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ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Friday, April 8, 2016

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CAMPUS LIFE

Migos has history of illegal acts at colleges MATT VAILLIENCOURT/Daily

Ben Shapiro, a conservative radio host and author, speaks to acrowd on the current political atmosphere at universities at Rackham Amphitheater Thursday.

Conservative author talks free speech, white privilege Columnist Ben Shapiro discusses impact of microaggressions

speech Thursday evening in the Rackham Graduate School Amphitheatre, drawing a crowd of approximately 300. The event — hosted by the Young Americans for Freedom with funding from Central Student Government — highlighted issues Shapiro described as attacks on freedom of speech and a free society, such as microaggressions and the concept of privilege. The event follows a week

By LYDIA MURRAY Daily Staff Reporter

Ben Shapiro, a noted conservative columnist and author, discussed freedom of

in which freedom of speech has been a prominent issue on campus, following antiIslam chalkings on the Diag alongside pro-Trump messages, which garnered national media attention and prompted discussions about hate speech and the safety of Muslim students. CSG discussed the issue at length in their final meeting of the semester on Tuesday and ultimately passed a resolution

making the University a sanctuary campus for immigrants. Shapiro began his talk by addressing the chalkings, saying he wouldn’t normally support Trump except in instances people are offended by messages of support for Trump, proceeding to write “Trump 2016” on a chalkboard. “There is only one thing that I can do to support Trump,” he See SHAPIRO, Page 3

Members of group arrested for drug, gun possesion at Georgia Southern ‘U’ By RIYAH BASHA Daily Staff Reporter

MUSIC Matters’ SpringFest headliner Migos is no stranger to the spotlight — both from public acclaim and criminal acts. Returning to campus after a February appearance, the rappers have released singles like “Versace” and “Fight Night,” which defined the modern Atlanta hip-hop scene, and started a worldwide dance phenomenon with “Look at My Dab.” The rappers rappers have a reputation for being the kind of high-energy performers SpringFest has selected to positive response in the past. However, Migos has another college-based reputation as well: The last time the group

GOVERNMENT

CITY

Refugee crisis lecture calls for global reform Law professor criticizes international laws on displaced peoples By GRACE CANFIELD For the Daily

Law Prof. James Hathaway gave a talk Thursday evening in the Hatcher Graduate Library Gallery titled “Policies on the Refugee Crisis”, discussing flaws in the refugee system worldwide. Hathaway is the founding director of the Law School’s Program in Refugee and Asylum Law, and his work is regularly cited by international courts. Thursday’s lecture centered on Hathaway’s hope that there will be an international effort to revamp the model most countries use in dealing with refugees. Hathaway said current models do not require more funding, but rather the funds individual countries have appropriated to hosting refugees need to be more efficiently allocated. “We have more than enough money in the system to provide an immediate international response — to provide the dignified protection for the duration of risk, to move people to new homes — without spending one dollar more,” Hathaway said. The talk was facilitated by the University of Michigan’s

WEATHER TOMORROW

Global Scholars Program in coordination with Amnesty International, a global human rights organization. The current refugee crisis encompasses 19.5 million people seeking sanctuary in countries outside of their own, who often very few options in developed first world countries. According to Amnesty International, 86 percent of refugees end up settling in developing countries that often don’t have the resources or infrastructure to provide for an influx of this scale. As conflict in Syria and other areas of the world has unfolded over past months, causing a surge in refugees, international groups havecalled on more developed countries like the U.S. to accept more refugees. Speaking specifically to the procedures to revamp refugee laws, Hathaway said the only viable approach is through international coalitions such as the United Nations. “We see scenes like this of refugees in tiny boats, surrendering their well-being to smugglers in very dangerous conditions,” Hathaway said. “We see horrid images of refugees surviving massive difficult overnight treks only to be confronted by barbedwire barriers when they get to a place they thought was safe.” Kenneth Grunow, a representative of the Detroit chapter Amnesty International who also spoke during the event, called for more increased See REFUGEE, Page 2

HI: 34 LO: 17

performed on a college campus, police officers had to cut the show short. Almost exactly a year ago, at Georgia State University’s Spring Bling — a banner concert similar to SpringFest — local law enforcement arrested two Migos group members and several individuals travelling as their entourage. Rappers Quavo and Offset were also charged with felony possession of cocaine, Oxycontin and codeine in addition to charges of carrying a loaded weapon in a school zone, Rolling Stone reported. Offset was briefly jailed and then released last December. MUSIC Matters President Jibran Ahmed, a Business senior, said the organization has been very clear with Migos’ management about limiting personal issues. “We’ve gotten the OK and approval from all relevant University partners,” he said. “We are being as careful and proactive as possible.” He noted that a major factor in See MIGOS, Page 2

A2 discovers sewage pipe leaked into local creek More than 400,000 gallons of contaminated waste spilled into water By CAITLIN REEDY Daily Staff Reporter

MAZIE HYAMS/Daily

Engineering sophomore Shihaab Punia accepts an award at the MPowered Entrepreneurship Oscars at the UMMA Thursday.

MPowered Oscars highlight student entrepreneurship Almost 200 students attend second annual event By JENNIFER MEER Daily Staff Reporter

Nearly 200 students walked the red carpet on campus Thursday night at the 2016 Entrepreneurial Oscars, held at the University of Michigan Museum of Art. The evening was hosted by MPowered Entrepreneurship, a student organization whose mission is to introduce students to entrepreneurship opportunities, with the aim of honoring the

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year’s most innovative students, student organizations, startups and creations. Prior to the event, students nominated student groups or individuals in 21 categories, including Most Impact in Health/ Philanthropy, Best New Idea, Best Business Model and Most Educational Impact. LSA junior Sydney Bigelow, president of MPowered Entrepreneurship, said the event was held to highlight organizations and individuals who have made an impact on campus. “The purpose of the Entrepreneurial Oscars is to bring together all of these amazing

NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM Areeba Jibril discusses privilege MICHIGANDAILY.COM/SECTION/MIC

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student organizations, student leaders, student startups and individuals within the University of Michigan community that are just doing amazing things on campus,” she said. “That are changing the landscape, that are changing the world — and we want to recognize them for that.” Bigelow noted that the awards were not limited to entrepreneurial endeavors, but offered to any student organization that has made an impact within the last year. She said the event gives students the opportunity to get to know others in the University community who have See MPOWERED, Page 3

The city of Ann Arbor has contacted the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality for the second time this year with concerns about contaminated city water sources. At the heels of an investigation regarding a plume of dioxane — a carcinogenic chemical that has made its way into the Huron River — an Ann Arbor Public Works crew member discovered a sewage overflow into Malletts Creek Wednesday morning. Though Public Works had already restored the pipe, it is estimated that close to 400,000 gallons of sewage have overflowed into the creek over the past two weeks. The overflow was discovered in a sanitary sewer manhole near the intersection of Washtenaw Avenue and Huron Parkway and is believed to have been caused by roots that had grown through the sewer pipes and thus blocked the sewage flow. Water Quality Manager Jennifer Lawson said despite the volume of sewage added to the creek, the city does not forsee any health concerns due to the relatively slow flow from See SEWAGE, Page 2

NEWS.........................2 OPINION.....................4 CLASSIFIEDS...............6

SUDOKU.....................2 ARTS...................5 SPORTS......................7

News

2 — Friday, April 8, 2016

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Protesters call for better sexual assault prevention efforts during the Take Back the Night Ann Arbor march on East Liberty street Wednesday.

SAN PHAM /Daily

Ann Arbor residents march in costumes with puppets for the 10th anniversary of local tradition FestiFools along Main St. Sunday.

CAMPUS EVENTS & NOTES

Pakistani infrastructure conference

Mental health panel WHAT: Student-athletes

and counselors will discuss the effects of sports on mental health. WHO: Social Work & Sport Association WHEN: Hatcher Graduate Library Gallery WHERE: 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

WHAT:The 6th annual UM Pakistan conference will examine development. WHO: Center for South Asian Studies WHEN: 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. WHERE: School of Social Work, room 1636

Outer space chemistry talk

Museum open house

WHAT:Raymond Jeanloz,

WHAT: Guests can enjoy

a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, will examine lasers in planetary interiors. WHO: Earth and Environmental Sciences WHEN: 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. WHERE: C.C. Little, room 1528

an open house featuring special exhibitions, music and engaging activities in an interactive environment. WHO: UMMA WHEN: 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. WHERE: UMMA

CAPS premieres its spring student-driven fundraising campaign

Black lives and the death penalty WHAT: Melynda Price,

a law professor at the University of Kentucky, will discuss race and capital punishment. WHO: DAAS WHEN: 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. WHERE: Haven Hall, room 4701

Movie screening WHAT: Involvement

Ambassadors will host a free screening of “Ride Along 2” with popcorn. WHO: Center for Campus Involvement WHEN: 9 p.m. to 11:45 p.m. WHERE: Michigan Union, Anderson Room

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

Former President Bill Clinton exchanged heated words Thursday afternoon with a #BlackLivesMatter protester over incarceration, NPR reported. Clinton defended his 1994 crime bill, which activists said targeted minorities. He said the lowered crime rate benefited all races across

Now the number one team in the country, the Michigan softball team will look to its leader, Sierra Romero, to pull off a road win against Nebraska this weekend. >> SEE SPORTS on 7

The Islamic State captured more than 300 workers at a cement factory, according to CNN. Local officials told state news sources that the abducted workers were bussed to ISIScontrolled territory. Peace talks in the country are set to resume next week.

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The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by students at the University OF Michigan. One copy is available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the Daily’s office for $2. Subscriptions for fall term, starting in September, via U.S. mail are $110. Winter term (January through April) is $115, yearlong (September through April) is $195. University affiliates are subject to a reduced subscription rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscriptions must be prepaid. The Michigan Daily is a member of The Associated Press and The Associated Collegiate Press.

