2017-10-05

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SEVEN YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM

Thursday, October 5, 2017

Ann Arbor, Michigan

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‘U’ releases Schlissel’s emails harsh on President After suit, settlement documents show election season critiques, changes to FOIA NISA KHAN, COLIN BERESFORD & ALEXA ST. JOHN

DANYEL THARAKAN/Daily Protesters respond to last week’s violent arrest of a teenager by an Ann Arbor police outside the Blake Transit Center downtown Wednesday.

Daily News Editor, Daily Staff Reporter & Managing News Editor

Hundreds rally at Blake Transit Center for teen arrested by AAPD

Wednesday afternoon, the University of Michigan settled its FOIA lawsuit with the Mackinac Center for Public Policy to release University President Mark Schlissel’s personal emails from his University email account during and following the 2016 presidential election. Prior to the election, Schlissel’s concerns about Trump were prevalent, as the emails indicate. “I realize that some may interpret this as anti-Trump although there is nothing explicit in the remarks,” Schlissel wrote to Lisa Rudgers, the University’s former vice president for global communications and strategic

Fallout from violent arrest due to miscommunication, concerns of police brutality ANDREW HIYAMA Daily Staff Reporter

Hundreds of Ann Arbor residents marched Wednesday night from the Blake Transit Center to City Hall to protest last week’s violent arrest of Ciaeem Slaton, a Black 16-year-old who was waiting at the BTC for a bus home. According to University of Michigan alum Anna Lemler, an organizer with local activist group Collective Against White Supremacy, the arresting officer

was responding to reports of a fight that had occurred there earlier. “It sounds like there was some high energy because of that fight and so he got there for a different reason, to take the bus home, and the cop said, ‘You need to leave,’” she said in an earlier interview. “So he started to walk away from the crowd and the cop came up and approached him again, and that’s when he asked for his ID.” At that point, Slaton told the officer he didn’t have any ID because his school had not yet issued them. It is unclear if anything transpired

in between, but the officer then proceeded to arrest Slaton, putting him face-down on the ground and pinning him with his knee. In the video, Slaton’s friends can be heard telling him not to move, and others saying, “F--- 12.” Ahead of the march, DaQuann Harrison, a friend of Slaton’s who organized the rally, noted the historical context of police brutality against young Black men, and the history of police brutality in Ann Arbor. “(Ciaeem) is one of many youth of color who are targeted by police

in here. His situation is also one of many that has historically appeared here in Ann Arbor,” Harrison said. “And we cannot forget the many young Black people who have been brutalized around the country by police: Tamir Rice, Jordan Edwards, Oscar Grant, Mike Brown, Freddie Gray, just to name a few. And here in Ann Arbor, Aura Rosser, a Black woman shot and killed while in crisis by an AAPD officer.”

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initiatives, on Aug. 24, 2016, discussing why his freshman convocation speech was planning to be heavily focused on the election. “I would feel awful if Trump won the election and I was too afraid of appearing political to make any effort to encourage our students to thoughtfully participate.” In one of the emails, Schissel remarked on conservative students’ feelings to Daniel Little, the University of Michigan-Dearborn’s chancellor. “An (sic) also some compliants (sic) from our minority of Trump supporters who now feel marginalized and ostracized in our campus milleu (sic) and post election activity,” he wrote on Nov. 11. “Ironic.” The emails later revealed Schlissel’s anxiety during the aftermath of Trump’s election, citing this as a pivotal moment of his term as University president.

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LGBTQ monologues bring to light Community Concerns increases concerns of safety, inclusion on campus voiced over

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aid given to Puerto Rico

Students spoke about their experiences as a member of this community at Michigan

Organizations work to collect household items through drop-off locations

“I can say ‘I’m gay’ so easily now, but for the majority of my life those words held me hostage,” one performer said. Public Policy junior Lena Dreves recently started approaching student groups and organizations for support to create a LGBTQ Monologues event happen, which was ultimately co-sponsored by the Spectrum Center and LGBT+ Michigan. Dreves wanted to bring to light the experiences of members of this community, and saw this come to fruition at the first annual event Wednesday night. LGBTQ Monologues consisted of 11 student speakers detailing their experiences as members of the community and the different struggles they have faced. Dreves emphasized people need an outlet to express the range of emotions associated with coming out. “Not only is this event beneficial for the people sharing, but for the people hearing, I think it really puts a face to the LGBT community,” Dreves said. “I think a lot of times we hear about statistics and everything’s institutionalized and political, especially around this topic today. I think by hearing stories, when people are reading these statistics they’re going to remember a face and a story.” Speakers talked about the

JORDYN BAKER Daily Staff Reporter

The Ann Arbor chapter of Puerto Rico Rises, a nonprofit organization from Florida, will be collecting donations for those affected by the catastrophic damage of Hurricane Maria. The Category 4 hurricane, which struck the island on Sept. 20, has created a total power outage across the nation and left only 20 percent of the island with water service. As of right now, seven percent of the island has power back and 47 percent have access to potable water. Puerto Rico Rises Ann Arbor is composed of local Puerto Ricans related to the University of Michigan as staff, graduate students, alumni or through some other affiliation. According to a press release, drop-off locations will be on campus to provide students and faculty with direct access to donate until Oct. 12.

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RHEA CHEETI

Daily Staff Reporter

different intricacies associated with coming out, focusing on topics such as parental dynamics, acceptance and reconciling identity with faith. LSA senior Michael Miller-Perusse, who was a co-chair of the event and is the community outreach chair for LGBT+ Michigan, mentioned the importance of attending monologue events and holding supportive events for community members.

“We thought Coming Out Week would be a great time to do this,” Miller-Perusse said, referring to the week of Oct. 4 to Oct. 11. “I think it’s really beneficial for students to hear different people in their community with different backgrounds and life experiences and really listen to their story, as well as attend events held by people from communities I’m not a part of and learn more about

their experiences.” Public Policy junior Daniel Greene spoke about coming out and dealing with unexpected backlash after a Michigan Daily article about his experience as a gay man in Greek life ran the same day. He changed his monologue after the article was released.

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily

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INDEX

Jewish students discuss many inconsistencies with religious accommodations ALEX COTT

Daily Staff Reporter

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Ford junior Lena Dreves speaks at the LGBTQ Monologues at the Union Wednesday.

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holy day flexibility

Vol. CXXVII, No. 4 ©2017 The Michigan Daily

With the two Jewish High Holidays — Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, from Sept. 20 to 22, and Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, from Sept. 29 to 30 — only 10 days apart this year, Jewish University of Michigan students have been struggling to juggle academics and their religious responsibilities. The University’s long-standing policy regarding the religious holiday schedule is outlined on the Office of the Provost’s website; however, while many Jewish students are able to accordingly compromise with their professors to work around their religious schedules, some say they find their professors to be rather unaccommodating. Public Policy professor Paul Courant, former interim provost, emailed the University’s religious holidays policy to faculty and staff in late August. The current policy states the University does not cancel classes for religious holidays but does require faculty and staff to work together in accommodating students’ academic needs with their See HOLIDAY, Page 3

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SAAN explores activism in civic engagement talk

Joeproquo @gerrywander

Politician and policy advocate advise South Asian Awareness Network to stay persistent in speaking up passionate about education in politics. “It’s been a huge privilege for me to grow up in this town because education is important here, and that’s unique,” Stead said. “Education in general — it’s given me every opportunity that I have.” Stead voiced her opposition to the work of Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos when she worked in Michigan on the Detroit charter school system, saying her school-choice system works well in theory but has led to the disenfranchisement of a number of students in the city. Stead also encouraged attendees to become involved in the political process in any way that they could. She identified the use of technology by young people as a new way to vote and participate. Stead was satisfied with the dialogue at the event and the role she and McKenzie played despite the absence of the other speakers. “Between the two of us, we had some hopefully helpful tactical ideas around how to raise an issue and stay engaged and get to solutions,” Stead said. “These things unfortunately do take time, and they also take lots of people to

RILEY LANGEFELD For the Daily

Meeting on the first floor of the Michigan Union Wednesday night, speakers at the South Asian Awareness Network event discussed civic engagement, political issues and their personal experiences working in government. Christine Stead, president of the Ann Arbor Public Schools Board, and Bobby McKenzie, director of the Muslim Diaspora Initiative, answered questions from community engagement chairs Subhan Chaudry, a Business sophomore, and Srinidhi Subramanian, an LSA senior. Chaudry and Subramanian moderated the event for an hour and then entered an open, unmoderated discussion with attendees. Three state representatives were also scheduled to attend but were unable to attend last minute. Stead discussed her years of experience working in the Ann Arbor Public Schools Board extensively. She said living in Ann Arbor has led her to become

kind of create momentum. But I’m hoping people heard something that is useful and constructive.” McKenzie spoke on his experience as the head of the MDI and working with legislators on local, state and national scales. He recounted his experiences working with hardright Republican congressmen and his ability to pesuade them to work with him. Despite being a Democrat, he said, using data and objective explanations of the problems the MDI faces helped to bridge the political gap. He said a major problem with the American political environment is that politicians are forced to pander to their bases instead of working constructively across the aisle. He praised the skills and competence of elected officials, but he also expressed frustration with the political requirements of the system and what he views as the limits it places on progress. Chaudry said this event is the first of its kind for SAAN. He said the organization is now able to help students effect change on campus and that that has become a goal for the leadership. “All we’ve ever focused on is awareness and knowledge and

getting that out, but we’ve never really gone into the activism area,” Chaudry said. “And that was a big thing for us: How do we get people energized? How do we help them in achieving these goals? Because yeah, we can teach them all about these issues and show them what’s wrong. But in the end, if we don’t do anything about it, there’s no solution.” LSA senior Sahr Yazdani, a board member for SAAN and part of the marketing team, expressed a similar excitement about the evolving role of the organization and this event. “Events like these are really important because they remind students of their ability to make change and to catalyze something that could actually be productive for people in the future,” Yazdani said. Stead and McKenzie answered several questions about student activism on the University of Michigan campus specifically and said persistence is key for any kind of advocacy. After the event, Stead expressed her optimism in the face of ongoing challenges and her confidence in student activists.

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UM Depression Center @DepressionCntr .@umich Mental Health Awareness Week kicks off on Saturday! Check out the great lineup of events taking place across campus.

