April 19, 2021

MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2021

MNDAILY.COM

BOARD OF REGENTS

LEGISLATURE

MSA hosts discussion on policing concerns

Court ruling fuels survivor activism

The listening session was hosted after the police killing of Daunte Wright.

By Ethan Fine efine@mndaily.com Over 50 students, staff, faculty and regents met on Friday for a listening session hosted by the Minnesota Student Association (MSA).

During the session, students and faculty voiced their concerns over the University of Minnesota Police Department’s deployment to Brooklyn Center during protests in response to the police killing of Daunte Wright, as well as UMPD’s participation in a countywide task force that led to its presence in the suburb.

According to the University, 12 UMPD officers with special training in crowd control were sent to support the city of Brooklyn Center.

Four members of the Board of Regents, Steve Sviggum, Janie Mayeron, Darrin Rosha and James Farnsworth, attended the meeting and only responded with closing remarks.

Students shared stories of being arrested and seeing violence during protests, while others were brought to tears by the recollection of this week’s events.

“I’ve watched kids throwing a rock at a fence get tear-gassed,” Jayne Kinney, a Ph.D. student at the University said. “Then I found out that it’s [by] the same people that are supposed to be protecting us.”

The UMPD is part of the West Command Task Force, a group of 35 police departments in Hennepin County that sends officers to other jurisdictions when member departments request assistance. The task force, which was deployed to Brooklyn Center, has been widely opposed by students.

“In the summer of 2020, the University made a big show,” Alexander Criswell, a Ph.D. student at the University said.

“They talked about how they were committed to addressing these issues and the racial disparities in our communities and in policing. And then, come to find out that immediately after doing that, it engaged in this West [Command] Task Force in order to set up a system where the University of Minnesota Police Department could send its members to engage in exactly the same activity with other police departments. It completely undercuts everything that was said this summer.”

Students are also concerned about the lack of communication between the board and students when issues arise.

“Over the course of the past year, I really believe that the board has failed in their responsibilities to be responsive to the student body,” Sam Parmekar, MSA state coordinator said. “It’s been almost a year since George Floyd was murdered, and all of you have failed to propose anything meaningful that addresses students and community concerns at the University of Minnesota.”

In the past week, students have sent over 1,800 emails to President Joan Gabel, Senior Vice President for Finance and Operations Myron Frans, the board and UMPD Chief Matt Clark demanding university police withdraw from the task force and protests at Brooklyn Center, according to the MSA. These emails have gone unanswered, so the MSA has started a phone campaign to address these concerns.

“I want to know why it has taken so long to get to even just this point of listening,” Carter See REGENTS Page 2

Photo by: Tony Saunders

The Minnesota Legislature is working to close the “intoxication loophole.”

By Samantha Woodward swoodward@mndaily.com Editor’s note: This article discusses sexual assault. If you or anyone you know has experienced sexual assault, the Aurora Center’s 24-hour helpline can be reached at (612) 626-9111.

For many, a Minnesota Supreme Court ruling on March 24 that said sexual assault victims who are voluntarily intoxicated are not considered “mentally incapacitated” was a shocking announcement — but Abby Honold was not surprised.

The sexual assault advocate and

University of Minnesota alum said this ruling comes from an outdated statute that misunderstands the true circumstances of sexual assault. Lawmakers and community members are working to change that as a bill has been working its way through the Legislature since the beginning of the session.

Minnesota law defines “mentally incapacitated” in sexual assault cases as a person who has come under the influence of a substance without their consent. It notes that the persn lacks the judgment to give consent to sex.

The Supreme Court’s ruling solidified this definition, which dates back to the 1880s, when women were considered property.

This statute, often referred to as the “intoxication loophole,” has closed doors for victim-survivors who were intoxicated at the time

of their assault and stopped some from getting justice, Honold said.

“You should be able to drink and not have to worry about sexual assault,” Honold said. “You should just be worrying about a hangover.”

State of Minnesota v. Francios Momolu Khalil After the court of appeals ruled that Francios Momolu Khalil was guilty of third-degree criminal sexual conduct for sexual assault against an intoxicated woman, the Minnesota Supreme Court reversed that decision.

The court interpreted the statute as saying that a person is only mentally incapacitated if someone administered the substance involuntarily; it does not apply if they gave the substance to themselves.

The victim-survivor was voluntarily under the influence before

meeting Khalil.

Judge Paul Thissen wrote that although this decision may not be fair to the victim, it is not the court’s job to change the law but rather interpret it.

In his decision, Thissen wrote, “legislative bodies are institutionally better positioned than courts to sort out conflicting interests and information surrounding complex public policy issues … we apply that meaning and not what we may wish the law was or what we think the law should be.”

A bill, HF 707, was already moving its way through the legislature when Thissen issued the opinion.

After the ruling, state lawmakers launched a massive bipartisan effort to address the language. Legislators packed bills with so many See LEGISLATURE Page 2

COVID-19

Student guide to Boynton’s vaccinations Students may be able to get a vaccine through Boynton Health.

By Nathanael Ashton-Piper nashtonpiper@mndaily.com With the recent expansion of COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to include Minnesotans aged 16 and older, Boynton Health broadened its eligibility on April 1 to include many students and faculty working in oncampus environments that require more face-to-face contact.

Boynton has been receiving COVID-19 vaccines from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) since January 7 and has administered 6,600 first doses as of April 8.

Can I schedule a vaccine appointment with Boynton?

Boynton’s vaccine clinic

currently operates on an invite-only basis. Students and faculty who fall into certain categories may receive an invite via email to sign up for a vaccine appointment with Boynton.

In addition to previously eligible groups like healthcare workers and people aged 65 and older, the newly added groups include those working in face-to-face environments on campus, including transit workers and those working in grocery, housing and dining.

Student workers, faculty teaching in-person classes and other employees working on campus in frontline public-facing roles are also included.

“Most people will get vaccinated at their primary health care provider. For most of our students and many of our employees, that primary health care provider is Boynton,” said Jill DeBoer, the director of the University’s Health Emergency Response Office.

JUSTICE

Illustration by Mary Ellen Ritter How does Boynton determine who to vaccinate?

The vaccine clinic runs in coordination with state guidelines that Boynton has agreed to, DeBoer said.

This means that Boynton has to follow the state’s definition of an “es-

sential worker,” which originally did not include University employees like front desk workers or community advisers (CAs) in campus residence halls.

However as a result of the See COVID-19 Page 2

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

U community petitions for harsher sexual harassment consequences A biochemistry professor violated sexual harassment policies in 2017.

By Hana Ikramuddin hikramuddin@mndaily.com Protesters are greeted by a crowd of law enforcement in Brooklyn Center on Monday following the police killing of Daunte Wright.

(J.D. Duggan / Minnesota Daily)

MSA pushes for UMPD withdrawl in area protests Student leaders wrote a letter to admin regarding recent protests.

By Ava Thompson athompson@mndaily.com

After officers from the University of Minnesota Police Department were deployed during protests over the police killing of Daunte Wright in Brooklyn Center, student leaders are demanding that UMPD withdraw See JUSTICE Page 2

Editor’s note: This article discusses sexual harassment. If you or anyone you know has experienced sexual harassment, the Aurora Center’s 24-hour helpline can be reached at (612) 6269111.

Over 1,500 people have signed a petition asking the University of Minnesota administration to reconsider the decision made in 2017 to keep and sanction a professor who violated the University’s sexual harassment policies.

The University did not fire Gianluigi Veglia, a tenured professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, and Biophysics (BMBB) after multiple students came forward accusing him of

sexual misconduct. Two investigations by the University’s Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action office found that Veglia had violated sexual harassment policies in 2017.

Siu Yi Kwang, a chemistry graduate student, created the petition on March 20, which asks professors to “revisit the [Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action] reports and recommendations from 2017 and come up with appropriate actions against Professor Veglia.”

A March 15 article by Chemical & Engineering News prompted the petition. Veglia’s sexual harassment reportedly included making comments about students’ appearances and making sexual advances toward them.

The EOAA recommended that Veglia be fired, but the deans of the College of Science and Engineering and the medical school continued to employ him as faculty, while imposing sanctions on Veglia and banning See HARASSMENT Page 2 Volume 121 Issue 12

2 Monday, April 19, 2021

Legislature page 1 signatures that they had to create clone bills to fit more names.

“I’m so appreciative of those survivors who can keep sharing their traumatic experiences,” said Rep. Kelly Moller, DFL-Shoreview, chief author of the bill. “They know that it can’t make a difference in their cases, but they do it because they don’t want the same thing to happen to somebody else.”

Closing the intoxication loophole When Moller heard about the Supreme Court’s decision, she, like Honold, said she was disappointed — but not surprised.

Moller said she has been working since the start of

Regents page 1 Yost, a first-year student said. “We’ve tried calling, we’ve tried emailing, we’ve tried statements, we’ve tried resolutions, we’ve tried protesting. And for the most part, we’ve been entirely ignored.”

The calls for the University to withdraw from the task force are part of student activists’ monthslong efforts to enact policy changes within UMPD. Since former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin killed George Floyd in the summer, student activists such as Students for a Democratic Society have pressed the administration to hand oversight of the police over to University community members.

“Policing on college campuses is not a new issue. Policing and how it kills Black people is not a new issue,” Jael Kerandi, ranking representative to the board, said.

“This is not a partisan issue. Please don’t treat it like a partisan issue. I want this to be treated as a matter of humanity, and I don’t think people look at the humanity of this because it has become so normalized for Black bodies to be on the ground,”

Justice page 1 from agreements to participate in “riot” control.

UMPD is a part of the West Command Task Force, a group composed of 35 police departments from across Hennepin County. The Task Force formed after the police killing of George Floyd to assist member police departments “in the event of an emergency that exceeds their own capacity,” according to a campuswide email from President Joan Gabel.

Gabel said all 35 police departments responded to the protests in Brooklyn Center Sunday night.

All departments pledge 10% of their force to assist one another when needed.

“UMPD participates in and is committed to this collaborative group to assist these other jurisdictions in need of immediate police support and with the understanding that this group will assist the University when needed,” Gabel said.

Undergraduate student body president Amy Ma and vice president Sophronia Cheung, along with incoming president Abdulaziz Mohamed and vice president Samiat Ajibola, authored a letter released Monday and started an email campaign to collect signatures demanding UMPD’s withdrawal from the West Command Task Force.

“In response to Wright’s death, protesters emerged on the streets of Brooklyn Center and were confronted with excessive violence from police forces and the

her career at the Legislature in 2018 to protect more victim-survivors from loopholes like this.

Moller and her colleague, Rep. Marion O’Neill, R-Maple Lake, created a working group in 2019 that includes organizations like the University’s Aurora Center for Advocacy and Education.

The group recommended three major changes for sexual assault victims in Minnesota: protections for 13-yearolds typically exempt from child protections, creating a new crime called “sexual extortion” and closing the intoxication loophole.

Most child protections are only extended up to 12-year-old victims, Moller said. The group wants to increase that age limit by a year.

The bill also seeks to

create a new crime entitled “sexual extortion.” The workgroup found situations where renters or employees were asked for sexual acts in exchange for rent or work alleviation. The law would make this illegal.

Katie Eichele, director of the Aurora Center, said the swell of public attention to the state Supreme Court case is an “anomaly.” For every 1,000 sexual assaults, fewer than 1% of perpetrators are convicted, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network.

The center has been working with nonprofit organizations over the past several years to highlight the flaws in the current sexual misconduct statute.

“It’s just that we now have an actual case to bring attention to the issue on how

she said.

The four regents in attendance remained neutral and did not comment on any specific actions in their closing remarks.

“I very much appreciate the passion and the perspective that we’ve heard,” Regent Sviggum said. “I have to boldly tell all of you, with complete respect, that while I’m listening and trying to understand, [that] doesn’t necessarily mean I agree.”

Although students asked that their concerns be addressed immediately, the regents informed the session that this is not feasible.

“I need time to reflect,” Regent Mayeron said. “I’m not trying to put it off; I don’t have an answer.”

Some students voiced that the board has had ample time to discuss this matter, reflecting back on last summer’s protests.

“There is a fractured relationship between students and UMPD, and something has to change,” Abdulaziz Mohamed, the incoming MSA president said. “And the only people that will be able to do it — who have a true stake in this issue — are our administration and the Board of Regents.”

COVID-19 page 1

National Guard,” the letter reads. “As members of the University of Minnesota community, our rage is heightened by the fact that twelve University of Minnesota Police Department (UMPD) officers were present at the scene in full riot gear. UMPD’s actions are unacceptable.”

The letter was released as protesters gathered in defiance of the 7 p.m. curfew to protest police brutality Monday night. Law enforcement declared an unlawful assembly and attempted to disperse the crowd with tear gas, rubber bullets and flash grenades, according to the Star Tribune.

The task force asked for assistance again Monday night during the multi-county curfew, Gabel said.

In May, UMPD broke off some collaborations with the Minneapolis Police Department in response to the killing of Floyd and a letter from then-undergraduate president Jael Kerandi. Gabel announced that the University would no longer contract with MPD for law enforcement support during large events or for specialized services.

Student groups, such as Students for a Democratic Society, have taken to social media calling for justice and action from the University to establish police accountability.

“It is unacceptable and deeply disturbing that time and time again, we see our campus police in full riot gear, ready to suppress protests across the Twin Cities,” read a statement on the student group’s Instagram page.

recent expansion in the state’s guidelines, these groups became eligible to receive the vaccine.

“CAs and other housing employees have really worked so hard this entire pandemic to help us support our students and maintain their safety,” DeBoer said. “So I was really happy when they opened that up, and the same goes for students in the RecWell, front desk workers, janitors and other employees working face-to-face who now have access to vaccination.”

Boynton uses a risk and equity approach to vaccinate groups at the highest risk from COVID-19 and groups that may have restricted access to the vaccine, DeBoer said.

Transportation to an off-campus vaccination site may not be readily available to many students living on or near campus, which may make access to the vaccine more difficult.

“We also have a number of employees who do not use computers in their work or at home,” DeBoer said. “That makes getting access to these vaccine systems — most of which are online — a barrier and thus an equity problem.

So our site is open based on those most at risk and then to those who do not have great access to external sources based on any number of reasons.”

Other state guidelines direct providers to administer 90% of the allocated vaccines within three days.

Dave Golden, the director of public health and communications at Boynton, said that the clinic always exceeds that number.