MIGOS From Page 1

selecting Migos for the concert was the group’s previously established relationship with the University of Michigan. Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh hosted the artists By CAITLIN REEDY members wishing to speak during “Signing of the Stars,” Daily Staff Reporter out about mental health his grand unveiling of the resources needed on campus, team’s 2016 recruiting class in The University of Michigan’s in lieu of blaming University February. Harbaugh and the Counseling and Psychological of Michigan officials. It is now rappers have also exchanged Services launched a spring fully fundraising-focused. tweets in the past, and a video fundraising campaign, Help Overall, CAPS said they was released of them dabbing CAPS Catch Up, Wednesday. hope this campaign will raise in support of the football team The campaign was created by their budget from just under before a game against Ohio six undergraduate students $3 million to $4 million. The State on Twitter. hoping to increase the funding increase would fund the need “They’re passionate about for CAPS on campus. According for rapid counseling options Michigan, and Michigan to a press release, the campaign through an increase in staff is passionate about them,” gathered 3,500 views online so that they can be readily Ahmed said. within 10 hours of its unveiling. available for appointments. In an e-mail interview DELANEY RYAN/Daily Help CAPS Catch Up began CAPS will continue their about Migos’ upcoming Law Prof. James Hathaway speaks on refugee crisis policies at Hatcher Graduate Library Thursday. as a letter-writing campaign campaign by having an performance, University accessible to all students, informational table in the spokesman Rick Fitzgerald REFUGEE faculty and community Diag April 11 and attending acknowledged the group’s them a place that they can call but it is something that defines From Page 1 members related to the Central Student Government’s past, but wrote MUSIC their own again.” me and I have a lot of stories that University. It centered around Mental Health Speak Out in the Matters and the Center for Event coordinator Tiffany I can share,” Chau said. Sudoku Syndication http://sudokusyndication.com/sudoku/generator/print/ ideals of support and positivity Michigan Union the same day. Campus Involvement are Chau, a Public Policy sophomore Amnesty International also to give a voice to community working closely with the awareness and effort in finding a and Global Scholar Program provided a petition at the event Division of Public Safety and permanent solution. member, said she was inspired addressed to U.S. Rep. Debbie Security to manage the event. “What we need to do is to to host the event because of her Dingell (D—Dearborn), urging “We have good planning find it in our hearts and our father, who was a refugee from her to call for an increase in the practices in place for an array determination to help these Vietnam. number of refugees resettled in of events that help us avoid people with support,” he said. “I realized that my ethnicity the United States among other HARD issues that sometimes pop up “With a place to go and try to get and my cultural background isn’t requests. on other campuses,” he wrote. them in out of the cold and give the only thing that defines me, DPSS spokesperson Diane Brown said it was not University policy to comment “The plan is always to communities that will be SEWAGE on security measures. avoid these overflows,” Briere impacted by contaminated From Page 1 Past performers at said. “It is difficult for us to water because the SpringFest include Common, anticipate where there will be contamination is downstream 2 Chainz, Ben Folds and the pipe. a problem. We have invested from the plant that draw water J. Cole. These artists’ “From a public health and significantly and will continue from the Huron River, the philanthropic efforts have safety standpoint, there is no to invest in our infrastructure, watershed Malletts Creek is a also lined up with MUSIC concern. It was a relatively which is what we have to do.” part of, and that there are no Matters’ goals, as Common’s small amount over a long period According to a statement plans as of now to clean up the work with underserved youth of time,” Lawson said. “Forty- released by the city, the river due to what she referred in Chicago corresponded with thousand sounds like a lot but it overflow will not affect those to as the scale nature of the the student organization’s was over a few weeks so it’s like using the Huron River for small influx of sewage. charity in Detroit. Migos a garden hose flowing into the recreational purposes due “There are no intentions to doesn’t have a similar creek. But it’s not something to how the sewage will be clean up because (the sewage) background, but Ahmed said you want to see in any urban diluted. Similar assurances is gone. There are maintenance he hopes the experience sewage system.” have been made regarding the activities that will continue,” of SpringFest prompts the City Councilmember Sabra dioxane plume. The state has Lawson said. “The city has 362 rappers to get more involved Briere (D–Ward 1) said these recently stepped forward to miles of sanitary sewage pipes in philanthropic endevors. occurrences happen frequently assume more responsibility and this was an area we haven’t “I hope we inspire Migos both on public and private lands in cleaning up the plume by checked recently. It’s on the to be more tied to the despite efforts to avoid them tightening its standards of how watch list now because of all © sudokusolver.com. For personal use only. UNDERSTANDING RIHANNA. puzzle by sudokusyndication.com community,” he said. “They through constant cleaning much dioxane can be permitted the trees in the area.” can create that space for and checking of underground within drinking water. students to come together.” pipes. Lawson said there are no

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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

News

Friday, April 8, 2016 — 3

K O L H A K AV O D

NEWS BRIEFS

U of M announces collaboration with Toyota Motor Company The University of Michigan will partner with Toyota this summer in creating a driverless car research and testing site in Ann Arbor, the University announced Thursday. At the facility — the third of its kind in the country — Toyota will fund research focused on robotics and artificial intelligence in hopes of speeding up work on autonomous vehicles. The site is set to open in July and will eventually staff 50 individuals.The effort is a new component of the Toyota Research Institute, the company’s $1 billion investment in driverless, connected and automated vehicle-related facilities and material science technology. College of Engineering Prof. Ryan Eustice and Associate Prof. Edwin Olson will join the facility as full-time area leads, and will retain part-time faculty positions at the University. Toyota is already a Leadership Circle partner with the University’s Mobility Transformation Center. MTC is a research partnership dedicated to pioneering a commercially viable system of connected and automated vehicles. MTC also operates Mcity, the country’s only simulated city for testing automated automobiles.

Rep. and family of Marine seek answers in death The family of Raheel Siddiqui, a 20-year old Marine from Taylor, Mich., is raising questions about the circumstances of Siddiqui’s death in a South Carolina boot camp last month, the Detroit Free Press reported Thursday. Siddiqui died 11 days into his training at the camp. A casualty report from the Marines stated Siddiqui passed out during an exercise, woke up and proceeded to jump over a wall, where he then allegedly fell to his death. The family’s attorney told the Free Press it was hard to believe Siddiqui was suicidal, and brought up issues of possible hazing or discrimination. U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D–Dearborn) — whose district includes Taylor — commented on Siddiqui’s Muslim faith and raised similar concerns in an open letter to Robert Neller, U.S. Marine Corps Commandant General. She also questioned the firing of Lt. Col. Joshua Kissoon, who was released by the boot camp a day before Siddiqui’s death. Both Dingell and the family attorney asked the Marines to release a timeline of the full investigation into Siddiqui’s death, and to preserve all related records therein. Siddiqui was a first generation Pakistani-American and is survived by both parents and a sister.

Guggenheim Fellowships awarded to five faculty members Out of a group of 3,000 applicants, five University faculty members were chosen to be among the 178 honored as Guggenheim Fellows. Grants from the Guggenheim Foundation have been awarded for over 90 years — during which over $325 million has been given to 18,000 winners. Professors awarded are all from LSA and include: Professor of Philosophy Victor Caston, Professor of Applied Mathematics Charles Doering, Professor of Applied Mathematics Mark Newman, Professor of African Studies Derek Peterson, and Professor of English and Women’s Studies Valarie Traub.

— RIYAH BASHA AND EMMA KINERY

DELANEY RYAN/Daily

Kol HaKavod, a Jewish acappella group at the University of Michigan, performs at their winter concert called KHKindergarten at Hillel Thursday.

SHAPIRO From Page 1 said, “when there are precious snowflakes who whine and cry when people write pro-Trump things on the ground.” Shapiro also addressed the controversy he has recently attracted at events on other campuses, such as a February speech at California State University, Los Angeles. At CSULA, a police escort was required for Shapiro’s exit following his speech, according to tweets Shapiro sent out at the time. The talk at CSULA was initially cancelled by CSULA President William Covino, who stated at the time he wanted to reschedule the event and involve other speakers to create a diversity of viewpoints. Shapiro charged that CSULA was stopping a diversity of opinion by preventing his talk, saying that “diversity” is one of the words liberals frequently use, but only use in the context of race and not in reference to diversity of opinion. “Diversity here meant that I had to shut up,” he said. “The kind of diversity that the Left loves is restricted... to diversity of skin color.” At the University, flyers put up by YAF promoting the event were torn down across campus and an advertisement put out by the group was vandalized, according to the group’s website. LSA sophomore Grant Strobl, one of the event’s organizers, said Shapiro’s talk offered a space to hear opposing viewpoints in a moderated context. “The event was a resounding success,” he said. “This event impacted campus by giving an example of an event where we all can listen to ideas that we might agree with and do it civilly. We need to have more discussions on campus without worrying about it being shut down.” Talking about another one of his five topics, microaggressions — common, seemingly minor but offensive comments often directed at a minority group or individual — Shapiro told an anecdote of a time when he called a transgender woman “sir” on national television, and she responded with a joking threat. He said the other panelists he was with then reprimanded him for his offensive remark, validating the woman’s aggressive response. Allowing this sort of response to a microaggression, he added, infringes on his right to speak freely and make his own decisions. “You can not like what I say, but that doesn’t give you the right to put your hands on me,” he said. “All of this creates a

very dangerous world. The Left is taking a battering ram to those two fundamental bases of Western civilization: You are responsible for your own actions and in a free society you can say things without people assaulting you.” Shapiro also touched on privilege, saying the concept of white privilege is a myth and can instead be replaced by other types of privilege like two-parent household privilege and crime privilege. To back up his point, he cited a series of statistics that showed children raised in single parent households do disproportionately worse than those from two-parent households, regardless of race. Looking at criminal justice, Shapiro argued that racial profiling does not occur, and instead police stop or arrest minorities at rates proportional to the rates they commit crimes. He said the easiest way to avoid being arrested is to avoid committing a crime. “It turns out that if you want to avoid prison, the easiest way to do that is to actually not commit a crime,” he said. “Here’s a fact about the supposedly evil and racist justice system: It underprosecutes murder in minority communities.” Several national reports show that people of color are often arrested at higher rates than white individuals. According to the Washington Post, Black drivers are twice as likely to be arrested during a traffic stop as whites. Additionally, in Dearborn, more than half of the arrests in 2011 and 2012 were of Black citizens. However, Blacks only make up 4 percent of the town’s population, according to DiversityInc. Addressing a question about how to participate in debates with supporters of Bernie Sanders — who won the Michigan primary and has a large support base on campus — Shapiro said one should ask questions or simply not participate in discussion. “One of the things I always urge people to do is ask questions,” he said. “The second recommendation is don’t engage the guy. I mean, come on, you only have so many breaths left in your life.” LSA freshman Michael Smith said Shapiro’s talk gave a forum for students to learn about different sides of the political debate. “I think a lot of people are riled up because of the recent political election,” he said. “But they don’t really take the time to look at the other side. If they did, it would moderate a lot of people’s heated opinions.”

OBSERVING

MAZIE HYAMS/Daily

LSA freshman Jay Cutler looks at a visual demonstration set up by FreeHearts on the Diag. The flags illustrate the prevalence of human trafficking in the United States and Michigan.

MPOWERED From Page 1 similar aspirations within their startup companies or student organizations. “We want to be able to recognize people, see these other organizations that are doing similar things — things that maybe complement what your organization is doing — and find out ways that we can work together and at least get to know each other,” she said. “I think this is one big event that helps do that.” The award for Most Educational Impact award went to TEDxUofM, a student group that provides a platform for University community members to share their ideas on innovative topics. LSA sophomore Sophia

Svoboda, who is one of the co-directors of the organization, said having a community of entrepreneurs on campus had a number of benefits. “This event is a great way for all of the different student orgs and entrepreneurial-focused groups to get together and build a stronger community,” she said. “Because sometimes you need to have that support and be able to talk to others.” Nine of the 21 awards went to groups or individuals for their participation in 1000 Pitches, an annual MPowered competition that allows students to pitch ideas and solutions to problems. Winners receive $1,000 toward implementing their idea. Neuroscience graduate student Ramses Alcaide took home two awards for his startup company Neurable, one of which was for his participation in 1000

Pitches. The company’s product is a brain-computer interface that allows people to control devices like cars with only their brain activity. Alcaide said recognition for entrepreneurship is important because it encourages people to move forward with their dreams despite the difficult work inherent in achieving them. “It’s good to give recognition to the entrepreneurial groups here at the University, especially because entrepreneurship is a very difficult road, and it keeps people motivated,” Alcaide said. “If you do entrepreneurship right, every day and every minute is work. You’re pushing your company and your dreams forward. That’s a full-time thing. Getting recognition for that gives you the energy to keep going.”