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CAMPUS EVENTS & NOTES Teach Out SeriesFake News, Facts, and Alternative Facts WHAT: Online community learning event where participants discern fact from fiction and find credible news sources. WHO: Office of Academic Innovation WHEN: Noon to 5 p.m. WHERE: teach-out.org

Mindfulness@Umich

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WHAT: Meditation session for beginners as well as experienced meditators. They are drop-in and participants can come whenever they are free. WHO: Mindfulness@Michigan WHEN: 4:15 to 4:45 pm WHERE: Angell Hall, G243

WHAT: CGIS advisers will be holding a session to provide more information about the CGIS application process, programs and scholarships. WHO: CGIS WHEN: 5 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. WHERE: Weiser Hall, Suite 255

Zell Visiting Writers Series: Ocean Vuong and David Gates, Poetry and Prose Reading

American Enterprise Institute president discusses incarceration, entreprenurship COLIN BERESFORD Daily Staff Reporter

Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute, says there are several ways in which those in poverty can escape their situation. One of these ways is by living a “startup life.” Brooks, who gave a talk Wednesday afternoon about escaping poverty through entrepreneurship as a part of the Policy Talks at the Ford School of Public Policy, said living a “startup life” includes taking risks and using weaknesses to propel strengths. He also discussed how those in positions of privilege can help those in poverty. Brooks highlighted the Sudoku Syndication Prison Entrepreneurship Program, an organization

based in Houston, Texas, that works to educate and mentor men in prison on starting and running their own businesses. “People walking around who can’t work, they’re literally the most vulnerable people in our society today,” Brooks said. “The reason the Prison Entrepreneurship Program exists is because they’re trying to find a way to solve this.” Of the men who were took part in the program, only 7 percent went back to jail in their first three years out, as opposed to 50 percent of those who were not a part of the program, according to Brooks. Through the program, Brooks said, he realized what the incarcerated men were learning was changing their outlooks on life. Suddenly, they started talking about the

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The problem with driving in Ann Arbor is that the drivers try to assert their white privilege on the road

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things that were going right in 734-418-4115 ext. 1241 nathankg@michigandaily.com their lives and living like an enterprise. “I thought I was going to find the secret to startup NEWS TIPS ARTS SECTION PHOTOGRAPHY SECTION businesses, and what I found news@michigandaily.com arts@michigandaily.com photo@michigandaily.com was the secret to startup LETTERS TO THE EDITOR SPORTS SECTION NEWSROOM lives,” Brooks said. “See, when tothedaily@michigandaily.com sports@michigandaily.com 734-418-4115 opt. 3 I talked to these guys, they EDITORIAL PAGE ADVERTISING CORRECTIONS didn’t want to talk about their opinion@michigandaily.com dailydisplay@gmail.com corrections@michigandaily.com businesses and the money they were making. They wanted to talk about all the things that were going right in their lives because they had learned AMELIA CACCHIONE and EMMA RICHTER about entrepreneurship.” Managing Photo Editors photo@michigandaily.com Public Health student Senior Photo Editors: Zoey Holmstrom, Evan Aaron, Alexis Rankin, REBECCA LERNER Zach Moore Stuart Hammond came Managing Editor rebler@michigandaily.com Assistant Photo Editors: Claire Meingast, Katelyn Mulcahy, Aaron to the event because he Baker, Sam Mousigian, Kevin Zheng wanted to get Brooks’s ALEXA ST.JOHN LARA MOEHLMAN perspective on capital within Managing News Editor alexastj@michigandaily.com Statement Editor statement@michigandaily.com entrepreneurship. Senior News Editors: Riyah Basha, Tim Cohn, Lydia Murray, Deputy Statement Editor: Brian Kuang, Yoshiko Iwai Nisa Khan, Sophie Sherry “I have experience working Assistant News Editors: Jordyn Baker, Colin Beresford, Rhea inhttp://sudokusyndication.com/sudoku/generator/print/ pretty low-income settings Cheeti, Maya Goldman, Matt Harmon, Andrew Hiyama, Jen ELIZABETH DOKAS and TAYLOR GRANDINETTI and so I was interested in Meer, Ishi Mori, Carly Ryan, Kaela Theut Managing Copy Editors copydesk@michigandaily.com what he was going to say about ANNA POLUMBO-LEVY and REBECCA TARNOPOL Senior Copy Editors: Marisa Frey, Ibrahim Rasheed the role of capital in having Editorial Page Editors opinioneditors@michigandaily.com successful entrepreneurial DYLAN LAWTON and BOB LESSER Senior Opinion Editors: Anu Roy-Chaudhury, Ashley Zhang, experiences,” Hammond Managing Online Editor lesserrc@michigandaily.com Max Lubell, Madeline Nowicki, Stephanie Trierweiler Senior Web Developers: Erik Forkin, Jordan Wolff said. “The indirect way that he talked about it was he BETELHEM ASHAME and KEVIN SANTO ABE LOFY Managing Sports Editors sportseditors@michigandaily.com did talk about these people Managing Video Editor video@michigandaily.com Senior Sports Editors: Laney Byler, Mike Persak, Orion Sang, coming out of prison, they Senior Video Editors: Gilly Yerrington, Matt Nolan, Aarthi Max Marcovich, Ethan Wolfe, Chris Crowder Janakiraman, Emily Wolfe had time, and time itself Assistant Sports Editors: Rob Hefter, Avi Sholkoff, Matthew is a resource that you can Kennedy, Paige Voeffray, Mark Calcagno, Jacob Shames JASON ROWLAND and ASHLEY TJHUNG capitalize on.” Michigan in Color Editors michiganincolor@michigandaily.com ANAY KATYAL and NATALIE ZAK The men in the program Senior Michigan in Color Editors: Christian Paneda, Adam Managing Arts Editors arts@michigandaily.com Brodnax, Halibut Olaniyan, Tanya Madhani, Sivanthy Vasanthan implemented two things Senior Arts Editors: Dayton Hare, Nabeel Chollanpat, Brooks later recognized Madeline Gaudin, Carly Snider were part of people living Arts Beat Editors: Danielle Yacobson, Danny Hensel, Erika ELLIE HOMANT Shevchek, Matt Gallatin, Naresh Iyengar “startup lives”: taking risks Managing Social Media Editor Senior Social Media Editors: Kayla Waterman and Anna Haritos and using weaknesses to MICHELLE PHILLIPS and AVA WEINER propel strengths. Managing Design Editors design@michigandaily.com Brooks cited a study done by Steven Levitt, an economist at the University CAYLIN WATERS of Chicago and the co-author Brand Manager of Freakonomics, which CLAIRE BUTZ EMILY RICHNER looked at participants facing Business Development Manager Sales Manager a big decision. Levitt told the JULIA SELSKY JUEUI HONG participants that he would Local Accounts Manager Special Projects Manager make the decision for them SANJANA PANDIT CAROLINE GOLD through the f lip of a coin, Production Manager Media Consulting Manager with heads being yes and tails being no.

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The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by students at the University OF Michigan. One copy is available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the Daily’s office for $2. Subscriptions for September-April are $250 and year long subscriptions are $275. University affiliates are subject to a reduced subscription rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscriptions must be prepaid.

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#asianfood STEFFI CAO MiC Columnist

White girls sure love tofu. They put it in quinoa bowls, in almond bowls and in Buddha bowls (a concept which I don’t understand — but that’s for another time), on their Instagram feeds topped off with a rustic-chic filter. It’s one of the new health guru staples — throw some tofu in, it’ll change your life. It’s so healthy, so simple, it’s amazing, it’s to die for. I, too, love tofu. My mother used to fry it for me with green onions, thick slices with a crispy skin over rice. Or she’d put it in a fish soup, and I’d spend ten minutes carefully clearing the premises of any bones or eyeballs before eating it. When we went to dim sum restaurants, I’d order the mapo tofu, with black chilli peppers, so spicy that I could feel it coating my tongue. White girls didn’t want my tofu back then. The right to cook a cuisine that is not your own is still incredibly messy. From obscure health bloggers to highprofile chefs like Andy Ricker, a white man from Oregon hailed as a “Thaicooking superstar”, white people making Asian food is a very touchy subject. And although the arguments are true that yes, white people can study a cuisine extensively, and white culture is based in cultural appropriation, the question is not of whether they can cook it well or not, because cultural appropriation is rooted much deeper than the food itself. Just as Sarah Bond pointed out in an article for Forbes, food has been used as a tool to show status dating back to the

Roman Empire, distinguishing between the ‘sophisticated’ and ‘barbarian’ people. When white girls pointed out my weird homemade lunch in the first grade, it certainly felt that way. So to see it now being lauded as the big new trend by white people does not sit right. One blogger I saw had posted a picture of their tofu and grain bowl, talking about how special “Asian cuisine” was to them. But what even is Asian cuisine to them? Because to me, Filipino food is

“Cultural exchange is important and has given us many of the cuisines we enjoy today; but cultural exchange is not synonymous with oppression”

incredibly different from Indian food, which is different from Japanese food, which is different from Chinese food. Not even accounting for the fact that within China, Shanghainese food and Sichuan food are on two completely unrelated palates. One cuisine might be inf luenced from the other, and there might be overlap, but each one brings a distinct character to the table. You can’t

throw tofu in a bowl and expect all Asian people to believe it’s theirs. That’s just the problem with white people making so-called “ethnic” foods. So much room opens up for mislabeling and shallowness, and more importantly, the undermining of a community for profit. A white person can make money off another cuisine, while simultaneously squashing another opportunity for the community itself to be represented, and demonstrating a lackluster, insensitive approach to actually uplifting the people they are profiting off. Cultural exchange is important and has given us many of the cuisines we enjoy today; but cultural exchange is not synonymous with oppression, and past oppression seems to have justified today’s appropriation. I’m no food expert, but I do know the sting of people cherry-picking from my culture, taking out the tofu and Chinese characters and silk jackets, while reinforcing the ideas that my history is unimportant, my eyes are ugly and my community is doing fine even when it’s not. The truth is, I want to share my food with white people. I want them to learn more about my community, and I want to fuse cuisines to make even more delicious tofu (I hope I have established by now that I really like tofu). But exchange becomes hard when you know your community has been exploited throughout history, your culture taken apart and picked over at the ease of a larger systematic oppressor. Bottom line: don’t. White people might throw their hands up and say, “If you want to share with us, why don’t you just reach across the aisle more?” But I’ve been reaching, and it’s a labor that’s been one-sided. And so far in return, I’ve received bland tofu with Instagram filters, and Andy Ricker. And I’m tired.

