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Tuesday, February 14, 2017
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Public input, feedback on provost heard at town hall Students interested in selection of leader, faculty also vocalize specific requests ALON SAMUEL
Daily Staff Reporter DESIGN BY: MICHELLE PHILLIPS
Students, professors explore role of free speech in classroom, on campus
University as a public institution has strict policies regarding First Amendment CAITLIN REEDY Daily Staff Reporter
In the last year there have been several instances of hate speech and targeted verbal attacks against different minority groups on the University of Michigan campus. However, the line between hate speech and free speech remains blurred for the University to interpret in each individual case, as the balance between maintaining free speech and a safe environment for
students continually remains a precarious one. As a public institution, the University must strictly adhere to the First Amendment and the freedom of speech it guarantees. The University codified its commitment to free speech and a safe campus in its UM Standard Practice Guide, as of the many policies in the SPG, one is dedicated solely to 601.01, the “Freedom of Speech and Artistic Expression.” The Civil Liberties Board of the University’s Senate Assembly
proposed a set of guidelines to be adopted by the University. Prefacing the policies is the goal that, by representing and allowing for the entire spectrum of opinions within the University community, the staff can create an open forum for diverse opinions. The guidelines of 601.01 are committed to the exchange of opinions to encourage learning. “Expression of diverse points of view is of the highest importance, not only for those who espouse a cause or position and then defend it, but also for those who hear and
pass judgment on that defense,” the policy reads. “The belief that an opinion is pernicious, false, or in any other way detestable cannot be grounds for its suppression.” Law student Erin Pamukcu, president of the University’s chapter of the American Constitution Society, believes the First Amendment and free speech are foundations not only in the study of law, but the U.S. democratic system. “It’s the Amendment that ensures the will of the people can See FREE SPEECH, Page 3
The Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Search Advisory Committee held a town hall meeting Monday evening, seeking public input on the search process for the position, which oversees academic and budgetary affairs for the University of Michigan. The position of interim provost is currently held by Public Policy Prof. Paul Courant, who assumed the position on Feb. 1st after former Provost Martha Pollack left the University on Jan. 31 to serve role as president of Cornell University starting April 17. University President Mark Schlissel, who chairs the committee, said he hopes to fill the position by the beginning of the next academic year. Aside from Schlissel, the committee consists of 10 professors and deans from several of the University’s 19 schools, as well as one student representative. The town hall had an
attendance of about 30 people, most of whom were faculty and staff, as well as the committee members themselves. The group articulated ideas about what qualities the next provost should have and the issues with which he or she should be most concerned. Several attendees mentioned the importance of the provost’s understanding of research, including Vice President for Research Jack Hu, a committee member and professor of mechanical engineering, who said it was important to him that the future provost was someone who had done research and understood the complexities of the research enterprise. LSA senior Aditi Rao raised the question of innovations in education, citing Caitlin Holman’s recent TedxUofM presentation about improvements that could be made in education. “I know a few of you have mentioned the importance of research and that the provost has participated in research,” Rao said. “I think it would be See TOWN HALL, Page 3
Adminstration and SACUA discuss New party DPSS gives announces selection of next University provost update on
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
CRIME
run in CSG elections
President Mark Schlissel visits the committee, asking for suggestions, recommendations
LSA juniors lead eMerge campaign, aim to bring attention to student voices
The Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs met with University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel and the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Search Advisory Committee Monday afternoon to discuss the selection of the new provost. Schlissel began the meeting by seeking input from SACUA on what the search committee should look for in a new provost. Schlissel welcomed SACUA’s advice not only on what qualifications the candidates should have, but also the issues to which they should be paying extra attention, particularly as a body that frequently interacts with the provost. “I thought it would be valuable to have input from SACUA about what we should be paying closest attention to as we search for a new provost,” Schlissel said. “You’re amongst the group that interacts with the provost quite a bit … so your advice is particularly welcome.” SACUA member John Lehman, a professor of biology, began the conversation by reading a list of questions he and the Academic Affairs Advisory Committee created. The committee hopes the questions will be used in the interviews of the candidates for provost. Its questions covered a broad range of topics, including what the candidate believes to be the purpose of the University and
NISA KHAN & JORDYN BAKER Daily News Editor & Daily Staff Reporter
With the current administration nearing its end, the first campaign for the University of Michigan’s Central Student Government launched Monday night. The group celebrated its new beginning in the Ross School of Business with its 15 member team. The party, eMerge, is headed by LSA junior Anushka Sarkar, the former Chief Programming Officer, who is running for President, and Public Policy junior Nadine Jawad, the current CSG Senior Policy Advisor, who is running for Vice President. Currently, the party is unopposed. Last year, Sarkar worked with the Mental Health Leaders Network, where she helped push to increase the number of counselors in Counseling and Psychological Services. The party’s goals are based in pushing for sustainable changes that can impact a greater movement. “We really pushed the See CAMPAIGN, Page 3
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MAYA GOLDMAN Daily Staff Reporter
his or her vision for research and innovation at the University. Lehman also stressed the importance of the future provost’s engagement with undergraduate education, considering the provost is currently the only individual with a responsibility for undergraduate education on campus. Lehman suggested asking whether the provost would like to expand that responsibility and if he or she would consider
active involvement with students by teaching occasional undergraduate courses. Schlissel responded enthusiastically to the AAAC’s list, saying the search committee has already spent time thinking about the provost’s relationship with undergraduate education. “We were just talking about the issue of undergraduate education today,” Schlissel said. “All schools and colleges have structures that
look after their undergraduate programs and deans respond on the school level. But the provost is really the integrator of undergraduate commitments across the campus.” Other SACUA members posed their own questions regarding topics such as how the next provost will further the University’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion plan and interact with See SACUA, Page 3
MATT VAILLIENCOURT/Daily
University President Mark Schlissel joined the SACUA meeting to discuss the search for a new provost at the Fleming Building on Monday.
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INDEX
Vol. CXXVII, No. 29 ©2016 The Michigan Daily
alleged Fall hate crimes
‘U’ police, AAPD and FBI determine two of three hate crimes did not occur ALEXIS RANKIN Daily Staff Reporter
Updates regarding three hate crimes that occurred at the end of last year have been released by the Ann Arbor Police Department. Following the conclusion of a joint investigation with the FBI, AAPD and the Division of Public Safety and Security, two of the three crimes were deemed as being falsely reported and the other investigation is currently inactive because of lack of information. The first incident, which took place on Nov. 11, involved a student who reported being approached by a man who demanded she remove her hijab or he would set her on fire. It was later determined, citing several discrepancies between eyewitness testimonies and surveillance tapes from the scene, the alleged crime did not occur. According to a press release from the AAPD, the student will not be prosecuted for the false report. “Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s office declined to authorize criminal charges,” Lt. See DPSS, Page 3
NEWS.........................2 OPINION.....................4 ARTS......................6
SUDOKU.....................2 CLASSIFIEDS...............6 SPORTS....................7
News
2 — Tuesday, February 14, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
ON THE DAILY: KID ROCK-ING IN THE SENATE? Wes Nakagiri, a Livingston County Tea Party activist, has his sights set on Kid Rock, Detroit native and Trump supporter, for a potential Senate candidate in 2018. “[Kid Rock] has name I.D., is an out-of-the-box idea, and would kind of get rid of that stodgy Republican image,” Nakagiri said in an interview with the Detroit Free Press. Michigan Republicans have been seeking out a potential U.S. Senate seat candidate to balance out the Michigan’s party unification with Republicans in control of all statewide offices. The possible election of Kid Rock would have implications, as it would mean there would be a Republican candidate receiving Michigan’s electoral votes for the first time since 1988. No candidates have yet been announced to oppose Debbie Stabenow in 2018; however,
names proposed at the Michigan Republican Party ranged from former state senators, such as U.S. Rep. Fred Upton (R–St. Joseph) and Randy Richardville, former Senate Majority Leader from Monroe, to the rock artist himself. “I’ll bet you he would generate as much excitement as Trump did,” Nakagiri told the Free Press. Ron Weiser, University of Michigan regent and elected state Republican Party chairman, told the Detroit Free Press that, while he did not want to mention names, he has spoken to some potential candidates for the position. “We have to find a candidate for the Senate,” Weiser said. “Hopefully, someone will step forward.” Many members of the party have been looking at less conventional candidates in
an effort to replicate the Trump candidacy, which they believe has been effective. “We’ve won pretty much everything else,” said Stu Standler, Republican consultant,
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to the Detroit Free Press. “This is something that’s eluded Republicans since 1994, and we want to win it back.”
Ann Arbor’s sunshine and clear, blue skies is making me feel all kinds of happy today!
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“CON S E NT BY DE-ZIN E ”
Katie Rosenblatt @KatieRosenblatt @UMich scheduling loud lawn maintenance on Diag at 10am does not help the #leadersandbest do their best learning
MATT VAILLIENCOURT/Daily Students celebrate the release of “Consent by De-Zine,” a collection of poetry and art related to healthy relationships, consent, and empowerment at North Quad on Monday.
CAMPUS EVENTS & NOTES umichARTS & Culture @umichARTS
Ryodoraku in New China
Jewishness and Modernist Fiction
Bee Nutrition and Bee Health
My Folky Valentine
WHAT: Ruth Rogaski, associate professor of history at Vanderbilt University, will discuss hygeine in 19th- and 20th-century China. WHO: Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies WHEN: Noon to 1 p.m. WHERE: School of Social Work, Room 1636
WHAT: English Prof. Walter Cohen will discuss his new book, which investigates the changing role of Jewishness in modernist prose over time. WHO: Judaic Studies WHEN: 4:10 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. WHERE: 202 S. Thayer St., Room 2022
WHAT: Master beekeepers Earl and Carol Hoffman and Engineering graduate student Austin Martin will discuss bee health and the native Detroit bee population. WHO: Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum WHEN: 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. WHERE: Matthaei Botanical
WHAT: The Ark will feature music and love songs performed by married and partnered couples from the Ann Arbor area in celebration of Valentine’s Day. The event will cost $20. WHO: Michigan Union Ticket Office WHEN: 8 p.m. WHERE: The Ark
Rethinking the Sequence of Development WHAT: Political Science Prof. Yuen Yuen Ang argues the “chicken-and-egg” theory of development is too simple to be applied to complex systems. WHO: The Center for the Study of Complex Systems WHEN: 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. WHERE: West Hall, Room 411
Tempo and Mode in the 21st Century WHAT: The brown bag lunch series will attempt to analyze the fossil record from the genomic era to find new insights. WHO: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology WHEN: 12:10 p.m. to 1 p.m. WHERE: Ruthven Museums Building, Room 2009
CSP Poetry Workshops
Diversity Next!
