Who’s going to play this May? Find out in this month’s Arts Calendar! +ARTS, pages 6-7 University of Wisconsin-Madison
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Thursday, May 3, 2012
mifflin then and now
Tear gas to beer bongs Students’ antiwar protest defined first Mifflin party By David Jones The Daily Cardinal
1969 marked Richard Nixon’s first year in office. “Sugar Sugar” by The Archies topped the music charts. And in May, UW-Madison students threw the first Mifflin Street Block Party. The block party was born
out of the climate of social protest, the shadow of the Vietnam War and a polarized national political system. Students at colleges across the country rallied for an end to the war and campaigned for equal rights for AfricanAmericans and women, with some of the fiercest battles waged on this campus. Many UW-Madison students protested Dow Chemical recruiters on campus in October 1967 for creating products for use in Vietnam. Students virtually shut down campus in February 1969 to demonstrate against the UW
administration for refusing to create an African-American studies department. Today’s well-known spring celebration began when a few UW-Madison students living on Mifflin Street decided to host a party Saturday May 3. They posted homemade signs throughout the neighborhood inviting people to the 500 block of Mifflin Street at 4 pm. The porches that existed in most of the houses along Mifflin Street allowed students to easily gather for the party. “You sat on your porch and Grey Statterfield/cardinal File Photo
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Outgoing ASM chair Allie Gardner and current chair Andrew Bulovsky agree shared governance should be a priority for ASM.
ASM chairs reflect, look toward future By Cheyenne Langkamp and Anna Duffin The Daily Cardinal
Cardinal Archives
Though police responded to students protesting the Vietnam War on West Mifflin Street with tear gas and pepper spray, students kept the party going on the block for three days.
Attending or not, students see Mifflin as part of identity By Meghan Chua The Daily Cardinal
The Mifflin Street Block Party with its crowded porches, empty beer cans and matching T-shirts is insepa-
rable from the end of the academic year. Although the way students celebrate it has changed since its origins in 1969, residents find Mifflin closely tied to Madison’s identity and continue to view the event as essential despite pressure from city and campus officials to end the party. Dean of Students Lori Berquam infamously pointed out Mifflin is neither a city nor UW-Madison event in
a video that went viral with remixes and parodies. And to a point, students agree, viewing it as an event they share among one another and will continue to attend. Sam Konkol, a 2011 graduate, said celebrating Mifflin has “intrinsic” purpose. “It’s actually a celebration of itself,” Konkol said. “People just celebrate drinking by drinking a lot.”
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Looking forward to the next school year, Associated Students of Madision Chair Andrew Bulovsky said he feels the 19th session of student council will be more productive than sessions past. Having served as a representative and vice chair in the most recent session, Bulovsky said he witnessed too much inside fighting among members and disrespect for ASM processes. “Many representatives were trying to play an ‘ends justifies the means’ politics, which is what the 19th session will not be doing,” Bulovsky said. Last session’s ASM Chair Allie Gardner said she would advise Bulovsky to not become sidetracked with the internal politics of student government, which she
said she can already see forming in the new student council. But Gardner also said the session was successful in areas where everyone agreed, such as advocating for shared governance on campus. “I think [the 19th session of ASM has] to build relationships with each other and find areas of common ground,” Gardner said. “It’s much easier to agree with people that you trust, trust is really important, and I think our session lacked that.” Bulovsky said one of his top priorities for next year is to give students a strong voice in selecting the university’s next chancellor. “First we need to fight for as many students as possible to be on the search and screen committee and then make sure the students on that committee are the
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Mifflin residents sign party protection plan agreements By Abby Becker The Daily Cardinal
Many students who are Mifflin residents signed a protection plan with police at the last Mifflin Street Block Party information meeting Wednesday. Students have the option of signing a House Party Protection Plan this year, which lets residents call the police to control their party without fear of being cited. Residents will also receive a ‘No Trespassing’ sign to deter
unwanted guests. “It’s comforting to know if anything were to get out of hand at the party that we would be able to bring an officer in,” UW-Madison senior and Mifflin resident Sam Christian said. As long as the party is legal, police will only remove unwelcome troublemakers and will not issue tickets, according to McCaw. A legal house party can-
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“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”