Schrödinger’s Asian: Defining my identity SIVANTHY VASANTHAN Senior MiC Editor

Anyone who has ever met me knows that asking about my racial and ethnic identity is the quickest way to confuse me. But there is one particular question that perpetually haunts me: Am I Asian? The answer: maybe? I find myself selectively identifying as Asian American. Sometimes it just depends on the day. Other times, it’s based on whom I’m with. Most often, I’m not just Asian American but I’m South Asian American; the South is key. Looking back, I’ve realized that throughout my life, the fluctuations in how I’ve identified as Asian American have been heavily influenced by various Asian-American peers, particularly East Asian Americans. I definitely did not start identifying as Asian American until I was in middle school. The Asian-American student population at my middle school was equal parts East and Southeast Asian American; I was one of the few South AsianAmerican students there. I remember asking my friends if they thought I was Asian American and they immediately responded with “Yeah, of course. What other continent are India and Sri Lanka in?” This reassured me that I was undoubtedly Asian American; what else could I be? That changed in high school. At my high school, the Asian-American student population was mostly composed of East Asians, and there were fewer South Asian, Southeast Asian and Pacific Islander Americans there. Many of my AsianAmerican and white peers would say, “No way you’re Asian, like you’re not Chinese” or “Being Indian isn’t the same as being

Asian.” My experiences in high school taught me that here in America, Asian is equated with East Asian. What is interesting is that when I asked my parents whether I was Asian, they were surprised that I did not already know the answer. My parents spent much of their lives living in England. They have told me on multiple occasions that based on their experiences, in England the Asian identity is equivalent to being South Asian. It took them quite a while to recognize that here Asian is equated with East Asian. This showed me just how relative and subjective (and let’s not forget confusing) the Asian identity can be. Many large Asian-American student organizations, including Uncover: A/ PIA and the United Asian American Organizations, have pushed for more diversity, inclusivity and representation of the Asian-American identity. More often than not, I tend to identify as Asian American within these spaces. Despite this, there are still quite a few student organizations that claim to be pan-Asian American but have little to no representation of South Asian Americans, Southeast Asian Americans or Pacific Islander Americans. Also, when I am with individual Asian Americans or smaller friend groups of Asian Americans, I don’t really feel Asian American. I’ve come across comments from my East AsianAmerican peers that include “You’re not Asian. You’re different” and “But, like, Asians, like, you know what I mean.” To be honest, no I don’t. I genuinely have no idea what you mean. I’ve basically lived all 21 years of my life as an American-Born Confused Desi (even though I was technically born in Canada), but now I’m also an equally confused,

maybe fake Asian American as well? Yikes. Disclaimer: My experiences in (self) identifying as an Asian American or people dictating whether I am Asian American have been neither positive nor negative experiences for me. They just happen. I’ve always been curious and perplexed about how the Asian-American identity seems to be extremely relative, flexible and subjective. With that in mind, here are some questions that I often find myself thinking about: 1. What does it mean to be Asian or Asian American? 2. What does it mean to be a real Asian American versus a fake Asian American? 3. If there is no singular AsianAmerican experience, why is Asian American tantamount to East Asian American? 4. Why do Asian Americans who are not of East Asian descent often find themselves having to justify or qualify their identity with a prefix? 5. Why do people not want the AsianAmerican identity to be as diverse and inclusive as possible? I’m not sure that I know, or ever will know, the answers to any of those questions. However, I think it’s important for Asian Americans to have conversations about these kinds of questions. And while I’m not sure I will ever be wholly comfortable identifying as Asian American, only time (and maybe the opinions of other Asian Americans) will tell.

Thursday, October 5, 2017 — 3

We’re tired of this TANISHA SHELTON MiC Columnist

You shoot me with a gun, I didn’t do anything But yet you still run. Silent judgement You pass upon me and mine Because the color of my skin, So bronzed and full of shine. My fellow people say You make us seem less, Beating us up, pulling our hair, “Oh it’s such a mess.” The way my lips Are full and round, The way my hips sway As I walk over dreaded ground. You want me to respect you No matter what you do to me. You want me to agree with you, “Mexicans have no right to be Here” when you know As much as I, What only should be heard Are Native cries. Don’t look at me With a scowl on your face. Look at me, As I belong in this place.

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HOLIDAY From Page 1 religious obligations. “Faculty are expected to provide reasonable accommodations, if possible, when religious observances cause a student to miss classes, examinations or other assignments,” Courant wrote. However, despite the University’s steadfast policy, some students do not always have an accommodating experience with their professors. LSA sophomore Madison, who requested her last name remain anonymous to avoid academic repercussion, had trouble with a professor she emailed a week in advance of Rosh Hashanah about missing a lab. Though her graduate student instructor assured her she would have a chance to make up any missed work, the course coordinator’s strict policies made it difficult to reschedule the lab. According to Madison, the syllabus stated students must email the coordinator three weeks in advance, but students did not

receive the course coordinator’s email until the second week. Rosh Hashanah took place during the third week of school. The coordinator’s policy does not align with the University’s religious holiday policy, which states students must give notice of class conflicts by the add/drop deadline for the term on Sept. 25. Madison said she sent an email a week in advance only to receive a reply from her course coordinator a day before the holiday that stated her request could not be accommodated because she did not give the coordinator enough time to reschedule. This situation would seem to violate the University’s policy. “Faculty should make every effort to avoid scheduling required work that is difficult to reschedule, e.g., lab, exams or high-profile non-classroom activities, on religious holidays,” Courant wrote. As a result, Madison’s lab was counted as an excused absence on the condition that she could not miss another lab for a Jewish holiday or for any illness, since she used up her one excused absence.

“I was so upset. She was putting so much pressure on me that I almost went to lab instead of going to services at Hillel and observing the holiday because I was so worried I would be sick one day in the future and be penalized,” Madison said. She also feared the situation would affect her overall grade in the course as a result of earning fewer points in the lab she was absent from. “I was afraid that I would not get as good of a grade in the class as I would if the total points were higher and I am still not sure how that will affect my grade yet,” Madison said. However, LSA senior Elana Rosenthal has found most of her teachers to be respectful of her religious observances. In advance of the holidays, she has always sent emails to her GSIs and professors that outlined the specific dates she will need to miss class. She has never had a problem with having her absences excused or getting extensions for assignments.

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TOM AIELLO | COLUMN

White people, racism is our fight

“T

hat’s incredible. I condemned the group as violent wish I could be there and hateful. alongside him right National divisions over Black now,” I thought as I activists’ protests clicked the like button of police brutality on the article detailing exemplify how white University of Michigan moderates can impede student Dana Greene’s racial progress. In protest against 2014, Black activists racism on the Diag. organized large street I closed Facebook demonstrations in and continued typing Ferguson, Mo., to away at the paper due protest the police in class the next day, shooting of Michael TOM sitting comfortably Brown. A New York AIELLO on my bed. My paper Times poll indicated had a long way to go; 67 percent of whites protests would have to wait. believed the protesters’ actions Looking back at this moment, went too far. my excuse didn’t hold up. I could I’m going to assume most have stopped by the Diag multiple of these white respondents times that day, but I didn’t. And believe police brutality is besides, was a grade really more harmful and Black people important than demonstrating have a right to demonstrate against the racism students of against it. So is it the perceived color face all too frequently on violence of Black Lives Matter this campus? I consider myself an that taints white public opinion ally in the fight against racism, but of protests? The fact that up what is allyship without action? to 43 percent of white people I’m far from the first white ally believe NFL players should be who’s given into complacency. fired for taking a knee — an White people have been telling inarguably peaceful protest Black people to wait for a more — during the national anthem convenient time for their rights suggests not. No matter the as long as the movement for Black form, some white people will rights has existed. In 1963, Martin always express disapproval Luther King Jr. lamented not when Black people publicly about the “Ku Klux Klanner, but demand just treatment. the white moderate, who is more If white people are to devoted to ‘order’ than to justice; effectively combat racism, we who prefers a negative peace must shift our understanding of which is the absence of tension white supremacy from long white to a positive peace which is the hoods to the day-to-day behaviors presence of justice.” of ourselves and those close to The white moderate is Thomas us. White supremacy is not an Jefferson “paternalistically abstract concept, far removed (believing) he can set the timetable from daily action. It is nurtured in for another man’s freedom,” as the everyday actions and inactions King wrote referring to when of white people. When a hiring Jefferson called slavery a “moral manager skips past a resume depravity” but continued to profit with a “funny name,” when a jury from forced labor. The white indicts a Black youth for a crime a moderate is President Eisenhower white teenager would never have publicly condemning racism, but been charged with, when a family showing hesitation to enforce stays silent during an uncle’s rant Brown v. Board of Education against “those people,” racism because “you cannot change flourishes. people’s hearts merely by laws.” These subtle yet insidious The white moderate is 96 percent behaviors act as tacit endorsements of white Americans disapproving of systematic racism, whether of the Ku Klux Klan but only 35 intentional or not. Even the most percent expressing support for well-meaning allies can fall into Black Lives Matter, a group known the trap of staying silent in the for large and disruptive protests face of racism because they want against police brutality. A number to avoid conflict or discomfort. of staunch conservatives have Racism is uncomfortable; white

privilege is the ability to ignore that discomfort because it doesn’t affect you. Dismantling racism requires embracing discomfort. It requires calling out racist comments from friends and family. It requires joining protests and listening to the grievances of people of color. It requires being active and being present. To defeat racism, white people must raise their voices against racism as often as people of color do. White people built and benefit from systematic racism. Therefore, the system cannot be dismantled without us. We can’t stand silently on the sidelines in situations of injustice while people of color protest discrimination. We must show up and support Black voices when they bring attention to police brutality, mass incarceration, voter suppression or any of the other symptoms of racism. As the NFL police brutality protests and Dr. King’s writings show, people will attempt to delegitimize Black activists no matter how peaceful or small their protests. These voices must be counteracted with cries of affirmation and support from white allies. I’m not saying a white person has to attend every single Black Lives Matter protest to effectively combat racism. Activism is often a day-to-day, small-scale effort. One small step allies can take is speaking up when we hear racist language. It’s easiest to be racist in white-only spaces where no faces of color exist to remind someone of the consequences of their hate. Considering that according to a 2013 survey, 75 percent of whites in the United States don’t have a single friend of color, these spaces are all too common. Therefore, white allies must hold our friends and families accountable. We must call out those around us who abuse the “N-word” or slip on the cloak of casual racism when they feel safe in their whiteness. It’s on us to dismantle racism’s safe spaces. As Desmond Tutu once said, “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”

FRANNIE MILLER | CONTACT FRANNIE AT FRMILLER@UMICH.EDU

Tom Aiello can be reached at thomaiel@umich.edu.