WHAT: Students will be able to express themselves through poetry and have the opportunity share their work with other participants for assistance. WHO: Comprehensive Studies Program WHEN: 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. WHERE: Angell Hall, Room 1139
WHAT: Dr. Kyra Gaunt, a UM alum, will dicuss the effect Black music has on the Black Lives Matter movement and the power of shared song in mass protests. WHO: Center for World Performance Studies WHEN: 6:30 p.m. WHERE: East Quadrangle, Room 1405
Central Student Government leader vetoes Israeli-Palestinian lunch bill Daily News Editor
LSA senior David Schafer, Central Student Government president, vetoed the IsraeliPalestinian lunch resolution, which sparked a heated debate within the student government, Monday afternoon. The proposed lunches, which were meant to foster dialogue between the body and Israeli and Palestinian students on campus, passed last meeting with 18 votes in favor, nine opposed and five abstentions. In his statement, Schafer wrote he did not believe CSG should impose itself and widen its scope within the global-issue conflict. “The overarching purpose of our organization is to address pressing student issues and concerns that have a direct and unambiguous
connection to campus, such as mental health, sexual assault prevention, sustainability, and the rights of undocumented students,” he wrote. “We are best served, and our resources are most efficiently utilized, when we are faithful to this mission.” Another reason the bill was met with disagreement from the executive board was the concern that Student Allied for Freedom and Equality, the proPalestinian student organization on campus, was not also a sponsor of the resolution. Schafer said the assembly “flippantly” did not take the absence of SAFE into consideration. “As the student government that seeks to represent every Michigan student, our most important job is fostering an inclusive culture, both within and outside of CSG,” he wrote. “By advancing this Resolution without weighing the
HERE’S TO THE GALENTINES. puzzle by sudokusyndication.com
concerns of students in SAFE or any other student who might take issue with this Resolution, we are neglecting this foundational goal. While I do very much appreciate the author’s good faith attempts to gain support from a diverse cross-section of students, this conspicuous absence of support is enough reason for me to veto this Resolution.” CSG Vice President Micah Griggs, LSA senior, also touched upon this in the last Assembly meeting, stating she did not feel comfortable the proposed lunches were not open to the public. The resolution asked for a selected group of people who had to take a survey in order to be admitted into the lunches. “It doesn’t maximize the student body reach, it’s not accessible to other students, it’s exclusive,” Griggs said last Tuesday night. “I think the reason that there aren’t any sponsors is because of the bigger problems of this issue … If you want real allies in this conversation and it’s not one-sided or just twosided then invite members like (Muslim Students’ Association) or (Intergroup Relations). I just don’t see how this will be successful and I just can’t support this, and again, it’s not about the money.” Schafer was also concerned with the structure of the launched resolution, primarily who would be the mediator as it was never clarified and only given “surface-level” consideration. “Additionally, as was discussed by some Assembly Representatives during 1st and 2nd reads, this event is closed not only to most CSG members, but also to the general public,” he wrote.
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Laura Matney @LauraLmatney16 Y’all I don’t know what has gotten into the squirrels on this campus but they truly need to remember their place.
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David Schafer, CSG president, had concerns with bill’s format and nature NISA KHAN
SMTD Profs Michael Daugherty & Joseph Gramley were named GRAMMY Award-winners at the 59th annual Grammy Awards.
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FREE SPEECH From Page 1 always be heard and will always be heard,” Pamukcu said. “It was important when America was founded, and is just as important today, especially because the ways that we now communicate are continually changing. The law has to keep changing on how it interprets speech, and in what capacity — does it extend to social media, what I say to people when I’m working? It’s an amendment that will continue to be important and its interpretation will continue to evolve.” The SPG also created policies directed specifically against “Discrimination and Harassment.” This in-depth policy stance includes definitions of the terms and the appropriate responses to and procedures to follow in these instances, in addition to the Regents’ Bylaw 14.06 and the Nondiscrimination Policy Notice already created to target these issues. The policy clearly states the University is committed to maintaining an academic and work environment free of discrimination and harassment. “The University has a compelling interest in assuring an environment in which learning and productive work thrives,” the policy reads. “At the same time, the University has an equally compelling interest in protecting freedom of speech and academic freedom and in preserving the widest possible dialogue within its instructional and research settings.” Pamukcu believes there is a distinction between hate speech and free speech, and the University has the discretion to decide what classifies as hate speech and when the University has cause to intervene, especially given the current divisive political climate. “Hate speech is one of those things that is recognizable, you can use common sense,” Pamukcu said. “You can see by the way they act, the language they use, the context they say it in — those are all important parts about deciding whether someone is exercising their own right to free speech or they’re using their speech to target an individual or cause harm to an individual in the way that hate speech does.” For Philosophy Prof. Daniel Jacobson, however, freedom of
SACUA From Page 1 faculty governance. Lehman stressed the importance of a communicative relationship between the provost and the faculty governance committees. “The biggest complaints that have come forward historically … is too much decision making before consultation with the faculty,” Lehman said. “It’s come out as an issue, and you’re still going to find people complaining about this.” SACUA member Silke-Maria Weineck, a professor of German and comparative literature, posed
DPSS From Page 1 Matthew Lige wrote in the press release email. The second incident occurred the following day, when a student reported being verbally assaulted and then pushed down a hill. While the victim and witness statements were deemed credible, the investigation is no longer active
The area where the assault occurred did not have independent video of the incident due to lack of information regarding the assailant. “The area where the assault occurred did not have independent video of
speech stands as a prerequisite to knowledge, and as such, people should be able to defend their views against all arguments, whether or not some would consider it to be “hate speech.” “There isn’t even a clear meaning to the phrase ‘hate speech,’ which is one good reason not to use the phrase, let alone to use it to propose restrictions on speech,” Jacobson wrote in an email interview. “But the law is clear: Hate speech (including false, immoral, even harmful speech) is protected by the Constitution. That is a good thing, because if hate speech could be suppressed, then, inevitably, unpopular moral and political opinions would be labeled as hate speech.” The aforementioned guarantee of free speech and the importance of diverse opinions was the University’s rationale in allowing The Michigan Review to utilize University space to host two contentious figures. Early in the primaries of the 2016 presidential campaign, Milo Yiannopoulos debated against Julie Bindel in the Michigan League in February 2016. Both figures are banned from multiple universities in the United Kingdom because of their controversial views — Yiannopoulos for his opinion that feminists invent fake problems specifically regarding rape and sexual assault, and Bindel for her opinions of modern feminists and the transgender community. Most recently, Yiannopoulos was slated to speak at the University of California-Berkeley, but after violent protests from the student body, the university cancelled the event. Many students expressed discontent with the hosting of this event, but University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald wrote to the Daily in an email at the time of the event that the University allowed for participation by the two aforementioned participants. The University is committed to allowing freedom of speech and opinions for all students and outside guests, referencing the SPG. LSA junior Andrew Krieger, president of the University’s chapter of Young Americans for Liberty, a non-partisan libertarian group on campus, believes the University’s role in maintaining free speech and censoring hate speech is important, but his peers could work on being open to others’
concerns about how the next provost will lead the University through the current contentious political climate. “It seems to me that we may be faced with a somewhat very hostile federal administration in the future,” Weineck said. “I would like to see a provost who has various game plans to (protect) our various vulnerabilities … Somebody who has had some serious experience interfacing with government would be useful, and possibly someone who knows the mind of conservatives.” The conversation then turned to whether SACUA would prefer a candidate who already works for the University or someone from
the incident,” Lige wrote. “No suspects could be identified as the victim was unable to describe the assailant beyond a vague clothing and physical description. At this time, this investigation is inactive.” The third incident involved a woman who reported being assaulted by a man who scratched her face with a safety pin while she was walking on Liberty Street. The incident was heavily investigated by both AAPD detectives and FBI agents, who concluded the report was false and the crime did not occur. Investigators found numerous inconsistencies in the victim’s statement and there was no surveillance footage of the crime to support the report. In response, detectives have submitted a warrant request for criminal charges against the Ann Arbor resident who made the false report. “This incident originally reported was a misdemeanor assault,” Lige wrote. “A criminal penalty for a false police report would also be a misdemeanor.”
ideologies. “So we believe that free speech allows for you to challenge your ideas and to change the ideas of others,” Krieger said. “As far the University censoring those ideologies, I think that makes racism worse in that it solidifies their convictions and doesn’t allow for them to hear the other side.” For LSA junior Emily Kaufman, who identifies as a transwoman, Yiannopoulos coming to campus was a point of contention, as in her opinion, he represents hate speech rather than exercising his right to free speech. “I went to the event, and it was the most uncomfortable I’ve probably ever been in my life,” Kaufman said. “It was a lot of white men from out of town. The kind of people that look like they’d beat up a trans girl like me … The misrepresentation of feminism and having all these people from out of town, it wasn’t University of Michigan students having a productive debate, which could have been useful.” Krieger said Young Americans for Liberty does not shy away from bringing in controversial speakers such as Yiannopoulos because it is incredibly beneficial to have open dialogues and listen to the viewpoints of those with different political ideologies than one’s own. “Obviously, we don’t like defamation, flat-out lies, threats — none of that is acceptable under the Constitution,” Krieger said. “Unfortunately, the only way you’re going to convince people with racial ideologies is to have discussions with them, and that is an issue people don’t like to hear and people don’t really want to try. For a lot of libertarians, free speech is the only way to convince people otherwise … I don’t like Milo, but it’s sad that people aren’t able to come to a campus for a fear of their lives.” Jack Bernard, associate general counsel at the University, and Sarah Daniels, associate dean of students, spoke about the University’s role as a public institution and the First Amendment during a Central Student Government meeting in December. Though Bernard and Daniels did not specify any incidents, their presentation alluded to the anti-Islam and politically charged messages that have been chalked on the Diag, including statements such as “Stop Islam” and “Trump 2016.” The University
outside the community. SACUA Secretary David Potter, a professor of history and classical studies, highlighted the merits of both backgrounds, but said he ultimately felt an outside perspective could be good for the University. “We’ve had two very successful internal candidates recently, following an extremely successful external candidate … but the perspective an outsider can bring (is) that we don’t necessarily need to do everything the same way all the time,” Potter said. “And I think, after a number of years of very good internal people, having an external candidate might be nice.” Weineck disagreed with Potter, saying the new provost must have
did not remove the chalk, and students predominately Muslim, eventually washed off the writing. One student who helped wash off the chalk messages, Rackham student Banen Al-Sheemary, said at the time she was frustrated with the University’s lack of action in response to the chalk drawings beyond an email from University President Mark Schlissel promoting unity. “It’s irresponsible of the administration that we are actually out here with buckets of water and napkins to clean off these hateful messages and the administration isn’t taking care of it,” Al-Sheemary said at the time. “And not only is the administration not taking care of it, they are putting us through a really difficult process. That perpetuates these really racist and hateful stereotypes that turn into violence and turn into students of color feeling unsafe on campus.” Bernard explained the chalk
Students are subjected to political indoctrination even in courses that are not about politics writings on the Diag could not be interfered with by the University if they were not threats of violence or other versions of unprotected speech, and Daniels added the University cannot stop people from speaking. Both Bernard and Daniels agreed the best ways to counteract speech was more speech. Art & Design senior Keysha Wall, member of the University chapter of BAMN — the Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration and Immigrant Rights and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary— took issue with the University’s representatives during the CSG meeting, stating the chalk drawing incidents were representative of a threat toward Muslim students. “You cannot debate fascism,”
a knowledge of the University’s culture. “With all of the new deans and with (Schlissel) still being a bit (new), I don’t think it’s strictly a question of inside or outside,” Weineck said. “I think we do need somebody who has an understanding of the identity of the University.” The search committee has already had its first meeting and elicited the help of a search firm. The committee will accept applications and nominations until the end of the month, at which point it will begin confidential interviews of select applicants. A new provost is expected to be appointed before next year’s fall semester.