Opinion

4 — Friday, April 8, 2016

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ABBYE KLAMANN | OP-ED

Protect the LGBTQ community

he LGBTQ community has made impressive advances in recent years, and we celebrate every victory that brings us closer to full equality for all. But there is still a lot of work to be done before LGBTQ Michiganders cease to be treated as secondclass citizens. The 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide is a significant milestone, but it has also sparked a backlash among those who oppose equality for the LGBTQ community. As an active member of Outlaws — Michigan Law’s LGBTQ student organization — I know many Michigan citizens and students are watching with concern as more anti-LGBTQ bills are introduced and passed across the country. Among the most troubling of these bills are so-called Religious Freedom Restoration Act legislation, like those currently causing controversy in Mississippi, Georgia and North Carolina. While each bill differs slightly, the effects of this type of legislation includes limiting the power of local governments and extending antidiscrimination protections to LGBTQ people to allowing businesses to refuse to serve LGBTQ people by simply saying they have a religious objection to doing so. Not only do these bills deny LGBTQ people equal treatment and expose them to discrimination in their everyday lives, they are also simply unnecessary to protect religious freedoms. State RFRA bills are a prophylactic layer atop the protections already afforded by the U.S. Constitution and the federal RFRA law. The federal RFRA clearly states that it is intended to protect individuals who want to practice their religion, as long as the practice doesn’t place a burden on others. For example, a prisoner who wants access to religious materials isn’t harming anyone. Unlike the federal RFRA, which only applies to government intrusion into religious practices, the state-level RFRA would allow a religious objection to be used in interactions between individuals. State RFRA legislation that allows businesses to claim a “religious objection” and legally refuse service to someone is in fact harmful to others. The problem is that in Michigan, LGBTQ people do not have equal protection under the state’s civil rights law. Most of our state law protections against discrimination are found in the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA), which prohibits discrimination based upon religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight, familial status or marital status. The law does not include any protections for LGTBQ people, meaning that LGBTQ Michiganders fired or denied housing simply because of their status as LGBTQ have no recourse under the ELCRA, unlike someone who is fired for their race or religion. The result is that a gay man or a transgender woman could be denied employment strictly on the grounds of sexual or gender identity, not on their qualification or merits. LGBTQ people could be denied housing or turned away from a hospital if a health care provider states a religious objection. A police officer could refuse to protect someone who is LGBTQ or of another religion, or whose behavior they object to on religious grounds. Is that how we treat people in Michigan? The LGBTQ community is made up of our neighbors, our family, our friends, our coworkers, even members of our church. They deserve protection. Despite the lack of state law protections for LGBTQ persons and the religious protections extended in the federal Constitution and under federal law, Michigan politicians continue to push forward harmful RFRA-like legislation in our state. Although Gov. Rick Snyder denied that it was a RFRA-type bill, legislation signed

IN CHAN LEE

into law last year, which allows faith-based adoption agencies to deny service based on religious objections — even when they accept state funding — clearly discriminates against LGBTQ people and others. The same discrimination that is illegal when exercised against other members of the community is acceptable under laws such as these when aimed at the LGBTQ community. Michiganders don’t have to look far to learn that RFRA bills are bad for equality, bad for our community and bad for business. In North Carolina, more than 119 business leaders signed a letter to Gov. Pat McCrory urging him to repeal the state’s recently passed RFRA law. Employer PayPal announced it was canceling a major investment in North Carolina, resulting in a loss of at least 400 jobs and $3.6 million dollars. Another major corporation, Braeburn Pharmaceuticals, stated it was “reevaluating” its plans for a $20 million project in Durham. In Georgia, House Bill 757 passed through the House and Senate before the governor vetoed the bill after public outcry. The pushback to the bill was swift and serious, with major employers (Home Depot, CocaCola, Google and Microsoft) opposing the bill. Atlanta, “the Hollywood of the South,” also received criticism from members of the entertainment industry, an industry that added approximately $1.7 billion to the state’s economy just last year. Passage of the bill could also have disqualified Atlanta from hosting an upcoming Super Bowl, with the NFL stating that the law would be a relevant factor in the hosting decision. Agencies within the state estimate the bill could have cost between $1 billion and $2 billion. In Mississippi, Gov. Phil Bryant signed House Bill 1523 this week, which protects private businesses that discriminate against LGBTQ for proclaimed religious or moral reasons. Major employers in the state, including Tyson Foods, AT&T, IBM, MGM Resorts International, Nissan and Toyota, have all objected to the bill. The Mississippi Manufacturers Association has expressed its fear that the law will affect business and development opportunities in the state. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order banning non-essential state travel to Mississippi, which follows a similar ban on nonessential state travel to North Carolina. In the case of every RFRA-type bill, supporters claim they only intend to protect people of faith. But religious organizations and individuals are already protected by the U.S. Constitution. Meanwhile, it’s still legal in most states to deny housing, services or employment to LGBTQ people. Freedom of religion is one of the cornerstones of our democracy, and no one is asking religious organizations to perform same-sex marriages against their will. But LGBTQ people do have the right to equal treatment under the law. Opposition to RFRA-type bills is not antireligion, it’s pro-equality. In fact, many members of the LGBTQ community are religious themselves. This isn’t about curbing the rights of religious individuals and organizations, it’s about preventing anti-LGBTQ legislation from harming our communities under the guise of religious protection. In Michigan, advocates are working hard to extend civil rights protections under ELCRA to LGBTQ people, but it will take time. During that time, it’s almost certain that RFRA-type legislation will be introduced in Michigan. When and if these bills start moving through our legislature, you can be sure the LGBTQ community will make our voices heard. We hope you’ll join us. — Abbye Klamann is a University of Michigan Law School student.

E-mail inchan at tokg@umich.edu

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Tell me about distance

lip through the teal journal I always carry in my backpack, and among torn-out pages and blocks of diagonally written paragraphs, you’ll find this sentence buried in a list. It’s an odd list, haphazardly MELISSA scrawled in two very SCHOLKE distinct sets of penmanship. The phrase sits there on the blue line, scrunched together by my frantic, cursive handwriting. Originally, this sentence was intended as one of many broad, innocuous prompts for a project my best friend suggested we do to keep in touch with one another. We each had to write down a few questions. They didn’t need to be specific or extremely detailed. In fact, the broader the question, the better. Really, the only requirement was the question had to make you think. Once we had our list of prompts established, we were supposed to — within the course of a year — spontaneously respond to whatever question we felt was relevant in the moment and send these thoughts to each other in letters. Well, someday soon, my friend is going to receive a large envelope of overdue letters — a delayed correspondence that’s mostly due to my mindset being: If I wait a little while longer, I’ll think of much better responses. I keep returning to the prompts, refining bits here and adding more there. Yet, no prompt has as many pages devoted to it as the “distance” one does. “Tell me about distance.” It was a question disguised as an imperative. Perhaps, in reality, it was a bit of both. Maybe it was just an attempt to ask for an explanation for the undefinable concept that regularly permeates my thoughts in various forms. I remember sitting in my first apartment as a sophomore and chatting with my roommate’s parents when they were visiting. Both of them attended college in the Upper Peninsula. They understood my references to random Upper Peninsula towns and landmarks and could relate with the experience of going to a university located several hours from home. My roommate’s father — in an attempt to continue the sense of camaraderie — told me I was smart to find a school that was as far away from home as possible but still in-state. That hadn’t been my intention, but, as I looked at a map later, I realized I’d basically done just that. I had moved from one corner of the state to another. I even switched time zones. I’ve lived

in Michigan my entire life, and I’m an in-state student. Yet, I’d be remiss to deny that sometimes I feel I relate more with outof-state students than with my fellow Michiganders on campus. Honestly, I never even used that phrase until I came downstate. I’ve always just been a Yooper. Ever since I left my hometown, distance became the ever-apparent constant in my life — whether I was actively trying to create it or to diminish it. It’s a continual negotiation of space. For me, roughly 470 miles apart are two very different lives and two very different definitions of who I am. For some students, 470 miles is miniscule in comparison to the distances they travel to return home. Others are dumbfounded when I tell them a trip back to my hometown requires about an eight-hour drive. While you could easily quantify the space in a matter of miles, the disconnect is often immeasurable. My phone regularly buzzes with Snapchat notifications from an old friend who now lives in Pittsburgh, friends going to college in the Upper

“I’ve heard college described as a bubble. Yet ... our engagement with the world may drop after we graduate.” Peninsula and a friend studying art in Grand Rapids. My voicemail inbox is full of missed calls from my parents as attempts to contact me are hindered by my cluttered schedule and an hour time difference. I’m grateful technology allows me to stay connected with everyone, but it’s a conversation that relies upon mere snapshots of our lives and clusters of text messages. Visits back up north transform into playing games of catch-up as my friends and I attempt to retrace everything that’s happened since the last time we all saw one another. Roaming around familiar streets fills me with a peculiar sense of recognition that’s rooted primarily in nostalgia, and each subsequent trip leaves me feeling more and more like a visitor in my hometown. Yet, I can’t deny space was exactly what I wanted. Distance wasn’t a priority, but it certainly was an advantage when I departed for college. I can’t detach from the past experiences or places that shaped me nor would I ever want to. However, I needed to create some space from that town and from that old definition of myself. I wanted anonymity and a blank slate to redraw the contours of my

life. Regardless of whether it’s been four months or four years since I left, I continually miss my family, my friends, roaming around trails in the woods and driving along back roads with my best friend as he teased me for driving too slowly. But as distances widened, the resulting space provided me with room to grow and to question the world. In turn, my faint voice found the opportunity to traverse spaces that extended far beyond the rural and conceptual borders it was accustomed to. If my time at the University has taught me anything, it’s that distance is developmental, and more often than not, it’s far more than a physical measurement of miles. There’s distance between ideologies and experience. Throughout the years, I’ve encountered voices calling to diminish obstacles and gaps created by discrimination, indifference, ignorance and inequality. We, as students, immerse ourselves in these discussions and continually seek to uncover voices previously excluded from the conversation. As both a student and a writer, I’ve seen distance diminish as viewpoints align, but it’s very evident some gaps and inequities on campus, and in society, are still far from being closed. Often, I’ve heard college described as a bubble, insulating and distancing students from the realities of world. Yet, research conducted by Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa suggests this distance grows and our engagement with the world may drop after we graduate. According to survey data, 40 percent of recent college graduates rarely participate in conversations concerning politics or public affairs. Regardless of whether physical distance expands, separation from an institution of learning shouldn’t deter us from interacting with the world. Rather, it should spur us to engage more and to continue conversations we began in the classroom. As both the school year and my college career rapidly come to a close, I expect distance will continue to remain at the forefront of my mind for the next few months. I walk along State Street on my way home and wonder whether these streets, these buildings and these familiar scenes will dissipate into the same nostalgic atmosphere that comes to mind when I think of my hometown. I think of the various parts of the country my friends are dispersing to and where I’ll eventually find myself next, and I think of how far I’ll soon be from the dialogues and discussions I’m accustomed to. But, I take solace in the fact that distances can be bridged as well as created. — Melissa Scholke can be reached at melikaye@umich.edu.

EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS

Claire Bryan, Regan Detwiler, Gracie Dunn, Caitlin Heenan, Jeremy Kaplan, Ben Keller, Minsoo Kim, Payton Luokkala, Kit Maher, Madeline Nowicki, Anna Polumbo-Levy, Jason Rowland, Lauren Schandevel, Melissa Scholke, Kevin Sweitzer, Rebecca Tarnopol, Ashley Tjhung, Stephanie Trierweiler, Hunter Zhao MUSLIM STUDENTS’ ASSOCIATION | OP-ED

MSA thank you letter

n light of the racist chalkings on the Diag last week and violent rhetoric across the nation at large, Muslim, Middle Eastern and North African students have been confronted with a seemingly hostile climate on campus. When we witnessed these public attacks in the name of free speech that targeted both our faith and our place at this University of Michigan, the fear, apprehension and isolation of the current political cycle suddenly seemed justified. But we also witnessed another movement shortly thereafter: an outpouring of support and love from individuals and organizations alike on campus. The examples of genuine solidarity are endless: a resolution passed by Central Student Government, proactive chalk on the Diag Tuesday

afternoon spreading a message of solidarity, a collective letter of support signed by more than 50 student organizations and commitments from outside groups like the Open School in Ann Arbor and the Arab American AntiDiscrimination Committee in Dearborn, to standing with Muslim students. The expressions of love and unity have not gone unnoticed. Thank you for your support. The Muslim Students’ Association is grateful to anyone and everyone taking a stand against the vitriol and hate exposed on campus. There is a lot of work yet to be done. The reappearance of bigoted messages just yesterday — and the administration’s hesitation to remove them — is indicative of that. We seek to root out actions, both internal and external, that center around excluding groups

on campus and turning them against one other. We will not stand for injustice perpetrated toward any identity. We hold the Muslim community to the highest standard of protecting other groups as well. We look forward, though, to building on the constructive responses, to a joining of hands between Muslims and nonMuslims, and student groups and community members, to mold this campus into a more inclusive one. Our tradition is one of healing and cooperation, and the MSA is devoted to fostering the seeds that have been sown in the last few weeks. May God ease and facilitate this effort and spread its rewards. — The Muslim Students’ Association can be reached at msa-eboard@umich.edu

CONTRIBUTE TO THE CONVERSATION

Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor and op-eds. Letters should be fewer than 300 words while op-eds should be 550 to 850 words. Send the writer’s full name and University affiliation to tothedaily@michigandaily.com.

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Arts

ALBUM REVIEW

Friday, April 8, 2016 — 5

ALBUM REVIEW

dvsn debuts with New Cheap Trick is a celebration of rock decently hip R&B By DANIELLE IMMERMAN

Toronto group struggles to step out of Drake’s shadow By MATT GALLATIN Daily Arts Writer

“Fuck with me now.” The opening line on Sept. 5th, R&B artist and OVO signee dvsn’s debut album, might B+ seem like a classic bragSept. 5th gadocio rap lyric on paper. dvsn It could evoke OVO Sound the image of a gangster sitting atop a throne or Al Pacino leaning behind a cocaine-covered desk — the kind of images OVO king Drake has been calling up increasingly often as of late. But dvsn has no such pretenses. It’s a plea, not a demand, to the woman he’s singing to. That kind of separation between surface association and reality is at the heart of this release. Much of this has to do with the style of music dvsn floats around in, that ever broadening space which marries hip hop, electronic, pop and R&B — what some have come to pejoratively term “PBR&B” (after the hipster’s favorite beer). It’s characterized by late night slow jams, stripper love and minimalistic, spacious production. It’s doubtless

Daily Arts Writer

that dvsn owes much to this Toronto-influenced wave. The group’s producer, Nineteen85, engineered some of the keystone singles in that field (think “Hold On, We’re Going Home” and “Truffle Butter”). However, it distinguishes itself from the swath of midnight acts trying to ride that wave by its trajectory. Where the majority of reductive PBR&B comes from rappers entering the R&B field, dvsn moves in the opposite direction as an R&B group foremost, meeting the influence of hip hop and pop secondarily. The result is a modern R&B album that exists as a tightrope between inspirations. There’s indie-rock, which manifests itself most clearly on “Angela,” built from indie artist Elliot Smith’s “Angeles,” with a jazz aesthetic brought in for good measure. “Do It Well” sounds like a more nuanced and traditional R&B take on Drake’s “Houstatlantavegas.” Title track “Sept. 5th” is a soulful and far more optimistic reworking of House of Balloonsera The Weeknd. Dvsn’s skill lies in the group’s ability to avoid redundancy in light of this broad lineage. The clearest example of this is the single “Hallucinations.” The track is a direct affront to claims that this kind of slow, syrupy sound has lost its freshness. The production echoes relentlessly, twirling through the air and grabbing

your attention immediately. The singer, whose identity is still a mystery, meets that atmosphere with an equally enthralling croon, sounding reluctant when he admits “I’m losing sleep every night.” Whoever this vocalist is (I speculate it’s Daniel Daley), he has a powerful talent for controlling acute changes in his voice to achieve a commendable emotional range, something that separates the group from artists like PARTYNEXTDOOR and JMSN, who can fall into monotony and often rely far too heavily on their production. Still, there are moments when Sept. 5th enters the forgettable. “Another One” feels like just that: another one. Among the tightrope of inspirations here, it offers an example of when dvsn can teeter on the edge of average, particularly in the shadow of standouts like “With Me,” “Try / Effortless” and “Hallucinations.” Some have derided dvsn for living in the shadow of Drake and other such PBR&B titans — now more than ever as an OVO signee. Where the tide started at Kanye’s 808s and Heartbreak and swelled to a too-big-to-fail mentality, it’s become easy to shrug off many of its benefactors as fair-weather artists. But that criticism misses the point — for all its influences, dvsn can still inhabit its own world, even if just barely. On Sept. 5th, it works.

ALBUM REVIEW

Let it be known that I’m a massive fan of all things ’60s, ’70s and ’80s. When Drake and Future say “What a time to be alive,” BI’m pretty Bang, sure they’re really talking Zoom, about those Crazy… three decades, because it Hello really was Cheap Trick a time to be alive. It was Big Machine the time to be alive. It was mildly more acceptable to be politically incorrect. Crazy kids worrying about school were hard to come by. And of course, there was the music. Lacking the overproduced tone that embodies modern music, the ’70s is probably the last decade that was really dominated by pure music — pure in the sense that popular music hinged on a certain level of vocal talent and instrumental creativity. The guitar still had a voice of its own and studios weren’t necessarily manufacturing bands for profit and pop stars for radio sound. Instead, you had legends being legends: Queen, Pink Floyd, The Who. And since we can’t all be legends, there were also the talented bands with several hits that you’d still flock to see live — chiefly, and for conversation’s sake, Cheap Trick. With unquestionable hits like “Surrender” and “I Want You To Want Me,” Cheap Trick undoubtedly should be remembered. These songs are classic

jams that went into shaping the ’70s, but that’s about it. These two Cheap Trick songs are probably the only two Cheap Trick songs that will ever be relevant, at least to future generations; the remainder of songs from the 17 albums Cheap Trick produced are unremarkable, including the entirety of their latest album, Bang, Zoom, Crazy… Hello. Released a week before their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the 11-track record isn’t bad. Compared to so much shit produced for the 2016 mainstream radio, I would even dare to say that Bang, Zoom, Crazy… Hello is great. There are three solid standouts supported by a remainder of ’70s-esque noise fillers, but given the current state of rock music, these three standouts are greatly appreciated. “When I Wake Up Tomorrow,” “Sing My Blues Away” and “Roll Me” are really all you need to listen to off Bang, Zoom, Crazy… Hello. Released as a single, “When I Wake Up Tomorrow” is the best song on the album and makes me understand why Cheap Trick is being inducted into the Hall of Fame. Dubbed by Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielsen as a moody, interesting piece reminiscent of a “sultry David Bowie song,” it’s evident that the band is still capable of churning out more than just noise. With smooth Bowie vocals, U2-esque keyboard interludes and their hallmark heavy guitar, “When I Wake Up Tomorrow” could easily be mistaken as a legend’s work. With the bar set high by “When I Wake Up Tomorrow,” it’s no wonder that the rest of

the album falls short. “Sing My Blues Away” and “Roll Me” are comparatively more memorable than the rest of the album in that they have that classic ’70s Cheap Trick vibe while being more than just guitar songs. “Sing My Blues Away” has a catchy upbeat chorus while “Roll Me” features more angsty, sexy vocals, accompanied by equally ferocious guitar riffs. But that’s really all I can say because they both still sound so much like most Cheap Trick songs. So then the question is why? Why is a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee’s latest work since 2009 average at best? It could be a function of who’s writing the music; guitarist Rick Nielsen does most of the songwriting, so it makes sense that, as a guitarist, he writes most of the music for the guitar. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, because who doesn’t love a great guitar riff? But the problem is that those really great guitar riffs seldom appear. The same overbearing riffs dominate most of Cheap Trick’s songs, leaving little room for other instrumental or vocal creativity. The homogeneity of Cheap Trick’s music then calls into question the inevitable — do bands have an expiration date? This is a tricky and touchy subject, one that I won’t even dare to touch right now. For the time being, let’s just enjoy the wonderfully different “When I Wake Up Tomorrow” and stick to the classics — after all, “Surrender” and “I Want You To Want Me” are probably the sole reason for Cheap Trick’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in the first place.

ting, whisking the player from the contemporary war-torn landscapes of “3” and “4” into Central Europe’s stone age. This risk-taking, unconventional setting allows “Primal” to be a huge improvement over its predecessor (the bloated, overlong “Far Cry 4”), returning to a design closer to the leaner, meaner “Far Cry 3” Easily one of the best-looking and best-running games on PS4, “Primal” ’s natural landscapes of rivers, old-growth forests and mountains are heart-stoppingly beautiful, as are the slightly exaggerated lighting techniques used to give the world distinct periods of day and night. The art design of “Primal” takes the idea of the caveman/woman as traditionally depicted and injects its classic “Far Cry” brand of violence. Even though upgradeable clubs, bows and spears replace a huge arsenal of guns, this is definitely no less gory. Tossing a spear through an enemy caveperson’s brain is something you’ll do again and again in this game, and it never gets old. My roommate and I couldn’t stop laughing whenever I would nail a bad guy with a well-placed spear or arrow from across the screen. It’s one of the most gleeful melee combat experiences I’ve had with a game.