I

On health and belief

t’s just past sundown and, Mom and Dad’s religious roots. after failing to make it over Preservation of religious routine to Trader Joe’s on East proves itself especially difficult Stadium Boulevard on a largely secular for the past two and college campus, where a half weeks, I’m quantitative grade overwhelmed by the point averages and snacking possibilities median exam scores awaiting me in my feel exponentially more parents’ pantry. Upon urgent than the pursuit any given arrival to my of a spiritual outlet. childhood home, the As a former member first stop is always the of that demographic kitchen. Today is no of apathetic and JOSIE exception. My phone nonreligious youth, TOLIN buzzes as I’m halfway I’ll speak to my own through my third breakfast biscuit. experience: There were other My relatives want to know whether things I wanted to do on Friday I’m fasting today. nights besides attend Shabbat If it weren’t for that text, I services at the synagogue. It was as would’ve completely forgotten it simple as that. I didn’t see the place was Yom Kippur. for a system of belief in a busier Yom Kippur, or The Day of life schedule, so I abandoned it Atonement, is the holiest day of the altogether. year in Judaism. Following Rosh A return to religion can Hashanah by 10 days, the holiday follow any combination of is typically observed through transformational life events — participation in intensive prayer the death of a loved one, a bout and sundown-to-sundown fasting. of intense depression, a period It is said that, after Yom Kippur, of extreme turbulence and God has officially solidified his uncertainty. In many cases, the inscriptions in the Book of Life. search for a new belief system may According to Judaism, these not be as much of a return as it is a inscriptions dictate who will or reconstruction. will not stick around for another My religious base from earthly year. So yeah, the premise childhood makes the return to a of Yom Kippur seems pretty high set of beliefs highly accessible to stakes: Repent or bust. me. Accompanied by this desired I say this light-heartedly return is the knowledge that I need because I have a relatively weak to entirely recalibrate this base relationship with religion. This in organized religion by way of wasn’t always the case. I remember my own discretion. The said base lying in bed as a child, praying holds many valuable teachings, to a compartmentalized image and it is my current project to of God — a man in the sky with a decide which of those teachings nightcap and grizzly white beard. I find particularly applicable and Sometime around age 16, my worthwhile. mental picture of an all-powerful Reconstruction of faith can Albus Dumbledore lookalike no adopt many different forms. longer made sense to me. I stopped Maybe it’s a strong adherence to practicing religion and have only the communal aspect of religion, recently started to re-evaluate this the attendance of services and decision. There seemed to be ways prayer circles alongside liketo connect with religion on a more minded folk. Maybe it’s a learning individualized basis than I had process, the research of religious formerly acknowledged through a philosophies and subsequent use narrow and standardized Judeo- of that information to navigate Christian lens. the physical world in a sensible Though the apathetic high- manner. I mean, talk about a school-atheist phase does not grace rich text — religious scriptures the life of every American teenager, and philosophies are endlessly it seems a growing theme among the fascinating to read with a more country’s Judeo-Christian youth. critical modern eye. Maybe it’s Teenage years are characterized silent and completely personal, by an increased desire for the revived yet revalued utterance autonomy, a rebellious sensation of prayers retained from youth, likely limited by strict loyalty to a communication with a newly

assessed concept of divine force. In addition to emphasizing the metaphysical aspects of an otherwise tactile daily routine, religious adherence of some variety has proven itself widely beneficial in relation to mental health and wellness. Comparatively lowstress levels have been recorded in religious or semi-religious individuals, as well as a stronger sense of purpose and meaning. Though this could be rooted to the existential notion of place in a higher order, the participatory and social aspects of religion appear the most strongly correlated to these statistics. The participatory aspect of religion has specifically occupied my attention as I’ve started to tentatively consider belief a part of my life again. Participation in traditional practices gives me this feeling of meaningful contribution to a heritage that has undoubtedly shaped me in ways I may not fully realize. Determining whether to preserve particular traditions on an individual basis has become, for me, a helpful way to navigate the otherwise passive acquisition of a Jewish heritage. Though I don’t foresee a strictly regimented religious practice in my near future, I hope to continue that participation in smaller acknowledgments of belief. I proceeded to fast on Yom Kippur after receiving my family’s post-sundown reminder with a mouthful of biscuit crumbs, and the cup of coffee I had on that Saturday morning didn’t technically align with the holiday’s fasting expectations either. I broke the rules a little bit, and that’s OK. For the first time in years, I took part in a tradition that made me feel like a contributing member to the preservation of a deeply rooted religious philosophy. I took into account my own expectations for myself on this day instead of focusing solely on the standardized rules that I’d worked so hard to reject as a teenager. An otherwise mundane Saturday adopted a new meaning, drawn from an old religious base and shaped into something currently applicable and consciously chosen. Josie Tolin can be reached at jostolin@umich.edu.

MICHAEL MORDARKSI | COLUMN

I

I hate sports

hate sports. States despite the blatantly I have absolutely no interest racist institutions that exist in in any team, franchise, game the homeland. or athlete. And in 1968, when My lack of Smith and Carlos care immediately donned black gloves disqualifies me and raised their fists from 95 percent of in a Black Power all conversations salute throughout the occurring within entirety of the national reach of a bottle of anthem, they did so to Budweiser, as men a United States caught are horrified at my in the grips of racial utter neglect over and social chaos. MICHAEL the statistics of the As Montanaro most recent game of MORDARSKI wrote, “1968 was the home concussions versus another inflection point year in the away concussions. American political and social Yet, though I don’t care for history. Violence was spilling sports, I do care for politics. out in the civil rights and And I don’t just care — I integration movement. Cities know politics like a Vegas had been burned from rioting bookie knows sports. the year before. Martin Luther So when the two worlds King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy collided last week due to our had been assassinated.” commander-in-tweet pandering And that was how they to his base condemning the could respond: capturing white protests in the NFL, the political America’s attention. world I follow brought forth That was how they could ample historical evidence about utilize the success of their how protests have been utilized in athleticism to move the the past within American sports. indifferent and tepid white More specifically, these sports American population into an have become a righteous platform uncomfortable conversation for marginalized Black athletes to on race. voice their objections to a country Yet, naturally, the two athletes that preaches equality. faced an overwhelming amount Several pieces written of criticism and condemnation for these past few weeks such an act. They were stripped of conveyed these ideas, and their gold medals and condemned NPR’s Domenico Montanaro for their disrespect to our country. wrote a particularly excellent Or take Muhammad Ali and article that demonstrated the his refusal to be drafted into a war “complicated history of black he and millions of others morally athletes protesting in sports.” objected to (and rightly so). His In the Olympic Games, defiance to the draft landed him Black athletes have won a sentence of five years in prison, countless medals for a country yet he was unwavering about that divides, segregates and being sent to fight and kill the marginalizes them. From Vietnamese: “And shoot them for Jesse Owens in Nazi Germany what? They never called me n-----, to John Carlos and Tommie they never lynched me, they didn’t Smith in Mexico City, Black put no dogs on me, they didn’t rob athletes have competed and me of my nationality, rape and kill succeeded for the United my mother and father. … Shoot

them for what? How can I shoot them poor people? Just take me to jail.” The Supreme Court later overturned Ali’s conviction, and he never served time. And now, within the NFL, acts of protest face an overwhelming amount of chauvinistic condemnation due to the nearsatirical amount of patriotism displayed at our football games (we fly military aircraft over our stadiums). The vilification of these protesters comes from the ignorant and unsympathetic who lack the understanding that what these athletes are protesting has nothing to do with a piece of cloth. Athletic success is an extremely effective platform for protest. I have often looked at sports as something nearly free from political discourse, which I thought justified my lack of interest. But I forget I come from a position of privilege and ignorance, living my comfortable life unaware of Black athletes’ effective protests in the past. These athletes were offered an audience politicians could only dream of. They were revered and idolized for athletic ability, granting them the eyes and ears of millions. Perhaps our president is calculating, and utilizing his outrage over this issue to mask the other glaring problems plaguing his administration. (Hey, Jared, cute email server, and, Tom Price, nice government jet you got there.) Or maybe, just maybe, he’s an impulsive old racist who panders to a base that worships a piece of cloth while disregarding the very intangible rights it represents. I may hate sports, but I now realize it’s another platform that can be used to address the problems that continue to infect our country. Michael Mordarski can be reached at mmordars@umich.edu.

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Arts

ENTERTAINMENT & MEDIA COLUMN

CONCERT REVIEW

J.J. Abrams’s sci-fi stronghold WHITE HOUSE ARCHIVES

Paul McCartney gives live music newfound meaning LAURA DZUBAY Daily Arts Writer

My ideal concert venue is an abandoned barn. Hear me out: It’s surrounded by empty fields, all quiet and attentive to themselves. It’s dark, but not frightening: you feel welcome, you’ve only stopped here for the night. The roof is patchy, the windows and doors open to the night air, the sky wild and soft. A single ukulele is strumming lightly, and all around the countryside, the stars turn and drizzle like rain. The thing is, I didn’t even know this was my ideal concert venue until last night. I know now because I experienced it — that same barn, that same soft night — inside a stadium full of thousands of people. The countryside was in the middle of Detroit, and the person strumming the ukulele was Paul McCartney. This sounds cheesy, so I’ll backpedal a little. This was my second time seeing McCartney live. Walking into the venues (which are almost invariably enormous), it’s not hard to get a sense that the concert has already started. Even if the lights are still on and the artist is nowhere to be seen, the other aspects that give the concert value — the hype, the variety, the feeling of togetherness — are already present. Fans mill around, buying drinks, finding their seats. Some of them are elderly, some are teenagers and children. Many wear shirts declaring their primary allegiances — The Beatles, Wings, even solo McCartney. And everyone, it seems through my rose-colored glasses, is excited. Everyone is smiling. The stranger in the seat next to mine tells me he’s never seen McCartney before, but he can’t wait, he’s wanted this for so many years. When McCartney comes out, he does it with a bang. He waves hello, and from his open-faced smile, you’d never know he’d played this exact same venue the night before. You’d never know that none of this was strange to him — at least, one wouldn’t expect for it to be. He slams the opening chord of “A Hard Day’s Night,” a chord that sends everyone in the stadium into instant cheers, and then he’s off. We’re all off. It quickly becomes clear that it wasn’t just the opening song — the entire concert is going to happen with a bang. He reels through fast-paced rockers like “Save Us,” “I’ve Got a Feeling” and “Drive My Car,” and classic seventiesguitar songs like “Letting Go” and “Let Me Roll It.” He launches from the middle of “A Day in the Life” straight into the refrain of “Give Peace a Chance.” Stagelight explores the far reaches of the stadium, showering us in colors that seem to shift with every minute. Balls of fire and literal fireworks explode onto the stage multiple times during the chorus of “Live and Let Die.” Later, when he sprints back out for an encore, confetti bursts from cannons, and McCartney and the other musicians run across the stage with giant flags rippling behind them (American, Union Jack and rainbow). When the show is finally over, he disappears magician-style behind white clouds of smoke and confetti that will probably take at least half an hour to disappear from the stage.