CAMPAIGN From Page 1 University to increase the number of counselors that CAPS had to get to a better ratio of counselors to students, and originally we were at one to 1300, which is below where we should be,” Sarkar said. “The ideal golden ratio is one to 1000, and because of the advocacy work that happened over the last year, the University is actually hiring more counselors for CAPS now and they will be at one to 1200, which is not the golden ratio, but it’s progress and there’s a lot of work to be done and we’re excited to do that.” Sarkar said she is also excited to strive for a new policy regarding the maximum number of exams a student can take in one day. Currently, students can take a total of four exams in one day, but can advocate for three. She hopes to get the maximum lowered to three, allowing students to advocate for two, which is a policy she believes will strongly impact the mental health and well-being of students. Jawad is deeply involved with
CSG’s efforts to connect with the city of Ann Arbor, especially in regards to affordable housing and student concerns with the increasing high prices. Recently, CSG made efforts to convince the city to move to nonpartisan elections in order to encourage more University student turnout. According to LSA junior Cassie Fields, who is running for communications director, eMerge hopes base its campaign on responding and elevating student voices, especially the voices that have not been involved with CSG before. “We are really trying to look at students who are overlooked or who may have been left out of a lot of dialogues, so we’re trying to say, ‘we need to look at all walks of life,’ ” she said. “Every single person in this school has interests, how can we best make campus work for them? So we are really trying to target advocating for student voice so that students have their own voice on campus. We want them to have their own opportunities. There’s so many kids who don’t even know how to get involved, or they don’t know how to find a club or don’t know what to do, so we want to be a
Tuesday, February 14, 2017 — 3 Wall said. “You cannot have a discussion with fascism. You have to shut that down.” However, the University was prompted to respond and announce its intention to restrict the type of speech on alt-right, white supremacist posters found around campus on multiple occasions during the weeks leading up to the contentious 2016 presidential election. The posters were primarily antiBlack and anti-Islam, earlier posters advised white women not to become romantically involved with Black men. After many student protests following the discovery of these posters, Schlissel and the University released a statement pertaining to the racially charged poster. “Messages of racial, ethnic or religious discrimination have no place at the University of Michigan,” the statement read. “While we continue to defend any individual’s right to free speech on our campus, these types of attacks directed toward any individual or group, based on a belief or characteristic, are inconsistent with the university’s values of respect, civility and equality. We also have a responsibility to create a learning environment that is free of harassment.” The University also stated they could not remove the posters promoting white supremacy because they were posted in public posting spaces. “Consistent with our policy for posting, whenever they are on buildings, we can remove them,” said former University Provost Martha Pollack during the Senate Advisory Committee on Undergraduate Affairs meeting. “If they are on kiosks, they are protected by free speech, as they should be. Not only do we have a constitutional obligation to allow all speech no matter how heinous, but if you’re going to stand by the First Amendment, you’re going to stand by the First Amendment. But what you have to do then is loudly make known your abhorrence of this.” Jacobson thinks the University intervening on free speech is an illegal act because the University is a public institution. “It is fine to have certain spaces where people are ‘safe’ from hearing opinions that offend them,” Jacobson said. “But the idea that the University as a whole should be a safe space — that it should compel people not to express offensive opinions — is
TOWN HALL From Page 1 interesting to also think about this provost participating in pedagogy research.” Rao also raised the importance of a student perspective in the search for a provost, as did LSA senior David Schafer, president of Central Student Government. “I was very uplifted to hear (the committee’s) commitment to ensure that students’ voices are heard, and that student concerns are weighed as part of this search process for the next provost,” Schafer said. “I encourage any and all students
resource for them to really find their place at Michigan.” Sarkar said the new party’s title derives from this very mission statement. “We seek to rise up, or to encourage people to rise up, and emerge from where they are and get involved in issues that they care about,” Sarkar said. “I think the political climate over the last year or so has shown us how important it is to speak out if you believe in something, because if you don’t speak out, your opinion will be silenced.” eMerge has split its platform into initiatives, short-term goals and advocacy, or longterm goals. With its initiatives, the new party hopes to attain more practical goals such as additional study spaces, Wi-Fi on the Diag and mentorship programs for nontraditional, multilingual and firstgeneration students. Advocacy is set for longterm ideas, such as providing study-abroad scholarships and encouraging tMichigan Medicine, formerly the University of Michigan Health System to accept Medicaid.
as misguided as it is impossible … And it is impossible because everything offends somebody.” Following the many protests and University responses after the 2016 election, LSA sophomore Amanda Delekta created a petition, #NotMyCampus, where she stated she felt she faced bigotry for holding conservative views, and that the University administration did not foster conversations that were respectful of all ideologies. “I penned #NotMyCampus after being frustrated at the University of Michigan’s seemingly biased response to the 2016 election results,” Delekta wrote in an email interview. “The University is a school and its purpose is to educate, but instead of fostering an open dialog (sic) professors and administrators highlighted only one viewpoint which validated that ideology over that of others which I found to create a divisive campus climate and create a stigma among students of us vs. them.” Jacobson noted the disparity between the progressive and conservative ideologies of faculty, favoring the former, is problematic because it makes students with unpopular political opinions comfortable with expressing themselves. “Many fields, especially in the humanities and social sciences, have become so politicized that scholars cannot succeed unless they hew to a leftist party line,” Jacobson wrote. “Students are subjected to political indoctrination even in courses that are not about politics. But perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the situation is that, despite its unquenchable thirst for ‘diversity,’ the University does not really value intellectual and political diversity.” However, Delekta wrote she believes freedom of speech granted to students covers all types of speech, but requires a great responsibility. “With this freedom comes great responsibility to use it for good, to be critical, but to also be compassionate,” Delekta wrote. “I believe hate speech is speech with ill intent — with no productive purpose beyond causing another harm. That being said, regardless of how insidious and horrible speech may be it is protected by the Constitution. I in no means think hate speech is right, or legitimate but it is legal.”
as best they can with the provost search advisory committee to ensure their voices are heard.” Schafer thanked Schlissel for the inclusion of Public Health student Abbas Alawieh in the committee and asked Alawieh how he see his role. “I bring to the table, as a committee member, all of the experiences I have had as an undergraduate student, as a graduate student and on the Student Budget Advisory Committee,” Alawieh said. “I was a resident advisor. All of these things which are part of the Michigan experience are things I will be thinking about when I’m thinking about making recommendations.”
The team was excited to get to work, especially in order to prioritize their voters during the CSG election season. Party co-chair Erin Johnson, Business junior, said the party hopes to connect with the student body in the upcoming months. “Sometimes with campaigns, students feel like a platform is being pushed on them, but we want people to be able to find an initiative and mobilize themselves and be able to work on things that they’re passionate about and then feel comfortable coming to us and talking about things that they want us to help them with,” Johnson said. Campaign manager Arathi Sabada, a Business sophomore, was planning to reach out to student groups in order to be representative of the student body. “So we’re definitely going to be reaching out to a lot of groups, getting their ideas, getting their input and incorporating those into our platform just to make sure we’re representing the student body as well as possible,” she said.
Opinion
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
4 — Tuesday, February 14, 2017
ANU ROY-CHAUDHURY | COLUMN
Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@michigandaily.com
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EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS Carolyn Ayaub Megan Burns Samantha Goldstein Caitlin Heenan Jeremy Kaplan
Max Lubell Alexis Megdanoff Madeline Nowicki Anna Polumbo-Levy Jason Rowland
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Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily’s Editorial Board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
FROM THE DAILY
The U must step up under DeVos
F
ollowing fierce protests and fiery criticism, Betsy DeVos was confirmed as secretary of education on Feb. 7 in a historic tie-breaking vote by Vice President Mike Pence. DeVos, former chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party and a billionaire businesswomen, has never attended public school, been an educator or directed any department of education. She is a strong supporter of school choice and student voucher programs, which threaten many important facets of our nation’s education, including the education of marginalized groups such as racial minorities, students of low socioeconomic status, students with disabilities and survivors of sexual assault. Given DeVos’s appointment as secretary of education, The Michigan Daily Editorial Board calls upon the University of Michigan to continue to support the best interests of students, even as efforts to protect students may wane at the federal level. DeVos’s support of school choice has implications on the racial and socioeconomic compositions of primary and secondary schools and the quality of their education. Charter schools in Michigan, especially in Detroit, have historically performed poorly. While studies have shown charter schools — under close monitoring — can increase racial integration in segregated communities, DeVos’s lack of commitment to the oversight of charter schools will not likely secure optimistic outcomes. What’s more, it is troubling that DeVos is not taking a more critical stance on charter schools, given their lack of success in her home state of Michigan. This will ultimately have deleterious effects on student preparedness and access to higher education, and, by extension, to diversity on campus. DeVos’s apparent lack of knowledge and commitment to protecting the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is extremely concerning, especially because students with disabilities can be harmed by the voucher programs she supports. For example, Florida’s voucher program requires that students with disabilities who receive vouchers waive their rights normally afforded under IDEA. And while this issue could hypothetically be solved by strict regulation, DeVos’s adamant opposition to any uniform regulation on public school
activities during her confirmation hearings makes it all but certain that necessary regulations to protect special education students will be absent from DeVos’s administration. Since K-12 education is integral to college access, the University should remain proactive in creating pathways to access postsecondary education for students potentially marginalized by DeVos’s lack of oversight. She seems to know very little about financial aid and student debt, as demonstrated in her uncertainty regarding how financial aid and Federal Pell Grants work. When Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D–Mass.) questioned DeVos about how she plans on protecting students’ finances, DeVos’s response confirmed she was unaware of the laws in place to prevent monetary waste, fraud and abuse. Such ambivalence is especially concerning in light of the $25 million settlement President Donald Trump dealt out to students who were cheated when they enrolled in Trump University. The University should remain proactive in ensuring students’ resources are being expended properly while working toward tuition affordability. Finally, DeVos has not shown a commitment to upholding her department’s 2011 Title IX guidance, which requires colleges and universities to play a role in fighting sexual assault on campus. DeVos
has donated to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, an organization that supported a bill that would ban institutions from prosecuting and investigating reports of sexual misconduct without a survivor making a police report. While many universities’ handlings of sexual misconduct cases have been problematic, we believe that universities’ involvement in sexual misconduct cases independent of law enforcement officials must be maintained given a university’s unique role in a student’s life. Eliminating a student’s option of only reporting misconduct to a university restricts survivors’ choice of how they would like to handle the matter. We implore the University to continue providing all current methods of recourse to sexual assault survivors that are legally permissible, even if the federal government quashes current protective federal policies. It is no less the responsibility of the University to help survivors of sexual assault and mitigate gender discrimination on campus. The University must continue its commitment to protecting victims of sexual assault, students with disabilities and marginalized groups. Betsy DeVos’s confirmation will have tangible consequences for all students, and it is necessary that the University’s students, faculty and staff fight back against policies that fail to provide a safe and quality education experience for everyone.