“We wait for the vaccine registration to fill with the designated priority groups, and then what we do is continue inviting new or additional groups until we completely fill the clinic,” Golden said.

Which vaccine I receive?

will

Harassment page 1 him from supervising graduate students for three years, according to the article.

Kwang said she hopes the petition will prompt action from the University. She wants to see consequences that are “more proportional” to Veglia’s reported actions in his lab based on the EOAA’s recommendations.

“A lot of the time, it’s very easy to condemn sexual harassment, but what can you actually do when it happens?”

Kwang said.

Despite the sanctions placed on Veglia, some chemistry department students and faculty say the University did not take strong enough steps to prevent Veglia’s alleged sexual misconduct because he was not fired.

University alum Katie Youmans, who helped create the petition, said instances like these represent a larger issue in academia: sexual harassment or discrimination that is insufficiently punished might be an explanation for why women may not feel

flawed it is,” Eichele said.

“We have the attention of the Legislature and the public to be able to have momentum to move it forward.”

Moller added that there are other means for victimsurvivors to bring charges against their rapist, such as instances of force, perversion and use of a weapon.

“If anybody’s … thinking, ‘I don’t want to come forward, because I was at a party and I was drunk, and this happened to me,’ they still should think about reporting it,” Moller said. “I think there is sort of this mistaken assumption that no voluntarily intoxicated victims can ever get justice.”

If the bill passes, it would come into effect on Aug. 1 and only apply to cases that happened after that date.

Fixing a failed system Honold was assaulted during her first year as a student at the University. She was intoxicated at the time of her assault.

Since coming forward to the public in 2016 about her experience, Honold has devoted her time to advocacy work to push for more protections for victims and create a support network for victim-survivors.

“There’s a lot of pain that I had to go through to get my case charged,” Honold said.

“I remember what it was like to go through that, basically alone, and I don’t ever want anybody else to have to deal with that.”

Although the intoxication loophole did not impact Honold’s case, she said she believes the statute represents an overarching issue of

victim-blaming culture.

“I worry that it will prevent survivors from coming forward and reporting, that it will make them think that there is no route forward,” Honold said. “I don’t want people to feel hopeless. I want people to feel inspired to help fight to change this law because we’re really so close.”

Honold said that although the court’s ruling in favor of Khalil can be triggering to hear in the news, the outcome was not the court’s fault.

“They basically were pointing out an issue that already exists,” Honold said. “They could have ignored the case, they could have dismissed it and chose not to hear it, but they chose to make a really strong statement.”

Every Wednesday, Boynton hears from the state on the quantity and brand of vaccines that it will receive for the following week. The clinic currently has the capacity to administer 3,000 doses per week, Golden said.

DeBoer said that Boynton is currently receiving the Moderna vaccine but that it has the capacity to store any one of the three vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use.

This includes the PfizerBioNTech vaccine, which requires storage in a belowfreezing environment unless all the vaccines in a shipment are used within five days.

The vaccine most recently approved for emergency use is manufactured by Johnson & Johnson. This vaccine can be stored in above-freezing temperatures and only requires one shot.

On Tuesday, however, the FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called for states to pause use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccines, citing incidents of blood clotting in six women who received the vaccine.

Nearly seven million people in the United States have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as of April 13.

The single-shot nature can be an enticing option for the University as the academic year comes to a close, DeBoer said.

She added that the University will continue to follow state and federal health guidelines regarding vaccine distribution and that this situation proves that safety protocols are working.

“Right now, we are looking at second doses [of the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine] during finals week, and that dose can make some people feel a little ill. We certainly want to be conscious of the fact that it may not be best for students to be getting their second vaccine dose during finals week,” DeBoer said.

Because Boynton has not yet received any Johnson &

Johnson vaccines, however, the clinic will be unaffected by the pause.

With many students leaving campus in early May, it may be more difficult to return to the University for the second shot with school not in session.

However, Golden said a recently updated state guideline may ease that difficulty.

“The odds for people getting a second dose at a different location than their first has greatly increased, which may be great for our students especially as the year comes to a close,” Golden said.

“MDH has just allowed us to give second doses to people whether or not they got the first one from us.”

identification.

COVID-19 vaccines are free and health insurance is not required to receive a vaccine, but those with health insurance should bring their insurance card to the appointment.

If students are receiving either the Moderna or PfizerBioNTech vaccine, they will be required to schedule the second dose appointment before leaving the clinic.

Those receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech shot must wait a minimum of 21 days before receiving the second dose. Anyone receiving the Moderna shot must wait a minimum of 28 days before receiving the second dose.

Students should also note that receiving a vaccine is an excusable class absence.

What should I bring with me?

Those with a vaccine appointment are required to bring a U Card or other photo

When can students who want a COVID-19 vaccine get one at Boynton?

Boynton will make vaccines more broadly available as soon as possible, but it is important that the campus community look elsewhere for vaccination appointments, DeBoer said.

“The best strategy is for people to look at all of their options,” DeBoer said. “Sign up for the state’s vaccine connector and look online at pharmacy sites. It can take some work and patience, but that is the system we have right now. We do not want people to wait; we want them to get a vaccine wherever they can get it.”

Boynton workers and members of the University’s Medical Reserve Corps are administering the vaccinations in the clinic.

Golden said that University pharmacy and nursing students may soon join them in the fall after receiving more training specific to the COVID-19 vaccine. With the help of both groups, the University’s flu clinics usually administer around 20,000 influenza vaccines per year.

“We have great capacity to do vaccinating. All that is holding us back right now is more access to vaccines,” Golden said.

welcome in academic communities, she said.

“They’re protecting him instead of the victims,” Youman said.

Veglia allegedly sexually harassed a student when he served as her principal investigator, a faculty member who guides and funds graduate student research.

Students and faculty in the chemistry department said this can lead to a power imbalance between graduate students and their principal investigator.

Beyond advising a student’s research, students often need recommendation letters from their principal investigator after leaving graduate school, meaning students can be hesitant to speak out against inappropriate behavior.

Lee Penn, the director of undergraduate studies in the chemistry department, said there is a great deal of support for the petition among faculty.

“In terms of the faculty members I have directly spoken to, I would say there’s a large body of support for our students and a large body of

support for not having professor Veglia teach in our department, and not having him advise graduate students,” they said.

Vice President and Provost Rachel Croson and President Joan Gabel have responded to concerns about Veglia’s alleged behavior and lack of severe consequences in an email to the students, faculty and staff of the chemistry department.

“We are committed to inclusive and meaningful restorative justice, so the University will hire an external consultant to ensure a robust restorative justice process,” the email read. “We are engaged with experts in the field who will be guiding this important work and will provide additional information as this initiative progresses.”

Kwang sent a letter to Croson and Gabel criticizing their response. The administrators responded, acknowledging her message.

“Your communication suggests that the University has the power to relitigate discipline previously imposed to send a message. That is not accurate. While we can re-

inforce the genuineness of the discipline previously imposed, we cannot wield authority to re-open individual employment determinations, regardless of how much we might wish to,” read the email from Croson and Gabel.

University spokesperson Jake Ricker said that because Veglia accepted his proposed discipline as dictated under the University’s tenure code, “[t]hat is the end of the process under the Tenure Code.

There is no basis for reopening or redoing that process.”

While Kwang said that hiring an external consultant is a good first step, she said she hopes to see more action from the University going forward.

“It took me three separate sittings to read the [C&EN article] … I was in shock,” Penn said. “I would say there’s a lot of anger in the department right now. A lot of people are very angry. The situation’s done harm to our department. And, figuring out how we, as a department, move forward and heal from all of this is going to be a long process, but it’s our job to figure that out.”

How does the vaccine clinic work?

Boynton’s vaccine clinic is held on the upper level of TCF Bank Stadium. One of the stadium’s club rooms provides Boynton workers the capacity to vaccinate around 40 people at one time, Golden said.

Students who have been to Boynton’s annual flu clinics will find the setup familiar.

A nurse will assist in filling out an information and consent form before administering the vaccine shot.

Patients will also get an information packet that includes some possible side effects that may occur while the immune system develops a response to the vaccine.

It is important to note that everyone’s body will react differently to the shot, DeBoer said. Some may experience symptoms of an immune response in the hours or days after the shot, while some may feel nothing at all.

After receiving the vaccine, patients will be asked to sit in a waiting area for 15 minutes before exiting the clinic.

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3 Monday, April 19, 2021

Africa Village seeks developer designation to move forward

The CedarRiverside project stalled due to COVID.

By Lydia Morrell lmorrell@mndaily.com

The long-debated Africa Village, a cultural mall plan including retail and affordable housing in CedarRiverside, waits to move forward under City Council member Jamal Osman.

The city still has to give developer designation, or exclusive rights, to Sherman Associates, the only developer who bid on the project more than a year ago.

Then, the project can move into further stages, such as soliciting public bids from investors and hosting further public discussions.

The city of Minneapolis originally slated to go through public discussions last summer and start construction by this spring, but COVID-19 pushed the timeline back.

The Africa Village project has been in the works for years and includes a public market, a small-business incubator, 165 affordablehousing units and a clinic. Former council member Abdi Warsame spearheaded the mall and led past public comment efforts steeped in tension.

A digital rendering of Africa Village, a cultural mall plan including retail and affordable housing in Cedar-Riverside. Courtesy of ESG Architects.

Since then, Osman was elected to the Ward 6 seat. He said he is highly supportive of the project but wants to seek extensive community feedback before proceeding.

“This will be centered around the community, this is where they live and do business, and it’s very important to engage and make sure however we plan it … this will have a positive effect,” Osman said.

Sherman Associates has preliminary drawings of the site but is waiting for the designation to continue planning, said CEO George Sherman. He said the next steps after the designation are getting public bids and neighborhood feedback.

The public engagement period could stretch from six to 18 months, Sherman said, allowing enough time for the developers to put together a financial package and fully understand the neighbors’ vision for the site.

Russom Solomon, owner of the neighboring Red Sea restaurant, said previous efforts to plan out Africa Village were rocky because Warsame and project leaders didn’t meaningfully engage with the neighborhood.

He said he thought Osman understood the importance of engaging with community members in development conversations, so he was more optimistic about upcoming conversations.

“The reason why the approach was wrong is they were bringing people from outside to give input about the neighborhood,” Solomon said. “How can you call outside people who don’t live there, who don’t work there, to come and decide the fate of a neighborhood?”

Discussions over the future of the African mall have been divisive. In one meeting in a gymnasium, Warsame asked neighbors to move to different sides of the room if they supported the project or not. Eventually, protesters shouted him and Mayor Jacob Frey out of the room.

Tim Mungavan, director of the West Bank Community

Development Corporation, said that safety and parking were two of neighbors’ main concerns.

“The danger of the development is that either it could remove all of that parking or even if it were replaced, make it prohibitively expensive for existing businesses, in which case they would be unable to continue to survive and therefore, dramatically change the character of the neighborhood,” Mungavan said.

Mungavan added that the neighborhood already has two African malls.

He said residents are concerned that another mall would attract the same crime and drug trafficking that the other malls have received.

“The management of those malls has been problematic,” Mungavan said.

Sherman said the plan includes two levels of underground parking with about 200 spaces.

If the project moves forward, Sherman said it would be owned by a nonprofit, which hasn’t been determined yet.

“We’ll have a community discussion about making sure that the communityowned the mall … [represents] the best interest of the tenants in the mall,” Sherman said.

CLA students petition for college to explore in-person graduation options

Students hope for in-person graduation ceremony.

By Nathanael Ashton-Piper nashtonpiper@mndaily.com After the University of Minnesota’s College of Liberal Arts announced that the 2021 commencement ceremony would be completely virtual, two students started a petition asking that the college gauge student interest for an inperson ceremony and make the option available for eligible graduates.

Fourth-year students Leah Schiffman and Morgan McElroy started the petition after reading Dean John Coleman’s March 11 email to CLA students announcing the virtual commencement ceremony would be held on May 16. The digital petition has garnered nearly 400 signatures as of April 3.

“The dean’s email did not indicate whether or not [CLA] had thought of ways to do an in-person commencement differently,” Schiffman said. “Nothing about this year has been normal, and I was shocked at the lack of creativity and even openness to trying something new.”

Schiffman added that after learning that

the Carlson School of Management and departments within the College of Science and Engineering would be hosting in-person events, she wanted to research and propose something that she thought could be safe for CLA. The Carlson School is tentatively planning to host an in-person commencement ceremony on May 17 at the 3M Arena at Mariucci, with virtual participation also available.

Every CSE department will host in-person celebrations for their graduates on May 8, 10, 11 and 12.

“We are not demanding an in-person ceremony as much as we are demanding that data be gathered,” McElroy said. “What we are asking for is the University to look at options, gather data and keep everyone in the loop on it — and that just has not been happening thus far.”

In response to the petition, Sara Danzinger, director of internal communications and media relations in CLA and a member of the college’s commencement committee, reiterated that the college will not be hosting any kind of collegewide in-person commencement ceremony.

She added that CLA is working with individual

departments that would like to hold smaller, inperson events.

“Although the state’s guidelines and restrictions may change by May 16, we cannot foresee what those changes could be and have to plan for the current situation,” Danzinger said in an email to the Minnesota Daily. “Though we appreciate a virtual ceremony may not be what some students and families hoped for, we are confident that we can provide a meaningful experience.”

CLA’s commencement committee began researching options for in-person and virtual commencement ceremonies several months ago, Danzinger said.

“We collaborated with other colleges on campus as well as possible venues such as Mariucci, TCF Bank Stadium and even the Minnesota State Fair Grandstand,” Danzinger said in the email.

Coleman’s email noted that approximately 2,600 CLA undergraduate and graduate students attend the commencement ceremony in a normal year, with around 20,000 guests in total attending the usual morning and afternoon ceremonies.

In coming up with the petition, Schiffman and McElroy contacted the dean’s office to gather

data on how many CLA students were eligible to graduate this spring.

That number is 4,722, according to the petition, meaning that around 55% of eligible graduates would be expected to attend a graduation ceremony.

McElroy noted that the ongoing pandemic would likely impact that number and possibly make it lower.

Given TCF Bank Stadium’s capacity of 50,805 attendees, the petition asserts that “[CLA] can safely seat 10,000 individuals” while being compliant with Gov. Tim Walz’s recent allowance of large, outdoor venues to host up to 10,000 people.

TCF was explored as an option, but factors like student safety, the cost of renting the stadium and the unpredictability of Minnesota’s weather in May ultimately ruled out the venue as a possibility,

Illustration by Mary Ellen Ritter Danzinger said.

