant that the team was set up poorly for the rest of the tournament. For Blake, the feeling of suiting up for New Zealand is unparalleled. But in her first year at Michigan, she experienced something entirely new. “The amount of passion that people in the U.S. have for soccer is something that differs a lot,” Blake said. “The amount of energy that people bring makes it super exciting to play at Michigan.” The more physical style of play in the American college game has also pushed her boundaries as a player. “In the U.S., there’s a bigger emphasis on strength and other athletic attributes,” Blake said. “You’re in a high intensity environment all the time, which was something I had to get used to during my freshman year, but that’s definitely been a positive for me.” Blake hopes to use her time at Michigan as a scaffold to push on to bigger career goals. “The Women’s World Cup is in Australia and New Zealand in 2023, so I think that’s definitely the direction I’d like to work toward. Being able to represent your country in front of home fans would be amazing, and I think my time here at Michigan is going to be able to help me work toward those goals.”

Sports

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Wednesday, October 7, 2020 — 19

Looking back at Benjamin Becker’s most memorable moment

s I wrapped up a Zoom interview with Benjamin Becker on Friday, it occured to me how odd this must all be for him. We’d just finished watching a 36-year-old Andre Agassi in tears after Becker had beaten him at the 2006 U.S. Open, in the last match of his career. Becker, now an assistant coach for the ETHAN Michigan SEARS men’s tennis team, agreed to watch some of the match over Zoom and talk about a moment that is more defining and more significant for his opponent than for himself. Unless you follow the ATP Tour closely, Becker’s name won’t stand out. He played professionally for 12 years, climbing as high as the top 40 and winning one title, the 2009 Ordina Open — a 250-point grass court tournament on grass held in Rosmalen, a town in the Netherlands’ North Brabant province. So, since that fateful day in 2006, Becker has been asked about that Agassi match. When you end a Hall of Famer’s career, the moment can overshadow your own accomplishments. “Sometimes it is annoying that you always get kind of, everybody looks at this match and always talks to you about that match and also compares you to that match and expects something,” Becker said. “... During my career, to be honest, it was getting annoying because everybody would just talk to you about it and it’s all they ask. But now afterwards, now I can sit down and talk about it a little bit

COURTESY OF MICHIGAN PHOTOGRAPHY

In 2006, assistant men’s tennis coach Benjamin Becker defeated Andre Agassi in four sets at the U.S. Open.

more as well and get to enjoy the match.” The match itself, a 7-5, 7-6, 4-6, 7-5 win for Becker, is more competitive than Agassi describes in his book, “Open.” After devoting the opening pages to a five-setter against Marcos Baghdatis in the second round and the physical debilitations he was suffering at the time, Agassi gives this one just a few cursory paragraphs. “Becker takes me out in four sets. I can feel the tape of the finish line snap cleanly across my chest,” Agassi writes. It’s quite a good summary of Agassi’s standing as a beloved 20-year veteran. So imagine Becker, an up-and-comer of 25 to Agassi’s 36, walking into a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium to face one of the game’s all time greats in front of a crowd that is rooting against him. Almost immediately, Becker was facing break point at 0-40,

needing Agassi to make a mistake to stay on serve. And somehow, the game’s great returner did just that, hitting a forehand into the net. “I didn’t play aggressive at all,” Becker said. “I was very passive. I knew how much, how important this is. How much of an impact this can have. I feel like once I saved the first break point, I kind of had confidence I could come back in the game, and so this was a big opportunity for him that he didn’t take advantage at all.” On-screen, Agassi reacts to the miss visibly. “He knew it right away,” Becker says. “... He missed the big chance.” The match rolls on to a second set tiebreak and Becker has already lost a point on serve. He goes down 6-4 and nets a forehand. “You can tell, I wasn’t loose enough in my arms,” Becker says.

With three weeks until opener, offensive line hoping to find stability

He’s vastly overestimating my ability to glean from a pixelated video. “I didn’t go to the ball enough. Just moving parallel to the baseline and miss it in the net, which is obvious that I was a little bit too tight in my forearm and too nervous.” I ask if he can make that diagnosis in real time. “Yes,” he says. “You feel it.” There’s something to be said here for the level of ability it takes to have even a relatively pedestrian professional tennis career — this fourth round appearance at the 2006 U.S. Open was his best ever at a major and he was never ranked higher than 35th in the world. That resume is easy to overlook. In reality, it takes incredible skill to get that far. He says his serve was a weakness in juniors, but here it’s a weapon. He’s throwing one of the great returners of all time off his game, winning 13 straight