ANSHA ZAMAN | LETTER TO THE EDITOR
O
n Feb. 6, your newspaper ran an article called “City Council hears concerns from protest over Ann Arbor’s status as a sanctuary city” with the image of my hijab-clad face in focus. There are many reasons why this came as a surprise to me. However, after some thought, perhaps I should not have been surprised at all. I am a graduate student from Bangladesh at the University of Michigan on a nonimmigrant student visa. I am neither undocumented, nor am I seeking immigration. I do believe in my fellow undocumented and immigrant community members’ rights to civil liberties and to this land that they have helped build on their backs. Due to the many particularities of my identity that the photographer seemed to have brushed off or not taken the time to investigate, I could not be and was not present at this event representing the undocumented/immigrant community of Ann Arbor. I did not officially belong to any of the protest groups either. I was quietly standing at the back of the room as a concerned, temporary Ann Arbor resident taking notes on the proceedings. There were active protesters with meaningful signs at the front of the room. Ann Arbor resident Julie Quiroz gave an impassioned speech and made a substantial case for Ann Arbor to
become a sanctuary city. When I saw my face on your Feb. 6 issue of The Michigan Daily, I wondered why my muted, demure face was deemed a better representation of the sanctuary city movement than the faces of all the colorful and vocal protesters. I wondered what the photographer thought when they plastered my face to the article. Were they catering to patronizing white liberals? (“Look, this oppressed soul is who you are ‘saving’ by making Ann Arbor a sanctuary city?”) Were they trying to inspire hostile altright rebuke? (“Look, this symbol of Islamic terrorism is who you are inviting into your homes.”) My hijab-wearing identity is always a tool of political dissonance, never individual, never personal and never complex. My image in your article will never be interpreted as an image of an ardent ally, a participant like the rest of the audience with personal views and opinions on the issue at hand, but always as the dehumanized object that is being debated, fought over. We, Muslim hijabi women, are made to lend our molded (reshaped to meet the Western audience’s rhetorical comfort) faces to movements, without regard to what our personal politics might be or where we might want to place ourselves in the spectrum of the movement. The whitewashed and unapologetically jingoistic image of
the American-flag-wearing hijabi woman in Shepard Fairey’s “We the People” poster series is a recent example. The June 1985 National Geographic cover of the young Sharbat Gula, reduced to being called the “Afghan girl” with “haunting green eyes” is another. I am not making a case against any form of representation. I am making a case for nuanced, contextualized representation. I am inquiring the motivation behind each cycle of representation, the political functionalities and audiences each representation serves. I could go on and on about the appropriation of the hijab in Western media. In an effort to not shift focus from an otherwise-important piece on the state of sanctuary cities, I will leave you with this request: As a media institution, ask yourselves what role you play in politicizing my face. Ask yourselves if your use of my face is further legitimizing dominant narratives about Muslim women, or if it’s challenging them. Ask yourselves if you are dehumanizing my face by stripping it out of a holistic context to make your larger, oversimplified political statements. When you wage your political wars on Muslim women’s bodies, ask yourselves if you have counted the casualties. Ansha Zaman is a Natural Resources and Environment graduate student.
A few words on exceptionalism
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ith all that has those who need help the most, not happened in the past closing them. The actions Trump few weeks, the idea has taken, or rather has tried to of American exceptionalism has take, are symbolic of a different seemed even more kind of American skewed and outdated. exceptionalism: an Both nationally and exceptionalism that on campus, the new promotes equality and political climate has liberty, but only for the been tense and filled few, not the many. with uncertainty. Furthermore, the President Donald ban goes against what Trump’s slogan of I believe actually “Make America makes the United ANU ROYGreat Again” implied States exceptional: the a return to a better CHAUDHURY people. The nature nation, which had of Trump’s executive seemingly been lost in past order sends a simple message administrations. Yet, the first to those who come from the weeks of Trump’s presidency seven countries affected by it: have thoroughly worked against You are not welcome here. Yet, what makes America exceptional. this rhetoric, whether enacted At its core, “American through law or not, degrades exceptionalism” is the idea the diversity the United States that the United States is the has prided itself on. The United vanguard of liberty, democracy States has stood out among other and opportunity — a nation nations because of its power to unlike any before it, created draw people from all over the on the basis of equality and world onto one land mass, living, liberty, and throughout working and creating. The rich history, a country dedicated diversity of this country is what to upholding and cultivating makes it exceptional. Without these essential values, both immigrants, the story of American abroad and at home. American innovation, culture and progress exceptionalism promotes the would be incomplete. United States as a nation which In addition to the executive is singular, unique and a leading order, Trump’s war on the press example for other nations. seems to be part of his redefining My own belief in this definition of America’s greatness. In a of American exceptionalism is collection of tweets, Mr. Trump wary. The United States’ history has called out The New York of being a pillar of equality is Times for fictional reporting, both skewed and inaccurate. or, more accurately, reporting Our patriotism is not unlike any that doesn’t praise him. The other democratic nation’s, and president’s rhetoric toward the our true upholding of equality is press again degrades the liberty lessened by historic racism and and democracy associated with discrimination embedded in American exceptionalism. The our institutions. press has been a sure check on However, recent political the actions of those in power, events have made me more and, if anything, true freedom cynical in viewing America’s is found in the truth-telling of exceptionalism. Trump’s Cabinet our journalists. A press that appointments, his executive depicts politics truthfully, order on immigration and regardless of whether it taints the more recent and personal the image of the powerful racial incidents on our campus elite, is a press that uses its have been disheartening, to First Amendment right to hold say the least. Yes, parts of my leaders accountable and give a disappointment hinge on my voice to those who otherwise political leanings, but certain wouldn’t have one. Attacking issues go beyond politics. the press is attacking one of Trump’s executive order on the truest and most historic immigration is a huge step away examples of American freedom. from American exceptionalism. Yet, while Trump continues If we are considered a country his unexceptional actions, of liberty and equality, then we his constituents are doing should be opening our doors to the opposite. American
exceptionalism hinges on democracy and liberty, and while Trump may continuously stray from these virtues, Americans are working to uphold them. A Trump presidency may have created an upheaval of anger and fear, but it has simultaneously redefined what makes the United States exceptional. Exceptionalism isn’t in the hands of a single leader or political administration. Exceptionalism is in the hands of the people. In the past few months, a wave of solidarity has made its way through the United States in a reaction to Trump’s divisive nature. The record-breaking Women’s March was just the beginning of Americans coming together to stand up and speak out against injustices heightened by Trump’s presidency. Instead of idly sitting by, people of all backgrounds are taking a stand in whatever way they can. American exceptionalism isn’t found in the political leaders we have representing us, but in our own abilities to stand up and speak out against those leaders’ actions when we see fit. American exceptionalism is found in the vast diversity of our population and our ability to recognize and accept our differences. American exceptionalism is found in a press that refuses to sugarcoat the truth in an effort to please the powerful. American exceptionalism is found in people protesting executive orders outside airports, even if they aren’t affected. American exceptionalism is found in four judges working against an executive order, blocking what would be an injustice to many. American exceptionalism is found in a group of students standing outside a university president’s house in the middle of the night, calling for accountability and change. This is American exceptionalism. It isn’t who we have in the highest seat o f our government, but how we st a nd up ag a in st t he i nj u s t i c e s a n d d i v i s i v e n e s s h e m a y p r o m o t e . That is exceptionality.
Anu Roy-Chaudhury can be reached at anuroy@umich.edu.
CHRIS CROWDER | COLUMN
T
Love, don’t judge
he sociology classes For me, it’s important that I’ve been taking this people are knowledgeable semester have taught me about our education system just how messed up our country — how teachers should be is. I’ve been learning more valued and about class inequality that every kid more in-depth and deserves a quality how people of all education — but races from lower-class right now that isn’t backgrounds can’t happening. Schools achieve the American are dilapidated and Dream. I realized closing in Detroit this a while ago, but it because of low test pains me that others scores. Who is that don’t feel the same way helping? How will CHRIS as me, especially in kids get to CROWDER these regards to education. school? What can we do to help give While these kids have their children in poorer schools a better schools close and attend school chance of success? Why do we not in classes infested with mold, a do more to help the needy? Why school not far away in Bloomfield do people have a “pull yourself Hills has a fireplace and statues up by your bootstraps” mentality in a courtyard. The parents of when some people can’t afford students at that school have boots in the first place? the means to help pay for these Many people know that the luxuries, making the playing field system is rigged for many to more uneven. The money is being succeed and make a comfortable used to help the school have nice living. For generations, people classrooms, adequate textbooks have been angry about where they and clean hallways before these stand and how their government little luxuries. It’s not necessarily has forgotten about them. a crime to have all this in a school, All these questions rattle but it’s a stark contrast from around in my mind when I think other schools, where the water that it’s a no-brainer that millions from fountains is undrinkable of people who are abandoned, and bathrooms are falling apart. pushed to the outskirts and not Yes, there are other factors we given help should at least be can take into account, such as given better schooling in order parenting and the kid’s own work to to have a more decent life. The ethic, but can we really blame people who live in poor areas someone’s lack of success when of the country need assistance they’re not put in an environment because we don’t all live on an where they’re prepared to excel? equal playing field. And life isn’t To the people reading this, I a game — it can’t be replayed. might be barking up the wrong It’s a fact that children acquire tree. But at the same time, there wealth from their parents’ hard are many people out there who work and privilege and career don’t have the same perspective types, but what about the kids as the one I have shared. And who aren’t so fortunate to have it’s not entirely their fault. inheritances or two parents They may have been exposed around or to have attended a to entirely different opinions, well-funded school? taught a different way or could
be oblivious to the complexity of inequality in our country. With that in mind, I’ve been trying to embrace the philosophy of loving instead of judging. I don’t think it’s right for me to judge someone right off the bat based on a comment or belief before having a conversation with them. It’s better to enter a conversation with an open mind, choosing to love and listening to understand, rather than to respond. Especially with how clear it is that our country is divided, we should strive for education and conversation instead of immediately passing judgment. It will be difficult — and sometimes impossible — to change someone’s mind or to get them to listen, but maybe giving them a chance will be beneficial to both sides. It’s probably not best to discuss these issues over social media, because the best sentiments never seem to get across there, but whether on social media or in person, telling your side of the story is important. The injustices in our country can get our blood boiling. And it makes me even more infuriated when people aren’t upset, coming off as selfish or apathetic. Those who seem like they don’t care may be in fact be self-centered. But at the same time, there might be some who just don’t know or were misinformed. It’s better to love instead of judge. Progress is more likely attainable when we’re united and informed. Take a deep breath while your blood is boiling and try to give people the benefit of the doubt. Chris Crowder can be reached at ccrowd@umich.edu.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Arts
Tuesday, February 14, 2017 — 5
STYLE REVIEW
MUSIC NOTEBOOK
Scott’s New York Fashion Week collection
JEREMY SCOTT
NYFW Report: Jeremy For 59th time, Grammy Scott’s ‘Cult of Personality’ Awards ignore Black art
Beyoncé performing at the 2017 Grammy Awards
CBS
TESS GARCIA
Senior Arts Editor
Exploring the ceremony’s history of racial underrepresentation SALVATORE DIGIOIA Daily Arts Writer
On Sunday night, after almost twenty years of consistently committing mortal sins against the gods of hip-hop, the Recording Academy attempted to repent with the culture at the 59th Grammy Awards by decorating Chance the Rapper and his latest project, Coloring Book, which wasn’t distributed by a major record label, with golden trophies intended to symbolize a new understanding of, and appreciation for, underground music. Having spent months campaigning to make his freelydistributed music eligible for awards, Chance seemed to have all his wishes granted, professing unswerving thankfulness to the Lord before blessing the stage himself with a soulful performance. But for hip-hop at large, this meager victory is not enough: Iconic figures are still not being invited into the room. In 1989, DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince won the first Grammy for rap music, but they, like all other nominees in the category, refused to attend the ceremony, as they felt overlooked by programmers’ decision not to air the award’s reception. Five years later, Tony Bennett took home the trophy for best album in the same year that revolutionary hip-hop classics illmatic, Ready to Die and Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik had been released. In the early 2000s, breakout sensation 50 Cent lost Best New Artist to Evanescence and the Black Eyed Peas won best Rap Duo/ Group two-years running. Finally, most painfully, Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter III lost Album of the Year to a Robert Plant/Allison Krauss collaboration, a tough triumph that any reasonable person who owned a radio in 2007 should be willing to admit was a mistake. Sure, the Grammy’s took some relevant steps towards taste-making this year, such as enlisting Anderson .Paak to perform alongside A Tribe Called Quest, as well as including De La Soul and ScHoolboy Q in its rap nominees. But still, Drake’s Views, an articulately-marketed package of music that’s been largely deemed stale by rap fans, was the genre’s only representation in the top category, and its singsong single, “Hotline Bling,” which is now eighteen-months-old, won best rap song. Sure, Lil Yachty was on scene, having snuck himself into the commercial realm through a fourtimes-platinum guest-feature on D.R.A.M.’s hit single, “Broccoli.” But Young Thug, Travis Scott, Gucci Mane, Lil Uzi Vert, 21 Savage, Migos and Metro Boomin’, all populist champions who have indefinitely defined the most recent era in hip-hop, both sonically and aesthetically, don’t seem to have received their invitations to the ceremony, which still, despite all its shortcomings, labels itself with the notoriously cringe-worthy title: “Music’s Biggest Night.” Two weeks ago, TMZ reported that neither Kanye West, Justin Bieber nor Drake would be attending the Grammy’s ceremony, following the leadership of culticon Frank Ocean, who didn’t even submit his platinum-selling, critically-acclaimed LP Blonde for nominations.