hunt. It’s a breath of fresh air in a franchise on the verge of feeling a little Hot Topic-brand angsty. Even though I’m a devout real-life vegetarian, I’ve really enjoyed Far Cry’s traditionally over-the-top hunting sidequests — missions where the player hunts down huge, deadly animals for valuable skins used for item upgrades. “Primal” adds a brilliant new mechanic to these missions that had begun to feel slightly tired in “4.” In “Primal,” the player has the ability to tame and ride these dangerous animals. It’s brilliant, and I’m shocked they’ve never done it before — each animal ally comes packed with its own abilities for passive exploration and combat. They always feel like an asset, never a hassle. This mechanic is a blast to mess around with. One thing critics have failed to comment on so far is “Primal” ’s superior sound design. The game’s introduction, which uses only audio and a black screen to establish its setting in a way I won’t spoil, is the highlight of an all-in-all masterful implementation of sound mixing and unforgettable effects. The game’s narrative is nothing to write home about — the franchise has still struggled to find a good central villain since “Far Cry 3” ’s Vaas (Michael Mando, “Better Call Saul”). But this series has always been about aesthetic, setting and that sweet sense of progression over anything else. And in those ways, “Far Cry Primal” succeeds in grand fashion. It’s different enough to be refreshing and familiar enough to hit those same endorphins in the back of your brain that made “Far Cry 3” so fun to play. It’s so cool to see a major studio continue to take big risks with a big franchise and have it pay off swimmingly. “Far Cry Primal” was reviewed using a post-launch physical copy provided by Ubisoft.

Yeasayer album will convert the naysayers ‘Primal’ reawakens ‘Far Cry’ once again VIDEO GAME REVIEW

By SHIMA SADAGHIYANI Daily Arts Writer

Do you often turn to one of Salvador Dalí’s pieces and wish that a musical representation of what you are looking at A exists? Are you tired of mainAmen & stream pop hits because Goodbye of their hum- Yeasayer drum qualities? Do you Mute constantly search for music videos that straddle the line between artistic genius and really fucked up? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then Yeasayer’s new album, Amen & Goodbye, should be first on your list of albums to listen to. Even if you hate Dalí or prefer your music videos on the tamer side, Amen & Goodbye still needs to be queued up on Spotify, because it does what many albums cannot do well: combine aspects of surrealism and music to create a dynamic, surreal, cohesive story that traps the listener from the first song and doesn’t let them go until the last. With synthetic pop sounds blending with lead singer Chris Keating’s mellow vocals, Amen & Goodbye is more than just an album; it’s a work of art. The album begins with “Daughters of Cain.” Slow and intense, this track serves as the amuse-bouche of Amen & Goodbye as well as the exposition. Masterfully blending folk and electronic, this song gives listeners a hint of what’s to come throughout the rest of album while also maintaining a quiet power beneath the simple tune. It’s an introduction that doesn’t overwhelm but instead inspires; “Daughters of Cain” serves as a blank canvas that lets the listeners go wild imagining all the different possibilities that could be splattered on such a vulnerable surface. Yeasayer doesn’t disappoint. “Daughters of Cain” smoothly transitions into “I Am Chem-

istry.” Vibrant, futuristic and powerful, this song is 50 shades of badass. And even though the song is a little over five minutes, the listener never once loses interest. A combination of attention-grabbing lyrics (“she doesn’t need my help poising the well beneath the rue leaves / she only needs my help pleasuring herself beneath the rue leaves”) and Yeasayer’s ability to piece together different rhythms and sounds without being all over the place helps create the Jackson Pollock-esque musical powerhouse that is “I Am Chemistry.” The fun doesn’t stop there. With tracks like “Silly Me” and “Dead Sea Scrolls,” Yeasayer keeps people on their toes by continuing to push their sound higher and higher. “Silly Me” is everything the title suggests, with a fun, pop-punk beat making the song glossy along with an added layer of electronica. “Dead Sea Scrolls” takes that electronica and drives it one step further by adding more depth to the one-dimensional, noncommittal sound found in “Silly Me.” Chris Keating’s deeply melodious vocals in “a mock up of the dead / a mock up of the Dead Sea Scrolls” helps to make this song a real three-dimensional presence.

A work that deserves a spot in the MoMA. From “I Am Chemistry” to “Dead Sea Scrolls,” Yeasayer consistently throws paint upon the blank canvas that “Daughters of Cain” introduced. Continuing to build and build, these space age, ultramodern and extremely formidable songs develop off each other until they reach the climax at the ending five seconds of “Dead Sea Scrolls.” The music just hits the edge between concentrated and overpowering and

the noise level unceasingly rises and rises until, suddenly, everything flattens out into the tranquil “Prophecy Gun.” “Prophecy Gun” marks a shift in Amen & Goodbye. Its muted and organic sound mimics the quiet beauty of a soothing forest rather than a grandiose, hightech landscape, and thus it’s a complete contrast from the first half of the album. However, this change isn’t off-putting. Instead, “Prophecy Gun” is a muchneeded break from the action, providing the perfect bridge to smoothly transition into the rest of the songs of Amen & Goodbye. While the songs before “Prophecy Gun” were exultant and avant-garde, the songs that come after “Prophecy Gun” seem to have taken a turn into the shadows, with every track unfathomable and slightly dark. For example, “Divine Simulacrum” is rain clouds personified, with “there’s heaven in the sea, driftwood in the sand / tell him to go to hell, and take me by the hand” over a morose and daunting beat. Both “Gerson’s Whistle” and “Uma” feature moments of vulnerability and loneliness as Christ Keating’s vocals soar out over a minimal background. If songs pre-“Prophecy Gun” were Yeasayer slinging paint at a blank surface just to create something, these songs post“Prophecy Gun” are Yeasayer coming in and shaping the fine details with a paintbrush. The songs are intricately personal, satisfying in their intimacy and comforting in their simplicity. Amen & Goodbye ends with the title track, which features no vocals and no clashing rhythms or stimulating beats, but instead one simple tune that signals the closing of the album. “Amen & Goodbye” is an open-ended question, a suggestion for the listeners to finish the story Yeasayer started in the way they prefer. A story that is one part revolutionary, one part despairing and all parts captivating, beautifully meshed together into a brilliantly weird work of art that deserves its own place in the MoMA.

By JACOB RICH Senior Arts Edior

“Addicting” is one of the stranger adjectives used by game critics. In almost every context, addiction has an extremely negative con- Anotation. Far Cry Describing a friend as Primal “addicted” usually signi- Ubisoft fies that they PS4 (Reviewed), need someone Xbox One, PC to step in and help them with a life problem. It’s not even always positive in the context of games — it can be especially nasty when considering the gross ways mobile app developers scheme to keep customers playing and purchasing microtransactions. However, Ubisoft’s “Far Cry” franchise has always represented a more positive form of addiction to me. As players progress through a “Far Cry” game’s narrative and explores its dangerous, expansive open worlds, they also progress in ability — constantly upgrading weapons, unlocking new areas to explore (upgrading traversal capabilities) and finding new crafting materials to upgrade equipment. If you really want to be reductive about it, all this upgrading can simply represent numbers going up incrementally. But this constant, expertly crafted feeling that you’re just a bit stronger — a bit more agile — a bit further in the story — results in one of the most engaging power-fantasy gameplay systems in openworld gaming. “Far Cry Primal” certainly manages to nail that feeling of continual progression, but it isn’t just another one of these games. Like fellow spin-off entry “Far Cry: Blood Dragon,” “Primal” radically alters the game’s set-

The latest entry is addicting in the best way. That being said, where previous “Far Cry” games thematically concerned bloodlust, insanity and nihilism, this one imbues its characters with a deep spirituality — a forgotten religion that dictates the way they speak and

Arts

6 — Friday, April 8, 2016

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

HIP-HOP COLUMN

The South’s got something to say “

Well at one time, I was saying that their legacy hopefully wouldn’t go down as the greatest story never told… But we’re about to tell it.” The quote comes from T-Mo, member of Atlanta rap group Goodie Mob, and the legacy LEJLA in reference BAJGORIC belongs to none other than Organized Noize. “The Art of Organized Noize,” documentary about the group, hit Netflix a couple weeks ago, and it takes viewers all the way back, more than just “a couple of years ago, to Headland and Delowe.” This is the same Headland and Delowe that was “the start of something good,” as told by Andre 3000 on “Elevators.” In the line, Dre is recalling the day he and Big Boi met up with Rico Wade, head honcho of Organized, outside of a hair salon and impressed him with their rhymes. Needless to say, Rico was a fan. He brought them back to the dungeon – his mother’s basement — and they kind of never left. Well, Big Boi would leave for school in the mornings (3.68 GPA students can’t miss class, even if it means having to forgo hearing some magic from Ray Murray — the sonic genius behind Organized’s produc-

tion), but Dre dropped out and stayed around. Beatrice, Rico’s mother, is featured in the doc and talks about growing immune to the music; it would be the first thing heard in the morning, still going strong late into the night. After a while, it wasn’t a bother. It just was. Beatrice’s feature is just one sign of how personal the doc gets — a must-see for heads who wait around wondering when their favorite artists who contributed so much to the game will finally be displayed in a more accessible manner, for all to appreciate. Its candor is its strong suit, making the doc just as endearing as it is informative — the story behind “Player’s Ball,” for example, stands out — Outkast’s first single was actually the product of a request from their soon-tobe label to contribute a track to “A LaFace Family Christmas.” Yup, a Christmas album. So Dre and Big Boi rapped about the only Christmas they knew, and with it, burst onto the scene. With the debut of Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik shortly thereafter, they felt like they made it. And by they, I mean the entire Dungeon Family. Cee-Lo reminisced on the first time he heard “Player’s Ball” on the radio. It was while he was at work at the airport. He quit immediately after. Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik was everyone’s first album, not just Outkast’s: It included verses from members of Goodie Mob,

production, start to end, from Organized and creative input from all. They knew they were going to make it big — getting onto the scene was just the tough part. Organized would go on to produce some of the most important hits of our time; they’re the masterminds behind TLC’s “Waterfalls.” But no matter whom they worked with, be it Bubba Sparxxx or Ludacris, they stayed true to their roots, mixing futuristic funk with live instrumentation — their signature sound that heavily influenced future production conglomerates like J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League. This is to say, Organized remained unapologetically southern through it all. And though getting onto the scene was tough in general when Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik debuted, this went twofold if you were from the South — the often neglected and still disrespected segment of the States. Things have changed — sort of. We currently live in an interesting time where the tracks that receive plaques, and often the dances that accompany them, come from artists who aren’t even from the South, yet they’re applying the same formula understood as birthed by the third coast. Case in point: O.T. Genasis — of hits “CoCo” and “Cut It” — grew up in Long Beach, California, but one could make the claim that his sound is derivative of T.I.’s trap long before affiliating it

