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“JUSTICE REQUIRES ACTION ...AND A VOICE AND THAT IS WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN THIS COURT.” -Judge Rosemarie Aquilina
Nassar gets 40 to 175 years in prison on criminal charges 156 women and girls stand before court as survivors of sexual assault, tears and hugs as sentence handed down in Lansing SOPHIE SHERRY, RIYAH BASHA & ANDREW HIYAMA
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Former USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University doctor Larry Nassar was sentenced to serve 40 years to 175 years in state prison Wednesday afternoon at the conclusion of a week-long trial. More than 150 survivors of sexual assault delivered statements over the course of the week, testifying to the molestation and abuse they suffered at the hands of Nassar under the guise of medical
treatment over the past 30 years. Upon Judge Rosemarie Aquilina’s verdict, survivors shed tears in the audience. Aquilina was defiant. “You played on everyone’s vulnerabilities,” she said. “I am not vulnerable.” Nassar will serve his state sentence after his 60-year federal sentence on charges of child pornography handed down in December, Nassar, 54, for a minimum total of 100 years. Nassar also faces a sentence next week in Eaton County on three charges of criminal sexual assault due to treatments he administered at the Twistars gymnastics clinic in Dimondale, Michigan.
Nassar, a University of Michigan alum, pled guilty to the criminal charges of firstdegree sexual conduct last November — the maximum sentence on his plea deal was 40 years. Testifying in Ingham County Circuit Court this week, survivors revealed more than three decades of sexual abuse, some of them only six years old when they began seeing Nassar. Rachael Denhollander was the first survivor to go public, contacting a reporter from IndyStar after the publication of their investigation into the abuse in US Gymnastics in September 2016. Her allegations began a new wave of reports and lawsuits. Denhollander delivered the final victim
impact statement Wednesday to tears and applause from the survivors and their families assembled in the courtroom. “How much is a little girl worth? How much is a young woman worth?” she asked Nassar and the court. “Every woman who stood up here, truly loved you as an innocent child. Really truly loved you. And it did not satisfy you,” Denhollander said. “And that’s a joy you’ve cut yourself off from ever experiencing. And I pity you for it.” “And this is what it looks like when people in authority choose not to listen, put friendships over the truth, and refuse to hold enablers accountable,” she continued.
“(We) are fighting because no one else would do it.” Aquilina showered the hundreds of survivors who stood before the court with affirmation. She called Denhollander “the bravest person I’ve ever had in my courtroom.” Before delivering her sentence, Aquilina addressed the survivors one last time, reminding them they are no longer victims, calling on them and anyone watching to continue to fight for change. “Speak out like these survivors,” she said. “Become part of the army.” Following public pressure placed on the NCAA for a more comprehensive response to this
abuse, members of the USA Gymnastics Board of Directors tendered their resignations Sunday, including Chairman Paul Parilla, Vice Chairman Jay Binder and Treasurer Bitsy Kelley. Tuesday evening, MSU’s athletic department received notice of an investigation opened by the NCAA into the assaults “Nassar perpetrated against girls and young women, including some studentathletes at Michigan State.” MSU trustee Joel Ferguson shrugged at the idea of the NCAA investigating MSU in a Lansing radio interview Tuesday afternoon. Ferguson also said the trustees had See NASSAR, Page 2
MSU president resigns after months of scrutiny & scandal Trustees accept official announcement Wednesday night after calls from state legislators, survivors and student body RIYAH BASHA
Managing News Editor
Michigan State University President Lou Anna Simon has tendered her official resignation, according to a statement released on the school’s website Wednesday night. MSU Board of Trustees President Brian Breslin wrote the trustees approved Simon’s resignation. Simon has served as president for 13 years, and has worked at MSU for the last 30. “To the survivors, I can
never say enough that I am so sorry that a trusted, renowned physician was really such an evil, evil person who inf licted such harm under the guise of medical treatment,” Simon’s statement reads. Simon says the scandal has been “politicized,” and it is “understandable” she is the focus of public anger and blame. A source told the Detroit Free Press potential interim presidents in the trustees’ succession plan include former Michigan Govs. Jennifer Granholm, James Blanchard and John Engler. Calls for Simon to resign
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peaked after Nassar’s sentence — 40 to 175 years on firstdegree sexual misconduct — was handed down Wednesday afternoon. Simon was first informed of survivors’ reports and Title IX investigations into Nassar in 2014. “I told people to play it straight up, and I did not receive a copy of the report,” she saidafter an appearance at Nassar’s hearing. “That’s the truth.” Nassar molested and sexually abused hundreds of women and girls while on medical staff, both with MSU’s women’s gymnastics team and
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USA Gymnastics. 156 survivors delivered statements at Nassar’s week-long sentencing hearing in Ingham County Circuit Court, detailing three decades of abuse under the guise of medical treatment. Multiple survivors called for more accountability at MSU, and accused Simon, public officials and coaching staff of glossing over their reports. Rachel Denhollander, the first survivor to go public with accusations against Nassar in 2016, blasted MSU’s handling of the case in the final victim impact statement delivered Wednesday.
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“(MSU) did not listen in 1997 or 1998 or 1999 or 2000 or 2004 or 2014,” she said. “Victims were silenced, intimidated, told they were receiving medical treatment, and at times sent back to be further abused. This is what happens when a person puts their selfish desires over the people around them. This is what it looks like when institutions create a culture when a predator can behave unabated.” Simon made brief appearances during the trial, but said repeatedly she did not want to take away from the survivors by attending the trial.
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“Lou Anna Simon, why are you not here?” survivor Alexis Alvarado asked in court Friday. “I do not want to hear another bullshit excuse from you.” Within hours of Judge Rosemarie Aquilina’s verdict, the Michigan State House of Representatives passed a resolution asking MSU to resign Simon from her position. “We have lost confidence in the ability of President Lou Anna K. Simon to lead a transparent investigation, to implement changes that will ensure it never happens again, to protect students, and to See MSU, Page 3
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NASSAR From Page 1 “more to worry about” than the Nassar case. “This is not Penn State,” he said, referring to the school’s sex abuse controversy with ex-football coach Jerry Sandusky several years ago. “They were dealing with their football program. ... They’re smart enough to know they’re not competent to walk in here on this.” MSU’s athletic director Sudoku Syndication a released statement Wednesday annoucing his
department will cooperate with the investigation. Both MSU — where Nassar worked as a gymnastics team coach and medical school faculty member for more than 20 years — and USA Gymnastics came under fire for enabling Nassar’s crimes. Though Nassar remained employed at MSU until early 2017, a Detroit News investigation released last week found more than a dozen MSU officials had been made aware of survivors’ reports in the last five years. Complaints were made as early as 1997, when then-high school student Larissa Boyce
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reported Nassar’s assault to throughout the duration of the Kathie Klages, the women’s case and sentencing hearing. gymnastics coach at MSU. In In court Friday, Boyce said an interview with the Detroit she asked Simon to be there to News, Boyce told the Detroit hear her impact statement, but News Klages told her she must was told by Simon she couldn’t have been misunderstanding fit it into her schedule. what happened, and Following an emergency discouraged her from filing an meeting on Friday, MSU’s official report. Delivering one of the final victim impact statements before the sentencing on Wednesday, Kaylee Lorincz directly implored Nassar to tell the court who knew of his abuse, mentioning MSU president Lou Anna Simon. In http://sudokusyndication.com/sudoku/generator/print/ 2014, Simon was informed of a Title IX complaint and police report filed against Nassar, though she claimed it was reported to her as an “unnamed physician.” Board of Trustees announced “I was informed that their continued support for a sports medicine doctor Simon, saying they would not was under investigation,” act to remove her as president. she said outside the They also asked the state courtroom following Attorney General’s office to victims’ impact statements investigate MSU to determine on January 17. “I told if any officials played a role people to play it straight in suppressing complaints up, and I did not receive a against Nassar. copy of the report. That’s Trustee Mitch Lyons was the truth.” the only one to call for Simon’s Lorincz asked Nassar resignation. In a statement use his time to speak released to MLive, Lyons before sentencing to said he didn’t believe Simon provide the survivors with had knowingly engaged in answers. any wrongdoing, but needed “Did Lou Anna Simon to resign in order for the know? And lastly, did John community to heal. Geddert know you were “While President Simon stealing the innocence of has done many great things little girls in the backroom during her time at MSU, this of his gym?” atrocity is simply too much to In addition to the overcome and our institutional university’s mishandling accountability has been of the reports of compromised,” he said. “I have abuse, survivors have empathy for the position she is also criticized the in but her legacy does not take administration’s behavior precedence in this situation.”