“That institution certainly has nostalgic importance. It just doesn’t seem to be representing very well for people who come from where I come from, and hold down what I hold down,” Ocean said in a statement. The news was particularly noteworthy as West, Bieber and Drake combined were nominated for twenty awards and, honestly, carry half of the internet’s attention around the world with them. But these male, pop figureheads don’t think the Grammys are getting things right, a complaint that’s too common to ignore, even after the Academy’s 59th attempt at awarding great art. Last February, Kanye West sent out a string of tweets that trolled the Academy for its blatant lack of appreciation for Black culture. “I think the Grammys are super important!!!” he began, diving deeper into his frustrations by noting, “I know so many cool artists whose hearts have been broken by the politics including mine,” before finally speaking on behalf of almost four decades of misunderstood rap brilliance. “You like your Black people a certain way also. You wouldn’t have Future perform and that man owned the clubs last summer,” Kanye tweeted, going on to use the Atlanta-raised trap-rap sensation as a symbolic marty for the culture. “Has anyone at the Grammys ever heard “March Madness”??? Yes I have a problem with the Grammys,” he wrote, before finally proposing a perfectly reasonable, tangible solution: “We need to see Young Thug at the Grammys. Not just me and Jay in a suit.” *** “All us artists here, we fucking adore you. You are our light, and the way you make me and my friends feel, the way you make my Black friends feel, is empowering, and you make them stand up for themselves,” Adele confessed to her apparent idol, Beyoncé, in the final moments of the 59th Grammy Awards on Sunday night. This was during her acceptance, or, more accurately, denial speech for Album of the Year, an award that her 25 won over Beyonce’s Lemonade in what will surely be remembered as another time the Grammy’s chose conventional excellence over difficult, breathtaking, truly trailblazing Black art. Adele’s praise also came just moments before she snapped her trophy in half, seemingly to give part of it to Beyoncé. As tough of a fact as it is may be for some to swallow, Kanye West’s February 2016 Twitter rant about the Academy bears significant weight. “I feel the Grammy awarding system is way off and completely out of touch,” West wrote, something that even its most decorated victor of 2017 seems to agrees with. But of course, that was before he packed in some signature Kanye-isms, such as: “If I’m not at the show next year then there is no show.” Yes, the Grammy ceremony happened, without Kanye West, Justin Bieber or Drake in attendance; without awarding Beyoncé her hard-earned Album of the Year trophy; without accrediting the most important hip-hop figures of the year; but once again, we’re unsure if the Academy’s opinions are relevant in the first place. Once again, its disconnection from the culture, the listeners, those who stay
awake at night awaiting their favorite artists’ releases and line up for blocks when those stars’ whereabouts become known, is too apparent to ignore. Sure, Chance the Rapper, underground champion and indie-darling, has been anointed a figurehead of the mainstream, having won Best New Artist and a couple of hip-hop Grammys without ever selling a single album. But it’s important that he had influential online outlets like Complex, illroots, Fake Shore Drive and Pitchfork pushing his music for years, and also had to reinvent himself into a familyfriendly, colorful rap figure before ending up on stage. *** Chance the Rapper absolutely deserves all the success that he’s gotten; I don’t think there’s a single hip-hop head in America who would say otherwise. But right now, Chano is one in a million, a rare mixtape rapper who managed to maneuver his music onto official streaming platforms and establish a network of committed fans to campaign for his success. Finally, after every other tastemaker in the game deemed him an icon, the Academy did the inevitable by acknowledging his existence. They didn’t break down any walls though, if you think about it. Chance the Rapper’s 2017 decoration is a victory for hiphop somewhat like Lauryn Hill’s in 1999, when she won Album of the Year with her classic LP The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. It was a remarkable feat for the culture, but the Academy’s late realization that Ms. Hill was an iconic talent becomes less honorable when we consider that they awarded Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On the trophy for Album of the Year just two years prior, when The Fugee’s masterpiece The Score would’ve been eligible to claim the prize. Right now, it’s fine to celebrate the victories of our favorite Chicago superhero, Lil Chano from 79th, a.k.a. Chance the Rapper. It’s also okay to watch his ColoringBook-mash-up performance on repeat all day, then proceed to replay the album all week, constantly realizing you missed many important details on all of your former listens. But it’s equally, if not more, important to mourn Beyonce’s devastating loss. It’s equally, if not more, important to keep hoping that next year will be different. Until a ceremony can finally conclude without a winner apologizing to the populist-elect, the Academy has work to do. I won’t allow them, or the mass media, or even Chance the Rapper himself, to claim their recognition of one, single mixtape rapper as sufficient acknowledgement of worldwide scene. Sure, the Academy squeezed Lee “Q” O’Denat, who founded the vital online platform WorldStarHipHip.com and passed away this month, into its annual eulogy reel, but they still left out Shawty Lo. Sure, they’ve now declared freely-distributed music eligible for awards, but Chance the Rapper hardly had time to shout out “DJ DRAMA for doing it first” before the music cut his speech off. What about DJ Esco, DJ Whoo Kid and the rest of the unawarded figureheads? I, much like Kanye West, want to see Young Thug at the Grammys. Here’s to hoping next year that might become a reality.
At Jeremy Scott’s fall-winter 2017 show, heaven and hell rode in tandem. Though the overflowing venue space could have doubled as Satan’s living room, the presence of Jesus was palpable. I don’t mean that in a coercive, Mike Pence’s America type of way; JC’s face was plastered across look after look in a style reminiscent of the romantic era. His eyes followed you from the front of Gigi Hadid’s pants. Juxtaposed against vixen-like cheetah prints and chunky dominatrix boots, the angel and devil had their first shared moment of glory since their interactions on the shoulders of Kronk in “The Emperor’s New Groove.” The good-versus-evil symbolism became a bit more nuanced toward the show’s latter end. A dress in an
overtly innocent, babydoll cut touted “Sex is Cute” in large, equally loopy lettering. A feathered showgirl headdress was paired alongside a crewneck sweatshirt fit for a kindergartener. Supermodel offspring Anna Cleveland sported a fringed skirt, reminiscent of the ever-sinful 1920s, juxtaposed against a pure white cape emblazoned with angel wings. Soon, the looks appeared to exclusively focus on this moral conflict’s place in the United States. Leather and velvet pieces in bright, childlike hues served both as an emblem of American excess and an appreciation of the genuine liberty to which the USA lays claim. Old westernstyle music (banjos, deep male drawl and the like) blared through the speakers, followed by Depeche Mode’s “Personal Jesus” on full blast. The production’s final moments, including the shimmering “As Seen on TV” tank, felt nearly
satirical. Perhaps the paradox presented in Scott’s “Cult of Personality” mimics that of our country. Since our very beginnings, we have claimed to support the honest and good over all else. And yet here we are, with a hateful businessman at the helm of a ship built by those he hopes to eject. It comes as no surprise, then, that members of Scott’s show staff were asked to wear custom tee shirts that read “Our Voice is the Only Thing that Will Protect Us” on the front, and listed the names and phone numbers of each state’s Senators on the back. Sure, the metaphor of the up and the down is a bit more simple than what’s going on in our nation, but there is something to be said about a man who can say this much through his clothes. Hats off to you, Jeremy, and to the angels and devils living on all of our shoulders.
FILM REVIEW
Keanu Reeves as John Wick
SUMMIT ENTERTAINMENT
‘Wick’ turns action to art Sequel delivers and shows potential to expand the franchise JEREMIAH VANDERHELM Daily Arts Writer
“John Wick: Chapter Two” does almost everything a good sequel should. It quickly differentiates itself from the first chapter, yet still recalls what made the original film such an exhilarating ride. It’s darker and more complex than its predecessor, and it uses the larger budget granted to it by the previous film’s box office and critical success to expand its story and bring it to new locales that, of course, make for spectacular stages for the bread and butter of the film: the action. And on that account, “John Wick: Chapter Two” delivers. Oh, does it deliver. Each action scene, from beginning to end, is distinct and memorable all on its own — though they are still better viewed in sequence, the better to appreciate the sense of escalation from one to the next both in terms of scale and the sheer luridness of it all. It’s hard to choose a favorite simply because they’re all made to the same breathtaking degree of excellence, though the many fights between Wick (Keanu Reeves, “The Matrix”) and bodyguard Cassian (Common, “Selma”) earn points for brutality, creativity and perfectly displayed dry wit. As he did with the original “John Wick,” stuntman-turned-director Chad Stahelski uses his training to turn action into an art form. Again
utilizing the “Gun-Fu” approach and prove to himself he can be to shootouts that the original more than a killer is familiar, but pioneered, each action scene is Reeves’ alternatingly desperate a meticulously choreographed and dead-eyed performance — as marvel that keeps the level of well as the character’s humanizing excitement high for the entire film. love of dogs — conveys it in a unique They are cut and shot so perfectly and relatable way. Ian McShane that it would be shocking if the (“Pirates of the Caribbean: On film as a whole isn’t remembered Stranger Tides”) returns as one of as one of the best action films of the most spinoff-able characters the year. in modern Of course, even action films, the “John Wick: when bullets aren’t delightfully genteel Chapter Two” being traded by the manager of a ritzy dozen, “John Wick: hotel for assassins, Ann Arbor 20 + Chapter Two” is and he is thankfully IMAX, Quality 16 engaging due to given more to the simple pleasure do than in the Summit of time spent in original, including Entertainment this cinematic a part in the most world. The original emotionally intense constructed a world scene of the film. of respectable assassins bound by a There’s a sense while watching strange set of bylaws and manners, both “John Wick” films, that and proved that nothing beats two the character has a franchise men in immaculate suits buying future waiting for him — that each other drinks and talking Wick could hypothetically live about how they’ll kill each other. on through the years and even Here, audiences are given more outstay Reeves in the role, like of a look into how this world is an American James Bond raised governed with a trip to Rome that to the power of Jason Bourne. dominates much of the first half. Every corner of the neon-tinged, The wider scale that results makes testosterone-fueled world feels “Chapter Two” more enjoyable as if it conceals more stories than its predecessor, even as it to tell, more characters to occasionally loses track of its plot. unfurl, more action set pieces Within the geopolitical to unleash. A third film has thrills and networks of homeless already been announced, with assassins, the script from Derek more potentially to follow, and if Kolstad (“The Package”) never they are to the standard the first loses sight of its characters. John’s two films have set, we should all struggle to move beyond his past consider ourselves very lucky.