Classifieds

RELEASE DATE– Friday, April 8, 2016

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

ACROSS 1 Walks, on scorecards 4 Rehab hurdle 7 Calm 13 “Well, __-di-dah!” 14 Deli choice 15 Ducks’ home 16 Some Anne Rice novels 18 Dupes 19 *Assist Charles M. Schulz? 21 Completely 22 Wapiti 23 ID checker 24 “__ any drop to drink”: Coleridge 26 Surface 32 *Free ticket given to Target Field players? 35 Burn soothers 38 Modern reaction to a riot? 39 Group of species 40 *Timepiece at a stag party? 43 Important Philippines export 44 Bros, e.g. 45 Fraction of a joule 48 Not allow to atrophy 50 “My vegetable love should grow / __ than empires ... ”: Andrew Marvell 53 *Law office? 58 Option play option, in football 59 Home of the god Pan 60 Beverage sometimes served with mint 61 Besides 62 Inning trio 63 Botched (up) 64 Model of industry 65 Put into words DOWN 1 Failed miserably 2 Industry leaders 3 Fan letter? 4 Meaning

5 Industry leaders 6 Prepare tuna, in a way 7 Converse, e.g. 8 Take in 9 Quaker pronoun 10 It may be skillfully created by one who’s all thumbs 11 Rests 12 Acute care letters 15 Eponymous skater Paulsen 17 Ring decision 20 One putting on an act 25 Home of Norway’s royal family 27 Bank holding: Abbr. 28 Carafe kin 29 __ Tin Tin 30 Shaggy-tailed bovid 31 First of September? 32 Lot of trouble? 33 “A Hard Road to Glory” writer 34 Merrie __ England

35 Plant bristle 36 French narrative poem 37 Like some stocks, briefly 41 Misspoke, as lines 42 Surround 45 Rachmaninoff’s “__-tableaux” 46 Light-sensitive layer

47 __ spoon 49 Upholstered piece 51 Fancy tie 52 Hotel amenity 53 Derby, perhaps 54 Some bills 55 Chances 56 Speck 57 It may be mined 58 Objective reference

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

LAFACE

Remember when Andre 3000 was going to play Jimi Hendrix? Wait. .. he did?

with, say, Warren G’s g-funk. And though neither trap nor g-funk captures the creative range of either coast alone, both subgenres can trace their origins to one of the two spaces. The implication is that if you want mainstream level success, it’s now imperative to sound Southern (only regarding song structure though, we — or the radio — still don’t want local references or a country twang). There are two points to clarify here: One — is this really the case, is this sound “Southern?” And two — if so, is this a good thing, as it puts the South on the map as the sonic norm? First off, the sound of any locale, not just the Dirty, is dynamic, fluid and always up for debate. Being designated as grittier than the rest, a la New York for example, surely has an effect on up-and-coming artists from the East Coast as they develop their sound — a selffulfilling prophecy if you will.

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And while a cadre of Southern crews do fit the formula (amplify the energy and braggadocio on party cut beats while chilling out on the complexity of the lyrics) like the Ying Yang Twins, Big Tymers and Three 6 Mafia to name a few, we quickly run into some roadblocks that prevent us from agreeing with the first claim — that the predominant sound of rap is the sound of the South. Geto Boys immediately come to mind: one of the primary pioneers in incorporating the South into the conversation about hip hop. Hailing from Houston, the trio (though at one point there were many more than three, as even Sir Rap-A-Lot was included) not only proved the South could rap along with New York’s finest, but also developed a new sub genre of rap in and of itself. You didn’t think Eminem was the first to stuff his lyrics full of shock value, often tied to horrifying, even homicidal, imagery — right? But before we write them off as some misogynists who “condoned” mass murder, it’s important to also bring up their introspection. “I sit alone in my four-cornered room staring at candles.” The line initially comes from “Mind of a Lunatic,” about as horrendous as horrorcore gets, but it was cemented into the canon of hip hop’s greatest with 1991’s “Mind Playing Tricks On Me.” The song made it clear that there was a range to the South’s darkness. Geto Boys were balanced; they spent a lot of time soul searching, wondering about the roots of their violence and the role of crooked cops in it all. They made their paranoia come to life for listeners and gave a well-rounded sample of what coming up in the hoods of the South was like. The Geto Boys make tangible the claim that the South can rap. But still, what about Big Tymers and Three 6 Mafia and, while we’re at it, even UGK – especially Pimp C? Most of that is, dare I say it, pretty straightforward: “Smokin out, pourin up, putting dick up in yo’ slut.” There’s more than enough to be decoded, since much of the language and terminology used by the artists is distinctly Southern: Mike Jones has a feature on the same track and raps, “Candy paint what I’m flippin on, 84’s and vogues what I’m tippin on.” With no attempt to gain acceptance by the East or West in songs like these, Southern artists felt the South was a valid enough audience itself. And so they rapped specifically for them. And there was no need to get multisyllabic with the rhymes or obfuscate the metaphors to the point of cryptic confusion. So while songs were coded, the lyrics oftentimes weren’t exactly deep. However, the South did show up and show out every time — in

a different way — and this goes for Big Tymers too. Bun B too has a verse in “Pourin Up” as well and raps, “You outta ya league / Tryna keep up wit the trill, you just might die of fatigue / You can’t carry the load, you can’t carry the weight / Not like them boys up out that Lone Star state.” To put on properly for the Lone Star State, as Bun implies, didn’t necessitate elite lyrical prowess. To be impressive was, and still is, to be musical — in production, in flow, in delivery. Many people prefer the sounds of the South because they’re consistently euphonious: the melody, the harmony, the hooks. It’s not just easier to listen to lyrically, but usually sweeter to the ear as well. There’s an element of soul — whether imposed through Curtis Mayfield samples or created through independent interpolation — that is just as important to discuss. If we’re going to dog on the South for vapid, airy lyrics, then it’s only fair to pick on the East for cut-and-dried, formulaic beats. Both statements are generalizations, but both aspects are just as important to rap as the other. It’s about the full package. After all, Outkast aren’t the beloved darlings of hip hop due to lyrics alone. Much of their success and standing is due to sound, i.e. is due to Organized Noize. So when we talk about Big Tymers or Triple 6 as compared to the radio-friendly hits of today, there are similarities, but there’s also a big difference. The emphasis on hooks and resemblance in song structure holds (a generalization easily dismantled through groups like Geto Boys, Outkast and so on). But you already know what the next radio hit will sound like before it’s here. To call the redundant, recycled, soulless and uninspiring sound of today’s mainstream “Southern” is to insult a space that is more moving in its musicality than even the mecca that is New York. Am I implying that mass production and capitalism have sucked the soul out of rap? Maybe — look out for the next piece to find out. But more important than all else is that we give the South its due props for its innovation and introspection. When Outkast was booed at the 1995 Source Awards upon winning Best New Rap Group, Andre got on stage and let everyone know, “it’s like this: The South got something to say.” It’s about time they stopped being dismissed and started being taken seriously and praised for their contributions — which is to say, time they started being heard, words slurred, coming out through the diamonds in their mouths and all. If you got something to say to Bajgoric, e-mail her at lejla@umich.edu.

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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

WOMEN’S LACROSSE

‘M’ loses blowout By KATIE CONKLIN Daily Sports Writer

With seven national titles, the No. 13 Northwestern women’s lacrosse team instills fear in the minds of its MICHIGAN 4 opponents. N’WESTERN 20 The team emphasizes strength and aggression, as evidenced by its high-pressure defense in all thirds of the field. By sending a double team toward the ball handler, the Wildcats hope to fluster their opponents into making a mistake. Though an attacker is left unmarked, the double typically makes it extremely difficult for the ball handler to drive or get off a clean pass. In the first half of play against Michigan on Thursday night, Northwestern’s plan worked seamlessly. Forty minutes into the game, Michigan junior attacker Tess Korten was stuck in one of the double teams. Searching for the open player, Korten spotted junior attacker Jess Angerman, who was wide open at the left of the crease. Korten passed to Angerman, who then rounded the crease, faked the goalie and hit twine, resulting in Michigan’s first score. Unfortunately for the Wolverines, they still had 16 goals left to tie the game. Michigan coach Jennifer Ulehla predicted Northwestern’s pressure from the start. Coming off of two consecutive losses, the Wildcats were looking for redemption, and they earned it with an early 17-1 lead. “We have to weather the storm in the beginning of this game because they’re going to come out on fire,” Uhlela said to the team before the game. “It’s going to be high pressure, and we’ve got to be able to handle that and think clearly and work through it.” Based on the 20-4 final score,

it’s clear the warning didn’t bode well for the Wolverines. “Well, the storm happened, and we obviously didn’t work through it,” Ulehla said. Entering halftime without a single goal, Michigan pointed to its lack of aggression. The effort was there, but the execution was not. “We had a mentality of ‘We need to get to goal,’ ” Angerman said. “We didn’t really have anything to lose. It all came down to possession time and being able to capitalize on our opportunities.” There wasn’t much time to capitalize on opportunities, though, as Northwestern dominated the draw control, 19-6. Known for their draw specialists, the Wildcats know where the ball is going to be before the whistle is blown — something Michigan aspires to develop and something it just couldn’t beat. “It’s the consistent execution of where the ball’s going,” Ulehla said. “They’re able to put (the ball) in a position that’s consistent, they know it’s going there and they’re able to run onto it.” The Wolverines, who have run successful backer and man defenses in their short, three-season history had extreme difficulty in stopping Northwestern’s attack. It wasn’t until halftime that Michigan began to adjust. “It took a while to figure out a defense that was going to work,” Ulehla said. “By the time we did, it was 15-0.” Playing Northwestern twice last year, Michigan lost 17-8 in its first showing. After recharging for the Big Ten quarterfinal, the Wolverines lost just 13-9. With the potential of seeing the Wildcats again in the Big Ten Tournament this season, Michigan may have a chance to exact revenge. “If we see Northwestern again,” Ulehla said. “I guarantee it’ll be a different outcome.”