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This atrocity is simply too much to overcome and our institutional accountability has been compromised
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Misconduct reports up 40 percent 2017 sexual misconduct findings could indicate increase in reporting rates RILEY LANGEFIELD Daily Staff Reporter
The University of Michigan’s Office for Institutional Equity released its annual reportconcerning prohibited student conduct on Wednesday. The report details outcomes of all investigations carried out by the OIE under the direction of Pamela Heatlie, the University’s Title IX coordinator and senior director of OIE. “U-M encourages individuals to report misconduct to the University and, if the behavior is criminal in nature, to law enforcement,” Heatlie said in a University press release. “We are deeply invested in providing resources and support as well as addressing these issues through a fair and effective process.” The 2017 investigation found a 40 percent increase from 2016 in the number of misconduct reports filed. The OIE received 218 reports of prohibited conduct between July 2016 and June 2017, and 157 reports the previous year. The OIE conducted 28 investigations in this period, up from 18 in the 2015-2016 report. The OIE concluded after the 28 investigations that eight policy
violations had occurred over the past year: Five sexual assaults, two incidents of stalking and a violation of interim measures. The report stated the OIE carried out disciplinary action for these violations, including educational measures, employment restriction, suspension and expulsion. The increase in reports could be partially due to the broadening of the University policy’s definition of misconduct. As of last year, prohibited conduct now includes intimate partner violence, gender-based harassment and violation of interim measures. These collectively counted for 15 percent of the reported incidents last year, or about 30 reports. This indicates that reports still surpassed the previous year’s number, despite the newly added categories. Heatlie, however, believes this change is due to increased awareness of gender-based discrimination and misconduct rather than a rise in the actual conduct on campus. “We believe that this increase is the result of enhanced awareness on campus of these issues and how to report concerns, as well as the addition
of new types of allegations now covered under the policy that were previously addressed under different university policies,” Heatlie said in the release. University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald said though there is no way to determine a definitive cause for the increase in reports, an increase isn’t inherently negative — an increase can signify heightened support for survivors and more awareness of the University’s system for investigating assault. “Reports go up each year, but that is possibly a good sign,” Fitzgerald said in an interview with The Daily. After the policy revision in July 2016, the Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Center began a campus-wide campaign called “Start by Believing.” It aimed to increase awareness of sexual misconduct as well as support and reporting resources. It is likely that both factors influenced the increase in reporting over the following year. Former SAPAC Volunteer Coordinator Laura Meyer was a part of the campaign. She expressed her confidence in the program and its work in an April 2016 interview about their
efforts. “There is a generally greater awareness of SAPAC and its services on campus when we are out in the community, and the volunteer coordinators have received even more outreach from community members and organizations who are eager to partner with SAPAC,” Meyer said. Meyer also encouraged students to take advantage of the resources available through SAPAC and other campus organizations, specifically commending the Peer Education and Bystander Intervention and Community Engagement programs, which work to engage and educate students on sexual assault awareness and prevention. She also named Know Your IX, an education and advocacy group focused on Title IX, as an excellent source for information. “Students should be ready to engage their communities in conversations about sexual assault and sexual violence by believing and supporting survivors, centering the voices of survivors, and respecting the agency and choices of survivors,” Meyer said.
Project boosts HIV testing access Project Moxie seeks to dismantle barriers to care for transgender individuals MOLLY NORRIS Daily Staff Reporter
Project Moxie, a research project at the University of Michigan, focuses on increasing transgender youth access to HIV testing kits. The project is in its pilot stage, and working on recruiting participants. Rob Stephenson, the project director and a vice chair for research in the Department of Health Behavior and Biological Sciences, said he hopes Project Moxie will help break down social and economic barriers that transgender individuals face when receiving health care. After participants fill out a series of surveys, HIV testing kits are sent to their homes in an effort to help them avoid the stigma often associated with either publicly purchasing these kits or going into a clinic to get tested. Participants then schedule a time to have a video chat session with one of Project Moxie’s trained counselors, where they can test themselves in front of the counselor and get help building a prevention plan.
MSU From Page 1 lead Michigan State University forward,” the House resolution, supported by House Speaker Tom Leonard, reads. Statements from MSU’s trustees have been conf licting in the last week. Though the board publicly renewed their
If the test is positive, they will receive help on how to get care and live with HIV. “Throughout my work, I’ve noticed that young people in particular face a whole range of barriers to accessing health benefits, and one of the things I’m passionate about is understanding how stigma and discrimination influences health,” Stephenson said. “If you just watch the news, you can see the incredible amounts of stigma experienced by transgender youth, and I thought this is a way to provide an intervention in their own home that tackles some of those barriers.” Though Stephenson couldn’t say for sure whether participants in the study would have found alternate testing without Project Moxie, he did say participants expressed appreciation for the at-home testing kits. “We send them an HIV testing kit which they could find themselves at CVS or Walgreens, so I always ask, ‘Why didn’t you just do this
trust in Simon’s leadership Friday afternoon, trustees Dianne Byrum and Michel Lyons called for Simon’s resignation Wednesday. “I support the resignation of President Simon, effective immediately, and I support the investigation by the Attorney General that will provide a full accounting of what happened and take an important step toward restoring trust, which
yourself?’” Stephenson said. “And they say, ‘Well, we were scared, we don’t want to test on our own without anyone to talk to.’ Other common issues I hear are, ‘I don’t know where to go,’ or ‘I live in a rural area and there is nowhere to go,’ or ‘I don’t want to have to discuss my behavior or my identity with somebody.’” So far, the study has reached 100 youth participants across the country. In order to recruit for the study, Project Moxie advertises on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Craigslist. Project Director Erin Riley said that of these various platforms, Instagram and Craigslist are the most effective. She said she was surprised to find Craigslist to be so effective. “Craigslist is a bit archaic and it can be a little shady, so we didn’t add Craigslist until maybe three months ago when we were having some issues with recruitment,” Riley said. “But since we began putting up ads on there every day, we’ve gotten quite a few participants.” LSA senior Michael Miller-
has understandably been shaken,” Byrum wrote in her statement. Vice Chair of the board of trustees Joel Ferguson affirmed his faith in Simon on a Lansing radio show WVFN, citing her strong fundraisers skills. “I mean, when you go to the basketball game, you walk into the new Breslin [Center], and the person who hustled and got all those major donors to give
Perusse began working with Project Moxie in September. He discussed the importance of the study for its target population. “I think that it’s really important, just the impact of having studies out there,” Miller-Perusse said. “We know that when we created this study that there was no published research examining the need for HIV testing for transgender men, and we’re aiming for half of our cohort to be trans men and half to be trans women. So, even just having this research out there is great, regardless of the result.” Stephenson said if the project is successful, he would love to try and expand it. “Right now it’s only a pilot study,” Stephenson said. “If it’s proven feasible, I’d love to scale it up. We’re focusing on transgender youth now, there’s no reason we can’t expand this to other vulnerable groups as well. People who, for social, cultural or economic reasons, don’t have access to services; we can take the services to these people.”