“What is allowable as in-person commencement this May does not match up with what many people may be envisioning,” Danzinger said. “Processionals and recessionals, for example, are being strongly discouraged by the state.”

Though the commencement committee had been working on a solution for multiple months, McElroy said that communication between the college and students was lacking.

“There was never any information coming from CLA about what they were trying to do or about what was likely to happen,” McElroy said. “I thought the most realistic approach was that there would be a ceremony with no guests and we would at least be walking across the stage.”

Gabel talks UMPD’s involvement in policing Daunte Wright protests The Council will continue to reevaluate its partnership.

By Abbey Machtig amachtig@mndaily.com University of Minnesota President Joan Gabel discussed the recent police killing of Daunte Wright and responded to concerns about the campus police department’s involvement in the following protests in a virtual interview with the Minnesota Daily Wednesday.

Gabel also said the University’s Board of Regents would be revisiting

conversations around renaming campus buildings this summer and discussed the possibility of requiring students to be vaccinated against COVID-19 for the fall semester.

University of Minnesota Police Department officers were present in Brooklyn Center following the police shooting and killing of Daunte Wright. Students, including the Minnesota Student Association, have voiced concerns about the University’s involvement, as you announced last year that the University would no longer contract with the Minneapolis

President Joan Gabel poses for a portrait over Zoom on Thursday, Oct. 15. (Abbey Machtig / Minnesota Daily) Police Department aside from joint patrols and “investigations that directly enhance the safety of [the University] community.”

What is your response to these concerns? Does UMPD’s involvement with policing the recent protests contradict your

announcement from last year?

We think there is a misunderstanding because what we did last year was cancel some of our services with MPD. The joint command that brought us to Brooklyn Center does not include MPD; they are not

members. This work that we do in partnership with other agencies is a reflection of the fact that law enforcement is a community activity, and that doesn’t mean the community always likes it or agrees with it, and we are committed to evolving.

In immediate crises circumstances, it’s very common for one individual agency to need assistance from other agencies. We partner in order to make sure that we would have help when we need it, and that means we need to provide help when others need it.

But my promise, and my See GABEL Page 4

Daily Review

4 Monday, April 19, 2021

Gabel page 3

continuing promise, is related to the Minneapolis Police Department, and we have kept that promise.

Will the University stop responding to these types of requests in the future?

We have to think about what we would do in order to make sure we could respond to a crisis. Because of this advocacy, we’re doing a review right now to think about what alternatives we have. If there’s a viable way for us to assure our ability to engage in crisis response, then we would do it. But we’re going to do what we need to do to be prepared for a crisis and then be transparent about that.

How of

is the process adopting the

recommendations from Dr. Cedric Alexander’s safety report progressing?

We’re in the process of composing the M Safe Implementation Team that Dr. Alexander recommended; we’ve identified the chairs.

We’re also working with the Senate on the Campus Safety Committee that the Senate itself decided to do and thinking about how those two groups, the implementation group and then the Campus Safety Committee, work together.

That’s students, faculty and staff advising on what of the recommendations we ultimately implement. The members of that committee are also dealing with the effects of the Daunte Wright killing and other social questions that we have right now, so that may affect some of the pacing, faster and slower.

Several colleges and universities around the country, like Brown and Rutgers University, have announced that they will require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19 for the fall semester. Is the University considering this?

In the state of Minnesota, our law is different than in some of the states where the universities have already made this announcement.

For us, while the vaccine is still under emergency use authorization, we would not make it mandatory.

If and when the vaccine receives full [Food and Drug Administration] approval, then we would look at the legal environment. But at this point, there’s no plan to make it mandatory because it is not allowed. Were those circumstances to change, then we would do the review

and think about what that means for our campus.

Conversations around renaming campus buildings due to the histories of the people they were named after have started to reemerge around the University community. In addition to other activism from students, the student representatives to the board highlighted renaming buildings as a priority for the board in their report last month.

Why do you think larger conversations around this topic have not continued among administration?

We got right to work on that when I arrived [at the University], and we actually had been consulting widely. The thing that actually caused us to hit the pause button was not the

pandemic: It was George Floyd’s death. We were ready to go bringing [a policy] forward, but that felt fundamentally insensitive.

There was an awareness that the circumstances of his death and the calls for action afterwards highlighted for me that made me really want to think this through. Was this the right approach?

Was this renaming policy a reflection of everything that we want to do around all of the questions that relate to who we are and how we honor them? I wasn’t sure that was the case.

I hit a pause button so that I could think that through and so others who work on this, not just me, could think that through.

We’ve been changing what we originally proposed, and now it’s almost ready to be discussed publicly.

We think the timing is that that will be ready for discussion at the summer board retreat.

What is the process of developing a renaming policy like?

We talked to stakeholder groups and governance leadership, so students, faculty and staff.

We talked to, in this case, community stakeholders because there are a lot of people who are impacted and affected by this question. We did a lot of research on what other campuses were doing — and not just what they did but also what they chose not to do. There was a lot to inform us in both of those sides of the decision. And we were at the point of writing a proposal when George Floyd was killed, so that’s when we paused.

Biden’s American Rescue Plan to deliver $97 million in relief funds to University Approximately $40 billion is designated for higher ed.

By Abbey Machtig amachtig@mndaily.com Approximately $97 million in COVID-19 relief funding has been designated for the University of Minnesota as part of President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan Act, the largest amount of aid given to the University within a relief package during the pandemic.

Forty-eight million dollars of those funds will be delivered to eligible students through grants, while the remaining portions will support areas of the University experiencing lost revenue due to the pandemic.

Congress passed the plan, and the president signed it into action on March 11.

The plan designates nearly $40 billion in relief funds to higher education.

The distribution model is similar to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act package passed last year, which involved splitting the available funds into three categories for the school to allocate to students.

It is unknown when the University will gain access to the funds and begin distributing aid to students.

However, the University will receive guidance on these processes from the U.S. Department of Education.

The rescue plan encourages universities to use these funds to support students facing homelessness and food insecurity due to the pandemic.

The University, which experienced a $66 million budget deficit in fiscal year 2020, is now estimating a $170 million budget deficit for fiscal year 2021, said Senior Vice President for Finance and Operations Myron Frans. Although this additional funding from the government is helpful, it

only covers a small portion of the deficit, he said.

“The money that we’re getting from the federal government is helpful, but it will not solve the budget deficit for fiscal year ‘21 by itself,” Frans said.

“We’re going to have to use reserves and budget cuts to solve the overall problem.”

The increased funding is in recognition of the increased financial stress on universities due to the pandemic, said Craig Lindwarm, vice president of Governmental Affairs for the Association of Public & Land-Grant Universities.

The University will use the funds to offset financial losses in areas directly impacted by the pandemic, like tuition, housing, dining and parking. Funds can also be used to help pay for additional expenses as a result of the pandemic, like purchasing technology to support online learning, Frans said.

Illustration by Mary Ellen Ritter “Our challenge now is trying to figure out how we can equitably use this money, that doesn’t solve the entire deficit, but how do we use it to do the most good in the best possible way,” he said.

Lindwarm said there was a “clear congressional interest” in providing aid to students impacted by the pandemic, who may be from low-income families, or are experiencing food insecurity or homelessness.

The pandemic has exacerbated food insecurity

among students, said University student Trey Feuerhelm, co-director of the student organization Swipe Out Hunger.

Identifying students who are facing hunger can be difficult, as food insecurity looks very different for each person, he said.

“There’s no doubt that food insecurity has increased, just in general, but taking it at that college lens, most college students work in the service industry, working in those restaurants working in, you

know, maybe a bar or at a movie theater or things like that. Those industries were completely obliterated, and they still are. So in terms of college students, the need has only gotten worse.”

Homelessness has been a long-standing issue for students in Minnesota, said Ann Masten, a professor in the College of Education and Human Development who researches homelessness.

“In Minnesota, as in many states, students of color are overrepresented among young people experiencing homelessness – students at disproportionate risk in Minnesota schools are African American, Indigenous and Hispanic,” Masten said in an email to the Minnesota Daily. “The safety nets we have for poverty, housing stability, mental health care, and for children and families in general have big holes – the American Rescue plan appears to take important steps toward fixing some fundamental problems.”

University community presses for change after court rules “voluntarily intoxicated” rape victims are not “incapaciated” He2We pushes for updates to state constitutions.

By Kyra Barbot & Ava Thompson kbarbot@mndaily.com, athompson@mndaily.com

Editor’s note: This article discusses sexual harassment. If you or anyone you know has experienced sexual harassment, the Aurora Center’s 24-hour helpline can be reached at (612) 626-9111.

University of Minnesota students, along with surrounding community members, are calling for change in response to the Minnesota Supreme Court’s decision to overturn a felony sexual assault conviction in a case involving a woman who was sexually assaulted.

A jury found Francios Momolu Khalsis guilty of a third-degree criminal sexual conduct charge for raping a woman. The Minnesota Supreme Court overturned the charge on March 24, ruling that because the woman was “voluntarily intoxicated,” she did not meet the state’s definition of “mental incapacitation” to pursue the charge.

In May 2017, a woman attempted to enter a Dinkytown bar with her friend, but were turned away for being too intoxicated, according to court documents.

Afterwards, a group of men invited them to a “party,” though there was none. Instead, the men

drove them to a house in north Minneapolis. After the woman blacked out on a couch in the living room, she woke up to Khalsis raping her.

The decision sent shock waves across the state as many responded with outrage and disappointment.

In response, the University’s Minnesota Student Association created a resolution to voice support for the passage of a bill that would expand the definition of “mental incapacitation” to include “voluntarily inebriated” victims. The proposed law would state that even those who have voluntarily consumed drugs or alcohol would be unable to consent to sex.

The MSA resolution received over 1,000 cosponsors spanning faculty, students, student groups and alumni.

“I know many of us, particularly in this advocacy sphere, were very upset and disheartened by what happened ...”

Margaux Granath, a resolution co-author and MSA’s Campus Life Committee director, said at a MSA forum meeting on March 30. “But knowing that there is hope and it is to change this policy, and that we have the means to do that is really powerful.”

MSA has previously advocated for the expansion of a medical amnesty bill that would extend protections from underage alcohol consumptions to victims and reporters of sexual assault.

“I think part of this larger idea is that there are so many structural barriers in our culture about people who are assaulted coming forward and reporting their assault and finding justice ...” said Sam Parmekar, co-author of the resolution and the state government coordinator at MSA. “Reversing the [Minnesota] Supreme Court decision is also a part of creating that climate where we believe survivors.”

According to data from the 2018 College Student Health Survey report, 11% of women at the University reported being sexually assaulted within that year.

The survey did not report data for gender-nonconforming

Illustration by Motasem Kadadah individuals. Almost 26% stalking and harassment, of undergraduate women is seeing students navigate have experienced non- feelings of shock, anger consensual sexual contact and disappointment as they since entering the University, process the court’s decision. according to a 2019 report The Aurora Center from the Association of has observed an increase American Universities. in activism as students In a March 18 email to are becoming more the University community, involved in protesting and President Joan Gabel learning about lawmaking announced the launch processes, Katie Eichele, of an online education the center’s director, module that all employees said. The role of social and student workers must media has allowed for complete by May 27 as victims to share their a part of the President’s personal stories and to Initiative to Prevent increase public scrutiny Sexual Misconduct. on lawmakers. This ruling The Aurora Center for follows the momentum of Advocacy & Education, movements like #MeToo, a campus resource that which combat gendersupports survivors of abuse, based violence.

Madisyn Priestley, a second-year University student and a survivor of sexual assault, organized a women’s rights protest at the Capitol on March 29 in response to the court ruling. Starting with the creation of a flyer and sharing it via Snapchat, she was able to organize a protest with a couple hundred demonstrators in attendance.

“I think the more we talk about it and the more pressure we put on the more incentives [lawmakers] have especially for change,” Priestley said. “So I am hopeful, and I hope [survivors] are hopeful as well, because losing hope kind of means losing indefinitely.”

The protest served as a safe space for sexual assault survivors to share their stories, Priestley said.

Many found solidarity, not only in the feelings of hurt and anger towards the court ruling, but also in their shared hope for change.

While there may be fear of reporting sexual assault on campus, Eichele said she has hope that there will be revisions to the language of the law.

“Our hope is that very soon the language of the statute will change rather quickly because there is public awareness of it and there is bipartisan support ...” Eichele said. “The statute should not deter a victim survivor who’s experienced violence from reporting the crime.”

5 Monday, April 19, 2021

FASHION

‘Ride the wave or drown in it’

Water Wave TV transformed into a local arts phenomenon.

By Jarrett George-Ballard

jgeorgeballard@mndaily.com

Three friends created a local phenomenon that’s a one-stop shop for vintage clothing, shoes, music, podcasts and events.

Water Wave TV is a vintage clothing and shoe store where customers can buy, sell and trade their clothes and shoes. There’s also an on-site recording studio, home to Water Wave’s weekly “Freestyle Fridays,” a chance for people to come into the booth to record unscripted freestyles.

Kelvin Kuria, Eric Geisthardt Jr. and Elliott Kerby are the creators of Water Wave TV. They’ve been friends for four years since they met at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.

The owners take pride

in the work they’ve put in to create a multifaceted store that focuses on all forms of entertainment.

“Water Wave TV is the number one source for Minnesota music, culture and we’re here to help expand Minnesota’s culture while we give back to the community,” Geisthardt Jr. said. Kuria said they’re the “number one platform for creativity, talent and entertainment.”

Water Wave TV has been in business at their Southeast Como location for six months now. Opening the store had been their collective dream since college.

Originally, they wanted an office space for their studio and podcast, but when they were able to find a space where they could open a storefront, Kerby said it was “divine intervention.”

“Back in the day, we used to interview musicians at our place, and our roommates would have no idea what we were doing or what Water Wave was.

But we’ve always thought

long-term in our goals to advance the brand,” Kuria said.

The trio opened the store because they wanted to bring a friendly and welcoming culture to the people who live in Como and the surrounding Twin Cities area. This brand’s identity is rooted in their ideas to create their own wave and way of doing things — hence the name.

Similar to Mr. Miyagi’s “wax on, wax off” teaching method, there is a method to the madness of the Water Wave TV creators, said Geisthardt Jr. “Water is the new wave and you gotta ride the wave or drown in it,” he said.