points on serve during the first set. By the time we get to the fourth set, with Becker facing a fifth down 5-4, he’s telling me how tired he was, cramping up in the August sun. On the screen, Agassi is hunched over and barely moving — he had collapsed walking to his car after his second round match — and they’re still playing through. Becker watches his own second serve just hit the line. He’s down set point. After a few groundstrokes, Agassi sails a forehand out. “I got really lucky,” he says. “You can see I’m not moving at all. ... He was kinda surprised by my mishit and just doesn’t move to the ball at all and just frames it as well. I got really lucky on this point for sure.” On screen, it looks like Agassi has missed his chance. In the present, Becker is talking about how he didn’t want to call out the trainer

for cramps or show weakness. He comes back to win the game and tie the set at five, then decides to go for it. To that point, he’d been conserving energy on Agassi’s service games, but now he gets handed a point to make it 15-0. “You have more in you than you think,” Becker says, describing his mindset. “You can do more. I know you’re trying to be a little bit conservative if you have energy on his service games, but now is the time to make a push.” He wins the game and serves out the match. The crowd gives Agassi an ovation. The younger Becker is shuffled off screen. Now, despite recalling exactly how he mishit a forehand in the second set of this match, Becker doesn’t remember this part especially well. “I don’t know what we said at the net,” Becker says. “I don’t know what happened after. I remember the interview, just barely. I remember they kind of told me to leave and go into the tunnel, just to kind of give him room for his speech and then I came back to sign some autographs. I remember this part, but it’s all more of a blur.” Soon after, Becker lost to Andy Roddick, an eventual finalist in the tournament that year and its champion in 2003. A few months ago, he watched back the whole match for the first time when a German TV station asked him to participate for Agassi’s 50th birthday. He wasn’t irked by the request. “I learned a lot from the match to be honest,” he said. “But I enjoy (it) way more now than I did during my career.” Sears can be reached at searseth@umich.edu or on Twitter @ethan_sears.

Meet Marlin Klein, Michigan’s unlikely 2022 commit

FILE PHOTO/Daily

Michigan tight ends coach Sherrone Moore worked to secure Marlin Klein’s commitment to Michigan.

ETHAN SEARS

ALEC COHEN/Daily

Managing Sports Editor

The Wolverines will enter their season and full-pad practices with an inexperienced offensive line.

THEO MACKIE

Managing Sports Editor

Offensive line, by nature, is a position rooted in contact. So this fall, when Michigan had to practice without pads until last Wednesday, it was perhaps the position group hardest hit. A year ago, the Wolverines would have been well equipped to handle such adversity. Their offensive line was returning four starters from a unit that had gelled down the stretch in a 10-3 season. This year, not so much. All four of those returning starters are gone. Even Jalen Mayfield — the only returning member of last year’s starting five — was away from the team training for the NFL Draft before reversing his decision when the Big Ten reinstated its season. As such, Michigan is left with an inexperienced line that has never played together at a time when continuity is more important than ever. According to redshirt sophomore Ryan Hayes, the starting unit as of Sept. 3 was himself at left tackle; either senior Chuck Filiaga or redshirt freshman Trevor Keegan at left guard; fifthyear senior Andrew Vastardis at center; redshirt junior Andrew Stueber at right guard and redshirt freshman Karsen Barnhart at right tackle. Two weeks later, Mayfield’s return

vaulted him into the starting right tackle spot. “These guys are going into their third and fourth years in the program,” offensive coordinator Josh Gattis said this month, eschewing requisite preseason confidence. “They’re not your typical freshmen or first-year players that you’re looking to replace a lot of your offensive linemen with.” Still, only Mayfield, Stueber and Hayes have started a single college game — a daunting proposition regardless of preparation time. And now, missing so much contact practice only adds to the uncertainty. The least experienced members — like Keegan, Barnhart, freshman Zak Zinter and redshirt freshman Trente Jones — haven’t been able to catch up to the physicality of college football. Even the returners have only been able to build their chemistry in contact-less drills, a far cry from game situations, where the offensive line will be required to protect a new starting quarterback from 300pound pass rushers. So without being able to build up the Wolverines’ physical aptitude, offensive line coach Ed Warinner has focused on the mental game in hopes that the physical side will follow. “The biggest problem with