money was Lou Anna Simon,” Ferguson said in the interview. In the interview Ferguson was quick to discredit the possibility of the NCAA getting involved. “To do what?” he said. “This is not Penn State. They were dealing with their football program. They’re smart enough to know they’re not competent to walk in here on this.” The NCAA opened an
MESA office selects new, permanent assoc. lead
Krishna Han will serve as assistant director, must answer to Latino groups AMARA SHAIKH Daily Staff Reporter
Tuesday afternoon, the University of Michigan’s Office of Multi-Ethnic Student Affairs announced Krishna Han will serve as its new associate director. Han’s position will begin on Jan. 29 and is currently being held by interim MESA Director Lihn Nguyen. MESA Director Nadia Bazzy welcomed Han in an email to Student Life affiliates, and described Han’s past experiences working with multicultural organizations such as Black Student Union, Muslim Students’ Association, World Student Association and more. Han has also worked as the assistant director for Diversity Education and Cultural Programs at Bowling Green State University for more than five years. Bazzy’s email also described Han’s passion for ensuring that students from all backgrounds can access safe environments and equal opportunity. “Krishna is passionate about transforming student experiences to build inclusive spaces and equitable opportunities for all and brings nearly a decade of experience working with minority groups in student life and university administration both nationally and internationally,” Bazzy wrote. “He describes himself as a professionally trained Social Environmentalist who fell in love with student affairs.” However, Han’s appointment was not without controversy. The hiring process, which began in December, faced a boycott from several student organizations, such as La Casa and the Muslim Students’ Association, after individuals from the Latino community criticized MESA for the lack of Latino representation in the search for the new associate director. An earlier statement from the
investigation into Michigan State’s handling of the Nassar investigation later that day. Sens. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., and Gary Peters, D-Mich., released statements echoing calls for Simon’s resignation Wednesday as well. “It has become clear that the leadership at Michigan State University has failed to adequately prevent, address or respond to the victimization
Latinx Alliance for Community Action, Support, and Advocacy pointed out the absence of any Latino candidates from consideration. “Members of the La Casa board were invited to participate in student sessions for the hiring of candidates for the Associate Director position. None of the candidates are Latinx individuals and across all of their cover letters and resumes, Latinx students were only mentioned by one candidate in a singular past experience,” the statement reads. Yezeñia Sandoval, external director for La Casa, explained in an email to The Michigan Daily that while the organization fostered no resentment toward Han, they were disappointed with the inattention given to Latino input. “La Casa is deeply disappointed to see MESA’s disregard for the Latinx voice in this hiring,” Sandoval wrote. “Without the Latinx voice at the table, along with other important voices from minority communities, MESA should have reconsidered its hiring practices, including its pool of applicants and job posting locations. This is not a personal attack on the person hired or their qualifications, but it creates a pattern of untouched potential in Latinx hiring pools.” Sandoval furthered this sentiment by discussing how excluding members from the Latino community contradicts the efforts of the University to increase diversity. Enrollment reports released last semester showed Latino students make up about 6 percent of the student body. “The diversity the school seeks to achieve must go beyond proclamations of support.” Sandoval wrote.
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of young women and girls on its campus, and the crisis at MSU continues despite today’s verdict,” Peters’ statement reads. “Michigan State University has a long way to go in rebuilding trust with its students, athletes, faculty, alumni and the entire state of Michigan. To do so, it must have new leadership.”
Opinion
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ERIK NESLER | COLUMN
New tax bill tests trickle-down economics
T
he recent pa ssing of t he Ta x Cut s a nd Jobs Act ha s been procla imed a s one of President Dona ld Tr ump’s g reatest ach ievement s since entering the White House last year. The bill is a major legislative win for fiscal conservatives who advocate for low taxes and minimal government spending. Americans across the board will see a reduction in the taxes that come out of their reg ular paychecks, but the wealthiest citizens will reap the greatest benefits from the bill. Besides individual income tax cuts, the bill consequentially impacted the private sector with its substantial reduction in the corporate income tax rate, from 35 percent to 21 percent. The tax cuts were touted by Republicans as the most effective way to spur economic growth in the United States. The private sector, along with wealthy Americans, are expected to invest their tax breaks, thus propelling the economy forward. Tax investments at the top then trickle down to affect the broader economy. This idea that the private sector and the wealthy have the power and scale to impact the entire economy has been touted for decades by fiscal conservatives. Former President Ronald Reagan is one of the most famous proponents of the ideolog y, even though the tax cuts implemented under his administration were regarded as relatively unsuccessful at promoting economic growth. Fiscal conservatives want to believe that corporations, with the increased cash from the tax break, will increase wages, boost employment and invest more in the U.S. economy. The increase in wages and employment should put more money in the pockets of American consumers, making everybody better off through heightened consumption. The slashing of the corporate income tax rate additionally served to incentivize businesses
to continue operating domestically. Companies based in the U.S. have been relocating left and right to European countries in order to benefit from their low corporate income tax rates. Ireland, for example, boasts a 12.5 percent basic corporate tax rate, compared to 21 percent in the United States. However, relocation of jobs abroad comes at the expense of American jobs and the American economy. Fiscal conservatives may feel certain that the expected advantages from these tax cuts will be realized in due time, but I wonder if they
I wonder whether or not everyone in the American economy, not just the wealthy, stand to be better off because of it. will truly come to fruition. Many, including myself, fear that companies will simply distribute the increased cash to shareholders through healthy dividends. Will firms realize their potential and make the most of their tax break to help the broader economy? There have been a couple of hopeful signs since the bill’s passing that may suggest it could be effective. For example, Walmart recently announced that it plans to use its tax break to give bonuses to current employees and raise their minimum wage to $11 per hour. Considering Walmart employs nearly 1.5 million Americans, this seemingly slight increase could have ripple effects throughout the economy. AT&T and Comcast reported that they plan to give out bonuses as well. Finally, because of a provision in the bill that incentivizes
major corporations to bring offshore cash holdings back to the United States, Apple plans on bringing its overseas cash back to the U.S. in order to invest $30 billion over the next five years while creating 20,000 new jobs. Despite these hopeful signs, many still firmly believe that shareholders, who are usually wealthy already, will reap the greatest benefits from this bill. An analyst at Gordon Haskett Research Advisors wrote, “The $300 million of incremental labor expenses in 2018 only represents about 15 percent of the potential cash windfall” that Walmart is expected to enjoy from the break. Though the minimum wage hike is a good sign, the company could be doing more. As for Apple, analysts are already expecting a large increase in share buybacks and dividends, which are unlikely to trickle through the economy. Initially, I was in support of the bill as it represents everything that fiscal conservatives stand for. I’ve always thought of myself as socially liberal and fiscally conservative, a characterization that I know many of my peers share. But after researching the bill and reading the cynical views of its prospects, I’m not so sure anymore. I like the idea of making the U.S.’s corporate income tax rate more competitive among other industrialized nations, but I wonder whether or not everyone in the American economy, not just the wealthy, stand to be better off because of it. If companies simply distribute the value of their tax break to shareholders, the bill has no chance of fulfilling its proponents’ expectations. I believe this reduction of the corporate tax rate will be a good test as to whether or not trickle-down economics, a cornerstone of fiscal conservatism, will truly work for the American economy.
L
Why women march
ast year, I had a memorable encounter after I decided to participate in the 2017 Women’s March; someone asked me what I thought I was accomplishing by marching. While he was the only one who inquired, there’s undoubtedly many who either question the Women’s March or choose to ridicule it. Conservative commentator Tomi Lahren is one of these people, tweeting sarcastically about the 2018 Women’s March: “Nothing says ‘take me seriously’ like marching around in a pussy hat screaming profanities and demanding free things. #womensmarch.” To address Lahren’s tweet, the pink “pussy hats” that she’s referring to are not meant to be raunchy. These hats act as an undeniable display of femininity that reclaim the derogatory term “pussy” from those who use it both to objectif y women and perpetuate the gross stereotype that women are weak. While there has been some backlash about the hat excluding women of color and women without vaginas, the creators of the hats are aware of the controversy and have addressed it. On Pussyhat Project’s website, project member Jayna Zweiman wrote, “There are some people who have felt invisible because of this project… our intent was and always will be to support all women. We hear some of you saying that this symbol has made some women feel excluded.” She also added that she is open to suggestions about how to make the hat inclusive for all women. While the Women’s March isn’t perfect, Zweiman’s willingness to listen is an example of how marchers are open to ideas to improve so that the march truly represents every woman who wants a voice. In addition, it’s clear that Lahren, who is notoriously anti-transgender, isn’t referring to how it excludes some women when she mocks the Women’s March in her tweet. Rather, she finds the hats ridiculous because they represent female genitals, and mocking them is an easy (and cheap) way to imply that the marchers are vulgar. As for the “screaming profanities part,” unless Lahren happened to attend every single one of the 673
marches that took place worldwide Saturday, she clearly made a sweeping generalization about an entire group of people based on the actions of some of its members. At the march that I went to last year, only cheers and uplifting chants filled the air after powerful women like U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D–Mich., gave empowering, vibrant speeches urging everyone to fight for not just women’s rights, but human rights as well. There were no profanities being tossed around, nor did anyone shout insulting remarks about President Donald Trump or his administration. These things might have happened at other marches, but to reduce all Women’s Marches to the hate-filled chaos of a few is unfair. The women’s march is called the “Women’s March”
We are sick of men trying to take control of our narrative. We are tired of having our voices unheard. rather than the “Anti-Trump March” or “Anti-Republican March” for a reason — it is for women and other feminists to stand together and show solidarity with one another, so that they know that they are not alone in the fight for gender equality. It most certainly is not so that women can ask for “free things.” What we want is for people of any gender to be treated fairly and with respect, whether it be in the workplace or out on the streets. We want the wage gap to disappear. We want access to healthcare. Many of the signs that people display in the marches show that what they want is better treatment — an end to sexual harassment is not a frivolous “free thing ” that should be brushed aside. However, Lahren is only one of many who choose to ignore the reason people march, whether it’s for women’s rights, immigrants’ rights or for the Black Lives
Matter movement. Trump made the march about himself, tweeting: “Beautiful weather all over our great country, a perfect day for all Women to March. Get out there now to celebrate the historic milestones and unprecedented economic success and wealth creation that has taken place over the last 12 months. Lowest female unemployment in 18 years!” Trump’s tweet is an embodiment of why women march. We are sick of men trying to take control of our narrative. We are tired of having our voices unheard. Last year, I told the person who asked me why I wanted to march that I wanted to show solidarity with the women of my community. Now, one year after the presidential inaug uration, I want to expand on that answer. I did not march expecting the results of the election to change, or for Trump to somehow be impeached. I, along with everyone else who marched either this year or last, am aware that crowding the streets with signs and chants will not magically make Trump liberal. The people who march, both women and their supporters, do it to show solidarity and build morale. So while the women’s marches might not result in immediate government action, this movement is impactful because it reminds not only feminists, but the world, that women will continue to speak out about issues that directly affect them. People like Lahren criticize the Women’s March for showing immature behavior, but there’s nothing juvenile about a group of passionate feminists standing up for what they believe in. It’s what Martin Luther King Jr. and other supporters of the Civil Rights Movement did; it’s what Alice Paul and other women suffragists did to advocate for the right to vote; it’s what members of the LGBTQ community did to fight for their rights. Like those before us, we will continue to stand in solidarity and let our voices be heard so that the world knows we are not afraid to fight for what we believe in.