Water Wave TV gets its name from Geisthardt Jr. and his friends trying to promote a healthy lifestyle through eating properly and drinking water.

“It was really random.

When I was a senior in high school, me and my friends wanted to get in good shape for the summer and we started saying, ‘Water is

Left, Co-owner Kelvin Kuria pets Suki, the store pup, at Water Wave TV on Friday, April 2.

Right, Co-owner Eric Geisthardt Jr. organizes racks on Friday at Water Wave TV. (Emily Pofahl / Minnesota Daily) the new wave,’ which is the and doing videography for social media and people origin,” Geisthardt Jr. said. free for artists of all kinds. would view us as the hub “But, the name officially Before having a store- for local talent,” Kerby came together when I was front, the creators made said. “Afterward, we startin a business law class, and it their business to give ed hosting local events that I’d doodle in class because back to the community showcased Minnesota’s it was boring. Afterward, before they “made it” and local talent and we took it I wound up going to the organized the Summer from there.” computer lab to create the Szn Concert in Mankato.

The guys at Water Wave Water Wave logo and the This concert, which they TV emphasized the imshit looked and sounded hosted in 2019, showcased portance of helping local cool.” local musicians, and all creators grow because in When Water Wave TV proceeds were donated to return it’ll help them grow became an official store- the Boys & Girls Club of their business, said Kerby. front, profit took a back- Mankato.

“Drink more water and seat to getting their name “We would post you know the waves, … out there, hosting events Minnesota rappers on that’s our saying.”

SKATING

Skate crew Femme Fatale welcomes all

Femme Fatale is creating a supportive place for all skaters.

By Grace Davis gdavis@mndaily.com Despite what you might see on social media and at your local skate parks, not all skaters are just dudes who wear Dickies and Vans.

There is a whole community of dope women, trans and nonbinary skaters, and lately they’ve been making waves in the Minneapolis skate scene.

Femme Fatale is a skateboarding crew that organizes meetups for mostly women, trans, nonbinary and queer skaters in the Twin Cities. The group started in 2017 when local skaters who weren’t part of the male-dominated majority at skate parks decided to band together and create their own community within the larger skateboarding community.

“You would see another girl or nonmale; it was like a magnet. You would run up to each other and be like, ‘Oh my god, who are you? Like, how long have you been skating?

Can I get your number,’” said Jenny Johnson, one of the founders of Femme Fatale.

As skaters of all different

levels looked to join Femme Fatale, the group began looking for more time to meet without nonmembers present.

Familia, a Minneapolis skate shop and park, allowed the group to use the park for themselves for Sunday night skate sessions.

“The people at Familia were super cool about it, just really stoked to see more girls coming out. They let us do after-hours sessions on Sunday nights,which was a huge blessing,” Johnson said. “It’s usually like $500 to rent out the park, and they were like, you just do five bucks a person. If it wasn’t for that, like, I feel like Femme Fatale might not have grown.”

With the consistently scheduled Sunday night sessions, the group has been able to grow quite a following. An early member of the group, Victoria Turcios, said she is extremely appreciative of the group’s accepting atmosphere.

“The gals took me in like family. We all created a safe space to enjoy the sport, whether it was at Familia or other skate parks. It was never exclusive. We didn’t even exclude anyone identifying as masculine/male — all we wanted was people with good vibes and respect for each other,” Turcios said.

Johnson is passionate about skating and how it can change people’s lives.

She didn’t necessarily have much of an idea for the group’s direction when it first began, but she has worked tirelessly over the past couple of years, growing Femme Fatale into the community it is today.

“It was a lot less in the first couple years because there were maybe 100 followers. So it was like, we had a consistent thing where … we’d be going to Familia Sunday night, or we might do a ‘watch ‘Skate Kitchen’ on this date’ event,” Johnson said.

Growing that community has been so rewarding, Johnson said, but dealing with the stigma around nonmale skaters hasn’t always been easy for her and the rest of the group.

“My friend had really bad interactions in the community when working at a skate park with the comments she would get speculating how she got the job and at times a complete disregard for her authority,” she said.

Johnson also mentioned that when looking at popular skateboarding Instagram accounts, like the Berrics, there’s bound to be comments saying, “saying she only got posted because she’s hot,” negating the fact

Top, Skater Jenny Johnson “rocks to fakie” on a ramp in Merriam Skate Park on Wednesday, March 31. Johnson is one of the founding members of Femme Fatale, a skate group for women, trans, nonbinary and queer skaters.

Bottom, Jenny Johnson prepares to ollie in Merriam Skate Park on Wednesday.

(Emily Urfer / Minnesota Daily) that women skaters can establish themselves in the industry through their style or skill.

Above all though, for Femme Fatale member Leah Rezac, the group has done more than just create a welcoming community — it’s made her a better skater.

“The feeling of skating with such supportive and loving people is so awesome, and I really feel like it’s helped to boost my confidence and skating abilities.”

MUSIC

Local creatives drop music series, spotlight local artists Mark Khan’s Rejected Sound gives artists a new platform.

By Nina Raemont

nraemont@mndaily.com

It’s been a busy year for Minneapolis-based creative director and photographer Mark Khan. Khan has orchestrated a virtual art gallery to showcase his art, dropped a clothing line of his own and had his stunning photography featured in the Coffman Art Gallery on the University of Minnesota campus.

With every additional project you’d think he’d give himself a break, but his work continues nonetheless.

Khan’s newest project, Rejected Sound, brings together local musicians

and listeners through DJ sets posted to his website and YouTube, as well as curated playlists music lovers can enjoy throughout the summer.

The first installment dropped on April 10 and spotlighted DJ and music producer Kwey.

COVID-19 hasn’t stopped Khan from creating artistic and captivating environments viewers and listeners can take advantage of. While many were still sheltering at home in July, Khan curated a virtual gallery that gave people the art gallery fix they had been missing since museums shut down.

Rejected Sound is yet another project that will provide listeners with a unique online experience while we all wait for our favorite venues to reopen.

“I’m just hoping it brings

Rejected Sound creator Mark Khan and filmmaker Justin “jojo” Ofori-Atta pose for a portrait at the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden on Saturday, April 10. Rejected Sound made its debut Saturday and will serve as a platform to showcase the talents of various DJs and artists. (Jasmine Webber / Minnesota Daily) us together,” Khan said about his new project and connecting the various Twin Cities artistic communities.

Khan’s idea for Rejected Sound began as a playlist of songs that would accompany his brand.

Instead of keeping it as a playlist, he decided to go bigger and employ local artists to make 45-minutelong DJ sets.

Future episodes will host other local DJs, like ech0astral and Kaya Morris,

and will roll out throughout the coming months with more episodes slated for the summertime.

It’s been a rough year for local music. The first episode with Rejected Sound is the first time Kwey has DJed in over a year.

“Even prepping for the set, I was like, ‘Dang, I miss this feeling of digging for songs and listening to music,’” he said.

As the summer months inch closer and more Minnesotans get vaccinated, Khan and his team hope that these sets can be played at outdoor gatherings and bring the Twin Cities arts community together after a year of isolation.

Filmmaker Justin “jojo” Ofori-Atta, a videographer and editor for the project, said that he’s looking forward to having these sets

playing in the background while he’s at home and eventually gathering with others to listen to them as well.

“We can continue to keep making episodes for artists to come on and have an opportunity to showcase their art and their talent, and then eventually when things open up, we could have an event,” Ofori-Atta said.

With Rejected Sound, Kwey said that more undiscovered talent would be brought to light and recognized by local listeners.

“There are people who actually get a chance to showcase their skills and hear music that people may have never heard before and just keep that chain going,” Kwey said. “There’s a lot of talent in the Cities, like crazy talent.”

6 Monday, April 19, 2021

EXHIBIT

Grad student curates Indigenous canoeing communities exhibit “Why Canoes?” brings attention to Indigenous watercraft.

By Frankie Carlson fcarlson@mndaily.com To Jacob Bernier, a University of Minnesota graduate student, canoes carry not only passengers’ weight but also the weight of history.

“They have carrying capacity, and not just in the physical sense. They have the ability to teach and to help people to learn,” Bernier said. “That’s been something that’s been going on for millennia and will continue to do so. As long as there are people there will be canoes.”

Bernier is one of the student curators behind the newest exhibit at the Northrop Gallery “Why Canoes?,” an installment focusing on the function and cultural significance of Indigenous watercraft.

The exhibit highlights three Indigenous canoeing communities based around the Minnesota area and the work they are doing in canoe revitalization.

Representing the Dakota, Ojibwe and Micronesian communities, the exhibit showcases the ways these groups are participating in not only the historical study of canoes but also in the contemporary construction and use of them.

Along with Bernier, the exhibit was co-curated by American Indian Studies professor Dr. Vicente Diaz and former University student Chrissy Goodwin.

The exhibit will remain available to the public through the end of the fall 2021 semester. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m.

Bernier is looking forward to the exhibit as an opportunity to highlight the work being done in partnership with the three communities.

“Honestly, everything has to start with a conversation. Speaking with different members of each community, [we are] just trying to have a better understanding of where they’re at with their revitalization efforts,” Bernier said. “Personally, I feel this exhibit has helped highlight what these communities are doing, and the work that communities

are putting in to learn from each other.”

Much of the research used for the exhibit was based on work being done by the Native Canoe Program through their partnership with Indigenous communities. Founded and directed by Diaz, the group uses traditional Indigenous watercraft to advance community-engaged research, teaching and service.

Having worked closely with Diaz during his coursework in American Indian Studies, Bernier was inspired by the hands-on study of canoes that Diaz’s courses introduced him to.

“Jacob really threw himself into the material that we were looking at,” Diaz said. “He’s the kind of person that likes to be outside, he likes to work with his hands, and so it’s not surprising that he really took to the communities that were involved in canoe building.”

This appreciation for Bernier’s work ethic is echoed by University architecture professor and producer of “Why Canoes?”

Greg Donofrio. He believes Bernier has helped create an experience that offers a valuable look into the lives

and practices of local canoe communities.

“Part of what this exhibit tries to do is to understand what a canoe might mean from an Indigenous perspective,” Donofrio said. “It’s something much more than just a boat. It’s something that might be hard for many of us to understand but it’s [the exhibit] an incredible opportunity to try to see the world through a different set of eyes.”

For his final project in his Heritage Studies and Public History coursework, Bernier is working to create an online representation of “Why Canoes?” to be captured on a 360-degree camera.

This virtual exhibition is set to be added to the Northrop website by the end of this semester.

“Honestly, it’s hard to try to really accurately represent [the importance of canoes to Indigenous communities] in an exhibittype form because things are always changing. Work is constantly being done,” Bernier said. “To try to capture something in one picture or paragraph just is not enough. But we did do our best.”

A canoe sits on display in the new “Why Canoes?” exhibit located in the Northrop gallery on Tuesday, April 13. The exhibit was curated by University of Minnesota graduate student Jacob Bernier, American Indian Studies professor Dr. Vicente Diaz and former University student Chrissy Goodwin. (Alexa Lewis / Minnesota Daily)

Photos and information about “Why Canoes?” fills the walls in the Northrop gallery on Tuesday. (Alexa Lewis / Minnesota Daily)

ZINES

Revamping third wave feminism Local artists reflect on zines and inclusive feminism.

By Megan Phillips mphillips@mndaily.com Zines, defined as selfpublished works of art and writing, became popular in the early 1990s during what is known as the riot grrrl movement, a feminist movement that emerged from the punk music scene of Olympia, Washington.

Subjects of zines range from educational and informative to poetry or fiction or solely visual art. The Minneapolis zine community continues to create and distribute zines inspired in part by the riot grrrl movement’s ideals, with special emphasis on intersectionality and inclusivity.

For example, instead

of riot grrrl, some people have called for “riot ghouls” to emphasize the need for more inclusivity of nonbinary folx, Kate Kanfield, bassist of Minneapolis punk band VIAL, said.

K.T. Taylor, a Minneapolis digital artist, said zines remind people that anyone can make art with the resources they already have, and formal or special training isn’t necessary to make them.

Taylor created a zine project in 2020 titled “Not Alone, Never Was: A Penpal Zine 4 Rural Queers” that allowed queer people living in rural areas to connect in isolation.

Taylor said they drew inspiration for the project from rural queer communities in the 1960s and 1970s that also connected through similar zines and letterwriting projects.

allison anne’s zines lay out on display. (Photo Courtesy of allison anne) Gabby Coll, co-founder nonbinary and trans artists, of the Burn Something said accessibility is a big Collective, a collective part of the zine community. committed to the curation, “Historically speaking, publication and mentorship the art world has not been of Black, Indigenous and accessible to many folx people of color femme, unless you are cis, white

and educated through specific institutions,” Coll said.

Burn Something Collective hopes to provide access to art and zine resources previously not available to trans folx and folx of color.

“There are some really powerful artists making important work in this format,” Coll said.

Self-taught graphic designer and University of Minnesota graduate allison anne said they remember being exposed to zines in the late 90s and early 2000s after gaining internet access.

“I was just fascinated by all of it,” anne said.

In their mid-20s, anne started making zines, and they started making them regularly in the past year during quarantine.

They said making zines helped them overcome imposter syndrome as an

artist because zines aren’t meant to be perfect and instead are meant to create community.

“It’s an opportunity to share experiences, knowledge, different kinds of observations,” they said.

Aaron King, a Minneapolis zinester and previous co-organizer of Twin Cities Zine Fest, said zines are important because of the “low barrier to entry.”

“Some voices and ideas might not be accepted by larger publishing houses but still want to do that work and form a community,” King said.

Zine libraries continue to preserve zines.

Such libraries include Hennepin County Library, the Minneapolis Community and Technical College library, the University of Minnesota library and the recently established Aapli Library in northeast Minneapolis.

MUSIC

Review: Demi Lovato’s Dancing with the Devil Emotional piano ballads mix with upbeat pop and powerful vocals.

By Megan Phillips mphillips@mndaily.com Demi Lovato’s seventh album “Dancing with the Devil … The Art of Starting Over” gives her fans a glimpse into the struggles she faced in her private life, elaborating on her battles with addiction, relationships and fame.

Along with her new four-part docuseries on Youtube with the same name, Lovato has brought transparency in the music industry to a new level, sharing the story of her 2018 drug overdose and her lifelong struggle with mental illness and substance abuse.