an offensive line is learning on the fly,” Stueber said. “You may get a base look but then when it starts changing, that’s when an offensive line can truly fall apart. “If you don’t understand the concept of the defense, who needs to be blocked, where the run is aimed — where the aiming point is — then it can really fall apart. But now that we have the mental aspect of the game locked down, when the picture changes on the fly, we can quickly adapt to that and I think that’s a big aspect that offensive linemen struggle to grasp.” Still, there are a few technical pointers Warinner has been able to instill in his team. Without being able to fine-tune his players’ power and balance — two skills reliant on game-like reps — he’s focused on their first few steps, eyes and hand placement. Couple that with the mental aspect and Stueber believes the Wolverines are uniquely prepared to turn pad-less practices into success on the field. “I feel like as far as the mental side of the O-line, like I said, I think we’re pretty much there,” Stueber said. “We have a whole understanding of the offense, a whole understanding of how it can change and how we can adapt to it. I just think the next piece is the physical side.”

It doesn’t make much sense that Marlin Klein would be here, even under normal circumstances. Not many talented, athletic Europeans drop everything and move to America to play American football. Fewer get college offers. Fewer still deal with a pandemic that upends the entire process. Klein, a high school junior, became Michigan’s third class of 2022 commitment on Sept. 22. The announcement drew little fanfare. The tight end has three stars to his name and no one on the Wolverines’ coaching staff has seen him play. He got on their radar when his coach at Rabun Gap-Nacoochee School in Georgia, Joe Sturdivant, edited a highlight video to better show off his abilities. He wanted coaches to see him running. “Sometimes you get those big guys, they don’t see how fast you are,” Sturdivant said. “So I just put the first one of him catching it and taking off and accelerating. Making a couple big time catches over the shoulder. What I would want to see when I was recruiting.” By the time Michigan tight ends coach Sherrone Moore reached out, Klein was back at home near Cologne, Germany due to the pandemic. The two built a relationship that culminated in the closest thing to a visit currently allowed under NCAA rules — Klein came up to Ann Arbor and walked around campus himself, seeing the outside of some buildings and getting lunch with tight end Luke Schoonmaker and defensive end Julius Welschof. Following the visit, Klein, who said he speaks

with Moore two or three times a week, committed. His reasoning for picking Michigan, though, goes beyond that. When he started watching the game, the Wolverines were one of the few teams he knew. “It was always Michigan, it’s the Big House, big stadium,” Klein said. “It was kinda like the only team my parents really knew about.” So, here he is. Klein’s parents have supported him in this endeavor, one that — as of now — looks like it will pay off in a college scholarship. It’s only been three years since Klein attended his first football practice. He had played soccer for eight years, usually in goal because of his height (he now stands 6-foot-7) and quickness, then played basketball for two. That opened the door to American sports. One day, Klein went to his local football club, the Cologne Crocodiles, and started playing for them. “I just really spent a lot of time getting to know the game of football, on my weekend, during my free time,” Klein said. “That made it a lot easier. It was just so different from all the other sports I’ve played before, but I really got it quickly, I would say, just because I really wanted to play football.” Within a year or two, he was the best prospect in his class in all of Germany. That drew the eye of Bjorn Werner. Werner, a German-born former defensive end for Florida State and the Indianapolis Colts from 201315, started an organization called Gridiron Imports after his playing career ended. The goal is to find European talent, get them to high school in the U.S. and, hopefully, Division I and the NFL. He met

Klein at a camp in Cologne and sent out his tape. “They really saw talent and all the coaches talked to my parents,” Klein said. “They just supported me because they knew I want to do this. And I feel like that’s my future and that’s what I want to do for the next years.” By September 2019, he was touching down in Georgia. In Germany, he’d taken English classes, but now he had to learn the language fluently and live on his own at a boarding school. “All my friends, my family, everything’s back home in Germany,” Klein said. “... So it was really hard, but I just had to take this step, just to get to where I’m at right now.” Four games into his high school career, he already had an offer from Arizona State. The list grew from there, culminating in the commitment to Michigan. In the two years between now and stepping on campus, Klein will need to fill out his frame and gain blocking ability to match his 6-foot7 height. “I think teams are really counting on him to be blocking tight end that can separate and run routes,” Sturdivant said. “Especially for coach (Jim) Harbaugh, he’s a 12 personnel, 11 personnel guy, You gotta be able to block.” Klein is matter of fact about the whole process. He went through it because he wants to play football against the best competition possible, he says, and this was the way to take it as far as he could. “That’s why I came here and that’s who I want to play against,” Klein said. “So I got used to it. And I’ve handled it pretty good, I think.”

20 â€” Wednesday, October 7, 2020

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