Krystal Hur can be reached at kryshur@umich.edu.
FRANNIE MILLER | CONTACT FRMILLER@UMICH.EDU
Erik Nesler can be reached at egnesler@umich.edu.
HANNAH MYERS | CONTACT HANNAH AT HSMYERS@UMICH.EDU
CONTRIBUTE TO THE CONVERSATION Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor and op-eds. Letters should be fewer than 300 words while op-eds should be 550 to 850 words. Send the writer’s full name and University affiliation to tothedaily@michigandaily.com.
Arts
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DAILY COMMUNITY CULTURE COLUMN
Thursday, January 25, 2018 — 5
COMMUNITY CULTURE PREVIEW
The Fading Role Singer-songwriter Stephen Kellogg of Elitism in on fear, family, upcoming Folk Fest Performance Art ARYA NAIDU
Senior Arts Editor
SAMMY SUSSMAN Daily Arts Writer
Opera, ballet and classical music are frequently shrouded in auras of elitism. During the Classical period, famous composers would be commissioned by rich aristocrats to compose for private events. Opera was quite expensive — the average person could barely afford to attend more than one opera performance every year. Ballet was also associated with wealth, royalty and elitism — it was initially an art form commissioned by the royal court to display the wealth and cultural magnificence of the court. Over time, however, these genres of performance art have become increasingly accessible to the masses. The divide between upper class performance art and popular performance art has faded. The elitist appeal of these previously upper class art forms has faded as they become increasingly accessible to all, and audiences are becoming defined not by class, but by interest and aesthetic taste. Though these art forms are beginning to react to this change in consumption, this reaction seems to not be occuring fast enough. Modern orchestras, dance companies and opera companies are facing diminishing financial returns and diminishing attendances. Many smaller companies are being forced to close due to lack of attendance, and many others are decreasing the number of performances that they give per year. Overall, it seems as though these traditional art forms face a bleak future. This is a narrative pervasive throughout the cultural lexicon — the slow and painful demise of these “higher” art forms. The loss of many of the smaller, local performance arts institutions seems to foreshadow the loss of all performance arts institutions. The solution to these diminishing performance attendances, however, may be the very step that many are hesitant to take. While many are tentative to embrace the loss of elitism, this may be the only means for these great art forms to support themselves. This loss of elitism need not be accepted begrudgingly — artists, genres and concepts of great artistic merit are already forming around this new intersection between the popular and the elitist. Orchestras are increasingly turning to popular music and movie music as a means of drawing previously uninterested audiences into the concert hall. The advent of the “film in concert,” for example, seems to be providing the financial returns that many orchestras need, though they go against the elitist connotation many orchestras would like to preserve. Modern dance, in addition, is similarly changing its programmatic habits as a means of maintaining their financial well-being. Performances of modern dance forms or with modern music are slowly entering even the most conservatively programmed company seasons. These performances draw the younger and more diverse audiences that these companies know they need to sustain themselves though they challenge the sophistication traditionally associated with formal dance companies. Opera has also seen changes geared towards attracting and engaging new audiences. Modern operas depicting contemporary events are quietly changing the subject matter of traditional opera. John Adam’s “Nixon in China” challenged a generation of composers to compose operas about current events and non-traditional stories from the Western canon. This has challenged the refined taste of many die-hard opera enthusiasts, though it has restored opera’s
relevance to the larger lexicon of mass culture. This loss of elitism is an inevitable result of the increasingly interconnected world that we live in and the gradual loss of boundaries between art forms and genres. Whether we like it or not, this process will only accelerate as time and technology progress. Not all of these changes, furthermore, are regrettable. The growth of niche art communities has helped develop increasingly specific ensembles and companies dedicated to the performance of specific artists, time periods and other definable artistic traits. Early music has become a staple of some communities, as has specific types of opera and ballet. Increasingly specific marketing, furthermore, has allowed audiences and performers to be more specific and selective in their programming and ticket consumption. It is not uncommon to see opera companies plan whole seasons around common themes or common historical eras. The loss of elitism in classical music, modern dance and opera seems to threaten the prevalence and dominance of specific time periods and creators within these art forms. Though these classical performance arts remain more resistant to change than most popular art forms are, all art forms must select specific creators and eras from the past to value more than others. The constant redefinition and reorganization of previous artistic periods based on current artistic trends is as inherent to performance art as is the creation of new work. The loss of elitism is most threatening in that it will upend the general aesthetic consensus that has developed around these art forms over generations. In this new, non-elitist understanding of classical music, for example, Romantic composers could be ignored while early Baroque and Medieval composers became popular. German and Italian opera could be shunned in favor of the early British operettas. Ballet could be rejected in favor of hip hop or other modern trends. The ever-changing Western canon of performance art will by defined by audience interest and not by academic expertise. This loss of centralized and standardized repertoires may be frightening, but it is also thrilling. It represents one of the biggest changes that these performance art forms have seen in hundreds of years — tremendous opportunities for audiences, performers and creators to pluralize and diversify these art forms. This past weekend, for example, Pulitzer-Prize-winning composer Julia Wolfe spoke to students in the School of Music, Theatre & Dance about her music and her creative process. Her recent composition “Anthracite Fields,” for example, explores the lives of early 20th-century miners. It is a composition geared towards both classical and popular audiences. Wolfe claims that this composition has garnered more mail than any other composition that she has ever written — drawing many previously uninterested music listeners into the realm of contemporary classical music. Artists such as Julia Wolfe are redefining the divisions between classical and popular art forms. Audiences are redefining the consumption patterns and programmatic tendencies of these classical and popular art forms. Performers, in turn, are learning to execute increasingly diverse swathes of performance arts. This is nothing if not a time of change; a time of radical redefinition and drastic reevaluation. It is a loss of elitism, and a time of empowerment for the masses. The average person has more say in performance art then was ever possible before, carrying a voice that matches or even triumphs over the elitism of traditional performance arts.