Thursday, October 5, 2017 — 5

The special effect that remains throughout the entire show is the screen behind the stage. Every song is complemented by some sort of visual counterpart. There are reanimated photographs of Wings members during “Band on the Run,” and of himself and his baby daughter when he sings “Maybe I’m Amazed” in honor of the late Linda McCartney. A montage-style video plays in the background while he slams through “Lady Madonna” on the piano, showing photographs and footage of working women and mothers, all over the world and from all different time periods, dancing in unison, sprinting across finish lines. It’s maybe a third of the way through the concert when the old barn assembles itself on the screen. The stars prop themselves up one by one around the stadium as people turn on the flashlights on their phones and lift them high. They’re closer than real stars — tangible, the kind you might actually risk a wish on. McCartney tells us a story about how he and The Quarrymen recorded this song on their first demo ever, and then he and his fellow musicians play “In Spite of All the Danger,” with harmonies so fine-tuned you wouldn’t think they were live, or coming from live people. It’s a perfect moment and it feels as though he’s singing with all of us, as individuals. There are plenty of loaded moments throughout the concert, which is three hours long and practically nonstop. There are the tributes to George Martin (“Love Me Do”), George Harrison (“Something”) and, of course, John Lennon (“Here Today”), which comes along with a word of advice from Paul to never wait to tell people you love them, even if it feels silly, because you never know when it might be too late. There’s the performance of “Blackbird,” during which a platform slowly raises McCartney up and digital flowers appear blooming on the new wall beneath him. There’s “Hey Jude,” the last song before the encore, which has the entire stadium on our feet and singing in total unison. He even brings people up on stage: a father with a daughter who gets her arm signed by McCartney, and two excited fans here all the way from Japan. But later, when I bring myself back to the present and look back, the moment that has lasted with me the most is the barn, with the stars of strangers lighting up all around. Maybe it’s because I grew up in the Midwest, driving through empty fields and exploring old buildings and making haphazard wishes. If you ask someone else who went to the same show, they’ll probably have found home in a different moment: maybe the pumping singalong of “Ob-La-Di, Ob-LaDa,” or the hardcore metal of “Helter Skelter,” or the Abbey Road medley that closed out the encore. But I think that’s one of the things that makes McCartney’s concerts so special: He wants you to find a home in his work. He’s one of the most famous and enduring popular musicians of all time; he could probably charge the same amount of money for a shorter concert with half as many special effects. But he wants you to find something that really lands with you — or, at least, he gives the genuine impression that he does. And he wants to give everybody a complete experience;

it’s like he doesn’t want to leave you wishing for anything if he can help it. “We’re gonna play some old songs, some new songs and some in-between songs,” he said, right before launching into “Can’t Buy Me Love,” and so he did — spanning all the way from the oldest major song in his repertoire (“In Spite of All the Danger”) to the latest (“FourFiveSeconds”). Whether you were one of those fans who were here for The Beatles or for Wings or just for whatever McCartney felt like playing, your bases were covered. McCartney also made it clear that he could easily tell which songs we all liked, because the stadium would “light up like a galaxy” whenever he played an old Beatles song, but when he switched to something newer, it would be “like a black hole.” “But we don’t care!” he added. “We’re going to play them anyway!” And he did — he played “My Valentine” on the piano for his wife, Nancy, and ripped through songs like “Queenie Eye” and “New” with the same boundless energy that would overtake him during the popular Beatles songs. The slower songs were confessional and heavy, the faster ones lively. We swayed with McCartney through “Let It Be” and “Yesterday,” and we jumped and pumped our fists with him during “Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five” and the reprise of “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” But it wasn’t just the music that gave off the feeling that we were experiencing all of them joined with him; it was also deeply ingrained in the way he spoke. He told us stories about meeting Keith Richards and Mick Jagger on the streets of London and giving them the “I Wanna Be Your Man” single, and performing “Back in the USSR” twice in one concert at Red Square. When he asked everyone who’d ever tried to learn “Blackbird” on guitar to raise their hands, he joked, “And you all got it wrong,” before thanking us and saying, “That makes me feel really good.” By the time the three hours were up and we filed out of the arena, back onto the streets of Detroit and under the sprawl of the faraway stars we’d known before, it felt like the close of a years-long journey. In a way, maybe it was; many people wait lifetimes to see the people they most look up to in person, and hearing these age-old anthems felt like the most recent tying-off of an experience that really began ages ago, whenever it was that we first heard them. This is something I love about this type of concert. Of course, any concert can have energy, can grip you, and I’ve had so many fulfilling experiences with live music that it seems like a strange arena in which to make any comparisons at all. All I know is that it felt like magic to live through that show, with people of all different ages and backgrounds — many of whom have known this music longer than they can even trace back, so long that by this point it feels less like something learned and more like something intrinsic and felt. To be alive at the same time as someone you admire, out of all the times you could possibly have been alive, that is the feeling: a moment of real consequence joined, a home found, a wish granted.

Recently, it was announced that J.J. Abrams (“Super 8”) would be replacing Colin Trevorrow (“Jurassic World”) as the director of the upcoming “Star Wars: Episode IX.” When all is said and done, Abrams will have directed four of the six major “Star Wars” and “Star Trek” releases made this decade. “Star Wars” and “Star Trek,” once forever at odds with each other, have in this nostalgia driven era of reboots, somehow became the same, appealing to the same part of the audience and being guided by the same director. If you had told any major “Trekkies” or “Wars Nerds” of the last generation that one day the same man would control both franchises both groups would probably have suspected you of either being a member of the Borg collective or a Dark Lord of the Sith. To the unknowledgeable moviegoer these two franchises may seem pretty similar on the outside, but to anyone with more than a passing interest in the subject it is clear that the two are in fact anything but. Yes, both

Science fiction has long been a place for experimentation

feature spaceships and aliens, but the themes and inherent structures of the series could not be more different. Since its creation by Gene Roddenberry in the late ’60s, “Star Trek” has been about exploring the great unknown, the final frontier, and displaying a version of humanity that has moved beyond the problems of class and race that plague us today. It’s about big theological ideas and hard sci-fi concepts. In contrast, “Star Wars” is a fantasy space opera, with wizards, secret siblings, magical swords and epic battles of good against evil. Both franchises are storied parts of our cultural history. Both have inspired countless imitators as well as each other. To simplify the differences down: “Star Trek” is for the brain, “Star Wars” is for the heart. Never should we have gotten to a place where the two are dangerously close to becoming interchangeable. Allowing one man to put his defining stamp on both of the great science fiction franchises of all time is giving one man far too much cultural power. A similar

situation is about to play out with the impending release of “Justice League” which, after original director Zack Snyder (“Batman v. Superman”) was forced to step away due to personal reasons, is now being completed by Joss Whedon of “Avengers” and “Buffy” fame. Should one man really get to shepherd both The Avengers and The Justice League to the big screen? Surely the point of having both an Avengers and a Justice League is to highlight

IAN HARRIS the differences between the two? Why would we want to watch two superhero teams that are exactly the same? Why, for that matter, is it okay with us for the differences and peculiarities of “Star Wars” and “Star Trek” to become muddled until even their own fans can barely tell them apart? The reboot “Trek” films, while fun movies in their own right, choose to leave behind the introspective nature of the franchise in favor of an action adventure vibe more similar to “Star Wars.” The recent premiere of “Star Trek: Discovery” has led to more comparisons with “Star Wars” and other big budget action spectacles. The decision by Lucasfilm to give Abrams his second crack at a “Star Wars” movie is a decision based purely in the logic of safety. It is a safe choice. It is a fine choice. What it is not is an inspired choice, and it will not leave us with a modern day “Star Wars” trilogy that pushes the boundaries of cinema, emotional storytelling, or special-effects in the ways that either the originals or the often-maligned prequels did. Turning “Star Wars” into a repetitive retread of what has come before and turning “Star Trek” into an action-adventure franchise ignores what made both of these franchises remarkable to begin with. Science fiction has long been a place for experimentation, a place for different kinds of people with different voices to challenge and dare us to ask questions about each other and ourselves that we might not have otherwise. Letting

our major sci-fi franchises be primarily controlled by one person or simply one kind of person severely limits the types of questions that science fiction can ask. All six of the major “Trek” and “Wars” pictures of this era will end up being directed by white men who rose up through the Hollywood system in an eerily similar way, four of those movies being directed by exactly the same guy. Science Fiction has always been a place of narrative and creative danger. We cannot allow it to become one of safety. In the face of a choice between “Do or do not, there is no try” “Star Wars” has chosen “do not.” Afraid of taking risks,

The reboot “Trek” films, while fun movies in their own right, choose to leave behind the introspective nature of the franchise in favor of an action adventure vibe more similar to ‘Star Wars’

“Star Trek” has stopped going where no man has gone before and has begun retreading all the places we’ve already been. These are our most beloved science fiction properties. Generations of people have fallen in love with these universes and the characters housed within them. For decades “Star Wars” and “Star Trek” fans have argued over which franchise is superior. If we allow these two sagas to become interchangeable, there will be no more arguments, no more questions, no more wars and no more treks. There will just be stars like Abrams, continuing to capitalize on creative work that was done years ago by somebody else.