The first part of the album is devoted to the theme of the singer’s rock bottom, beginning

with the piano ballad “Anyone” where Lovato grapples with her loss of faith. “Anyone” tells the story of Lovato realizing that nothing — alcohol, music, her imagination, stardom — will fix her problems. Lovato reveals in the docuseries that she wrote “Anyone” in the days leading up to her overdose.

These feelings of discontent quickly turn into life-threatening repercussions in the second and third tracks, “Dancing with the Devil” and “ICU (Madison’s Lullabye).” Lovato admits in “Dancing with the Devil” that she almost died because of her overdose and in “ICU (Madison’s Lullabye)” she makes a promise to her younger sister, “I’ll be there, don’t worry/ ’Cause I was blind, but now I see clearly/ I see you.” These lyrics are in reference to the singer’s temporary blindness she experienced upon initially

waking up in the hospital, leaving her unable to see her sister, according to the docuseries.

The second part of the album focuses on Lovato starting over, reflecting on her journey of self-love and discovery. Loneliness is a theme throughout the album with “The Art of Starting Over” expressing Lovato’s realization that no material thing or person will help her on this journey, especially not a man. She sings that the woman in her “Does not cry/ For a man who is a boy and he does not deserve this.” In “Lonely People” Lovato reminds her listeners that while loneliness is well, lonely, it is essential to becoming happier and healthier.

This doesn’t mean friends are not important, however. Lovato makes this clear on “My Girlfriends Are My Boyfriends,” featuring Saweetie, where Lovato emphasizes the

Illustration by Mary Ellen Ritter high place her girlfriends hold in her heart. Why waste your time crying over boys when you could hang out with your friends?

While the lyrics lack cleverness and wordplay, the song is catchy enough to earn a spot on any hot girl summer playlist.

Similarly, Lovato’s collaboration with Ariana Grande in “Met Him Last Night” is nothing surreal in terms of lyrical genius, but fans who have been charmed by a deceiving

man before will be able to relate. Grande’s feature is sure to bring this track to the forefront of radio hits with its satisfying mix of Grande and Lovato high notes.

Alongside these lighter pop tracks, the lyrics of “Melon Cake” are a punch to the gut about Lovato’s struggles with eating disorders and maintaining the unrealistic image of Hollywood. She reveals that she’s witnessed someone getting fired for

“chocolate in the back seat” and in a tender moment she apologizes to her younger self for what she’s been through, including depriving herself of birthday cake each year.

Overall, the album delivered on its title, featuring Lovato’s reflection on relapsing and accepting help along with her journey to selfmade happiness. This is one of Lovato’s best albums in terms of lyrics with raw moments on tracks such as “Anyone,” “Melon Cake” and “ICU (Madison’s Lullabye).” The project benefits from the pop tracks dispersed throughout to serve as emotional relief from its harder hitting songs. Lovato has given us an in-depth look at her thoughts and insecurities and many listeners will see themselves inside, reminding them that although they might be lonely, they’re not alone.

Grade: B+

Editorials & Opinions

7 Monday, April 19, 2021

CARTOON BY NATALIA POTERYAKHIN

In Memory of Daunte Wright.

COLUMN

Mutual aid is the path forward Put your money (or groceries, spare time or supplies) where your mouth is.

T

he world is Emily Eaton watching as columnist Minneapolis further def ines itself as a hot spot for police brutality and racial discrimination. I don’t blame you for feeling hopeless in the face of Daunte Wright’s killing and Derek Chauvin’s trial.

Posting on social media and spreading awareness is important, but it is not a solution. More than 28 million people posted black squares on Instagram in June, but it didn’t allow advocates to take up space in a meaningful way. But being on the frontlines isn’t always an option, especially when police are firing rubber bullets and tear-gassing citizens.

The state is already working to subdue protesters by bringing in the National Guard and implementing a curfew. Fighting injustice of any kind can seem like a two-way street: You can spread awareness, or you can show up in person. Mutual aid is the crucial third option that allows us to enact serious, long-term solutions while suppor ting communities in need.

Mutual aid is almost exactly what it sounds like: It is a way of working together to respond to a community’s needs. Unlike charity or volunteer work, there is no singular benef iciary; therein lies the unique beauty of mutual aid work — it is reciprocal.

It is as simple as driving a friend to the airport with the understanding that they will drive you the next time you’re leaving town. By taking a little bit of time to help the other person, you each get something you need in return.

Mutual aid has been around for a long time, from factory-based organizations of the 18th century to the Black Panthers and even modern-day COVID-19 support. Programs often function within a larger network. The foundation of mutual aid is the symbiotic person-to-person exchange, but it expands upward to neighborhoods suppor ting other neighborhoods and beyond. The United States and Canada actually have a mutual aid agreement in place in case of

natural disasters.

It doesn’t just work as a short-term support system. When successfully implemented over time, mutual aid can supersede the importance of institutions within a community. As Nonprofit Quarterly explains, “Wellresourced, empowered communities don’t need well-endowed institutional gatekeepers.” By redistributing wealth within a community instead of allowing an external charitable organization to do so, people can more effectively target areas of need and improve the overall quality of life.

Mutual aid can take the form of contributing medical supplies, groceries or clothing. It can mean providing transportation or offering to watch a neighbor’s children. On a college campus, it might look like walking a friend home at night or donating meal plan swipes through the Swipe Out Hunger program. And, in the era of COVID-19, it can mean providing funds for mutual aid networks.

Unlike donating to larger charities, with mutual aid, you know exactly where your money is going and for whom it is being used. In the wake of the Daunte Wright protests, Brooklyn Center High School set up a food and supply drive. The support was so overwhelming that the school temporarily stopped accepting donations, though it now accepts donations again.

Paige Ingram, a Brooklyn Center

resident, took this moment to set up a new mutual aid fund for the community.

“I’m focused on direct giving to folks that are really living in these apar tment complexes facing that building and who haven’t been able to get any sleep for the last couple of nights,” she said in an interview with Sahan Journal. Ingram set up a GoFundMe to pay for the support residents need, hoping to raise $5,000. As of midnight on April 14, that GoFundMe page has raised nearly $67,000.

Mutual aid works because it isn’t one size fits all. It allows for differences in communities and for people to contribute in various ways and pushes for outcomes that pertain specifically to their community.

Protesting is important, but no one can go out and do it every day. Mutual aid work allows for peaceful protests to occur while supporting communities in broader and more versatile ways. Most importantly, it has the potential to bring about positive, permanent change.

Emily Eaton welcomes comments at eeaton@mndaily.com

COLUMN

The filibuster or progress. Pick one.

The progress of Biden and the Democrats hinges on the removal of the filibuster.

L

Zach Courtney et ’s star t here: columnist Jo e B i d e n d e serves some credit. He garnered just enough support in the Senate to pass a wildly popular $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill.

This bill is great, especially the expansion of the child tax credit (which functions as a basic income for parents) that will cut child poverty in half for a year. And just this past Wednesday, Biden released a $2 trillion proposal focused on infrastructure and climate, what his administration is calling the “American Jobs Plan.” It calls for additional spending on roads, bridges, housing, high-speed broadband, clean drinking water and more.

This would be offset by an increase in the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%, among other changes. It also calls for the passage of the Protecting

the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, a prounion bill.

Biden has a slew of policies on the docket that he has expressed support for: the For the People Act (commonly referred to as HR1), the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and part two of his infrastructure bill, which will focus on the “human infrastructure” (child care, universal pre-K, free community college and more).

If you think this all sounds great, you’re right. It would make massive strides in providing education to everyone, primarily from ages 4 to 20.

It would create jobs and combat the threat of climate change. It’s all for nothing, however, if the Senate doesn’t remove its filibuster rule.

“Zach, what the heck is a filibuster?”

Twenty years ago, that’d be a common response to my headline and previous sentence. Now, however, most of you have probably heard of this odd Senate rule. Using the filibuster, any senator can object to ending debate and moving a bill to a vote. If three-fifths of the 100 senators — so 60 — vote to end the debate, then the bill can move forward to a vote.

Senators adopted the tactic to ensure seemingly endless debate, a hallmark of the Senate as a whole. If a senator wants to debate a bill, they are free to do so. However, the massive downside is that they now abuse this rule to the point where 60 votes are needed to pass most legislation in the Senate.

One exception is the American Rescue Plan Act, President Biden’s relief bill,

which passed through the budget reconciliation process, a special procedure that allows bills that only impact the budget to be brought to a vote with just 50 votes. This process can only be used a limited number of times per year and can only be used on things that impact the budget. For example, the minimum wage increase to $15 an hour was ruled ineligible through the budget reconciliation process.

So, Senate Republicans can hold up most legislation from even coming to a vote because of this weird Senate rule. This leaves the Democratic senators with a seemingly binary choice: Keep the filibuster and get nothing done, or remove the filibuster and get legislation passed.

The removal of the filibuster needs to happen soon before state Republicans can pass too much detrimental legislation. As Republicans at the federal level seem unwilling to govern, Republicans at the state level are pushing to make voting more difficult.

In Georgia, a bill that will restrict access to voting just passed, which a statement from Atlanta-based Delta Airlines says will, “Make it harder for underrepresented voters, particularly Black voters, to exercise their constitutional right to elect their representatives.”

This new law comes just months after the reliably red state went to President Biden and Senators Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, giving the Democrats control of both the White House and the Senate. Sen. Warnock sums up my thoughts on the issue

pretty well, saying, “We have to pass voting rights no matter what, and it’s a contradiction to insist on minority rights in the Senate while refusing to stand up for minority rights in the society.”

In my opinion, if the Senate Democrats fail to remove the filibuster and get meaningful legislation passed, it opens the door for the Republicans to gain the majority in either the Senate or the House in the midterm. If this happens, almost nothing will happen in the second half of Biden’s first term in office, leaving the door open for a Republican to win the White House in 2024. It seems like it should be an easy decision for the Senate Democrats, right?

Joe Biden needs to come out in favor of the removal, not reform, of the Senate’s filibuster, but that much is not enough. This comes down to the most moderate (I prefer to call them extreme) Senate Democrats like Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema. There are only two choices: the filibuster or progress. I hope they choose the latter.

Zach Courtney welcomes comments at zcourtney@mndaily.com.

Editorials & Opinions

8 Monday, April 19, 2021

COLUMN

Voluntary and involuntary Laws cannot be enforced if they don’t yet exist.

Editor’s note: This column Emily Eaton contains references to sexual assault. If you or someone columnist you know is a survivor of sexual assault, you can seek help at the Aurora Center at (612) 626-9111 or at RAINN at (800) 656-4673.

L

et’s play a game.

What judicial body punishes the possession of 42.5 grams of marijuana more seriously than the rape of a voluntarily intoxicated person?

If you answered, “What is the Minnesota Supreme Court?” you’d be correct.

On March 24, 2021, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that a man cannot be charged with felony rape when the victim chose to drink beforehand. Read that again. The Minnesota Supreme Court has equated voluntary intoxication with consent. Don’t just cover your drinks at the bar, ladies. It’s safer to set them down entirely, lest you experience a traumatic event and have your pain go unrecognized and the perpetrator

unpunished because you chose to order a rum and Coke at Sally’s.

Sexual assault is rampant in higher education: At least 26.4% of undergraduate women across the country will report being raped or assaulted during their time on campus, according to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN). The blurry line between voluntary and involuntary intoxication doesn’t help. Should women avoid tailgates and fraternity parties for fear of being called on to play beer pong or boom cup, or God forbid, someone ask them to take part in a shotski? Drinking is a component of college culture, whether we like it or not. Blackout or backout is an unhealthy mindset, but choosing to do so shouldn’t mean that a perpetrator walks free.

The Supreme Court decision is only enforcement of an already cataclysmic law. A bill was put forth in 2019 to make voluntary drunkenness grounds for felony rape charges, but all that came from it was a study group. The result of the study is a new bipartisan bill in the Minnesota House of Representatives that modifies and clarifies criminal sexual conduct.

Still, the Minnesota Supreme Court’s interpretation of what mental incapacitation entails will only shrink the already low numbers of victims who actually turn to the authorities for support. The odds are against rape survivors from the beginning. According to RAINN, 70% of rape victims experience moderate to severe psychological distress in the aftermath — a higher percentage than for any other violent crime. Victims of rape are 13 times more likely to commit suicide than noncrime victims, like sex workers and recreational drug users. And, only 4.6 out

of every 1,000 perpetrators of sexual assault are incarcerated. In fact, more robbers go to jail than rapists. We would rather punish those who steal our belongings than those who take our autonomy, safety and peace of mind.

The decision came down to the definition of mental incapacitation in the law. The Supreme Court argued that the lower court that convicted the perpetrator, Francois Momolu Khalil, previously had stretched the definition too far. The new ruling defines “mental incapacitation” in Minnesota as only referring to intoxication against one’s will or knowledge. Justice Paul Thissen explained that decisions cannot be made based on “what we may wish the law was” and must rely on the law as it is written.

The solution here is clear: Minnesota legislators must amend the law to protect those unable to give consent. Perpetrators of sexual violence on intoxicated victims must be held accountable to the fullest extent — an individual’s decision to drink does not lessen the gravity of their crime. Through this decision, the Minnesota Supreme Court has excused perpetrators preying on young, drunk women. Enacting legislation, like the aforementioned bill sponsored by Rep. Kelly Moller DFL-Shoreview, would reverse that. By closing the voluntary intoxication loophole, Minnesota would empower survivors to tell their stories and ensure that perpetrators face the consequences of their actions.

We teach women to suffer in silence.

When they have the strength to come forward, the law needs to be there to support them. There is so much about this decision that angers me, from the gray areas to the victim-blaming and grammar discussions in the case notes.

However, what upsets me the most is

knowing that a young woman had to sit and watch her alleged rapist get let off easy.

Emily Eaton welcomes comments at eeaton@mndaily.com.

COMMUNITY COLUMN

The anatomy of a scandal: How leadership handles a crisis The concern is not that controversies occur. That is the norm of human existence.

By Arne Carson

T

hroughout our history, we have assigned our colleges and universities a special place in our expectations of the American Dream. It was actually not until the close of World War II with the passage of the GI bill that the doors of our academic institutions would be truly open to all.

With that elevated status in our society also comes the responsibility to live up to the most exacting standards of excellence in all endeavors.

Tragically, that has not been the case in recent years at the University of Minnesota. The concern is not that problems and controversies occur. That is the norm of human existence. Rather, the test is how leadership handles each crisis. For instance, when President Eric Kaler assumed the reins in July 2011, he inherited an ongoing scandal involving the gross misuse of patients for commercial testing of drugs.