Stephen Kellogg has been one of my favorite artists for a long time. I first heard the Americana singer-songwriter almost seven years ago, and I’m still listening to what he — in all of his graceful, heartbreaking simplicity — has to say. In anticipation of his upcoming performance at The Ark’s Folk Festival this Friday, Kellogg spoke with The Daily on the heartbeats that keep him running, and the storytelling that has kept fans like me around for the long-haul. There’s a certain fearlessness required in writing the way Kellogg writes. In “The Open Heart (South),” he sings, “And I still shudder at the memory of my failures and mistakes / Hey so what, it opened up my heart.” He tells us exactly what he means, every time, and it’s not because he’s disingenuous, or he doesn’t care. It’s because he is, genuinely, unafraid to share himself with us. We get to hear his highest highs and his lowest lows because “Hey so what … (he’s) got an open heart.” What he does fear only makes him that much more human. “I fear what I think many of us fear,” he said. “That somehow, the bottom’s going to drop, and you’re not going to be able to keep making art and expressing yourself. You’re afraid you’re going to run out of money, or nobody’s going to care.” Allowing himself to ruminate in his own vulnerabilities, he progresses with a level of effortlessness that, as far as I can tell, only means one thing:
This is what he’s supposed to be doing. “The thing about me, and what keeps me going, and whatever drives me, is that I need to do it. It has never been an option,” he said. “When an opportunity comes up, I’m inclined to say yes: always. And I don’t think that that’s because I’m so driven. I think it’s just because — it’s just because I need to do this. I
41st Ann Arbor Folk Festival (Night 1) Friday, Jan. 26 @ 6:30 p.m. Hill Auditorium $42-$200 (single night); $75-$360 (two-night series)
need to write, I need to play, I need to go out into the world and share it, and connect with others, and say, ‘Here’s what I think about things’ and have a dialogue — as much as that’s possible when you’re up there with a microphone, performing a show.” Kellogg’s work is vocational for him, and, lucky for us, he’s good at it. Really good. He’s been in the game for a minute now, having led Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers for nine gorgeous years. The group went on hiatus in 2012, after playing over 1200 shows together. “It was a little bit like a divorce where the couple still
loves each other and, you know, hugs and cries and then moves out of the house,” he said. “As time has gone on, I think we’ve all done things that we might not have done had we been playing together, and you sort of look at it and go, ‘Well, this is exactly how it had to be,’ … and eventually, as happens when you go through some kind of breakup, it became not painful to talk about them, and it didn’t hurt.” So, he kept on. As Kellogg grew — learning to do so both with and without The Sixers — his lyrics evolved in tandem. “At some point, I decided that I wanted my songs to be vignettes of everything I need to say before I die,” he said. He places so much weight on every word he articulates, and that’s why his music hits as hard as it does. It’s sincere, and it’s him. When I asked what inspires him, he responded in the most Stephen Kellogg way that he could have: “This is going to sound hoitytoity, but Charles Dickens. When I read Charles Dickens, I want to go write lyrics. That brings out the rock ‘n’ roll in me.” It’s hard not to like him — whether that be for his unabashed honesty, his never-ending love for his four daughters or the fact that he married his high school sweetheart (or all of the above). “I think so many of us,” he said, “are trying to balance our lives in a way that feels healthy and right, and sometimes you get it more right than others. The biggest thing that I end up doing is … I love. I love my family so much, and when I’m home, I really try to be there.
To really go for it.” “But whenever there’s an opportunity professionally that I feel like I have and I should do, I really force myself to say yes. Even though it’s hard,” he continued. “I’m still a wimp though, when it comes to leaving the house. I’ll be blubbering as we pull down the road, you know, driving away. But you do what you’ve got to do.”
He places so much weight on every word he articulates, and that’s why his music hits as hard as it does
And, that’s exactly what he’s doing. Stephen Kellogg will play at The Ark’s 41st Annual Folk Festival this Friday. “I am so honored to do that gig and to do that show,” Kellogg said. “The people who are playing it (and) running it — it’s just people I have tremendous respect for. It always, always feels amazing to be in company that you’re proud to keep.” Go for the music and stay for his stories. I’ll be there (crying, probably), and singersongwriter Joe Pug is set to emcee. Tickets are still available for both Friday and Saturday online and at the Michigan Union Ticket Office.
SINGLE REVIEW: ‘THE GOOD SIDE’ Troye Sivan’s newest single, “The Good Side,” is his most mature release yet. Its attraction lies in the fact that it invites the listener to mature along with him. “The Good Side” deals with a breakup. The beginning of the song is soft and acoustic, a combination that always feels like it lends itself — whether this is true or not — to authenticity. Sivan’s polished lyrics reinforce this, as he acknowledges, “I got the good side of things / Left you with both of the rings.” He’s refreshingly selfaware, not only professing what he’s learned from the relationship, but he also admits that his job as a musician might have made things harder for his ex (“The people danced to the sound of your heart / The world sang along to it falling apart”). This is a position of sympathy that is surprisingly rare in breakup songs. One gets the sense that Sivan is trying to treat the other person justly and compassionately, at one point claiming: “So many thoughts I wanted to share / But I didn’t call because it wouldn’t be fair.” The soft feeling never really leaves the song, but around halfway through,
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it blooms into a much more expansive wall of sound. The suddenly synthy atmosphere doesn’t seem like it would blend so well with the acoustics of the rest of the song, but it actually does. By the four-minute mark, the song itself has matured into a self-conscious act of poetry dressed up in dazzling elec-
tronica. It’s starry but not f lashy, deep but not at all empty. “I’m sure we’ll meet in the spring / And catch up on everything,” Sivan sings in the final verse. And you can’t help but hope that they do. - Laura Dzubay, Daily Arts Writer
Arts
6 — Thursday, January 25, 2018
SUNDANCE REVIEW
SUNDANCE
‘Colette’ & ‘Wildlife’ hint future Oscars at Sundance DANIEL HENSEL Daily Arts Writer
There are worse problems in the world, but I fear Keira Knightley has been typecast. Consider, for a minute, the sheer amount of British period dramas she’s appeared in (and yeah, “Pirates of the Caribbean” counts). There’s her Joe Wright trilogy, with “Pride & Prejudice,” “Atonement” and “Anna Karenina.” There’s the David Cronenberg film “A Dangerous Method.” And her most recent Oscar nomination came for “The Imitation Game.” This is no insult to Knightley, who reliably fills her characters with a vitality that brings relevance to characters otherwise faded from memory. “Colette” marks Knightley’s return to the genre and, once again, she brings her trademark vigor to the role. Knightley portrays the famous French writer of the title (real name Gabrielle Colette) through a decade and change as she develops her writing with the publication of the “Claudine” series of somewhat-autobiographical novels. Colette, a poor country girl, marries the wealthier Henry Gauthier-Villars (Dominic West, “The Square”), who “writes” novels under the pseudonym Willy, relying on his employees to do the grunt work while Willy markets the
novels. After frustrating his laborers, he turns to Colette, oftentimes locking her in a room to force her to write. As it turns out, Colette, whose utterances themselves have something of a beguiling ring, is quite a talented writer, and “Claudine at School” is a hit. The film’s first half, depicting the couple’s ascent, is rather dull, if not perfectly delightful. You’ll like this section if you enjoy the work of Tom Hooper or Joe Wright, who consistently churn out indelible British period dramas, with a few jokes sprinkled in to satisfy a “wholesome” movie experience. But otherwise, patience may be required for those desiring something less risk-averse, since what may have remained a stodgy and stuffy chamber piece transforms into full-on erotic drama by the second half, as Colette explores her attraction to women. Once Colette and Willy find success, and the luxuries of upper class life are available to them, the story opens up to a sometimes bold character exploration, especially of Colette. One scene, in which she f lirts with an American woman through hair play, sparkles with sensual tension. A montage depicting a number of sexual encounters including both Colette and West is strangely charming. Unfortunately, West’s character remains somewhat
enigmatic. The screenplay sets up a series of contradicting behaviors, abusing his wife and professing his love as if it were the most obvious fact in the world to himself, her and us, and West doesn’t do much to elucidate his thoughts. And while the screenplay is plagued by lifeless and expository dialogue and relies much too heavily on the tiresome tropes of the genre — Knightley gets her Oscar nomination clip with one particularly powerful monologue, a feat of acting but embalmed by stale writing — the film is bubbly and pleasant enough to enjoy two hours with. *** There’s a line in the film “Frances Ha” in which the titular Frances, finally finding an opportunity to smoke indoors rather than leaning cautiously out the window, says that she feels “like a bad mother from 1957.” For better or worse, I think we all know what she’s talking about: The archetypal mother, frustrated by domesticity yet without a Betty Friedan book to articulate it, smoking and neglecting her children. Leave it to Carey Mulligan (“Mudbound”) to breathe glorious life into Frances’s vision. In “Wildlife,” with the exceptionally assured directorial debut of Paul Dano (“Okja”), she’s a mother in 1959, newly moved to Helena, Montana. Jeanette’s husband,
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Jerry (Jake Gyllenhaal, “Stronger”), works at a golf course and plays football with his son, Joe (Ed Oxenbould, “Better Watch Out”), who seems less enthused with the rough sport. After he loses his job, Jerry refuses to take a job that a teenager would do. He tries to reaffirm his masculinity by leaving the family to fight a wildfire raging nearby. Jeanette is devastated and, beginning to consider leaving her husband, starts to clue in Joe to the couple’s marital stresses. “Wildlife,” adapted from a 1990 Richard Ford novel of the same name, is a horror movie cloaked in coming-of-age and kitchen sink drama. Joe plays witness to the crumbling foundation of his family. Oxenbould, with a demure and somewhat downtrodden expression plastered on his face, is excellent as Joe becomes disillusioned watching his mother’s life unravel. This is Joe’s story, after all, and Dano trains his focus on him — his confusion, his friendship with a classmate and his employment at the local photography studio. Dano lets his characters live in the scene, often choosing to keep the camera stationary, highlighting the characters’ raw movements and emotions. Oxenbould is a great protagonist, a blank canvas for audience participation, while Mulligan and Bill Camp (“Molly’s Game”), who plays Jeanette’s lover, inhabit their roles with audacity and passion. Gyllenhaal, who disappears for a large segment, seems too young and boyish to play this role, but at certain moments, especially in a late scene in a bar, his intensity matches the others in the cast. The word or phrase “wild life” appears, by my count, twice in the film: Once around the middle, when Joe asks Jeanette what happens to the wildlife when a fire ravages their habitat, and second when Jerry, upon returning home, castigates his wife for her infidelity by exclaiming, only half sarcastically, what a wild life this is. That change — from one word to two — is crucial, because among the pastoral and eerily quiet landscapes of Montana, neither families nor the environment that surrounds them can stay intact for too long.