Arts
6 — Tuesday, February 14, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
TV REVIEW
ARTIST PROFILE
Mannequin Pussy more than a provocative name In an interview with the punk-rock band, members talk creative process and their larger-than-life tour experiences DOMINIC POLSINELLI Daily Arts Writer
“Mannequin Pussy” — a seriously provocative name for a four-piece band with serious talent. When the name first crossed my computer screen on Twitter, my first thought was, “I need this band in my life,” and I could not have been more correct. It’s no secret that the Daily is a fan of the band’s work. So when I sat down with them last Saturday before their set in Toledo and asked them why I couldn’t find anything about their tantalizing name, I couldn’t have been more startled by the response: “That’s because we don’t answer that question.” The reply came from lead vocalist/guitarist Marisa Dabice, who followed up with: “Well, we have, but it’s just there’s no good story. Truly, I promise you.” Thus began my ten minutes with the band, as we chatted about their phenomenal new LP Romantic, making music and touring with Joyce Manor and AJJ, some of punk’s most popular bands at the moment. The most striking aspect of Mannequin Pussy’s music is its effortless differentiation and impressive blending of hardcore with poppy, even shoegazey tones. Each track is so wonderfully distinct, yet fits so comfortably into the rhythm of the record. Throughout its 17-minute run time, emotional intensity, vocal style and verse structure are produced in incredibly varied forms. “We all have like a really diverse appreciation for different styles of music, and I think that easily kind of seeps into our writing style,” Dabice said. Between structured pop anthems like “Emotional High”
and paratactical heavy-hitter “Ten,” it’s astounding that the band was able to consolidate their different influences into a cohesive album. Dabice also gave some interesting insight on the writing of individual tracks. “The lyrics usually come the very, very last. Sometimes when I’m recording them is when I finally figure out the flow that I want to be saying something,” Dabice said. There’s some things where it’s like you know exactly that this is what you want to say, and this is how you want to say it.” “And then sometimes when you allow yourself to just listen to a demo again and again and again, you find yourself going at it different ways until you find the thing that really feels right.” Even with the lyrics filing in last, they’re still poignant and emotionally charged. Most notably is Dabice’s declaration “And I am not ashamed to be lonely / but I’m afraid to feel it so deeply” on opening track “Kiss.” Dabice discussed with Bandcamp how the title Romantic refers to the idea of Romanticism, and dealing with human emotion. In our interview, Dabice expanded on how Romanticism applies to the title track. “I’d say for me [“Romantic” is] probably the most personal song on the record. It was written maybe just a few weeks before we started recording the album,” Dsbice said. “It’s definitely a very personal song, and so much of the Romantic Era is understanding your emotions and accepting them and seeing yourself through things … Is there a girl licking the window outside?” “Yeah, she licked the window,” replied lead guitarist Thanasi Paul. “This show is going to be
Classifieds
wild,” Dabice said. Mannequin Pussy are seasoned veterans of the wildness and unpredictability of the punk scene. In describing an incident where Joyce Manor’s drummer broke a pedal, Colins “Bear” Regisford said: “I was like, ‘Oh my god!’ And I immediately was like, ‘Kaleen, we need your kick pedal!’ But I forget that there’s a team of people who are just like ‘don’t worry’ and they just did it. It’s like, ohhh, this isn’t DIY anymore.” Mannequin Pussy are embracing the comforts of touring beyond the DIY scene while still playing with the zeal of a DIY band in a basement. “Things have a tendency to write themselves and to fall into place the way that they have to. And I think that things are definitely really starting to for us which is exciting,” Dabice said. In gaining popularity, the band has found stability and deserved confidence, which was shown in their blistering performance. Reflecting on this fierce performance, it’s clear that emotionality is what has brought the band so much attention. All of the sonic rage heard in the band’s work was fully unleashed in one beautiful, romantic performance. I recalled a particular statement from Dabice: “I think there’s something very romantic about understanding the way that you feel and kind of allowing yourself to struggle through things as well. And to like be really open and honest about that.” Provocative, mysterious band name aside, Mannequin Pussy’s most attention-demanding quality is their emotional honesty.
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RELEASE DATE– Tuesday, February 14, 2017
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
HELP WANTED
FX Dan Brown in FX’s ‘Legion’
‘Legion’ forges alt-reality In new FX and Marvel collab, perceptions of reality are tested MATT BARNAUSKAS Daily Arts Writer
“Is this real?” David Haller (Dan Stevens, “Downton Abbey”) asks at the end of the headspinning premiere of “Legion.” A collaboration between FX and Marvel Studios, “Legion” is as untraditional a superhero show as they come. Some of this can probably be attributed to its creator, Noah Hawley (“Fargo”). But even by Hawley’s standards, “Legion” is a risky endeavor, as it dives into a world where reality and the mind continuously clash. Diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, David has spent the last six years of his life in the Clockworks Psychiatric Hospital, living on a daily regime of medication and routine with no end in sight. “I tell them I’m sane, they think I’m crazy. And if I say, ‘you’re right, I am crazy,’ then they up my dosage,” David says, explaining his catch-22 to his sister Amy (Katie Aselton, “The League”). He goes on warning, “Something new needs to happen soon.” That “something new” comes in the form of Sydney Barrett (Rachel Fuller, “Fargo”), a new patient with a mysterious aversion to touch, who immediately captures David’s attention. “What if your problems aren’t in your head? What if they aren’t your problems?” Syd wonders out loud in a therapy session, and so the world of “Legion” begins to open its doors. The truth (or so it seems) is that David is a mutant, one with incredible power and very little control over it. But this revelation only opens up more questions as the pilot moves forward. Figures who lurk in the shadows of David’s mind become even more mysterious and complex. What were once thought to be hallucinations or non-existent voices become something perhaps even more sinister and threatening. All the while, the true nature of David’s mind and memories remain
elusive, with each unraveling plot seems to delivering something thread twisting and obscuring concrete comes in the form of another aspect of the larger David’s interview with The tapestry. Interrogator (Hamish Linklater, The premiere, directed by “The Big Short”), which serves to Hawley, uses as many tricks deliver some necessary backstory. as it can to help construct the But even that reality is defined by headspace that is David’s mind. shady motives and untold secrets From point-of-view shots to as David struggles to unearth what wide-angle lenses warping the his captors really want with him edges of the screen, Hawley and behind closed doors. cinematographer (Dana Gonzales, Hawley is most effective when “Criminal”) continually shift the he digs into the dimensions of his viewing experience into something characters, thrusting them into new as David’s mind is tossed situations that are far bigger and and thrown around. A noticeably complicated than they can possibly adjusting aspect ratio in one scene imagine. Whether it’s brutal signals paranoia as threats, both violence, unexpected disasters real and perceived, or unimaginable close in around superhuman “Legion” David. Meanwhile, abilities, Hawley the entire screen uses these events to Series Premiere turns upsidetruly test the metal Wednesdays at 10 down after one of his characters. P.M. particularly worldSome, like (“Fargo” shaking action. ’s) Lester Nygaard, FX Accompanying this react despicably. visual flare is a tense Others, like Scott score by Jeff Russo (“The Night Burroughs of Hawley’s novel Of”) that walks the line between “Before the Fall,” maintain their emotional and foreboding while a decency against all odds. And soundtrack that includes The Who, some act perplexingly, responding The Rolling Stones and Jane’s to irrational circumstances in Addiction serves to punctuate increasingly unpredictable ways. David’s restless existence. All of And it’s only near the end of the this is aided by Steven’s energetic premiere, when the pieces start to portrayal of David, which jumps come together and the structure from desperate confusion to of David’s mind and the show itself twitchy anxiety as he constantly begins to take hold that we’re truly tries to wrap his head around his able to ascertain much of the events reality. It also helps that Stevens we’ve seen and the characters is surrounded by a particularly that have taken part in them. If strong cast, including Aubrey Plaza anything, “Legion” ’s premiere (“Parks and Recreation”) and Jean serves to firmly establish that the Smart (another “Fargo” alum). audience and characters won’t Twisting and turning through know what will happen next. its 90-minute premiere, “Legion” However, the effectiveness of continuously throws new “Legion” ’s form and dispersal of information and subversions at information comes with how much the audience, making the viewer the viewer trusts the series to fulfill constantly question what they’re its potential. Like all other shows seeingand whether it’s even that rely on continually subverting happening at all. It rarely gives audience expectations and turning the audience any firm ground reality on its head (just look at to anchor themselves to, as our “Mr. Robot” or “Westworld”), perception and understanding of the development of “Legion” and what is on screen is interrupted whether it can payoff, will truly and reconsidered. The closest it determine its staying power.
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
ACROSS 1 Bindle-toting migrants 6 “Oliver!” nogoodnik 11 Bygone intl. carrier 14 Face in the crowd, in film 15 With no help 16 A, in Aachen 17 Crude early version of a work of art 19 Bottom-row PC key 20 Natural salve additive 21 Slightly 23 Financial claim 26 Coin-in-a-fountain thought 28 Pakistani language 29 “The Lord of the Rings” beast 30 Computer programming glitch 33 What marathoners load up on 35 WWII conference site 36 Like swimming competitions 39 Getting by 43 Rants and raves 45 Bold 46 New York City zoo locale 51 Slithery fish 52 Et __: and others 53 Harp constellation 54 Daly of “Cagney & Lacey” 55 Sun protection for kissers? 58 Former Russian ruler 60 “__ no use!” 61 Lakeside launching aid ... and, literally, each set of circled letters 66 Pot pie veggie 67 When Macbeth kills Duncan 68 French-speaking Caribbean country 69 FDR successor 70 2000s TV series set in California 71 Snooze
DOWN 1 Seagoing pronoun 2 Good Grips kitchenware brand 3 A/C capacity meas. 4 Church instrument 5 Satirist Mort 6 Secret agent’s passport, say 7 Some craft beer 8 Advanced in one’s career 9 At no addl. cost 10 Grape soda brand 11 Italian playhouse 12 “I’m on it, boss” 13 Pre-poker deal demand 18 Planted, as seed 22 New Orleans university 23 “Livin’ La Vida __”: Ricky Martin hit 24 Baghdad’s land 25 Beige shade 27 Crafty 30 To be, in Barcelona 31 __-mo replay 32 Perform miserably
34 Bill for drinks 37 “Hometown Proud” supermarket chain 38 Roomie in prison 40 Earl __ tea 41 Pizza cooker 42 Actor Chandler of “Bloodline” 44 CIA operative 46 Muslim bigwig 47 Upper crust groups
48 Attacks, puppystyle 49 Super cold 50 Motorola phone 54 __ by jury 56 Blind as __ 57 Ness, for one 59 Massage reactions 62 Padre’s brother 63 Whopper 64 Summer, in 68Across 65 Fabric mishap
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02/14/17
NOW.