One such patient died. However, instead of investigating for the truth and seeking reform, he went along with the coverup.

After considerable news coverage and public controversy, two professional reports were published in 2015 highly

critical of the administration’s management. The Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs leveled harsh criticisms in an external review that included poor training of researchers, inadequate scientific review of research projects and an intimidating environment described as a “culture of fear.”

Several weeks later, the Minnesota Legislative Auditor conf irmed those findings, also citing “numerous conflicts of interest” and “potentially coercive” recruitment practices when searching for patients to take these experimental drugs.

The same administrative inclination toward coverup occurred again when a celebrated faculty member was arrested on December 26, 2018 for “domestic assault by strangulation” and, in the month prior, was in court for financially deceiving his ex-wife in a divorce settlement.

Reports now emerging indicate that the University may have begun an investigation into the professor’s misappropriation of some $30,000 in University funds as early as 2017. However, neither the Board of Regents or the Hennepin County Attorney appeared to be informed, although the theft involved a felony. Further, Minnesota Statutes 609.456 clearly state that “evidence of theft, embezzle or unlawful use of public funds” must be reported to the Legislative Auditor. That also did not take place. Clearly, the goal was to keep the matter as quiet as possible.

In July 2019, President Kaler retired and the Presidency was assumed by Joan Gabel, an attorney by training.

That same month, KSTP TV broadcast their investigatory report on those “unchecked expenses” and Regent Michael Hsu, when interviewed and reacting

to hearing of this scandal for the first time, declared that the University had a “culture of noncompliance.” Certainly, considering the recent past, that is not an unreasonable observation. Further, as a public servant, Regent Hsu was obligated to be truthful with the media.

Under no circumstance would it be acceptable for him to be a party to improper or illegal attempts to suppress the truth.

However, Board Chairman Kendall Powell and Vice Chair Steven Sviggum had an opposite view. They wrote a blistering letter to Hsu criticizing his lack of judgment and proceeded to work toward his removal from the Board.

Powell and others on the Board decided to employ the use of the highly political Maroon and Gold PAC which presented itself as a lobbying aid for the University although the University refused to give it authorization. They donated more than $8,000, and the PAC received another $10,000 from the recently retired President Kaler who presided over the gross mismanagement of the scandal. And the Maroon and Gold PAC diligently pursued its prime mission — lobbying the Legislature to remove Regent Hsu from the Board. They succeeded.

Meanwh i l e, D o e r i n g pl e d g u i l t y t o d o m e s t i c a s s a u l t a n d , i n Ju n e 2019, was sentenced to six months at the Hennepin County Workhouse.

However, during this time, he was permitted to be on paid leave thereby collecting full salary and benefits. Further, instead of dismissal, he was permitted to resign that November.

According to the prevailing powers at the University, it would appear that the real villain was not the person who brutally attacked several women and stole money but rather the Regent who broke

the implied code of silence.

As noted in the letter sent to the Legislative Auditor, standards of ethics and appropriate behavior are far more stringent for students than leaders. Perhaps the Legislative Auditor would suggest that University leadership live by the same rules and expectations they impose on others.

This OpEd essay was submitted by Arne Carlson, who served as the governor of Minnesota from 1991 to 1999.

This OpEd essay has been lightly edited for style and clarity.

CARTOON BY NATALIA POTERYAKHIN

That music video was a cultural reset. Thank you for cleansing 2021, king.

Sports

9 Monday, April 19, 2021

WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS

Gophers place 4th in semifinals Ona Loper achieves a total of 39.6375 in the all-around.

By Michael Lyne mlyne@mndaily.com The No. 8 Gophers women’s gymnastics team finished in fourth place in the semifinal of the NCAA championship on Friday evening, signaling the end to its historic 2021 season.

Although the meet was not what they hoped it to be, the Gophers scored a total of 197.1875, the highest score the program has ever produced at the NCAA tournament.

“We are just so proud of the way the team performed today and how they capped off a fantastic season,” Gophers head coach Jenny Hansen said.

“These are the best teams in the country, and we are among them. It was so exciting to be there tonight, and I am so glad our team got to experience this. They made their mark and set the stage for what is to come.”

The vault team kicked off the semifinal for the Gophers and got them off to a quick start, scoring a total of 49.3875.

However, the Gophers’ momentum faded away just as fast as it arrived after they suffered from two lower-scoring rotations on the bars and beam. By the fourth rotation on the floor, their deficit was too much to overcome.

Ona Loper’s

career performance Senior Ona Loper scored a career-best allaround total of 39.6375, placing her in fourth for the semifinal round.

“I am very excited and proud of how I performed today,” Loper said. “When I started the season, I tied my career high in the allaround at the first meet, and it was very exciting to break that in the last meet today. To be able to put everything together and have a performance like that at national championships is a dream come true.”

Loper’s superb performance that scored 9.9625 on the vault placed her in third and was the highlight of her allaround performance. She anticipated achieving this high score based on the way warm-ups went for her.

“Usually when I don’t do super good in warmups, I kind of have a feeling it’s going to be good,” Loper said. “Every time I’ve gotten a 10, I’ve usually fallen on my butt [in warmups] every single time.”

To round out Loper’s career day all-around performance, she scored 9.9250 on the floor and earned matching 9.8750s on the bars and beam.

“Ona was on fire,” Hansen said. “She had a phenomenal day.”

The seniors shined From the very start to the very end of the meet, the seniors, including Loper, showed up big time in every event for

the Gophers.

Lexy Ramler finished tied for 11th place in the all-around, totaling a score of 39.5625. Her best performance was on the beam, scoring 9.9250, which earned her a tie for fifth place. She went into the semifinal tied for first in the nation in the event.

Ramler came into the semifinal tied for second in the nation in the allaround with an average score of 39.660. While her total might have been lower than expected, Hansen had high praise for Ramler.

“She has been so perfect for so long,” Hansen said.

“I don’t know if it was the pressure coming in or the expectations. She was great. If this is an off night for Lexy, wow. She’s fantastic.”

To round out her allaround performance, Ramler scored 9.8875 on the bars, while earning matching 9.8750s on the vault and floor.

Bars specialist Hannah Willmarth earned the third-best score in the bars lineup, behind Ramler and Loper, scoring 9.8625.

Redshirt senior Mary Korlin-Downs proved once again why she is a beam specialist for the Gophers. She tied for fifth place alongside Ramler after scoring 9.9250.

Senior Lexi Montgomery also competed on the beam, scoring 9.7500 in a lineup that usually sees the most seniors of any event.

The Gophers floor team put on a show.

Ona Loper performs her balance beam routine at the Big Ten Women’s Gymnastics Championships at Maturi Pavillion on Saturday, March 20. (Shannon Doyle / Minnesota Daily) In the final rotation, the Gophers’ floor team closed things out with another fantastic performance, following up its Athens Regional Final score of 49.500 with a 49.4625.

Outside of Loper and Ramler, freshman Mya Hooten posted a massive

score of 9.9500. Hooten quickly established herself as a cornerstone in the floor lineup. Earlier this season, she scored a perfect 10, the first Gopher in program history to achieve this feat.

“She is absolutely amazing,” Loper said.

“Honestly, she’s more of a veteran than I am. I swear.

Watching her, she’s just so incredible.”

Sophomore floor specialist Mallory LeNeave and freshman Emily Koch rounded out the rotation, scoring 9.8750 and 9.8375, respectively.

SWIM & DIVE

Ganley calls it a career after a historic tenure Ganley retired from position as senior associate head coach.

By Tony Liebert tliebert@mndaily.com Redshirt senior diver Sarah Bacon swept both of the springboard diving events to claim her third and fourth career NCAA titles, and junior swimmer Max McHugh joined Bacon by sweeping 100- and 200-meter breaststroke events to earn two national championships of his own.

Following the historic success, longtime Gophers’ coach Terry Ganley announced her retirement on March 29, after 44 seasons.

Ganley, a Minneapolis native, began her career with the Gophers as a freshman swimmer in fall 1973 and has remained on campus since then.

Following her successful career as a studentathlete where she won multiple Big Ten titles, she began her coaching career under her college coach, Jean Freeman.

Associate head swimming coach Terry Ganley. Photo courtesy of Gopher Athletics.

“It was the very beginning of respect or value of women’s athletics,” Ganley said. “I had no idea at that time that we would get to a place where we have an opportunity for women that we do now.”

Ganley and Freeman led Gophers women’s swimming to nine secondplace finishes in the Big Ten conference between 1984 and 1998. They broke through in 1999, winning

their first conference title and repeating the following season. During the same period, Ganley coached Gretchen Hegener to the 1997 national title in the 100 breaststroke – the program’s first NCAA swimming champion.

“Gretchen was a local young athlete, and she came to Minnesota with very little competitive background,” Ganley said. “When you got a local Minnesota

athlete that performs on the national stage, wins the NCAA championship and sets an American record, obviously I guess that stands out.”

Ganley was named interim head coach following Freeman’s 2004 retirement. Ganley and current men’s head coach Kelly Kremer were then named co-head coaches of the women’s team; the men’s and women’s swimming and

diving programs merged in 2011, and Kremer was named the head coach, while Ganley continued in her role as women’s head coach. She later entered her current role as women’s and men’s senior associate head coach.

The program then entered a period of unrivaled success, winning four consecutive Big Ten championships from 2012 to 2015. Ganley was involved in developing three NCAA champions during that time, Jillian Tyler, Haley Spencer and Kierra Smith. Ganley ended her career like she started: coaching national champions. She guided McHugh’s development; McHugh won the NCAA title in the 100 and 200 breaststrokes in March and became the first men’s NCAA swimming champion in 57 years.

“I would say [Ganley] is the most caring coaching that I have ever had,” McHugh said. “She cared for me more as a person than as a swimmer. That was evident every day in practice.”

In last month’s championships, McHugh became the first swimmer in the Minnesota swimming

and diving program’s history to earn two titles in one NCAA championships event.

The junior Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, native finished the 200-meter breaststroke with a time of 1:49.02, marking the fifth-fastest time in history.

McHugh’s time also broke his own program record.

“I see my name on the board, and there is that initial excitement,” McHugh said. “But I think I kinda realized it on the plane ride back. I realized that it was the end of my season and a good way to cap it off.”

Bacon capped off her historic collegiate career with her first career NCAA title in the three-meter springboard and her third career title in the onemeter springboard. The Indianapolis, Indiana, native will join McHugh as two of the greatest to ever don the Maroon and Gold.

“I hope that I have helped build the foundation for a program that will continue to educate young men and women and really provide them with skills needed for success in life beyond competitive swimming and diving,” Ganley said.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Gophers add Bailey Helgren as graduate transfer Helgren will be playing for Minnesota in the next season.

By Tony Liebert tliebert@mndaily.com Gophers women’s basketball head coach Lindsay Whalen announced Saturday that 6-foot-5-inch post player Bailey Helgren will be

playing her final collegiate season for Minnesota after playing four seasons with Kansas.

Helgren, an Edina, Minnesota, native, played in 95 games throughout her four seasons with the Jayhawks. She averaged 2.6 points and 4.7 rebounds on 53.6% shooting in 21.1 minutes of action, with 72 starts. She appeared in the first seven contests of the 2020-21 campaign

before opting out of the remainder of the season.

“I’m so thankful for the opportunity to come play at home,” Helgren said in a statement. “Growing up I was always a fan of the Gophers, so it’s surreal to finish my career out playing for Coach Whalen and her staff. The people within the program make it special. I can’t wait to get on campus this summer.”

Earlier this week,

seniors Gadiva Hubbard and Laura BagwellKatalinich both announced their plans to return for an additional season. The move meant the Gophers will now return their entire roster from a season ago. Helgren will join a frontcourt that has a surplus of talent led by Kayla Mershon, Klarke Sconiers and Grace Cumming. Her addition will provide a young

Minnesota team with another veteran presence in the locker room.

“We are thrilled to bring Bailey back home to our Minnesota women’s basketball family,” Whalen said in a statement. “Joining us as a graduate transfer, she will bring immediate experience and size to our roster. She is not only a great presence in the paint at 6-foot-5, but she

will be a great fit for our culture and growth of the program. We are looking forward to her joining us this summer.”

The Gophers 2021-22 schedule has yet to be finalized, although they’re scheduled to compete in the first-ever Women’s Battle 4 Atlantis. The early-season tournament will take place Nov. 2022 with some of the top programs in the country.

Sports

10 Monday, April 19, 2021

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Meet new basketball coach Ben Johnson

Johnson brings a Minnesotaled initiative to the team.

By AJ Condon acondon@mndaily.com The University of Minnesota athletics department hired a new and energetic head coach Monday, who believes the Gophers men’s basketball program is a hidden gem just waiting for a jumpstart.

Minnesota native Ben Johnson is excited to be home and ready for the opportunity in front of him as the newly appointed head coach for the Gophers.

“This is a special day for me. I couldn’t be more excited to come home and to be home, and this is home. When you talk about a dream opportunity and a job — this is it, I’ve hit it,” Johnson said at his introductory press conference, which was held in person with a small group of media members — the only nonvirtual press conference

since the pandemic began.

The state of Minnesota is familiar with Johnson, who has spent much of his time with the Gophers.

Johnson transferred to Minnesota after playing two seasons with Northwestern. He finished his playing career as a two-time captain before graduating in 2005. After multiple assistant coaching positions, Johnson returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach under former Gophers head coach Richard Pitino from 201318.

When the phone rang about the job at Minnesota and Johnson answered the phone, he didn’t entirely know where the phone call was going to go. Fortunately, Johnson was welcomed with good news and his new life was ready to start.

“Thankfully, Mark [Coyle] and his staff had confidence in me and I’m here today and I couldn’t be more excited,” Johnson said.

Johnson brings a unique element to this Minnesota team, a team that has seen plenty of top in-state recruits defer to other programs.

Johnson is touted as an excellent recruiter, he’s a personable guy and he has a mission to turn this program around.

After joining Xavier as an assistant coach in 2018, Johnson helped lead the Musketeers to backto-back top-30 recruiting classes in 2019 and 2020.

Johnson also played a big hand in keeping former Gophers Amir Coffey and Daniel Oturu in state as well as current junior guard Gabe Kalscheur.

“Obviously, first and foremost, is to be able to do a good job within the state,” Johnson said of the importance of recruiting. “You’ve seen, over time, that we have a lot of talented players that understand how to play. We got to do our job, within the state, to keep those guys home.”