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3 Ring leader? 4 Reversal of fortune 5 Trees of the species Populus tremula 6 “Eat Drink Man Woman” drink 7 Former Texas governor Richards 8 “Midnight Cowboy” con man 9 Delivery room cry 10 *Medicated dermal strip 11 Fuss 12 Cen. components 15 1978 Peace co-Nobelist 17 Tahari of fashion 21 Many a lowbudget flick 23 Decorator’s choice 25 Corrosive liquid 27 Expert 28 Drywall support 29 Spill catchers 30 Smoothie berry 31 *Military chaplains
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BOOKS
Books that Built Us: ‘The Glass Castle’’s legacy Books that Built us is a Daily series that examines the lasting effect of literature ARYA NAIDU
Senior Arts Editor
In the spirit of honesty, writing this scares the shit out of me. Sometimes, a story hits so hard it knocks the wind out of you. There’s never going to be a right way to verbalize the feeling, but you blunder on anyway. So it goes. “The Glass Castle” (2005) is a memoir by Jeannette Walls in which she details her experiences growing up. It’s frighteningly poignant, and it reads as a series of
This book took me a whole summer to read because I kept having to put it down
memories, giving a face to human fortitude and finding love in the trenches of broken promises. Jeannette’s upbringing was unconventional, to say the least. Constantly moving her and her three siblings around the country, her parents couldn’t afford to stay in one place for too long, so they made every spot on the map an adventure. Rex, her father, was a visionary, an entrepreneur, a romantic. He was also an alcoholic, spending the little money they had on booze. He would disappear for days until finally arriving home, bruised and enraged. Rose Mary Walls, Jeannette’s mother, was an artist. Her art was passionate, and she loved it like a child. She was also self-indulgent and sometimes reckless with her energ y, spending it on her paintings rather than feeding her children. This book took me a whole summer to read because I kept having to put it down. At every shout, every manipulation, every door-slam, I had to put the story to bed — partly because it hit too close to home, and partly because I felt guilty for thinking that it did. Walls — whose world never ceased to disappoint her and whose hero never ceased to fail her — forgives. She seeks out love, and she’s ready for it when it comes, in whatever form it may take. My world has been terribly charmed, and my hero was never supposed to be perfect — but I can’t open myself the way Walls opens herself. I don’t know how to. It didn’t take me long to figure out that my heroes are human like the rest of us. Reading Jeannette’s memories, where this truth glimmers throughout, forced me to revisit every moment that led to this revelation. It took me to the raging letter — tucked away in my sock drawer — that I never had the guts, or the heart, to read aloud. It took me to the top of the steps, where I’d perch myself, waiting for the other
shoe but never hearing it drop. It took me through the anger, through the pain, and shot me into the most confusing part: the love. Unconditional love is complicated and exhausting and, more than anything, it hurts. The moment you realize that the person you treasure most in the world — the one on your highest pedestal, who’s never going to hurt you, never going to let you down — isn’t perfect is the moment that leaves the biggest hole in your heart. But you love them nonetheless. Near the beginning of the memoir, Jeannette recounts a Christmas when her family had no money. Her dad takes her and her siblings out under the stars, telling them to pick their favorite. Jeannette writes, “We laughed about all the kids who believed in the Santa myth and got nothing for Christmas but a bunch of cheap plastic toys. ‘Years from now, when all the junk they got is broken and long forgotten,’ Dad said, ‘you’ll still have your stars.’” Rex shattered every piece of her, but when Jeannette finally put herself back together again, she found herself loving him, still. Years later, she still has her star, and it’s because of this feeling — this inexplicable, messy intangibility in clutching on to someone so tightly that you can’t imagine a life in which you ever let them go. Her story, regardless of how
I’ve never encountered a story in which the resiliency of the human spirit shines as clearly, and as profoundly, as it does in this one
far she strayed from it or how abstract the connection became, always revolved around her relationship with her father: learning to loathe him, learning to leave him and learning to live without him. Jeannette Walls doesn’t want your pity. She doesn’t want people to villainize her parents or place blame for how she grew up. Everyone has a story, and I think she wanted us to recognize f lickers of ours in hers. I did, and it propelled me in a way that nothing else has. Romantic for a second and hard for years, the Walls’s life together was dazzling. They were unbreakable, even when they broke each other. I’ve never encountered a story in which the resiliency of the human spirit shines as clearly, and as profoundly, as it does in this one. I’ll go back and re-read pieces of it, and, every time, the only feeling I’m left to dance with is love.
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Thursday, January 25, 2018 — 7
Wolverines looking to hammer their opponents WRESTLING Coon’s quick pin helps Thanks to a replica of Thor’s hammer, Michigan has found added inspiration Michigan earn victory JACOB KOPNICK Daily Sports Writer
This season, there’s been an additional factor motivating the Michigan wrestling team to compete at its best week in and week out and it’s exactly what you would expect: a toy hammer. A replica of Thor’s hammer to be exact. Mjolnir, the name for this fearsome hammer, is wielded by the Norse god of thunder, Thor, and is one of the most ubiquitous symbols of strength in existence. Capable of leveling mountains, the fabled tool struck fear into the eyes of the beholder and propelled Thor into eternal notoriety, a legacy that still holds today. Now, Mjolnir serves a
slightly different purpose as the Wolverines compete each week for control over the hammer. The object is simple. Score the most individual points in a match and the hammer is yours. Obtain a pin and the wrestler is rewarded with an additional 15 points towards the hammer. If a wrestler happens to win the hammer that week, they are forever immortalized as their name is drawn on the hammer as a symbol of their triumphant victory. While the incentive of winning a small, toy hammer seems to pale in comparison to the feeling of winning a match outright, this intrasquad rivalry has worked wonders on the wrestlers’ aggressiveness. “We want to make sure that we’re constantly out there
“It gets these guys competing with each other.”
aggressive and scoring,” said fifth-year senior Adam Coon. “A person who only gets a takedown at the end would only get two points toward the hammer, but a guy who wins seven to nothing, obviously that guy was more involved, but in the match score it’s still only three points. So we want to make sure we are rewarding the guy who’s attacking.” The tradition began last season as associate coach Sean Bormet introduced the concept to inspire more individual points and team competition. The team has been incredibly receptive to the new trophy, even silently keeping track of the standings during the meet to see where they rank. Some of the athletes will even strive for additional takedowns in a match in order to compete for the hammer.