Sports

Friday, April 8, 2016 — 7

Michigan set for Gophers By COLE ZINGAS Daily Sports Writer

Right away, Harrison Wenson made it known that he was going to bring power to the middle of the Michigan baseball team’s lineup. Minnesota He hit four out at Michigan of Michigan’s Matchup: first six home Minnesota runs to start 16-10; Michigan the season and 21-6 is maintaining When: Friday a .606 slugging 12:00 P.M., percentage. 3:00 P.M.; But as for Sunday 1 P.M. the rest of the Where: Ray team, home Fisher Stadium runs have TV/Radio: been hard Sunday on BTN to come by. Plus Heading into conference play last weekend, junior first baseman Carmen Benedetti, the No. 3 hitter for the Wolverines, had only hit one. The only other player on the team with a homer was sophomore first baseman Drew Lugbauer — and his came on a line drive inside-the-parker. In fact, for a team that has climbed to a 21-6 record and garnered enough attention to earn a spot in all five major top25 polls this week, the power numbers were shockingly low. The Wolverines were tied for 254th out of 300 teams in the country in home runs and 11th in the Big Ten. But last Friday, the Wolverines began to show signs of big-swing potential. That day, fifth-year senior outfielder Matt Ramsay belted three dingers in one game. Michael Brdar added to that trend with a long bomb on a large field at Notre Dame. The Wolverines have been racking up runs — they have scored five runs or more in each of their last 10 games — but only

ROBERT DUNNE/Daily

Junior Carmen Benedetti is hitting .344 halfway through the season.

recently has the team started to put a few over the fence. “We trust that if our power guys are doing a good job with their approach and only swinging at pitches that they can drive … then the power numbers will take care of themselves,” said Michigan coach Erik Bakich. One of those “power guys” to whom Bakich is referring is Lugbauer, who is in the midst of a breakout campaign. Lugbauer, who stands at 6-foot-3 and 220 pounds, has been hitting balls hard since his freshman season. But unfortunately for him, many would-be doubles and triples went right at opposing fielders, which resulted in a disappointing .211 batting average in 2015.

In the last week, however, it has looked as if Lugbauer can be a guy to step up and supply some muscle for the Wolverines. Tuesday against the Irish, he hit a two-run triple that Bakich said would’ve cleared the fence at Ray Fisher Stadium. When the Wolverines returned home the following day, Lugbauer seized the opportunity and hit two home runs — both well over the right-field fence. A third ball he hit, this time to rightcenter, had a shot to clear as well, but a leaping catch at the wall denied him the chance to match Ramsay’s three-homer performance from a week ago. But neither Bakich nor Lugbauer seemed to be at all surprised by the lefty’s big day

against Bowling Green. “It’s kind of awesome … I guess I’ll take it,” Lugbauer said with a shrug about his performance on Wednesday. Lugbauer is not the only one who has been heating up. Benedetti, a preseason AllAmerican, has batted at a consistent .344 average and gotten on base in 50 percent of his plate appearances. Despite hitting only one home run so far this season, Benedetti is a big hitter with a capability to change a game with one swing. “We’re going to keep doing what we’re doing, because it’s working,” Lugbauer said. “Home runs come, and if we keep swinging the bats and hitting the ball hard, good things will happen.” Though Michigan has won 10 of its last 11 games, the wins all came against teams with losing records. In the last two weeks, the Wolverines have swept UIC (11-16) and Northwestern (7-22), and rattled off single-game wins against Central Michigan (5-23) and Bowling Green (11-18). Michigan asserted its dominance and looked impressive in each of these contests, but against a 15-11 Notre Dame team, the Wolverines had a chance to earn a quality win against a legitimate Atlantic Coast Conference contender. Instead, they fell, 9-5. Their upcoming schedule won’t be as forgiving. This weekend, Michigan plays Minnesota (16-10) — which has won six of its last eight and won its first Big Ten series of the year against Iowa. With conference play starting to heat up, the Wolverines could use an extra boost. If the hard swings continue, Michigan believes that eventually, the balls will carry, and a surging offense could provide just that.

Reports: Jordan off to Milwaukee By JAKE LOURIM Managing Sports Editor

KRISTINA PERKINS/Daily

Senior second baseman Sierra Romero went 7-for-8 with three home runs and six RBI last weekend, and her team is up to No. 1 in the top-25 poll this week.

Wolverines back on the road By BETELHEM ASHAME Daily Sports Writer

Homer after homer flew out of the ballpark in Bloomington. The No. 1 Michigan softball team had entered Michigan at Hoosier Nebraska territory and made Matchup: its presence Michigan 27-3; felt. By the Nebraska 24-12 end of last When: Friday weekend, the 8:30 P.M., Saturday 2 P.M., Wolverines racked up an Sunday 1 P.M. eye-popping Where: Bowlin nine home Stadium runs — TV/Radio: including two Friday, Sunday grand slams, on BTN three two-run blasts and three solo shots. Overpowering Indiana with the long ball, Michigan (5-1 Big Ten, 27-3 overall) swept the series in grand fashion with a 31-9 combined run margin. But the Wolverines left Bloomington with more than a series sweep

and the winningest coach in NCAA history. After a thorough thrashing of the Hoosiers, Michigan has a new spot in the national rankings: the top. The Wolverines are ranked No. 1 for the first time since 2011. According to Michigan coach Carol Hutchins, though, that won’t change anything. “In 2011, we didn’t even make it to the super regionals,” Hutchins said. “So that’s how I feel about it. It’s all about getting to the end. We can only worry about the battles that we’re in, and we’re in a battle this weekend with a very tough Nebraska team. They’re always a tough opponent for us, so I quite frankly don’t give a damn about the ranking. “Nobody knows who’s ranked in April.” Going into a tough conference series against Nebraska (5-3, 24-12) this weekend, the Wolverines will look to their leader and standout performer to help them keep the ball rolling against the Cornhuskers. Senior second baseman Sierra Romero

set the tone in the series sweep against Indiana, tallying seven runs, six RBI and three home runs, one in each game, in a 7-for8 performance at the plate. Stepping up her game with the conference season underway, Romero earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors after her dominant performance. “Since the start of Big Ten, which has only been two weekends now, I’ve been feeling pretty good,” Romero said. “I’ve just been focusing on my fundamentals, just really trying to get my bat out front, getting good pitches to hit and staying ahead of the count. So I’ve just been really focusing on little things. It just so happened that last weekend it all worked.” As Romero has stepped up her play, her teammates have followed suit. Most notably, junior third baseman Lindsay Montemarano has continued her recent tear in the batter’s box. Blasting a triple and two home runs, including a grand slam, against the Hoosiers,

Montemarano validated her recognition as Big Ten Co-Player of the Week last week. Though Indiana has had a respectable season so far, it isn’t quite at the level of Michigan, as evidenced by the Wolverines’ convincing series sweep. Nebraska, however, will be a much more accurate benchmark for Michigan to determine its progression as a team. The Cornhuskers dropped out of the top-25 poll with two losses at Illinois last weekend, but with two wins against ranked opponents, they shouldn’t be overlooked by the Wolverines. Infielder MJ Knighten, in particular, will be one to watch out for, as she has hit .407 with 17 home runs to power their lineup. “We’re in the middle of our season, and we just continue to evolve,” Hutchins said. “We’re going into the heart of the season, and we just need to stay focused on the things that we control, which is playing ball. ... The only thing I hope they do (is) play good softball.”

The Michigan men’s basketball team’s coaching staff will officially need a new face next season, as assistant coach LaVall Jordan has accepted the head coaching job at Milwaukee, according to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman and CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein. Jordan, 36, has been an assistant on John Beilein’s staff for the past six seasons, during which the Wolverines have gone 14370, made the NCAA Tournament five times and won two Big Ten titles. He, Bacari Alexander and Jeff Meyer have each remained with Beilein during that time, but Beilein said Wednesday a departure was possible. This isn’t the first time Jordan has been up for another job. He was rumored for the head coaching job at Butler — his alma mater — when it opened two years ago. With

the rise of the Michigan men’s basketball program during his tenure, Jordan has become known for his mentorship of breakout guards such as Trey Burke, now with the NBA’s Utah Jazz. Milwaukee finished 20-13 (10-8 in the Horizon League) this past season and lost in the Horizon League quarterfinals to Green Bay. Jordan’s departure might not be the only one from Beilein’s staff, as Alexander is among the rumored candidates for the head coaching vacancy at Detroit. He played for the Titans during the 1997-98 and 1998-99 seasons after transferring from Robert Morris. “I think that this is long overdue,” Beilein said Wednesday about the prospect of assistantcoach attrition. “They are really ready to be (head) coaches. The fact that we’ve been together for six years — that doesn’t happen very often.”

AMANDA ALLEN/Daily

LaVall Jordan has worked on John Beilein’s coaching staff for the past six years.

Sports

8 — Friday, April 8, 2016

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

The legend of Travis Wooley Senior went from childhood in Brazil to cheerleading to Michigan football By ZACH SHAW Daily Sports Editor

ORLANDO, Fla. — Travis Wooley isn’t one to give up. Michigan cheerleading coach Pam St. John knew that as well as anyone, but she still needed the flag back. The Michigan football team had just stomped all over Florida in the Jan. 1 Citrus Bowl, 41-7. At halftime, St. John had promised Wooley — a former cheerleader — that if the Wolverines won, he would be able to wave the flag around the field. Wooley had also requested to keep the flag after the game, but St. John thought he was joking. He wasn’t. Wooley got an inch and took it a mile, running the flag back into the locker room with full intentions of keeping it. St. John was far from the first person to dismiss one of Wooley’s sky-high ambitions, and like the thousands before her, she would end up eating her words. There are many underdog stories in sports, but none like this. From growing up in Brazil to beginning organized football at 14 to being a benchwarmer on a winless high school team to majoring in musical theatre at Saginaw Valley State to joining the Michigan cheerleading team, not one part of Wooley’s journey indicated that he belonged on the Michigan football team. But there he stood, with sweatsoaked pads on his shoulders and a winged helmet in his hand, celebrating Michigan’s 10th win of the season. He eventually gave the flag back, but that was a minor loss. His mystifying journey full of rejection, enthusiasm and one seized opportunity was complete. In a story unlike any other, against all odds and criticism, Wooley had lettered with the Michigan football team. *** Wooley’s introduction to football parallels that of a foreigner, and in many ways, he was. Despite being born in Texas, Wooley spent his formative years in Brasilia, Brazil, as his father, John, served as a deputy attaché for Homeland Security and the U.S. Embassy. For the most part, Wooley grew up Brazilian, but U.S. government workers overseas are required to come to America one month out of the year on a program called “Home Leave” to stay in touch with and embrace American culture. In the Wooley family, that culture included football. Though football was not offered in Brasilia, Wooley would watch “Friday Night Lights,” “Remember the Titans” and other sports movies religiously. He not only loved the intensity of football and its ability to bring a community together, but also its ability to make him feel less like an outsider in a foreign land. “I was picked on a lot in Brazil,

and I was in America so little that it felt like vacation to come here,” Wooley said. “So football gave me a chance to go back to the United States and feel normal. I was big for my age, so (the football players) were like gods to me.” Eventually, he got the itch to play, but resources in Brazil were short. So before he moved back to the United States in 2006, Wooley learned the game of football by playing NCAA Football video games, watching movies and reading 1950s playbooks found in his principal’s attic. But Wooley’s mother, Shelley, knew her son would pick it up. In the same year, she had seen Travis — seen as too large and inexperienced to ride horses competitively — defy conventional wisdom and become a medal-winning endurance horse-racer in Brasilia through sheer will. A game he had actually practiced a little bit and was built for? No problem. “When he came back to the U.S., these other kids had been playing for several years, but Travis didn’t blink,” Shelley said. “The best thing you can do if you want him to accomplish something is to first tell him no. … For as long as I can remember, he has been unwilling to hear the word ‘no.’ He will absolutely turn that no into a yes.” When Travis was 14, the family moved back to America. Armed with little more than a love for the game, Wooley tried out for the eighth-grade football team. In many towns in America, he wouldn’t have gotten the shot. He would have been too old and too raw to join a competitive team. But he wasn’t in one of those places. His father had become Homeland Security’s special agent in charge of Northern Michigan, and Wooley’s introduction to football came in tiny Sault Ste. Marie. In the 14,000-person, upper-peninsula town, Wooley would get a shot at football. And that was all he needed.