The 2022 class features three four-star recruits, including two in the

top-100 in the nation, according to 247Sports.

Though the upcoming season is Johnson’s primary focus, the upcoming recruiting class has plenty of talent for Johnson to make an early splash.

Johnson has constantly proved his ability to recruit and that it is going to be a top priority in his stint with Minnesota. In fact, Johnson didn’t waste any time in recruiting after receiving the job.

After being asked about when his first recruiting phone call would be, Johnson chuckled and replied, “We’ve already made those.” He said as soon as his plane landed in Minnesota and he got reception, he started making calls.

He knows that recruiting isn’t a oneperson job. Even when he was able to keep Coffey, Oturu and Kalscheur in state, he didn’t do it alone.

Johnson is going to lean on high school and AAU coaches and make them feel like they are a part of this program and school.

The Gophers have a lot of facilities that Johnson believes are a big plus for trying to bring in talent.

Johnson grew up loving Minnesota and watching the Maroon and Gold play in Williams Arena.

The atmosphere that the stadium brings in is one of a kind.

“It’s historic. There’s a lot of good players that have played on that court and that it’s special.

There’s a lot of magic still in there that we’re going to dig out,” Johnson said of the Barn.

Johnson has already met the team and even quoted Gophers’ football head coach P.J. Fleck when speaking about his players. He knows a change in head coach is never an easy transition.

Though some players have already entered the transfer portal, Johnson hopes he is able to keep the rest of the team at Minnesota and even convince those that entered the portal to reconsider.

“I’m gonna steal a line from P.J., ‘They didn’t

choose me, I chose them,’” Johnson said. “I’ve been in their position, and it’s tough. Especially when you come off a season where things didn’t go your way.”

University athletics director Mark Coyle is excited about what Johnson can bring to this team and this program.

He and his staff took a lot of time and effort into finding the best candidate for Minnesota, and they think Johnson is the right guy for the job.

It also helped Johnson’s case when he showed up for his interview, and was able to grab the attention of Coyle and President Joan Gabel.

“First off, he was very smart, he wore a Gopher polo which caught our attention right away, so great move on that side,’’ Coyle joked. “He laid out a very clear vision that we were going to compete at the highest level. His plan of recruiting the right type of kid, recruiting the in-state kid … He laid that out very clearly.”

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

Gophers win first match of NCAA tournament Minnesota takes down Georgia Tech in straight sets.

By Brendan O’Brien bobrien@mndaily.com The No. 3 seeded Gophers volleyball team came out with a three-set victory Thursday night against Georgia Tech in the team’s first match of the NCAA tournament.

Despite sweeping the Yellow Jackets, Minnesota was dealt with competitive sets to open the tournament, winning 25-19, 25-21 and 25-18.

Nevertheless, the Gophers found a groove offensively as the match continued and were able to advance to its sixth consecutive Regional semifinals appearance.

The Gophers were led by outside hitters Adanna Rollins and Taylor Landfair out of the gates, who each recorded four kills in the first set. Georgia Tech was able to get into a rhythm early in the set to apply the pressure on Minnesota, but Minnesota went on a run after a couple of blocks in a row by the Gophers.

Despite being Minnesota’s primary offensive option throughout the whole season, Big Ten Player of the Year Stephanie Samedy did not get her first kills until two of the final four points to close out the set.

Led by Mariana Brambilla, the Yellow Jackets came out with a strong second set to force a back-and-forth battle with the Gophers. Brambilla was the leader of the match in kills with 16 and caused

Gophers huddle to celebrate defeating Oral Roberts three sets to none at the Maturi Pavilion on Saturday, Sept. 21, 2019. (Kamaan Richards / Minnesota Daily) problems for the Gophers throughout each set.

“We knew Georgia Tech was going to be a really good team,” Rollins said.

“Our motto was the other team is trying to take something away from us, so we’re thinking that each point. That really helped us in the long run.”

But the Gophers’ trio of hitters also came out swinging and got into a groove as the match waned, as Samedy and Rollins finished with 13 kills apiece while Landfair added 11 in her first NCAA

tournament match. The final set began again as another close fight between Minnesota and Georgia Tech, but the Gophers hitting came alive and closed out the match on a 6-0 run, as Rollins terminated four of the final points.

“I thought [Rollins] was really good and steady in all phases of the game, but particularly strong on offense. She hit with a lot of good range, both in system and out of system,” Gophers head coach Hugh McCutcheon said.

Another player for the Gophers who appeared unphased by her tournament debut was setter Melani Shaffmaster.

In her fifth match back from injury, Shaffmaster dished out 32 assists and led the match with 16 digs along with a few tricky kills to give Minnesota key points in the match.

“It was a really good start in her first NCAA tournament. The team hit for a good number and she made really good choices, kept hitters in rhythm a lot and did a nice job,”

McCutcheon said.

Making it to this point is just scratching the surface of what the Gophers want to achieve this season, but given the odd circumstances of this season and this year’s tournament, McCutcheon is impressed with the squad’s resiliency throughout the year.

“I’m just really proud of how the team is managing the [different year]. There’s been nothing typical about this year. We reported in August and here we are still, playing some

really good volleyball at a time where we need to,” McCutcheon said.

Minnesota’s run at another Final Four and potentially its first national championship will continue on Sunday against the winner between Pittsburgh and Utah in the Regional semifinal round of the tournament. Utah came into the tournament as the No. 14 seed in the field, while Pittsburgh was one of the 32 unseeded teams in the field, having advanced past the first round by sweeping LIU.

MEN’S GYMNASTICS

Gopher senior Shane Wiskus wins the Nissen-Emery Award Wiskus is the fifth Gopher ever to win the Nissen-Emery.

By Michael Lyne mlyne@mndaily.com Gophers men’s gymnastics star Shane Wiskus won the 2021 Nissen-Emery Award, the College Gymnastics Association (CGA)

announced Thursday evening during the CGA Virtual Awards.

The CGA awards the Nissen-Emery Award to the best collegiate senior gymnast who also exemplifies good sportsmanship, fair play and maintains a high standard of scholarship throughout his college career.

“It’s just a shock,” Wiskus said. “It’s really fulfilling to know that

the work that I put in and all the people that have helped me get to where I am at today has paid off.

The trophy is just stinking cool.”

Wiskus now finds himself among some elite company, as he is the fifth Gopher ever to win the Nissen-Emery Award.

“I’m always just thinking about the people that have won it before me and it’s just an honor to be receiving the same

award as all those greats,” Wiskus said. “I look back to the previous Gophers that have won this award and it’s just an honor.”

Other Nissen-Emery Award winners for the Gophers include Ellis Mannon in 2015, Guillermo Alvarez in 2005, John Roethlisberger in 1993 and Tim LaFleur in 1978.

“This is a truly special night, not only for Shane but for the entire Gopher gymnastics program,”

Gophers head coach Mike Burns said. “This is our fifth recipient in program history, and we continue to exude excellence even in the final hours of our program.”

Wiskus continues to build on what has been a phenomenal senior year.

He was named the 2021 Big Ten Co-All Around Champion, won three other Big Ten event titles on the floor exercise, the parallel bars, and the

high bar and was named to the 2021 All-Big Ten First Team at the Big Ten Championship.

The Gophers conclude their final season as a program this weekend as they compete in the NCAA Men’s Gymnastics National Championship at home at Maturi Pavilion, beginning Friday at 7 p.m. Wiskus will look to add more accolades to his arsenal in what has been an astounding senior season.

11 Monday, April 19, 2021

UMN study spanning over 20 years shows few long-term cognitive effects of cannabis use Researchers studied twins to compare the effects over time.

By Izzy Teitelbaum ateitelbaum@mndaily.com By following sets of twins from age 11 to adulthood, University of Minnesota researchers have found that cannabis use has few impacts on longterm cognitive abilities.

Out of 2,410 sets of identical twins from Minnesota, only 364 had differing cannabis use between siblings, making them eligible for the study. Following twins has allowed the researchers to observe differences in cannabis usage with fewer variables at play.

“The sample of twins is representative of the population of the whole state of Minnesota,” said Dr. Steve Malone, the study co-author and Institute for Child Development (ICD) researcher. “But I think it’s a really important feature of the design, that these samples are representative of the population of us as

a whole.”

Dr. Jonathan Schaefer, an ICD postdoctoral researcher at the University, joined the study two years ago. University researchers Dr. William Iacono and Dr. Matt McGue started the study in the 1990s.

The ongoing study observes cognitive, mental health and socioeconomic outcomes of cannabis use.

The twins have been given a baseline assessment every two years that includes an electroencephalogram (EEG). The researchers also ask the sets of twins to selfreport on topics such as the frequency of their cannabis use and the physical effects.

The twins are also tested on their cognitive abilities through vocabulary, memory and perception tests. The long-term cognitive differences have been small.

Dr. Monica Luciana, a psychology professor and research collaborator, said the idea that adolescent cannabis use exacerbates mental health issues and cognitive impairment is a common notion.

“We concluded that there’s very little evidence

that cannabis has dramatic effects on cognitive ability, at least from adolescence into adulthood,” Schaefer said.

While the twins using more cannabis are meeting the criteria for more mental health problems, are doing worse in terms of socioeconomic status and scoring slightly lower on vocabulary tests, this is not directly linked to cannabis use, Malone said.

Instead, the researchers’ findings suggest that adolescent cannabis use may cause academic or motivational difficulties that may affect a person’s educational and occupational status later in their life, he said.

Seventy-six percent of the heavier cannabis-using twins continued education beyond high school, compared to 82% of the lighter-use or sober twins. The grade point average differs by an average of approximately 0.2 points between the two siblings.

When the study began, researchers focused on identifying factors that led to cannabis use. As the twins got older, the

researchers pivoted to observing the long-term effects of cannabis use. The immediate focus of the study changes to reflect concerns or issues that are relevant to the stage of life the participants are in, Malone said.

“If you follow folks long enough you can really start to look at the difference between early substance use and physical health outcomes,” Schaefer said. “Or even between substance use and signs of early cognitive decline.”

Illustration by Mary Ellen Ritter The researchers have cannabis legalization, how also been collaborating cannabis affects behavior, with a complementary how it affects the brain and twin study at the Univer- particularly whether its efsity of Colorado Boulder, fects are more pronounced using the same twin group in some age groups relative they have been following to others,” Luciana said. since the 90s. The two studSchaefer said he would ies are as symmetrical as like to replicate the Unipossible to compare Min- versity of Minnesota’s twin nesota to Colorado, a state study using more recent that legalized recreational data with a new group to cannabis use, to observe see if the changes to canlegalization’s impacts on nabis use since the 90s, substance use. such as increased poten“There’s a lot of inter- cy, dosage and a variety est nowadays, especially of new forms have made in light of efforts toward an impact.

Vice President for Research Chris Cramer announces departure from the University Cramer will officially leave the University in June.

By Abbey Machtig amachtig@mndaily.com

After nearly 30 years with the University of Minnesota, senior administrator Chris Cramer announced he will leave his position in June.

Cramer, who has served as the vice president for research since 2018, will be joining the Chicago-based research organization Underwriters Laboratories (UL). During his time at the University, Cramer has established several specialized research offices and helped the University exceed $1 billion in research expenditures.

“I’ve never loved the job more in my life than I love vice president for research, and that’s because you get the opportunity to bring people together who might not otherwise have known to join one another,” Cramer said. “There’s always something new you can be working on; you have a real opportunity to

see the future.”

Before taking on the vice president for research position, Cramer held a faculty position in the chemistry department and served as the director of undergraduate studies for chemistry at the University.

Cramer’s decision to step away was motivated by the recent relocation of his wife, Laura Gagliardi, to the Chicago area. Gagliardi was a chemistry professor at the University before moving to the University of Chicago last year.

“We were prepared to commute [from] Minneapolis to Chicago; it’s not that bad. We see each other with some frequency, but it did cause me to begin paying attention to potential opportunities in Chicago,” Cramer said.

After leaving his duties at the University in June, Cramer will take on the senior vice president and chief research officer position at UL, where his main responsibility will be advancing science and safety-related research.

“Chris will help us ask the right questions,

Chris Cramer visits Branden Moriarty’s lab in the Cancer & Cardiovascular Research Building, Feb. 25, 2020. Photo courtesy of Chris Cramer. engage with the scientific community, and facilitate collaborations on a growing range of issues,” said UL President and CEO Terrence Brady in a statement emailed to the Minnesota Daily.

Although the University is an educational institution and UL is a nonprofit organization, the roles have some similarities, Cramer said, such as the opportunity to engage with students through research internships.

Late last year, Cramer worked to launch a collaboration

with the organization BioMADE and the U.S. Department of Defense aimed at improving the national bioindustrial manufacturing industry by connecting researchers across the country with resources.

While Cramer is leaving the University and his position on BioMADE’s board of directors, work on the project will continue amid the transition in leadership, he said.

“I think there’s tremendous excitement in the local community, not just the University, but all

the people working in the biomanufacturing space to develop relationships with and have an opportunity to look at startups that may come,” Cramer said.

When reflecting on his time as the vice president for research, Cramer also pointed to the creation and management of the University’s Strategic Partnerships and Research Collaborative (SPARC) as a personal success.

SPARC is a research hub designed to connect faculty and students to research projects that may

be relatively unknown or large and complex, said Amy Kircher, co-director of the SPARC office.

“Chris has been a real champion and a leader for thinking differently, for setting a tone to try new ways to be innovative and pull research together and build partnerships. I don’t know that that’s always a university’s culture,” Kircher said. “The fact that he was willing to take a chance on SPARC ... it’s been a real asset at the University.”

The University will eventually launch a national search for candidates to fill the position. In the meantime, Michael Oakes will serve in the interim position for two years. Oakes, the associate vice president for research, currently reports to Cramer.

Filling the position will be a large responsibility, Oakes said.

“I’m excited and a little bit scared. I hope to rise to the occasion,” Oakes said.

“I’m a very tall person — I’ve got size 15 shoes — but I’ve told Chris, ‘I’ve got big feet, but I’m not sure I can fill your shoes.’”

MSA voices concern about lobbying group involvement in regent selection Four sitting regents have donated to a lobbyist PAC.

By Ava Thompson athompson@mndaily.com In a letter addressed to lawmakers on March 12, the Minnesota Student Association (MSA) denounced the Maroon and Gold Rising Political Action Committee (PAC), a group including former regents and legislators that lobbies the Minnesota State Legislature to elect certain candidates in the regent selection process.