For instance, in the Dec. 10 bout against Oregon State, redshirt sophomore Myles Amine strategically positioned himself to score a last second takedown by ostensibly letting his opponent escape to compete for the hammer, a feat he then split with Coon as they both secured 20 individual points. “It gets these guys competing with each other,” said Michigan coach Joe McFarland. “We just don’t throw it out there all the time and internally, it gets these guys competing with each other over who can score the most points. Not all the fluff stuff, just in our practice room from weekend to weekend.” Across all collegiate sports, many teams have certain motivational props used to galvanize support for their program. Whether it be the Miami football team’s turnover chain, Ohio State’s pin chain or the variety of different turnover trash cans, all of these items seek to add an additional layer of competition to give a team the extra edge. What separates Michigan’s Mjolnir, however, is its lack of glitz and glamour. All of the other items are brandished on the arena of competition, while the hammer humbly awaits its victor at the Bahna Wrestling Center. The week’s winner does not pound his chest or find the nearest camera to advertise his new accolade. Rather, he returns to his teammates with bragging rights and a will to defend his title in the coming week.
“Not all the fluff stuff, just in our practice room...”
CAT MYKOLAJTCHUK/Daily
Fifth-year senior heavyweight Adam Coon (left) believes that Thor’s hammer motivates the Michigan team.
CONNOR BRENNAN For the Daily
Occasionally great feats can occur in short periods of time. For example, Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence in just 17 days. Similarly and maybe even more impressive, Beyonce and the The-Dream composed the 2000s anthem “Single Ladies” in a mere twenty minutes. Kobe Bryant once dropped 81 points on Jalen Rose and the Raptors in 42 minutes of action and Usain Bolt became the world’s fastest man after running 200 meters in 9.58 seconds. And yet, these all pale in comparison to fifth-year heavyweight Adam Coon’s performance Friday night at Cliff Keen Arena. Satirical comparisons aside, in the first matchup of the night, Coon pinned his Wisconsin opponent, Ben Stone, within 40 seconds. From the start of the match, Coon’s intentions were clear. “You could tell he was really, really looking for it,” said Michigan coach Joe McFarland. “Right away I turned to our 125-pounder and said, ‘You better be ready to go. This thing is not going seven minutes.’ ” Coon was placed in the unfamiliar position of wrestling first in a dual-meet. The NCAA stipulates that in a dual-meet setting, both teams’ coaches must agree on which weight class to start the meet with. Traditionally they decide on 125 pounds. If there is no agreement, the starting weight class is drawn randomly and the other weight classes follow sequentially. This time around, heavyweight was drawn. “That was different,” Coon said. “I haven’t started a match since sophomore year, and that was my only time starting one. It is definitely a different experience. I’m used to ending it, not starting
things up, so there’s a little bit (of) different nerves there.” Whatever nerves Coon had before the match were alleviated pretty quickly as he hip tossed Stone to the mat. Michigan fans in attendance weren’t in their seats long before Coon delivered the fall. In addition to firing up the crowd, Coon’s quick pin also helped galvanize his teammates in the 29-10 rout of the 23rd-ranked Badgers. “That’s always good to start off like that,” said 184-pound senior Domenic Abounader, who also won his matchup in decisive fashion. “It gets the team going, gets some momentum going and gets some confidence going for our team.” The momentum was evident, as the next four Wolverine wrestlers won their matches. This run included another first-round pin by 149-pound redshirt junior Malik Amine, who was quick to praise Coon. “I love it,” Amine said. “I think Coon’s a pinner. I think he’s one of the best pinners in the country and he doesn’t get a lot of attention, but the kid’s a great wrestler.” Coon improved to 17-0 on the season with an 8-0 record in dual-meets this season after the win on Friday night. While the goal from the outset has been to win a national championship both individually and as a team, excellent performances like Fridays are always welcomed by Coon. “I thought I kept calm and just worked my way back into it,” he said. “When (Stone) started to move, I kind of set myself up for that throw. I was just calm and worked position.” Though the match went well for Coon — the No. 2 heavyweight in the nation — there will undoubtedly be bigger tests ahead in both the Big Ten and NCAA Tournament, especially if he wants to put a ring on it.
Hot Wolverines humbled by the strength of the rest of the conference BENJAMIN KATZ Daily Sports Writer
With consecutive sweeps for the first time in three seasons, the No. 17 Michigan hockey team has positioned itself in the top half of the Big Ten standings and is back in the hunt for an NCAA Tournament bid. Since defeating then-No. 9 Minnesota and then-No. 12 Penn State, the Wolverines (7-7-2-1 Big Ten, 12-10-2 overall) have jumped from No. 27 to No. 15 in the PairWise rankings. These rankings are annually a solid indicator of qualifiers for the 16-team NCAA Tournament and Michigan is within the cutoff, determined not to dip out of contention. The Wolverines, after being sixth in the conference standings earlier this season, are now the sole owner of third place with 24 points — only one ahead of the Nittany Lions and one behind No. 6 Ohio State. They look primed to host a best-of-three series for the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. But in one of college hockey’s most dominant conferences, all can change in a moment’s notice. And with eight Big Ten games left, Michigan knows that. “We could easily be on a fourgame win streak or a six-game
losing streak, so I think we know to take it game by game, weekend by weekend,” said sophomore forward Jake Slaker. “We don’t try to look ahead or look in the past, we just kind of take it how it comes.” The Big Ten has seen unprecedented depth, with six of the seven teams in the top-20 in PairWise and the conference foes splitting series regularly. At the end of last season, the point differential between the second and fifth-ranked teams in the Big Ten standings was 14 points. This year, it’s currently five. That’s not to say the standings won’t revert to last year’s larger gaps between teams. But by the looks of it, most of the conference order — apart from No. 1 Notre Dame, which is 14 points ahead of the pack — may not be decided until the final weeks of the regular season. Slaker acknowledges the newfound parity in Big Ten competition has led to a tighter race for the back half of the season.
“From last year playing in the Big Ten, it was a little bit more separated, but I think this year it seems every team is equal,” he said. “No matter what, any team you play, it’s going to be an absolute battle and any team can win any game. Every game is so important in the Big Ten because you know everyone is flipping and flopping, between second, third, fourth, whatever place.” From a practical standpoint, the strength of conference opponents helps with PairWise rankings. Wins against highly-ranked Big Ten teams catapult the victors to greater positioning — a la Michigan moving 12 spots over the past two weekends. Falling to these same top-tier teams doesn’t hurt the losers much — because of its RPI, Penn State dropped just four spots from No. 12 to No. 16 after being swept by the Wolverines. The new conference intensity hasn’t only kept programs afloat in the rankings, though. The toughness has also led to an improvement in overall play,
“The biggest thing is keeping the energy level up.”
EVAN AARON/Daily
Sophomore forward Jake Slaker says the parity in the Big Ten this season has kept the Wolverines on their toes.
according to Michigan coach Mel Pearson. “It’s made us better,” Pearson said. “It’s forced us to be better because if you don’t, you’re going to get your rear end handed to you every night and you have to show up and compete. Fortunately, we’ve been pretty good lately. I think the first half, you saw we were inconsistent, giving up six goals and five goals and now we’re a little bit more locked in. “There’s no trap game or sandwich game because you just have to keep going. The biggest thing is keeping the energy level up because week after week after week, you keep playing good teams.” For Pearson, it’s vital to block out the noise and outside
distractions. He constantly reminds his players to concentrate on the tasks at hand — building on recent successes, continuing to improve in weaker areas and maintaining momentum down the stretch. “It’s just human nature to look at the standings or people talk to you about the standings or ask you about the PairWise,” Pearson said. “They’re all aware of it, they look at it. But right now, as coaches, we have to try to — when we have the opportunity with them — get them to focus on the other things, the other things that we need to do that’ll help.” The focus has worked up to this point. A second-half resurgence for a once-sluggish
“I just know we have to continue winning.”
team, contributions from skaters starting to rise to the occasion and statement wins have all propelled the Wolverines lately. Despite the turnaround hot streak to start off the new year, Pearson sees his team completely differently heading into the weekend road series against the Buckeyes — not as a team that is already in contention but one that still has much yet to prove. “We’ve been fortunate because every team has been ahead of us,” Pearson said. “Minnesota was ahead of us, we leapfrogged them. Penn State was ahead of us in the standings, then we leapfrogged them. And now we get another opportunity (at Ohio State). “At some point, we might become the favorites, but we’re still going to relish that underdog role and the role fits us well. I don’t pay much attention (to the rankings), I just know we have to continue winning and then everything takes care of itself.”