good year, and Travis was not even a starter. When asked to size up Wooley’s abilities, Menard admitted his former player was hardly above average in anything. At 6-feet and around 200 pounds, Wooley never really found a position he could thrive in. But it wasn’t for a lack of effort. “What stood out to me, though, is that he wasn’t afraid to try anything,” Menard said. “When one guy was injured or another needed a breather, he would immediately come up to me and say, ‘Hey coach, I can go in, I think I can do that.’ “He wasn’t afraid to work for something if it helped the team or it helped him get better. Whatever opportunities came up, he would take them and seize them, or at least try to.” Wooley’s enthusiasm and energy left him confident that he would be able to walk on to a football team in college, but the try-anything mantra applied off the field, too. Midway through high school, Wooley became a fan of the hit musical show “Glee.” With no prior experience, he auditioned for his high school’s production of the musical “Chicago” senior year and was cast in the lead role. With natural charisma and enthusiasm, he fell in love with the performing arts. After seeing the YouTube hit movie “A Very Potter Musical” performed by University of Michigan students, Wooley fell in love with Michigan’s musical theatre program, too. While researching the University, he discovered the history and prestige of Michigan football. His walk-on dream had a destination. “As someone who moved around a lot as a kid and never had that many close friends, Michigan was a big draw to me — no matter what the program,” Wooley said. “People were just unapologetically supportive and appreciative of each other, and that was something I wanted to be a part of.” Wooley was rejected by Michigan in the spring of 2011, his senior year. He later called the moment a “tipping point” in his love for Michigan to prove the doubters wrong. Just as before, telling him no was all the encouragement he would need.

“Somehow they gave me a shot, and then I just kind of stuck around.”

*** Of all the people to be surprised when Travis Wooley made the Michigan football team, his high school coach considers himself among the most shocked. Scott Menard spent 10 years at the helm of Sault Area High School, and his worst two seasons were in the falls of 2009 and 2010 — Wooley’s two years on varsity. His Blue Devils went 1-17 those two seasons, and the second player in school history to go on to play Division I football couldn’t even crack the starting lineup. “I’ve got to be honest with you, he didn’t play a lot,” Menard said in a phone interview. “He was as raw as you’re going to get. … He was always a little behind.” And it wasn’t as if the team was that far ahead. In a good year, Menard says his team might have a handful of Division II players on his roster. But neither year was a

COURTESY OF THE WOOLEY FAMILY

Travis Wooley achieved his dream of making the Michigan football team last fall.

*** When asked about Travis Wooley, just about everyone will discuss Wooley’s enthusiasm. And that’s warranted — no one can go through a journey like his without enthusiasm, but where does it come from? No one is really born with enthusiasm, and it’s a hard trait to teach. To have a high level of enthusiasm, it must be bred into us as children. Fortunately for Wooley, that’s exactly what happened. Even before his days fighting for the Navy in the Vietnam War, John Wooley believed that everything can be accomplished if the energy and passion is there. He entered federal law enforcement, pushing himself and his comrades to take on large-scale drug trafficking. He constantly told his three sons that every challenge served as an opportunity. Even after he retired in 2012, his values stood tall. Travis Wooley remembers sitting in the car with his father as a radio talk show discussed automotive bailouts. By that point, Travis had settled on Saginaw Valley State, where he would studying musical theatre and training with the intentions of transferring to Michigan. His grades struggled first semester, and even his revised plan looked bleak. But as the bailouts were discussed, John turned off the radio. “He turned to me and said, ‘When you get into Michigan, it’s going to feel so good knowing that you did it all by yourself,’ ” Wooley recalled. “That was one of the most memorable things anyone has ever said to me.” And it stuck. Wooley increased his weightlifting regimen

COURTESY OF THE WOOLEY FAMILY

Travis Wooley (left) played in front of his dad, John (right), in Michigan’s Spring Game last April, just before John passed away last July. John, a former Homeland Security agent, constantly gave Travis encouragement during Travis’s childhood.

immediately. To improve his grades, Wooley cut out ice cream — his favorite food — until he got a 4.0 grade-point average. He never had ice cream (and still hasn’t to this day), but after two years at Saginaw, he got the next best thing: admittance to Michigan. For the first time, Wooley’s dream had some legs. But the already average football player hadn’t played in more than two years, and the Wolverines don’t tend to take those kinds of players, so Wooley needed to find a way to get his foot in the door. He only needed an inch. *** In the real world, the majority of career advancement results come from networking and connections made along the way. Whether it’s a friend, colleague or even just a fellow alumnus, jobs are given in large part based on who you know. Wooley remembered this very thought when he tried out for the Michigan cheerleading team in the fall of 2013. The football team wouldn’t take him, so he tried to get as close to the program as possible. “I wanted people to Google ‘Michigan football’ and see my face,” Wooley said. “And with the cheerleading team, you can do that.” That wasn’t the only benefit of the cheerleading team. As perennial contenders for the national championship, the team trains year-round as seriously as any varsity sport. They have access to special weight rooms along with several other facilities for student-athletes. And perhaps most importantly for Wooley, no experience was required to join. “We don’t have a lot of men go out for our team, and none of them come in with the skills for this sport,” St. John said. “So part of our vetting process is, are they a good person? Are they nice, are they enthusiastic, are they flexible?’ “We want them to be athletic and strong enough to perform the tasks we ask them to, but a large part of it is what kind of person you are, and it was apparent pretty early on that Travis had that.” With plenty of enthusiasm and energy to his credit, Wooley was a natural fit. He cheered for two years, and the Wolverines took home the national title both years. But Wooley wasn’t shy about what his end goal was. Once he arrived in Ann Arbor, he e-mailed the football team at least once a week for two years. He would get responses, but they usually mentioned an unspecified open tryout, until they said it was canceled or had already happened. Undeterred, Wooley simply worked harder to ensure that when he finally did get a chance, he wouldn’t miss it. After cheerleading practice and lifting, Wooley would run sprints, go through agility drills and push himself to get into shape for when the football team came knocking. “He worked harder than a lot of kids I’d ever seen,” said cheerleading co-captain Evan Hampton. “I just don’t think it was in his blood to take it easy.” Off the field, he used his

presence on the cheerleading team to join clubs for studentathletes, where he met members of the football team. Players like wide receiver Jehu Chesson and defensive lineman Chris Wormley were drawn to his energy and fearless charisma right away, but when he brought up the fact that he was trying to make the team, they — like St. John with the flag — thought he was kidding. “I didn’t think he was serious,” said Chesson, who met Wooley through student-athlete Bible study while Wooley was still on the cheer team. “Or even if he was, I didn’t think he would go through with it. A lot of guys talk and even think about trying out, but it’s another thing to actually do it. I didn’t think much of it at the time.” Wooley wasn’t joking, though he did need to wait for a new head coach with equally unheard-of enthusiasm to take over.

When Jim Harbaugh returned to Ann Arbor to become the Michigan football coach, to say he was a popular guy would be an understatement. Many people wanted to talk to him, but Wooley had something others didn’t — Harbaugh’s attention in the front row. During a Michigan women’s basketball game in January 2015, Harbaugh was seated along the baseline of Crisler Center as Wooley performed a routine with the team. While Wooley held a female cheerleader over his head, Harbaugh — as has proven to be typical of the eccentric coach — began to coach Wooley on his form and muscle placement. Despite the absurdity of the situation, Wooley knew he had the chance he was looking for. “He’s bugging me during the routine, but I just go, ‘Hey coach, I’m looking forward to trying out for you next week,’ ” Wooley said. “Then mid-routine, he starts asking about my height, weight, 40 time and so on.” It was only a few minutes, and it was unclear if it actually helped his chances, but a week later, Wooley made it through tryouts and was invited to join the Michigan football team. Four years and two schools since he last played a down of organized football, Wooley had realized his dream. “We questioned it all the time,” Shelley said of the family’s doubts along the way. “The joke in our family was that the stars aligned for Travis — perfect time, perfect coach, perfect grades. … When he called to tell us he had made the team, he was just beside himself. It was a special moment.” It was extra special for John, who had grown ill with cancer since reigniting Wooley’s dream three years prior. The elder Wooley told Travis he had never been prouder. But for the younger Wooley, the journey was only just beginning.

than that of a scholarship player. While Michigan has financially committed to its scholarship players, the walk-ons are owed nothing and are often seen as dispensable parts, complete with training regimens designed to make athletes quit. But four years into the relentless pursuit of his dream, Wooley couldn’t even fathom quitting. “Oh, God no,” Wooley said. “Somehow they gave me a shot, and then I just kind of stuck around. I truly believed that they were going to kick me off the team, that they were going to say, ‘You can’t help us, please leave.’ ” But that loyalty also applied to the cheerleading team, which trains through the first week of April. Wooley had made a commitment to the team and maintained that commitment — no matter the cost. “He was doing four-a-days, if you think about it,” said cheerleading co-captain Alex Snow. “But he got a whiff of his dream, and I think he loved it. … Being on the team, being a part of Michigan football, that’s all he ever wanted.” Added St. John: “I could tell he was exhausted, but he was keeping his commitment to our team. I wish I could tap into that (energy). I could use a little bit of it.” Working out for up to six hours per day for the month of March, Wooley tested the limits of his dream. He not only passed, but won over his new teammates in the process. “I thought it was cool to see him really push through that month,” said Wormley, who met Wooley while the two lived in North Quad in 2013. “Travis isn’t the most athletically gifted kid when it comes to football, but his heart and determination and passion for Michigan as a whole is something I wish more of our players had.” Added Chesson: “A lot of guys who are on the scout team are like, ‘Damn, I’m on the scout team’ and have a bad attitude about it. But that was never the case with him, ever.” Most importantly, he made the dress list for the Spring Game on April 4, 2015. His father, who had grown more ill in the month since Wooley made the team and was using a walker, was able to make it to the game to see his son in uniform for the first time. Wooley didn’t play, but it didn’t matter — he had made it. Above all else, his father, who had a bone marrow transplant and had been in the hospital for a month, was able to see his son finally make it. Unable to walk on his own or withstand the cold, he got a box seat. “He didn’t have to fight the lines,” Shelley joked. “He had blanket after blanket and hat after hat, but he got to see his son down on the sidelines in a Michigan uniform. “It was really a dream come true.” Neither John nor Travis Wooley took the moment for granted, and for good reason. John’s condition grew worse, and July 14, 2015, the man who taught Travis about football, enthusiasm and had reignited his dream when he needed it most passed away.

***

“He worked harder than a lot of kids I’d ever seen.”

Beyond simply the financial burden, life as a walk-on football player is substantially harder

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