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Arts

6 — Thursday, October 5, 2017

FILM REVIEW

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

CONCERT REVIEW

UNIVERSAL PICTURES

‘American Made’ bores and promises if not warns that everything you see really Daily Arts Writer happened. That’s good enough for Cruise, whose recent roles (the last five You may not know the name of which are three different Barry Seal, but you know his franchises and two science story. You know Pablo Escobar, fiction action films) read more the Iran-Contra Affair, American like the bad side of a big studio paternalism towards Central contract than a quality film guide. America. You know He’s in a different the American mode here (and, Dream. to note, at $50 “American “American million, which is Made” Made” tells a story no small amount, not so much based this is the tightest Universal Pictures on, but rather budget of a Ann Arbor 20, loosely inspired by, Cruise movie in Quality 16 Seal’s life, who, as ten years). He’s depicted in the film, got the charisma, was a commercial sure, but at the pilot-turned-CIA operative (Tom film’s key moments, for better or Cruise, “The Mummy”) tasked worse (and it’s often the latter), with taking aerial photographs of Cruise seems locked into one communists in Nicaragua, then emotion: effortless cool, yet with delivering captured Russian astonished and bewildered. arms to the Contras in Honduras, Every crest has a trough, and who then became a drug runner Cruise doesn’t sufficiently dive for the Medellín Cartel in into depths of paranoia and Colombia (serving a young Pablo despair that defines his life Escobar). He was punished by the after his CIA career in the film’s U.S. government not with prison denouement. but with a promotion, assigned If there are other characters, to manufacture and capture they’re barely drawn. Excusable evidence that the communist is Seal’s CIA contact, Monty Sandinistas in Nicaragua were Schafer (Domhnall Gleeson, working in the drug trade with “Brooklyn”), who serves as a the Medellín Cartel. It was the plot driver, but inexcusable is ’80s. And it was crazy. Seal’s long-suffering wife, Lucy And the film knows it. It draws (Sarah Wright, “Marry Me”), heavily from its predecessors — who is given so little to do, it’s as black comedies that highlight if second-time screenwriter Gary episodes in capitalist power Spinelli (“Stash House”) hasn’t and collapse in recent history, paid attention to years and years like “The Wolf of Wall Street” of disappointment and anger over and “The Big Short”— and poorly written female roles. Lucy appropriates the bombastic gets angry with Barry at first, and narrator, who addresses the then takes the ride for the money, audience with a sly satisfaction and we know nothing of how DANNY HENSEL

she’s really feeling. The problem is that while antecedents of “American Made” are well directed and acted on top of a compelling story, “American Made” can only claim the last of those attributes. Doug Liman, the otherwise competent but not outstanding director behind “The Bourne Identity” and the more recent Cruise action film “Edge of Tomorrow,” is the weak link here. Handed on a plate an absurdly great plot, Liman mangles his film with utterly bizarre filmmaking choices. In order to ape the sort of faux documentary style promulgated by “The Big Short” and “The Wolf of Wall Street,” Liman features a number of cut-aways to photographs and historical footage, but none help move the story along. Cinematographer César Charlone (“Blindness”) escalates the shaky camera work of “The Big Short” to something much more dizzying, if not nauseating, though sometimes. The worst offense is a seemingly absent understanding of how shots ought to be constructed. Charlone’s cinematography is beyond chaotic: it’s an assault on spatial logic. It’s hard to describe, but the best analogy at hand currently is if the director were a spastic eight-year-old given a 35mm camera and instructed to make a two-hour film in just as much time. All the more stranger is that Tom Cruise, one of the biggest movie stars of all time, appears in nearly every slipshod frame. Liman may have been visually uninteresting before, but with “American Made” he verges into visual repugnancy.

RELEASE DATE– Thursday, October 5, 2017

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

ACROSS 1 Seize 6 Just slightly 10 Lip-__ 14 Justice nominated by Barack 15 Buddy, in slang 16 Secure with lines 17 Cut most likely to win a BBQ competition? 19 TT automaker 20 Part of 21 Feminine side 22 Keyboard shortcuts 24 TV scientist with 19 Emmys 25 Keurig coffee for the big day? 27 Tear drier 29 Richmond-toD.C. direction 30 Hunk’s pride 31 Finishes second 34 Deli order 35 Rental to get the twins to college? 38 Word before or after pack 39 Nearly 40 Asian New Year 41 Harmless cyst 43 They’re tossed up before they’re made 47 Sports competitions in anti-gravity? 51 Uganda’s Amin 52 Ciudad Juárez neighbor 53 It’s crude, then refined 54 Bit of cabinet hardware 55 Money box 56 Ring up a short story writer? 59 Bering Sea barker 60 Impromptu modern group pic 61 King Triton’s mermaid daughter 62 Poet __ St. Vincent Millay 63 Boys, to men 64 Commencement celebrants

DOWN 1 Org. that makes cents 2 Woody’s wife 3 Repeals 4 It meant nothing to Edith Piaf 5 Buddy 6 Chicago 7 first name 7 Rodeo bucker 8 Writer/illustrator Falconer known for “Olivia” children’s books 9 Stan “__” Musial 10 Big wet one 11 “I’m not making that decision” 12 “For sure!” 13 Baked fruit desserts 18 Rare blood designation 23 Dogfish Head brew 25 “Star Trek” role for Takei and Cho 26 “To recap ... ” 28 Pick out of a crowd 32 Bell tower sound 33 Long fish 34 Secretary of Agriculture under Nixon

35 Smartphone arrangement 36 “Knock on wood” 37 Craigslist caveat 38 Wrote back 40 Fly around the equator? 41 Actor Bentley 42 It included a sweet, not sorrowful, parting

44 Sunflower relative 45 Doted on 46 Delphic diviners 48 Lily plant 49 “Not __!” 50 Cock and bull 54 Broadway’s Walter __ Theatre 57 Classified ad shorthand for “seeking” 58 Folklore crone

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

xwordeditor@aol.com

10/05/17

J O I N D A I L Y A R T S P L E A S E

By Ed Sessa ©2017 Tribune Content Agency, LLC

10/05/17

SALVATORE DIGIOIA, DAILY ARTS WRITER/DAILY

On A$AP Mob tour, Rocky is a circus ringmaster SALVATORE DIGIOIA Daily Arts Writer

When Yams and Bari first launched A$AP Mob more than a decade ago, their vision expanded well beyond the boundaries of rap: Together, the duo recruited a diverse collective of creative-types and took critical early steps to broadcast their Harlem-goneHollywood style. Both imagery and aesthetic were vital to the Mob’s branding from the start, with fashion adding an extra vehicle through which music could be marketed. From this tradition stemmed popular hits, buzzy streetwear labels and short films, projects that often feel disconnected creatively, yet are united by their now-famous mantra. But what exactly is the A$AP mantra, if not solely a promotional prop? It was once natural to view the group as a tight-knit fraternity, its members a #rare blend of neighborhood connections who, for obvious reasons, found it mutually beneficial to link and build beneath a common alias. Since Yams’s heartbreaking passing in 2015, though, unity among its members has felt opportunistic: It’s difficult to imagine Rocky — the Mob’s staple A-list celebrity, who models for Dior and has dated a Jenner — hanging out with his old pals when business isn’t involved. Plus, the addition of an out-of-towner — Atlanta’s Playboi Carti — best known for revitalizing East Coast hip-hop is rather diluting of its ethos. Amid this mild identity crisis, A$AP Mob has released a new crew tape — Cozy Tapes Vol. 2: Too Cozy — and launched a North American tour. Both ventures aim to satisfy (or at least quiet) fans’ hunger for new music from Rocky, who has not released a solo album in almost three years. Yet, despite the rapper’s natural role as the traveling circus’s ringmaster, he is not its exclusive headliner: The Too Cozy Tour exists to bring lesser-watched members of A$AP — such as Twelvyy, who also released a solo album in #Awgest (read: August)

— into fully packed theaters nationwide. It’s in this vein that A$AP Mob arrived at Detroit’s Masonic Temple on Fri., Sept. 29th, luring a f lood of mostly college and late-high-schoolaged kids downtown for a full night of hip-hop-inspired mosh pits. By 8:00 p.m., the general admission pit’s crowd was already spilling over its brims, its tightly-packed (and mostly intoxicated) attendees screaming along as recent hits like “Bodak Yellow” and “XO Tour Llif3” helped pass the time. Once A$AP Nast emerged on stage, the show was underway. Despite lacking depth in his discography, Nast is a profound technical rapper true to the spirit of New York, and his performances of boombap tracks “Nasty’s World” and “Trillmatic” allowed him to prove so. He was followed promptly by A$AP Twelvyy, who — coming off the heels of his long-overdue debut LP, 12 — used his time to perform gritty solo cuts that wouldn’t otherwise fit into the night’s turnt-up setlist. After opening with “Periodic Table,” Twelvyy warned Detroiters to “put (their) guns up,” then dove into ammunition-themed anthem “Strapped,” which was followed by “Ea$t$ideGho$t.” Before rapping the latter, he proudly announced that the Mob has been visiting the city since its inaugural touring effort —the Long Live A$AP Tour — in 2013, a notion that morbidly dated their joint shenanigans, at least slightly. He then closed with the inspiring “LYBB (Last Year Being Broke),” earning consistent feedback during its choruses, and departed from the stage, only to return shortly thereafter. When A$AP Mob finally stormed the stage as a troop, walking out to epilepsyinducing f lashes and the explosive “Yamborghini High,” it was Rocky who stood front and center, brief ly by his lonesome, with an Off-White belt dangling in his trail, holding up paint-splattered jeans. In the background were two Lamborghini vehicles, parked and converted into

luxury DJ booths, plus a parade of his cohorts, acknowledging of their sidekick statuses. Though the songs performed across the next hour came mostly from the group’s joint projects (“Telephone Calls” and “Crazy Brazy” off the first Cozy Tapes; “Blowin’ Minds,” “Black Card” and many more from the second), Rocky managed to maintain the spotlight throughout, acting as a master of ceremonies. Before “Please Shut Up,” he set the tone by asking the crowd: “How many people got that boss or parent that y’all just want to smack the shit out of?” Then, backtracking only slightly, added: “But they got this thing called the law… So, if you don’t wanna go to jail, you can calmly, politely ask that person…” “Please shut up!” the crowd gleefully roared in response. “Bahamas” received a similarly enticing introduction, with Rocky probing fans to open up mosh pits through teases like, “Y’all niggas ain’t ever been to a A$AP Mob concert?” It was followed by Twelvyy’s “Hop Out,” then a brief ode to Ferg, who skipped Detroit despite being an otherwise regular part of the tour. Even when sharing the spotlight, though, Rocky remained in total control, earning the night’s most emphatic reactions during his a cappella lead-ins to songs such as “Multiply” and “Feel So Good.” Appropriately, “Get That Bag” — which features all members of A$AP Mob — was one of the night’s final songs. However, as if the show simply could not end without a total acknowledgement of Rocky’s core status, it was followed by a raucous solo cut of his. “We are not letting this nigga A$AP Rocky leave this stage. He’s too hot!” said someone, it barely matters who. Sure enough, Rocky swiftly returned for a final verse, one which everyone was expected to know. “Who the jiggy nigga with the gold links?” Who else but Lord Pretty Flacko Jodye, the leader — and still the primary selling point — of the entire A$AP Mob?