MUSIC NOTEBOOK
A very Happy Valentine’s Day to you, Billie Holiday ERIKA SHEVCHEK
Daily Community Culture Editor
The purpose of Valentine’s Day never made much sense to me, but it’s on our national calendar for some reason — futile, I think — and that gives the day some sort of powerful validity. But love is nonetheless a concept that flows through many people’s minds on a daily basis. I exercise my own love by frequently listening to jazz, specifically Billie Holiday. It’s safe to say that Billie Holiday is and maybe always will be my valentine. What many don’t know about Holiday though, is that her tender, romantic voice did not match her reality. Holiday grappled with severe relationships, drugs and abuse. Before she became one of the most famous female jazz artists, Holiday moved to New York where she worked as a prostitute. Soon enough, she was discovered at night clubs and speakeasies in the 1930s. Holiday dated often, mostly musicians, but she married James Monroe in the early ’40s. This marriage led to her heavy involvement with drugs and
alcohol. What breaks my heart is that most won’t notice Holiday’s struggles, but only her voice. At least maybe not until they hear her Lady in Satin album, on which nearly every song is gloomy with sluggish melodies. Her smooth, but powerful voice strikes harmonic chords that don’t feel all that sad, regardless of her struggles. That dichotomy is unhappily fascinating. For a woman who sang much about romance and men — my favorites include “These Foolish Things (Remind Me Of You),” “I’ll Be Seeing You” and “My Man” — much of her music also includes songs about solitude and crushing romance. Her music encompasses the raw aspects of this thing so called “love.” Even in the power of her voice, lyrics and song titles, Billie Holiday is a taste for anybody: the lonely one, the couples in love, the ones suffering from a bad break up, the one’s enjoying their single life. She understands the truth of it — that love is really fucking hard and messy. But almost everyone craves it in some way. Love is compiled of ridiculous facets, where one moment you’re in the “All of Me” stage, meeting
someone and wanting them to love you for all you are; the next, your heart is broken, relating to “I’m a Fool to Want You.” Along the way, you might meet that special someone, where your lovey-dovey heart is feeling something like “I’ll Get By (As Long As I Have You).” You find yourself in this cycle of romantic positions, the ones represented by Holiday. I do not know which is more intense: my unconditional love for her voice and her impact, or the tremendous heartbreak I feel for her and her battles. If Billie Holiday were here, alive and well, I’d hear her stories, the good and the bad ones. In this fantasy, I’d make her a romantic, candlelit dinner, and we’d listen to jazz and discuss our favorites. Mostly, I would thank her for being there for me, in all of my moments. The moments of romance, the moments of heartbreak, the moments of high stress or Friday-night relaxation. I would thank her for always being my therapy and my muse. And Billie, even though you’re not here any longer, I’ll be looking at the moon this Valentine’s Day, seeing you.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
Tuesday, February 14, 2017 — 7
‘M’ falls to Wisconsin in final dual meet Michigan notches WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS
ZACH GAN For the Daily
The best was certainly saved for last on Sunday as No. 2 freshman Logan Massa faced Wisconsin’s No. 3 Isaac Jordan in a highly-anticipated, top-five rematch after Massa beat Jordan earlier this season. Massa gave up the early takedown but rallied back to take a 3-2 lead heading into the second period. From there, the 165-pounder took over, delivering a quick takedown and ride-out in the second followed by a couple of late takedowns in the third to seal the victory, 9-7, in the final match of the afternoon. “I knew I just needed to keep my offense going the whole match,” Massa said. “Beating somebody on their home ground is always fun.” Added Michigan coach Joe McFarland: “I thought he did a nice job battling back after an early deficit in that match. That’s a great win against the number three ranked kid in the country.” But Massa’s performance was not enough, as No. 14 Michigan (4-5 Big Ten, 8-6 overall) fell to No. 18 Wisconsin (5-5, 3-5), 19-18, in the last dual of the regular season for the Wolverines. Michigan opened the scoring after redshirt freshman No. 8 Myles Amine recorded a 10-2 major decision win against Wisconsin’s Ryan Christensen in the 174-pound match. But the Wolverines’ lead was quickly relinquished as the Badgers strung together three wins in a row, knocking down redshirt junior Ernest Battaglia, redshirt freshman Jackson Striggow, and freshman Dan Perry in succession to go up 13-4. In the 125-pound match, redshirt senior Conor Youtsey took on Wisconsin’s Johnny Jimenez. After a low-scoring affair, the match headed into overtime tied at 1-1. Still tied after one sudden-death period,
Youtsey and Jimenez battled into a second overtime period. Just when it looked like the match was headed toward a third overtime period, Youtsey notched a single-leg takedown with just two seconds remaining in the period to win 3-1. “I put in a lot of hard work this week, getting into my leg attacks,” Youtsey said. “Going into those overtime matches, I kinda got a little bit of a feeling from NCAAs last year when I was capitalizing on a lot of overtime wins.” “He did all the work in that match, he really did,” McFarland said. “It was good to see Conor stay tough.” No. 7 Stevan Micic followed up Youtsey’s dramatic win with a dominant 20-5 technical fall victory over Eli Stickley in the 133-pound match. Micic’s win helped narrow Wisconsin’s overall lead to just 13-12. It was a dual characterized by runs, as the Badgers followed up
Michigan’s two match win streak with back to back wins of their own. Wisconsin’s Cole Martin took down Sal Profaci in the 141pound match, and Andrew Crone edged out Malik Amine in the 149-pound match. In the 157-pound bout, ninthranked senior Brian Murphy took on TJ Ruschell in the last regular season dual of his collegiate career. Murphy notched a fourpoint cradle in the second period, but Ruschell kept it close until Murphy was able to manage a reversal late in the third period to capture the victory. “It was a hard-fought dual, no question about it,” McFarland said. “I thought really, for the most part, we wrestled tough.” Though Michigan was unable to win its last dual of the season, the Wolverines have their work cut out for them heading into the Big Ten and NCAA Championships. “You’ve got to constantly be on the attack in this sport,
or somebody’s gonna take advantage of it,” McFarland said. “That’s something that we’ve got to continue to stress.” Youtsey believes there is still much that can be improved upon in preparation for the postseason. “There are a lot of adjustments that can be made in the next couple of weeks,” Youtsey said. “I think everybody can work in their specific areas to get their timing down right before Big Tens come around the corner.” “You wanna be at your best (in the) postseason,” McFarland said. “… That’s when the best rise up a little bit and elevate their level of wrestling. Our guys need to do that.” Massa, building on Youtsey’s sentiment, feels that the team is ready to step up to the challenge. “We’ve got a young team, everybody’s working real hard, and we have high goals,” Massa said. “… We’re gonna give it everything we’ve got.”
MAX KUANG/Daily
Redshirt freshman Logan Massa notched a victory in the 165-pound match, but it was not enough for Michigan to win.
fourth-straight W PAIGE VOEFFRAY Daily Sports Writer
The No. 7 Michigan women’s gymnastics team left East Lansing on Saturday afternoon with a solid win by a score of 196.025 – 195.625, but the Wolverines (4-1 Big Ten, 6-2 overall) weren’t satisfied. Normally, it may have been enough to defeat in-state rival Michigan State (0-5, 3-5), but the Wolverines departed hungry for more. “We were hoping for a really good away score that was going to help our RQS (score),” said Michigan coach Bev Plocki. “We came out with a win, which is great. We had some great individual performances. There were definitely a lot of positives. “The ultimate goal was to come out with a mid-197 team score and we didn’t get that done.” The Wolverines relied heavily on senior captain Nicole Artz, who nearly swept the meet. She took first place in three events, including vault, bars and floor. Artz finished the meet with a 39.575, her best of 2017, and ultimately secured her fourth consecutive all-around title. “She’s been amazing,” Plocki said. “She and Talia (Chiarelli) as a senior class have accounted for a very large percentage of our counting routines during the course of their careers here, so it’s been huge.” Artz’s 9.900 on the bars proved useful during the first rotation after freshman Polina Shchennikova and junior Lauren Marinez both recorded falls, resulting in scores of 9.200 and 8.500, respectively. Michigan trailed after the first event — an unfamiliar terrain
for a squad often in the lead. And while Artz may be the clear leader of the Wolverines, the rest of her teammates take turns sharing the spotlight. Sophomore Olivia Karas not only won the beam, scoring a 9.900, but also competed on the bars for the first time this season after recovering from a wrist injury. Her debut didn’t disappoint. She finished only behind Artz in the event with a 9.875. One of the fresh faces on this year’s team is junior transfer Paige Zaziski. Not only has Zaziski brought the ability to compete in all events, but also she brings some extra excitement to the team. After she stuck the landing on her vault, she strutted back to her team snapping her fingers, a signature feature of her routine. If Zaziski’s reaction wasn’t enough to show that Michigan was having fun, the Wolverines moved to the floor event. Ranked fifth in the event, Michigan is known for its enthusiastic and fun routines. Artz, Karas and sophomore Emma McLean shined in the event, earning the day’s top three scores. But Michigan had two gymnasts step out of bounds, which hurt the overall team score. Artz’s continued excellence appears to lead toward the best season of her career, but her team may not necessarily be following suit. Michigan was happy to come away with the rivalry win, but it knows it needs to step up if it wants to accomplish its goals. “This is the point in the season when we really have to be firing on all cylinders,” Plocki said. “The fact that we didn’t take advantage of a good away opportunity is disappointing.”
Wolverines thrive behind early offensive surge Senior attackman Ian King scores three of Michigan’s six first-quarter goals in a 17-6 victory Saturday JACOB UCHITELLE-COHEN For the Daily
Despite allowing an early goal and starting off slow offensively, the Michigan men’s lacrosse team (2-0) dominated Lafayette (0-1) 17-6 on Saturday. After going scoreless through the first six minutes of the quarter, the Wolverines found their footing and jumped to a 6-1 lead to end the first quarter, fueled by three goals from senior attackman Ian King. King put a poor first game behind him, in which he was held scoreless, finishing with five goals Saturday. And in contrast to last year, when the Wolverines started the season 1-2, Michigan has started this season hot. Michigan looked to start the second quarter better than it started the first, but its offense came out stagnant once again. Lafayette scored the first goal of the quarter, and the Wolverines struggled to find the back of the net for the first eight minutes. Much like the first quarter, though, once Michigan got the ball rolling it did not look back, leading Lafayette 11-4 at halftime. While the Wolverines faced difficulties at the start of those quarters, Michigan coach John Paul put an emphasis on finishing out quarters strong and keeping momentum. “The first goal doesn’t matter so much,” Paul said. “We are more focused on closing out quarters, and that’s something I thought we did a pretty good job of today. You just keep confidence high and know that what we came in planning to do is going to work and it did.” The Wolverines went on to continue their late-quarter pushes, closing out the last five minutes of the second frame, 4-1, the last
three minutes of the third quarter, 2-0, and the last five minutes of the fourth quarter, 3-1. Dominating performance aside, every win has its caveats. One such caveat for the Wolverines was penalties. Four of the Leopards’ six goals came on man-up chances, and Lafayette finished the game with eight manup opportunities. In total, Michigan had nine and half minutes of penalties, five of which came in the fourth quarter alone. However, Paul did not seem worried. “You’d always prefer to rein it in if you’re playing a little too
“We are more focused on closing out quarters”
physical than try and get the guys to play more physical, so we were certainly the more aggressive, physical team tonight,” Paul said. “I think what we have to learn from this is you have to get a sense of the way the game is being called and then adjust your game a little bit to how it’s being called, and that’s the lesson we are going to take away from this.” Michigan will look to keep up the offensive firepower and physical play on defense while limiting penalties as the early part of its season progresses. “This is by no means a perfect performance,” Paul said. “We have a lot to work on. We improved from last week to this week, which we needed to do, and now we have to improve before our next game Wednesday and that’s really the only focus now. We have to keep getting better.”
EFE EDEVBIE
Daily Sports Writer
With 11:17 left in the first quarter Saturday, the Michigan men’s lacrosse team faced a 1-0 deficit after Lafayette’s Eric Jospeh scored the first goal of the game. What ensued next, however, would lay the foundation for a blowout victory and just the second 2-0 start in the Wolverines’ young history. Michigan would net six consecutive goals to finish out the first quarter, a scoring barrage that started with 9:10 minutes left in the frame. Lafayette would never lead again, and would struggle to keep pace with the Wolverines for the remainder of the game. “We gave up the first goal the other day too, in our first game of the year,” said Michigan coach John Paul. “The first goal doesn’t
matter so much. We’re more focused on closing out quarters, and that’s something I thought we did a pretty good job of today.” The 6-0 run — over an eightminute span — was Michigan’s most dominant stretch of action Saturday. The final four goals of the quarter were scored between the 3:18 and 1:03 minute marks, showing the Wolverines have the potential to score in a hurry with a cluster of goals. “(The first quarter) really put us in a more comfortable position, knowing what we had to do for the rest of the game,” Paul said.