Over the last month, lawmakers and students voiced their concerns about a potential conflict of interest in the regent selection process after student representatives discovered that four sitting regents have made contributions to the Maroon and Gold Rising PAC. Regents David McMillan,

Kendall Powell and Janie Mayeron and former Regent Richard Beeson have collectively contributed $8,500 to the Maroon and Gold Rising PAC, according to the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board. The four regents declined to comment for this story.

Former University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler also donated $10,000.

The MSA letter alleged that the Maroon and Gold Rising PAC uses its funds to advocate for a “specific slate of Regent candidates.”

“In so doing, it creates an ethical minefield by undermining the ability of the State Legislature to exercise independent decision-making in the Regents selection process,” the letter reads.

The letter asks all legislators and caucuses to return any money from the Maroon and Gold Rising PAC and refuse future contributions. Students also called on the Campaign Finance Board to investigate

the Maroon and Gold Rising PAC’s actions.

The University’s administration has no affiliation with the Maroon and Gold Rising PAC, according to University spokesperson Jake Ricker.

Before the election of four new regents on March 15, the letter’s authors urged legislators to reject the PACs slate of candidates.

“No matter the outcome of Monday’s vote, it is clear that the Regent selection process is broken. It is ineffective, inaccessible, and clearly very susceptible to the influence of moneyed special interests,” the letter reads.

The University Board of Regents is a governing body that consists of 12 members who serve sixyear terms, with four of the positions up for reelection every two years. A convention of the Minnesota House and Senate elects one regent from each of the state’s eight congressional districts and four

from the state at large. One of the four at-large regents must be a student at the time of election.

The Regent Candidate Advisory Council (RCAC), a 24-member body founded in 1988, independently recruits and recommends regent candidates to the legislative higher education committees, which deliver final suggestions to the full Minnesota Legislature.

Maroon and Gold Rising PAC co-chairs Tom Devine and Peggy Lucas are former University regents.

John Engelen, another co-chair of the lobbying group, also sits on the RCAC. Dan Wolter, chair of RCAC, said he was surprised to learn that Engelen and Jim Erickson serve on both the RCAC and the Maroon and Gold Rising PAC. Erickson’s term on the RCAC expires in January 2022.

“I’m just concerned that even the perception of some kind of invisible hand of special interest

involvement in our process will have a chilling effect on recruiting strong candidates who aren’t handpicked by [Maroon and Gold Rising PAC],” Wolter said in an email to the Minnesota Daily. “I think the Legislature needs to take a good hard look at the process to see how it can be improved.”

University law professor and former chief White House ethics lawyer Richard Painter said he was shocked to see the Maroon and Gold Rising PAC use of University-owned photos on its website. The trademarks have since been removed, according to Painter, after he emailed President Joan Gabel.

“You should not be flying the colors of the University pretending to be acting on behalf of the University — which is what this PAC was doing — and they were pretending to advance the interests of the University,” Painter said. “A lot of what they’re advocating is not in the interests

of the University,”such as elevating the importance of adding University programs rather than cutting tuition cuts, he added.

In addition to lobbying for regent candidates, the PAC has advocated increasing the state’s budget for higher education, which decreased from 13.5% in 1980 to 7.1% in 2020.

Jael Kerandi, chair of the student representatives to the Board of Regents, addressed the concerns about the Maroon and Gold Rising PAC at a meeting on March 12.

Regent Powell did not respond to Kerandi’s statement and moved on to the next agenda item.

“The existing of these financial relationships between members of this body and the PAC undermine Minnesota’s constitutional sovereignty, and in doing so sow the seeds of mistrust in a process that should be free of even the appearance of impropriety,” Kerandi said at the meeting.

12 Monday, April 19, 2021

New Dakota Language House will open for students in fall 2021 The learning community will be in Radius Apartments.

By Katelyn Vue kvue@mndaily.com A new University of Minnesota Living Learning Community (LLC) called the Dakota Language House will launch next fall to advance and support students’ learning of the Dakota language.

Radius Apartments in Dinkytown will house the LLC for students to live and learn Dakota together. An LLC is housing assigned for students to live together in a community dedicated to similar interests, academic goals and personal direction.

The American Indian studies department and the Dakota Language Program collaborated to develop the Dakota Language House to create LLCs based on languages taught in the department, focusing on language revitalization.

“To speak the language is to literally breathe life into the language because you’re using the air to speak language, and so, in a metaphorical but in the literal way. So by speaking the language, we’re breathing life into it and that’s actually a phrase in our language,” said Šišóka Dúta, a University Dakota language instructor. Dúta is an enrolled member of the Lake Traverse Reservation and he is Sisithunwan Wahpethunwan Dakhota.

As an undergraduate student, Dúta said he would have loved the opportunity to be in an environment where people speak the Dakota language daily.

“If you could find a place to do that, then you create like a little pocket or language bubble where the English language

is either not spoken or severely reduced, and if you do that, you’re going to progress faster in the target language, which would be Dakota,” Dúta said.

Mobilizing to preserve language In the late 1800s, the U.S. government forced Indigenous children to attend boarding schools to erase their culture, language and traditions.

The boarding schools forced students to only speak English, dress in American-style clothing and convert to Christianity.

By the 1970s, most of the boarding schools closed, but Dúta said Indigenous parents and grandparents decided not to pass down the language for various reasons, including the trauma from these boarding schools.

“A lot of my people knew how to speak [Dakota] but refused to speak it because of the treatment by these schools. Other people refuse to speak it because they wanted to assimilate, so it’s kind of like a variety,” Dúta said. “But because many people decided ‘No, I’m not going to pass it on to the next generation’... then you have like Gen X and the millennial generation who didn’t grow up with their heritage language.”

Recently, more people from the younger generation who did not grow up speaking Dakota, including Dúta, are learning it as adults to maintain the heritage culture, he added.

“I think a lot of people my age and even younger … are really showing interest because we want to keep it alive for the next generations coming,” Dúta said.

Dustin Morrow, a citizen of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior

Brendan Kishketon, Director of the Ojibwe Language Department at the University of Minnesota, poses in front of Radius Apartments on Thursday, March 25. Kishketon had the vision to create the Ojibwe Immersion House that launched last year, which influenced the development of the Dakota Language House launching Fall 2021. (Shannon Doyle / Minnesota Daily) Ojibwe and a third-year University student, said his grandmother was the last Ojibwe speaker in his family. Because she passed away when he was three, Morrow did not have the opportunity to learn the language in his early life.

“You feel that absence, even though you don’t really know it. You still feel the absence because of just everything that’s put on you,” Morrow said.

“I just wanted it back. I guess that’s why I decided language is where I want to be.”

Development of the Ojibwe Immersion House Morrow was one of the first students living in the Ojibwe Immersion House, an LLC launched by the Ojibwe Language Program last year, where students are fully immersed in the Ojibwe language.

The Ojibwe Immersion House LLC influenced the vision behind the Dakota Learning House.

Both language programs — Ojibwe and Dakota — are situated within the American Indian Studies Department.

Most of the students’ heritage is Ojibwe, so they are learning the language of their heritage, said Brendan Kishketon, a citizen of Kickapoo and Ojibwe tribes, an associate professor and the director of the Ojibwe Language Program.

The two houses are a part of efforts to preserve and revitalize Indigenous languages.

“That’s the end goal here. Not just for [students] to get exposure, not just for them to learn it, not just for them to be highly proficient,” Kishketon said.

“But that they become so highly proficient that when they graduate and start having a family… that they can speak to their own kids in the language thereby perpetuating the language, saving the language, keeping the language alive, so that it doesn’t go extinct.”

At the Ojibwe Immersion House, there is a no English-speaking rule which students need to follow while living in the house. But because most Dakota language students are enrolled at the

beginner or intermediate level, the Dakota Language House is not an immersion house yet, Dúta said.

He added that students who live in the Dakota Language House are highly encouraged to speak the language.

Morrow joined the University’s Ojibwe Language Program after watching a nine-minute video of University students and faculty members speaking Ojibwe and sharing their personal experiences in the program and the importance of preserving the language.

Immediately after watching the video, he said he felt a strong motivation to apply to the Ojibwe Language Program but also a slight hesitation because it had been four years since he had last been in school.

However, he still decided to apply. Now, almost three years later, he will be graduating this spring with a double-major in linguistics and Ojibwe.

“When you come from a reservation, or even just a rural setting and come into the city, it’s difficult

to adjust. But when you’re just surrounded by people that come from the same background as you and know exactly what you’re going through with that kind of thing, it really makes the transition easier,” Morrow said.

Next fall, Morrow will live in the Ojibwe Immersion House again because the University’s linguistics graduate program accepted him.

Kishketon said he introduced a plan three years ago to establish three initiatives in the program to attract more students to enroll. Last year, he accomplished the plan, which included creating an Ojibwe language major, establishing a summer institute for American Indian high school students to learn more about the University and forming the Ojibwe Immersion House.

“Why we started it was to give the students an opportunity to learn in an environment that’s not a classroom. But personally, I wanted life to be their classroom,” Kishketon said.

Meet the University of Minnesota’s new regents Four new regents were elected earlier this month.

By Abbey Machtig amachtig@mndaily.com The four new individuals elected to the Board of Regents earlier this month are now in the process of preparing for their new roles at the University of Minnesota.

While serving on the governing body that oversees the entire University, these regents will make decisions on tuition and the budget, and oversee other large initiatives.

The new regents, Ruth Johnson, Doug Huebsch, James Farnsworth and Kodi Verhalen spoke with the Minnesota Daily to discuss their backgrounds and priorities for the University.

Ruth Johnson Hailing from Rochester, Minnesota, Johnson occupies the 1st Congressional District seat on the board.

In addition to working as a physician at the Mayo Clinic, Johnson also has experience in administrative roles at universities. She served on the board of trustees at Augsburg University for 17 years.

The experience of being an administrator and serving on a variety of committees has prepared her for this role, she said.

“I understand what it means to do governance, which is the role of the board — not to manage or micromanage, it’s to have the big picture government,” Johnson said.

Johnson’s identity as a woman and as a “women’s health advocate” will be an important part of her position on the board, she said.

“It’s very important to have different perspectives and that women’s experience. We have certain kinds of experiences that bring that richness and a depth and an understanding to our work in anything, including education on a governance board,” Johnson said.

“Our life experiences balance against some of the life experiences of men that can be somewhat different.”

At the Mayo Clinic, Johnson became the first woman to serve as the associate director of the Internal Medicine Residency program, the largest program of its kind in the nation. She also founded and directed the Mayo Diagnostic Breast Clinic, which serves more than 10,000 women a year.

Johnson said that using her knowledge and experience as a physician to navigate the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic will be a priority as a regent. In addition, Johnson said improving the standing of the University’s Medical School is another goal she has for her time on the board.

Doug Huebsch Occupying the 7th District seat, Huebsch comes to the University from northwestern Minnesota, where he works as a farmer and small business owner.

Huebsch is closely associated with the University, where all three of his children attended.

He also previously served as the chair of the Alumni Association.

Huebsch said he decided to run for a position on the board to keep advancing the University’s mission.

“If something is stagnant, you’re not moving the institution forward and we know we have a lot of work to do.

There’s a lot of things that are going great, and we have a lot of great leaders but we have to continue marching forward,” he said.

For Huebsch, keeping students at the center of decision making and addressing increasing student debt and tuition rates will be a priority.

“I’m not going to tell you that I’m never going to raise tuition, because that’s an impossible thing to tell you. But we do need to make sure that as we increase tuition that the students are going to be successful,” he said. “We just have to look at all these other avenues of revenue, like our intellectual property or our alumni.”

James Farnsworth Farnsworth, a fourthyear University student, was elected to the 4th

District seat on the board.

Farnsworth, who also ran for a regent position in the 2019 election, has served in the Minnesota Student Association and on University Senate committees during his time as a student. Although Farnsworth took the semester off from classes to focus on his new role as a regent, he said he plans to complete his Human Resource Development degree in the near future.

Engaging with and offering the perspectives of students to the board will be a main focus for him as a regent, Farnsworth said.

“I would like to do some proactive outreach as well, so it’s not folks just feeling like they have to come to me,” he said. “I just want to pride myself in being as accessible as possible, especially to students, because I know what it’s like being in the shoes of a student and doing that student advocacy and outreach.”

Farnsworth also said he wants to push for increased accountability from the University.

“For me, accountability looks like asking tough questions, challenging administration about what the perception of something looks like, or making sure that if folks are displeased with a decision that the board has made or something that’s going on in administration, making sure to bring that up.”

Students have been advocating for the

renaming of several campus buildings due to their namesakes’ racist history, two years after the board voted against renaming buildings in 2019.

Farnsworth suggested creating a renaming policy before voting on renaming actual buildings, should the board discuss it in the future.

“That was what went wrong last time is that they [the board] weren’t having the policy discussion,” Farnsworth said. “First, it just went to the motion of renaming individual buildings. My position on that is that we need to do the policy work first before we talk about renaming any particular buildings.”

Kodi Verhalen A University of Minnesota Duluth alum, engineer and lawyer, Kodi Verhalen was also elected to the board earlier this month. Verhalen replaced former regent Michael Hsu in the 6th District seat.

Verhalen said the events of the past year, such as the pandemic and the police killing of George Floyd, encouraged her to run for a regent position at the University.

“What I recognized was [that] we as a society, in general, have not had a great opportunity to just totally reinvent what life, work, education, society looks like,” she said. “I think the last 12 months have given us an opportunity not only to identify where our weaknesses are, but where

our strengths are, and how we want to come out of this.”

Verhalen also said she was excited to see the growth of people who identify as women on the board. A mother of one, Verhalen became president of the National Society of Professional Engineers when her daughter was 9 months old.

“I will say, [the] five women [on the Board of Regents] — we’re not all the same, we’re all coming at it from different perspectives. I have a young daughter and so I’m approaching it differently than someone who may have grown children or no children,” Verhalen said.

“I think the commonality is, we’re all interested in supporting the University of Minnesota in the state of Minnesota in different ways. “ Before voting or discussing important topics, like tuition costs or the renaming of campus buildings, Verhalen said discussing with different stakeholder groups will be important for her.

“I like to … let [stakeholders] process through their conversation and where they’re coming from and how they are approaching the issue as well, without me inserting myself,” Verhalen said.

“And then [I] have that conversation with the decision-makers about the things I’m hearing and the things that I feel like we’re still missing before we can make a decision.”