DO YOU LIKE ALL THINGS FASHION & LIFESTYLE? LIKE PRETENTIOUSLY RUMINATING OVER YOUR FAVORITE BOOKS AND AUTHORS? Daily Arts is looking to bring on new writers to their Style and Book Review beats! Email arts@michigandaily.com for an application.

Sports

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Thursday, October 5, 2017 — 7A

Secondary to face new test against Spartans Lockwood looks to be more complete player ICE HOCKEY

KEVIN SANTO

Managing Sports Editor

Jim Harbaugh’s assessment was brief, yet accurate. “He throws very well, runs very well,” Harbaugh said of Michigan State quarterback Brian Lewerke on Monday. “He has a penchant for making the big play.” Against Western Michigan, Lewerke flashed an example of his playmaking ability, taking a read option 61 yards to the house — a play on which he beat the safety and linebacker in a foot race. Through four games, Lewerke has completed 84 of his 133 attempts for 963 yards. He boasts eight passing touchdowns and has thrown just two interceptions. As for Lewerke’s ability on the ground, Harbaugh might have been making an understatement. He leads the Spartans in rushing yards and touchdowns, with 248 and two, respectively. And therein lies the latest challenge for a Michigan secondary that ranks as the fourth-best passing defense in

the nation. Lewerke and the Spartans present a threat that this young Wolverine defense has yet to face. To this point, that unit may still be getting overlooked on the grand scale. Sophomore cornerback Lavert Hill admitted as much. That’s what happens when your team boasts a defensive line leading the country in sacks and a linebacker like Devin Bush Jr. who has made the case that he is the best player on the roster. But it’s those same reasons that perhaps escalate the threat that Lewerke could pose to the Wolverines’ secondary. Michigan may have the ability to collapse the pocket, but Lewerke has a knack for escaping it. And while the secondary has been exceptional at times, it has also been susceptible to big plays — a busted-coverage play against Air Force that turned into a 64-yard touchdown reception being the most startling example. On top of Lewerke’s individual ability, he has a useful crop of receivers as his weapons. Felton

Davis leads that group, fresh off a performance against Iowa in which he caught nine passes for 114 yards and two touchdowns. “Just from watching the film, they keep their routes on when he’s on his feet and he’s constantly looking downfield,” said junior safety Tyree Kinnel. “So I feel like we’re gonna have a great chance to get back there and push him out the pocket a lot during this game, so the secondary has to stay on the receivers as much as we can.” Added defensive backs coach Brian Smith: “(The secondary will) face a good challenge. They have good solid receivers. They’re young. Felton’s coming off a good game against Iowa and he’s a threat down the field. He’s a tall guy that they can go out and throw him the ball and then he can come down and get it. He poses a problem, and they’ll spread it around a good bit. We’ve got our hands full.” Still, the trio of Kinnel, Hill and sophomore cornerback David Long have plenty going well for

KATELYN MULCAHY/Daily

Junior safety Tyree Kinnel and his position partners will have to tackle dual-threat quarterback Brian Lewerke.

them. The Wolverines are allowing just 134 yards per game in the air, rank second nationally in team passing efficiency defense and have shown an affinity for forcing turnovers — recording three interceptions for 52 yards and two touchdowns. The unexpected production, in large part, is a product of improved communication — an aspect that Hill pointed out Monday afternoon. And when asked about it Wednesday afternoon, Smith acknowledged the same thing. He said he couldn’t point to a specific play or series, but that the Purdue game stood out. The Boilermakers, of course, implemented plenty of trickery and Michigan was capable of handling it. In the first half, Purdue posted 139 yards in the air. In the second half, the Wolverines conceded just 25. But the one phase that stood out to Smith was Michigan’s ability to stop the jet sweep package, a collection of plays that he said have given the Wolverines some problems in the past. “The communication has improved with the group as a whole,” Smith said. “Again, just seeing things over and over again — the first time, guys learn differently. Some guys learn in the classroom, and other guys learn by actually going out on the field and doing it, getting reps. “You can see it, when teams give us different looks — maybe a look that we haven’t seen before — and we can adjust to it. That’s the result of guys communicating and getting on the same page.” Michigan has faced an up-tempo offense. It has faced the triple-option. And it has faced a two-quarterback system brimming with deception. Now, another look is coming to Ann Arbor. And if the Wolverines’ defensive backfield can adjust to this one, its place among nationally-ranked secondaries is going to look a lot more legitimate.

JACOB SHAMES Daily Sports Writer

As the Michigan hockey team wound down practice Wednesday, Will Lockwood, as usual, was one of the last players to leave the ice. According to his coach, Mel Pearson, that’s no surprise. It’s why the Wolverines’ new coach has gained an even greater appreciation for Lockwood since watching him from the opposing sideline while coaching Michigan Tech last season. “That’s how you define a true hockey player,” Pearson said. “When they enjoy practice and they can’t wait to get to the rink and get on the ice.” Due to a nagging shoulder injury, though, Lockwood wasn’t on the ice quite as much as he would have liked last season. As a freshman, the forward quickly made a name for himself, finishing with 20 points on eight goals and 12 assists — good for second on the team in all three categories. But the injury kept Lockwood out of five games, and restricted him at times when he did play. During the offseason, Lockwood had surgery on his shoulder, undergoing a multi-stage rehabilitation process he described as “pretty tedious.” “After you get the surgery, a lot of it is getting your motion back, so that’s the first month,” Lockwood said. “Then getting some strength into the muscle is the next couple of months, and then after that it’s strengthening it past what it was so you can prevent it from happening again.” But Lockwood did see a silver lining in being limited, and at times, sidelined last year. The injury helped him understand the need to continue adding facets to his game and fine-tuning his technical skills alongside his raw athletic attributes. “I like to play a very physical

style,” Lockwood said. “(I) kind of have to shy away from that a little bit more this season. It’s not going to change the way I play in the corners or the way I have confidence going into the dirty areas, but I think the game’s changed a lot, where it’s a lot of speed and skill. So that’s something I want to focus on a little more this year. “The game’s always changing, and that’s the side of the game that everyone’s adapting to right now, so I’m going to try to use my strength, my speed and skill to my advantage.” And Lockwood has plenty to use to his advantage. He’s one of the Wolverines’ fastest skaters — Pearson describes him as “explosive” and “dynamic.” Pearson’s new offensive system also plays into Lockwood’s biggest strengths by emphasizing quick movement. Michigan caught a glimpse of that Saturday against Western Ontario. Halfway through the second period, Lockwood tore after the puck on a breakaway and was brought down near the Mustangs’ goal. On the ensuing penalty shot, Lockwood smoothly sped towards goal, deked right and calmly deposited the puck into the net for a 4-0 Wolverine lead. Considering his substantial physical gifts, a more refined — not to mention fully healthy — Lockwood has the potential to be a dominant offensive force for Michigan this season. But even if that were not the case, his passion and work ethic have already won Pearson’s endearment. “A lot of guys think they’re players or want to be a player,” Pearson said. “But you have the guys that really, really, really want to be players, and there’s a difference. “He’s full out. There’s no halfway or taking drills off, he’s full out all the time. He’s just a hockey player.”

Amid scathing NCAA scandal, Michigan falls to Iowa on the road Beilein remains unblemished VOLLEYBALL

JACOB KOPNICK For the Daily

MAX MARCOVITCH Daily Sports Editor

Michigan men’s basketball coach John Beilein can afford a lax answer when discussing the recent FBI investigations into violations at college basketball programs. He’s earned that luxury. “I take a couple showers a day,” Beilein said. “That keeps me clean.” Some coaches around the country, it appears, need to shower more often. Last week, the FBI released findings of mass corruption within college basketball, stemming from payment of recruits and the untidy relationships between shoe companies and recruiting. The FBI arrested four assistant coaches last Tuesday. Louisville, currently the most high-profile school implicated, has effectively fired its legendary coach Rick Pitino and has placed its athletic director, Tom Jurich, on a leave of absence. Lousiville is the first major victim. It doesn’t seem likely to be the last. While coaches around the country plan calculated responses with public relations staff to fend off reporters’ inquiries, Beilein doesn’t have to sweat. After all, he was recently voted the “cleanest coach in college basketball” in a poll of 100 of his coaching peers. Wednesday, when speaking to reporters, a jovial Beilein didn’t tense up, nor recite some painfullyrehearsed plea of innocence. Instead he came to the defense of the integrity of college basketball. “How isolated is it? I do not think it’s rampant among NCAA,” Beilein said. “I don’t think the sky is falling in college basketball. I think there’s certainly some rogue coaches. How many? Maybe I’ll be proven wrong, but I don’t think there’s too much of that going out there. “There’s a lot of really, really clean coaches out there.” While “the dark underbelly of

SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily

Michigan coach John Beilein vouches for the integrity of college basketball.

college basketball,” as US Attorney Joon H. Kim described, slowly comes to the fore, Beilein remains perched above the fray. He admits to having lost recruits over his staff’s overt “tone of compliance,” but notes that those aren’t the types of players he would want at Michigan anyway. “People — whether its parents or prospects — if they are looking for that, they’re not talking with me or we’re off their list immediately,” Beilein said. “Because they know it’s not happening here, so we don’t even have to deal with it. It might not get us some recruits. Well, we don’t want those recruits that come for any other reason than what Michigan is all about.” In 2009, Beilein was named head of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Ethics Coalition. He takes compliance seriously and doesn’t think he’s alone in doing so. “I’m not trying to put ourselves

on some pedestal,” Beilein said. “Most programs are doing it this way. I believe that deep in my heart, most of us are doing it.” Though he maintained a joking tone at times, Beilein was unmistakeably stern in regard to his coaching peers who do violate the rules. “If people are breaking the law, if people are committing felony crimes in our business,” Beilein said, “then get them the heck out of our business.” “College basketball is my life, and it should be clean.” Beilein went on to commend his team’s defensive grit, lament the hefty travel schedule, detail the trials and tribulations of the incoming freshmen class, discuss fifth-year transfer guard Jaaron Simmons’ desire to make the NCAA tournament and more. He didn’t dwell on the black cloud looming above the college basketball world. He didn’t have to.