Senior attacker Ian King led the scoring outburst, tying the game, 1-1, with his first goal of the season. King would add two more soon thereafter, ending the first quarter with a hat trick. Rounding out the scoring stretch was a trio of goals scored by senior midfielder Mikie Schlosser, junior attacker Pat Tracy and sophomore attacker Rocco Sutherland. “(King) was hurt all week. He actually didn’t practice all week,” Paul said. “We weren’t even sure we were going to have him today so (it’s) great to see that he could have that kind of performance coming off a week with no practice. “I know he’s a little bit upset that he didn’t shoot very well last week. So it was important for him to get his shot going early, and he did.” After giving up the opening goal, sophomore goalie Tommy Heidt held steady, as Michigan went on its run of unanswered goals to take the pressure off of the defense. The goal-scoring spree ensured that Heidt would have a comfortable lead to work with going into the second quarter, and eventually, the second half. “Our offense was feeling it today,” Heidt said. “They were putting up a bunch of points. Having Rocco, Brent (Noseworthy), and Ian down on attack makes our jobs much easier on defense. Knowing that they’re going to be able to put the ball in the net is great to know when you’re playing on defense.” Being able to score in bunches in short intervals of time could become a game-changing facet to Michigan’s identity. And if Saturday’s scoring avalanche is indicative of what’s to come, the Wolverines will have a potent offense to shoulder the load as the season wears on.
“They were putting up a bunch of points”
FILE PHOTO/Daily
Senior attackman Ian King scored five goals against Lafayette in Oosterbaan Field House on Saturday, helping to push Michigan toward its second win of the season.
Sports
8 — Tuesday, February 14, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Wolverines displaying well-rounded post play MINH DOAN
Daily Sports Editor
BLOOMINGTON — Coming out of the halftime break with a 10-point lead, the Michigan men’s basketball team emerged from the tunnel shooting on their first possession, when senior guard Derrick Walton Jr. found sophomore forward Moritz Wagner for a pick-andpop shot. The ball rimmed out as Wagner’s shot just missed the mark. On the Wolverines’ next time down the floor, sophomore guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rakhman found himself open, but his shot also rattled out. Michigan missed its first six shots of the half before Wagner finally nailed a 3-pointer at the 15:43 mark, ending an almost eight-minute scoring drought. Playing in a hostile environment like Assembly Hall and going cold from the floor would doom the Wolverines earlier in the season — much like the game at South Carolina back in November. But this time, it didn’t. Indiana only scored once during the drought, and Michigan’s first make of the half actually extended their halftime lead. While the backcourt played a big role — Abdur-Rakhman played exceptional defense on Indiana star guard James Blackmon Jr. — it was the Wolverines’ post men that made the biggest impact. Wagner and redshirt sophomore forward DJ Wilson led the charge down in the post. On both ends of the floor, the duo delivered a strong performance that saw them combine for 10 points and 5 rebounds in the first half while completely shutting down Indiana’s other star, forward Thomas Bryant. With Wagner and Wilson averaging double-digit points per game, there was no doubt that the two big men could put the ball in the bucket. In the past few weeks, though,
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Michigan reflects on Sunday’s Pink Game ETHAN WOLFE Daily Sports Writer
CLAIRE MEINGAST/Daily
Forwards DJ Wilson and Moritz Wagner held Indiana’s star forward Thomas Bryant to just eight points Sunday.
Michigan fans have witnessed the duo grow in two other areas: on the boards and on defense. “Offensively, we didn’t do anything special,” Wagner said. “We just played our game. I know we’re hard to guard so we don’t need to change anything. … If we can just make the opponent feel uncomfortable, it’s such a big advantage.” On the boards, Wagner reached a double-digit rebounding total, grabbing 10 on his way to the first double-double of his career. It was an effort that had been coming for Wagner, and at Indiana on Sunday, all his work finally paid off. While Wilson had just two rebounds Sunday, he still complemented Wagner with his defensive effort and offensive prowess. On defense, Wagner was given a tough matchup with Bryant, who had been averaging 20.2 points in his past five games. And after Bryant was held to just 13 points and one rebound in the two foes’ first matchup back in January, Michigan improved on that stat line, holding Indiana’s big
man to just eight points on 3-for-8 shooting. The Wolverines put a double team on Bryant this time, effectively shutting him out and forcing him to find solace behind the perimeter, where he also wasn’t successful, missing four 3-pointers. “Moe and (redshirt junior forward Mark Donnal) have been doing a good job of fronting the post, not allowing them to get too many touches as they do in the post,” Wilson said. “We executed our game plan on defense as far as setting up the other one to trap the post guy and it worked out.” Added Michigan coach John Beilein: “We didn’t want to give (Bryant) the same look every time. He’s too talented.” While Wilson’s length was crucial for the double team to work, his help defense was just as vital. Wilson slid over seamlessly to clog the lane all night, not allowing Indiana’s big men to operate. “He’s doing a great job,” Wagner said. “He’s very good at using his arms. He’s so long and fast on his feet so it’s a really big
advantage he has, and he uses it pretty well.” Added Beilein: “The young man, for two years, has worked really had. The cerebral part of the game, he has the ability to do it, but he hasn’t had to be measured up and be accountable in games for it because it’s been scout team, it’s high school. It’s not like it is now, and he’s just embracing it all, trying to grow from it. The growth of both Wilson and Wagner has been a whirlwind of a ride, including various ups and downs, ranging from the beginning of the season, when they were too aggressive on defense, committing too many fouls, to the beginning of Big Ten play, when they were afraid to be physical and their defense suffered. Now, though, the duo has found the balance to make them successful. And as their play has started to turn for the better, so have Michigan’s results. Now, their biggest challenge will be playing at that consistent level down the stretch, when the games will surely define Michigan’s season.
The Michigan women’s basketball team has been playing historically well this season. The Wolverines’ 21-5 record is its best in program history up to this point of the season, and is only one win shy of tying another program record for most wins in a season. Undoubtedly, the allure of Michigan’s NCAA Tournament prospects paired with the competition against elite teams in Division I have been at the forefront of the players’ minds as the end of the regular season draws near. But even they realize that the physical and mental hardships of playing competitive basketball pale in comparison to the challenges that were shared with them this weekend during their annual Pink Game against Wisconsin, when they got to talk with breast cancer survivors prior to the matchup. “It’s just so inspiring to see how positive they are,” said sophomore guard Nicole Munger. “They were laughing and having a great time. We think basketball’s hard, and it’s really just for fun. They’re fighting the real fight.” The Pink Game is held each year as a part of the team’s philanthropic effort to raise breast cancer awareness and celebrate survivors of the disease. During the game, both teams don pink garments during warmups and the game — the Wolverines rocked pink and white Air Jordan XXXI basketball shoes. Even fans were involved, as a sea of pink shirts of all shades flooded Crisler Center to witness Michigan’s 75-66 win. “I remember just standing on the court and just looking up and seeing all the pink and thinking ‘It’s bigger than Michigan,’ ” Munger said. “This is bigger than
Michigan. This is bigger than us. It’s just really cool to being playing for something greater and bigger than yourself.” When the Wolverines’ starting lineup was announced, the jumbotron — newly draped in pink background graphics — didn’t show the typical highlight reel accompanied with video snippets of the players flashing their handles in the locker room tunnel. Rather, six different breast cancer survivors were displayed on screen, reading off the names of the Michigan players and coaches. And when the ball was finally tipped, the roar of the crowd and intensity of the game had a gusto unlike any of the Wolverines’ previous contests, especially during halftime, when breast cancer survivors of all ages were introduced and applauded on the court. “I thought our crowd was outstanding and I thought we had an unbelievable atmosphere,” said Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico. “The day and the things that we do to celebrate the breast cancer survivors is really special.” The day before the game, when a handful of the survivors that were on the court spoke and ate dinner with the team, the message of gratefulness resonated the most, according to Barnes Arico. “It’s so impactful how these women can come and share their stories with 18-to-22 year-old girls that think they’re invincible,” Barnes Arico said. “At this point in their lives, most of them haven’t really had any major obstacles or any hardship, and to hear from young women that just have had children to old women that it doesn’t discriminate. “It can happen to anyone. And to really make sure to know your body and to have a great appreciation and great work ethic and a great attitude to everything in your life is important.”
A sad reality N
ZOEY HOLMSTROM/Daily
Senior defenseman Nolan De Jong and the Michigan hockey team have suffered through a disappointing season.
olan De Jong stood outside the visitors’ locker room at Mariucci Arena. As the captain of the Michigan hockey team, the senior defenseman ref lected on another AVI loss, one of SHOLKOFF many in a frustrating and disappointing season. While clearly frustrated with the final outcome of two hard-fought matchups against then-No. 9 Minnesota, he still held some hope for the Wolverines’ upcoming games. Michigan would face rival Michigan State in two weeks, and De Jong believed a sweep against Spartans would provide some necessary momentum to rejuvenate the Wolverines’ season. “I think beating State a couple times this next coming weekend will be huge for us,” De Jong said that night. “I think it’s going to come down to the hard work that we have to put in this week. We’re going to have to have intensity and we’re going to have to come out and believe we’re a team that can play a full 60 minutes.” The Wolverines, though, didn’t sweep Michigan State. They didn’t have that intensity and they failed to play a full 60 minutes. That first game saw Michigan drop a 4-0 shutout at Yost Ice Arena and while it earned a shootout victory in East Lansing the following day, it wasn’t the result the Wolverines needed. Just last weekend, Michigan faced off once more against the Spartans, and like its first two meetings, struggled in its matchup with the Big Ten cellar-dwellers. It took a shootout goal from junior defenseman Sam Piazza to fend them off Friday night, while
Saturday, the Wolverines failed to get any offense going in a 5-1 loss. The weekend served as a microcosm for a season Michigan will want to forget. One — usually close— game ending in a win and another matchup ending with a large loss. Against Ohio State the week before, Michigan fared similarly, winning on Friday night before losing a nail-biter the next day. It was a loss that led Michigan coach Red Berenson to walk out after his postgame press conference. He discussed his disappointment with his team and left, neglecting to take any questions from the media. But who could blame him? In such a tumultuous season that often leaves both coaches and players frustrated, it might even be justified. Many expected the Wolverines to regress this season.
The weekend served as a microcosm for a season Michigan wanted to forget
With the graduation of Steve Racine, Boo Nieves and Justin Selman and the expected departure of Kyle Connor and Zach Werenski, fans understood there would be some fallback. Still, they held out hope that JT Compher, Tyler Motte and Michael Downing would return. But once everyone departed, the sad reality was that the team lacked experience and was filled with young, untested players. It is difficult to quantify the
exact effects that the return of Downing, Compher and Motte would bring, but it isn’t a stretch to say that at the least, their veteran presence would provide essential assistance to one of the youngest teams in the NCAA this season. But given the sad reality of the present, fortunately for Michigan, they have some bright spots for the future. Freshmen forwards Will Lockwood and Jake Slaker have gained valuable playing time in Michigan’s top six, while sophomore forward Cooper Marody — who missed the first half the season due to academic ineligibility — picked up where he left off from last season, tallying nine points in 10 games. In the crease, freshmen netminders Jack LaFontaine and Hayden Lavigne have also gained valuable experience — starting 73 percent of Michigan’s games this season, and will continue to battle for playing time in the upcoming years. But these bright spots won’t see their full potential for at least another year. And even this season, the sad reality is that it might even get worse for the Wolverines. This weekend, they travel to Madison to take on No. 20 Wisconsin, followed by a series in Columbus against Ohio State before finishing the season with visits from No. 5 Minnesota and No. 9 Penn State. Michigan earned just two victories against these teams in its first six games and will not be the favorite in any of these upcoming matchups. In a year marred with injuries, disappointment and a longing for the past, it is sadly fitting that Michigan’s best hope for a victory may already be in the rearview mirror. Sholkoff can be reached at sholkoff@umich.edu or on Twitter @avisholkoff.