Despite the efforts of junior outside hitter Carly Skojdt — who posted a season-high 22 kills — the No. 22 Michigan volleyball team fell to Iowa on Wednesday night in a four-set battle. Skojdt put the team on her back, as the next highest scorer for the Wolverines totaled just nine kills. Skojdt pulled together the 22 kills on a total of 59 attempts, solidifying her role as Michigan’s offensive workhorse. “We need more of it,” said coach Mark Rosen. “We’re obviously really excited about how she’s playing — she’s playing really hard. But we have other players who can step up and be in the mix with her.” Coming off a strong weekend, in which it beat Ohio State and Maryland at home, Michigan went into the match looking to continue its hot streak. The Wolverines started strong, decisively winning the first set of the match, 25-21. Everything was clicking early as Michigan maintained a .326 hitting percentage, its highest of any set

during the match. The Wolverines also racked up 19 kills during the set, setting the tone early. “I think we started out really well,” Rosen said. “The first half we played really steady. Defensively, we did a good job, we executed the gameplan, and the first set we started well. But then we let our execution go down.” The explosive Michigan offense of the first set seemingly vanished. After that, its hitting percentage dwindled to .256 in the second set before dipping to a shocking .079 in the third set. The Wolverines still managed to put together a respectable second set, only dropping it, 25-22. Michigan even started the set strong, establishing a 16-11 lead, but a composed and balanced Hawkeye team mounted a steady comeback to claim the set. The Wolverines then seemingly hit the panic button as Iowa

waltzed through the third set to a decisive 25-15 win. Michigan never led as the Hawkeye offense found its groove. With the end of the match inching closer, Michigan made a last-minute rally in the fourth set to try and salvage the night but eventually fell short, dropping the last set, 25-21. “(The team) played really, really well, but I think we didn’t do a good enough job defensively,” Rosen said. The Wolverines will look to bolster their defensive unit before facing a talented Minnesota team on Saturday. Rosen will look to leaders such as Skojdt, senior middle blocker Claire KiefferWright, senior outside hitter Adeja Lambert to lead the team to a bounce-back performance. “Those guys usually do a great job,” Rosen said. “Those are the players we look to, and we’ll look to them next weekend.”

“I think we didn’t do a good enough job defensively.”

Sports

8A — Thursday, October 5, 2017

Dueling Columns: 2017 The Michigan Daily and The State News engage in a war of words before their annual touch football game

R

especting our opponents in this “touch” football game has become very difficult. Every year, The Michigan Daily plays The State News. And every year, your staff continues to degrade itself. Maybe I should have expected that, but to be honest, as a New York KEVIN native, the SANTO MichiganMichigan State rivalry was entirely foreign to me four years ago. With all due respect to Cortland and Ithaca’s annual matchup, my home state isn’t exactly the epicenter of college football. It took much convincing on my brothers’ part for me to come to Michigan at all. The only memory I had of the Wolverines’ football program was their loss to Appalachian State in 2007. It didn’t take long for me to catch up on the history, but the first real taste I had of the in-state rivalry didn’t happen within the confines of a football stadium. I worked in a deli the summer before I came to Ann Arbor for the first time. And on my last day of work, I was ringing up my final customer. I turned to hand a woman her bags, expecting the interaction to be no different than the hundreds like it that I’d experienced that summer. I was wrong. As it turned out, she was a Michigan State alum. I handed her the bag, she glanced at the block ‘M’ hat I was wearing and looked me in the eyes. “Don’t start thinking you’re better than everyone else,” she said, “just because you go to Michigan.” I didn’t then. I don’t now. At that point, I never planned on contributing to my university’s student publication. But after joining the Daily during my first year here, I have come to realize the rivalry between our newspapers is what I really care about. As a freshman, I watched one of your players get ejected for tackling one of our writers to the ground and punching him in the head.

N

ote: Most of you are likely confused because I am not a football reporter, a sports editor or a man. This column over the years somehow became dominated by one type of person, so welcome to my readers. I’m reminded of “Mad Men” Season 5, Episode 8. Michael Ginsberg approaches Don Draper livid about a call Draper made during a pitch meeting. Ginsberg attacks Draper for his choices, his role and more RACHEL importantly, FRADETTE his character. He finishes his frustrated exaggeration with one final jab and says, “I feel bad for you.” In a calm, almost soothing voice, without looking Ginsberg in the eye, Draper says, “I don’t think about you at all.” The State News, only in this sense, is Draper. The Michigan Daily is Ginsberg. That is the best way to explain how The State News feels about the Michigan Daily. We don’t think about you. We don’t care what you do. But, the last year of name-calling and “fake news” made me decide that we can no longer afford to ignore you. News organizations need each other for both competition and camaraderie. We are under attack in some respects. By attacking each other we not only show our immaturity, but we don’t get anywhere. We’re tearing each other down and people are already trying to do that enough. My mom always says you should say what you believe, but it is all a lie if you don’t walk the walk. So, I donated $5 to the Michigan Daily. No, seriously. I believe in what all of you do, but I do think you can do it a lot better.

Later in the same game, I watched members of your staff — and your adviser, for that matter — laugh at my friend after he tore his ACL. A year later, having not spent a minute actually playing in the game, your editor-in-chief had some choice words for me at the 50-yard line. Sorry to disappoint, but the one-sided dialogue isn’t fit to print here. Children might be reading. And last year, your team still found comic relief in an injury, making a backhanded comment to one of our staffers about his “daddy’s health care” as he struggled to walk off the field. But that game — the Daily’s 12th consecutive win — did have one redeeming moment. After we won on your field, one of your football beat writers came to our sideline and thanked us for making the trip to East Lansing. I appreciated the rare case of sportsmanship — almost as much as I appreciated the column he needed to write two days later, clarifying the headline printed on The State News’ front page following Michigan’s 32-23 win over Michigan State. That headline read, “Defeated with Dignity – MSU lost the Paul Bunyan trophy but prevented a blowout against U-M.” That’s quite the spin, so much that I had to go back and make sure Michigan State still had that journalism school State Newsers always talk about. In the second and third paragraphs of his column, he wrote: “Upon filing the story, I left the spot for the headline blank, as I usually have no say in the process of titling an article. I left the newsroom after the story was complete, long before it ever went to print. “By the time I woke on Monday, I saw the headline and was disgusted.” He went on to write critically about Michigan State’s effort and performance to that point in the 2016 season, and he wrote it well. Somehow, though, somebody in your newsroom thought — or, it seems, desperately hoped — that headline was indicative of the game. But here’s the thing: that debacle

wouldn’t happen at the Daily. Not only do our writers create their own headlines, but we have a thorough editing process to ensure we aren’t hopelessly biased. Apparently that’s not the case in East Lansing. Our writers are given the opportunity to chase a passion and make this newspaper what it has been for 127 years, whether that’s by covering a soccer team, a volleyball team or, eventually, a football team. When it comes to our football game, some may take exception to the size of our staff — claiming that it has contributed to our success over the last 12 years. But it’s for that same reason that we don’t need a journalism school. Our staff is given the chance to learn through the experience of publishing a daily newspaper. That requires individuals to work collaboratively until 1 a.m. every night. Sitting in a college lecture hall, or publishing a print edition just twice a week, can’t replicate that. At the end of the day, the broader rivalry can be boiled down to my interaction in that deli. Students at Michigan make assumptions about their counterparts in East Lansing. Students at Michigan State make assumptions about their counterparts in Ann Arbor. I’m not here to make assumptions. I haven’t grown to know anyone at Michigan State well enough to make any sweeping declarations about your student body. What I have grown to know pretty well, though, is The State News. And I think I’ve gathered enough knowledge to say this: I don’t think I’m better than you. But I know my newspaper — on a football field and in every journalistic sense — is. We’ve defeated you 12 years in a row. We’re going to defeat you again Friday night. And the saddest part is, if past games are any indicator, you won’t be able to claim dignity this time, either.

We serve our community. We work hard. We do all of this quietly, no fuss. Despite what all of you may think about us, you can learn from our newsroom. As an investor, here are some of my thoughts. The digital age is here and your newsroom needs to adapt better. I admire the diligent connection to a print product. I read two print newspapers a day. However, your content needs to make better shifts to online. Infographics and interactives are a perfect example of where you can succeed. Instead, I see screenshotted infographics made for print. Event coverage — you do plenty of it. One more story on a panel and I will scream. Trends and issues stories are in short supply. One of my favorite stories from your newsroom was reported by your editor-in-chief and it delved into mental health issues on your campus. The in-depth reporting made an impression, and more importantly it shined a light on a real issue. Your sports section is, as usual, the part of your newsroom which receives the most attention. Don’t ignore that. Hold athletics accountable. In some ways you do, but both of our newsrooms need to shift our focus to that conclusion. The State News is not perfect, but I’ll tell you a secret: neither is the Michigan Daily. We are learning our craft. Regardless, collegiate journalism is essential to our audiences. People like to pit us against each other. Despite what all of you might think, I don’t hate you. In most ways, I root for you. I would hope all of you could get over yourselves enough to root for us, too. We’re on the same team, just on opposite sides of the field. In my mind, the rivalry is a technicality. I suppose I didn’t really write a dueling column, which might upset some, but I’m fine with that. I spoke

my truth. That’s all I want to do. My last piece of advice: If you want to stand on someone’s shoulders and call yourselves tall that’s fine, but you’re better than it. We both need to be better than that. A few years ago, during my first football game, I realized something. After your players scored the final touchdown and all of you rushed the field, I was upset for a split second and then it hit me — like that elbow which broke one of our player’s teeth, still waiting on that apology, but I digress — this game means so much more to all of you than it does to all of us. I looked back at my comrades who were exiting the field. All of them appeared disappointed, but then like a switch they started to smile and congratulate each other. After that, you left my mind for good. You can have your football games and ivory towers because even when you win, you lose. There are always people like you, but nobody roots for you. No one ever will until you understand what is so much more important — your newsroom – even if the “impossible” happens and you lose on Friday. I have a group of scrappy kids who work hard for me every day. They make me better version of myself. You take your track record, your numbers and your shiny fields, I’ll still take my underdogs any news day. I like my pick. I hope you like yours. Stay vigilant, my rivals.

Santo is a co-Managing Sports Editor and football beat writer at The Michigan Daily. He can be reached at kmsanto@umich.edu and on Twitter @Kevin_M_Santo.

Fradette is the editor-in-chief of The State News. She can be reached at rachel.fradette@statenews.com.

Editor’s note: This column is subject to the editing team and style guide of The State News. The Daily has published it as presented.

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com