Sports
8 — Thursday, January 25, 2018
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Three plays that told the tale of the first game between ‘M’ and Purdue MAX MARCOVITCH Daily Sports Editor
For the Michigan men’s basketball team, quite a bit has changed in 15 days. It went to in-state rival Michigan State and won by double digits, clung to a narrow one-point victory over Maryland and got its doors blown off at Nebraska in its worst performance of the season. While the offense has hit a bit of a funk, the defense has sustained itself as the backbone of the team. The Wolverines are a different team than they were when they lost by a point at home to No. 3 Purdue 15 days ago. Thursday, we’ll find out how different. Thursday, we’ll find out if 15 days were enough to correct the errors that became apparent in the narrow defeat to the Boilermakers. In preparation, The Daily reviewed the tape from that game, noting three plays that defined the struggles — and arguably turned the tide — in the one-point loss: 1) The Play: Purdue 0, Michigan 0. 19:51 left in the first half. Purdue ball. Center Isaac Haas stands at the top of the key with the ball and an arsenal of shooters on each side — each of whom essentially requires being face guarded at all times. Purdue runs an on-ball screen with Haas clipping Duncan Robinson after a dribble handoff — to try to free guard Dakota Mathias — and guard PJ Thompson screening sophomore point guard Zavier Simpson off the ball to free Carsen Edwards. Robinson and Simpson recover perfectly, fighting through the screens to stifle the motion. The pass to the wing deflects off the leg of Vincent Edwards, who has to chase back to half court to recover. Michigan defends to a T for the first 15 seconds of the clock. But here’s the problem with defending Purdue’s shooting ability: They force you to defend
SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily
Sophomore guard Zavier Simpson and the other guards will need to prove more capable of driving past Purdue’s big men.
for all 30 seconds, and any defensive lapse will be punished swiftly. Mathias sets a screen off the ball, but doesn’t make contact with any defender. It doesn’t matter. Matthews, expecting to switch onto the cutter in the lane, loses Mathias off the ball. He and Robinson pick up the same Purdue player who cuts into the lane. Mathias swishes a warmup 3-pointer, and Purdue is off. Before the ball falls through the twine, Matthews throws his arms up in frustration. The adjustment: There were several instances — largely in the first half — of simple miscommunications that resulted in Purdue 3-pointers. That may seem easily correctable, but those miscommunications or failed rotations will only be augmented in a hostile environment. The Boilermakers shoot 44 percent from three, trailing only Wofford and William and Mary nationally. They have five players who shoot better from beyond the arc than Michigan’s best shooter. After the game, freshman forward Isaiah Livers
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Munger adjusting to new role as a starter SARAH HURST
Daily Sports Writer
“I hate starting.” That’s not something you would expect to hear from one of the starting guards on the Michigan women’s basketball team. But Nicole Munger prefers to analyze. The junior misses the days of her sophomore year, when she would sit on the bench and watch. She would carefully observe her opponent and then go in and provide a break for the starters and, more importantly, a spark of energy. But this year Munger has embraced her role as a starter — and playmaker — for the Wolverines. “I think for this team to be successful, (Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico) wanted me to be in that role but it’s just different, just trying to come in and be ready very quickly, it took time,” Munger said. “The first couple times I was very nervous because it’s a different feel to the game. You don’t get to sit there and watch it and get your feet wet. I liked coming in when everyone else got a little tired and then I could turn up the energy.” It took some adjusting but now Munger seems to be more comfortable. She has assisted Michigan in a five game winning streak, which included a victory each over rivals Ohio State and Michigan State. She scored a career-high 20 points at Ohio State on Jan. 7 and had another career high of five steals against Illinois on Jan. 20. “She’s playing with an extreme amount of confidence,” Barnes Arico said. “She was an outstanding player last year as well but she didn’t have that
same confidence and now it’s nice to see her growth. She’s doing a little bit of everything for us.” Along with her role as a starter, Munger has also become Barnes Arico’s voice on the court. “I’ve kind of turned to her a little bit as the voice of the team because she has great recognition and she sees things,” Barnes Arico said. “She’s a student of the game, she really knows the situations and the game a lot so I’ve been relying on her a lot to be a voice out there for our team, and I think she’s really embraced that role.” Whenever Munger is subbed out, she sits directly next to Barnes Arico on the bench. Side-byside, the coach and her player break down the plays and their opponent. “She listens to me the whole time as to what I’m saying,” Barnes Arico said. “We’re kind of on the same page. She thinks the same way that I do, she doesn’t say it that much so now I want her to say it when she’s out on the court. She knows what I’m thinking and she’s thinking the game the entire time. I’ve challenged her with becoming more vocal and she’s embraced that.” While other teammates, like senior forward Jillian Dunston, have a fire in their belly and provide the energy to the court, Munger is clearly more analytical, providing a different dimension for the Wolverines to balance Dunston’s attack. It’s a formula that seems to to be working, as indicated by the Wolverines’ success this season. Surely, part of that can be indicated to Munger, even if she’d prefer a different role.
“She listens to me the whole time as to what I’m saying.”
said he thought the team was overly concerned about Haas in the post, to the detriment of the 3-point defense. This cannot happen the second time around, or Purdue will simply bludgeon them from deep. “You’ve got to just give multiple efforts on the defensive end,” said redshirt sophomore wing Charles Matthews on Wednesday afternoon. “You can’t just come in there and take away the lane and leave shooters all around. You can’t just say, ‘We’re going to take the shooters away and leave our big on a 7-foot-3 (guy).’ ” Much of guarding Purdue requires a degree of chaos. You have to chase and fight through screens, hedge on shooters, collapse on the big, then spring back to the shooters. But controlling that chaos may be the key to containing the highoctane offense. Minizimizing such perimeter breakdowns — as easy as that may be to write, rather than execute — could be the biggest key to winning the game. 2) The Play: Purdue 5, Michigan 2. 18:16 left in the
first half. Michigan ball. The Wolverines bring the ball up the court effectively amid some light pressure, and get into one of their basic sets — some on-ball and off-ball movement. Simpson gets the ball at the top of the key and takes a screen from Wagner on the right wing, getting the switch he wants with the 7-foot-3 Haas. This is a matchup Michigan theoretically wants, and will likely get again, assuming Purdue comes out switching every screen. But just because it wants this matchup does not mean its consistently capable of exploiting it. Simpson settles back into isolation and realizes he has no viable path to the hoop. Haas, meagerly respecting Simpson’s jumper, lags three steps from Simpson. Simpson dishes the ball away, only to get it right back in the same position with 10 seconds on the shot clock. Trying to make something happen, he aimlessly dribbles into the lane, where Haas is easily able to recover. Wagner gets the ball, attacks the lane and is met at the rim by a camping Haas for an easy block.
The adjustment: Herein lies the problem with this matchup. With a score-first guard like Trey Burke or Derrick Walton Jr. the Wolverines would be chomping at the bit to get Haas switched onto a guard. Either could simply pull up from 3-point range, or pump fake and explode past the slower Haas. But neither Simpson nor senior guard Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman is naturally comfortable generating consistent offense in the isolation. In a vacuum, them attempting to do so is not a recipe for this team’s success. “If we have Trey Burke right now — an experienced player at the point — that’s just got the entire package, it’s a little bit different,” Beilein said. “When they switched on McGary and McGary is big, rebounding inside. We said, ‘Alright Trey, you shoot it, Mitch, you rebound it.’ That was our solution.” But as Beilein noted Wednesday, they have little choice but to try to attack those mismatches off the switch. He noted that it merely comes down to guards making plays on bigger defenders, rather than a grand schematic change. 3) The Play: Purdue 69, Michigan 69. 1:16 left in the game. Michigan ball. Simpson started the possession with heavy pressure near halfcourt. With the game tied at 69 and just over a minute left, this out-of-timeout play respresented the closest thing to a “make or break” possession. Yet, as Simpson is being pressured there is little, if any, off ball movement. He picks up his dribble, and only AbdurRahkman cuts toward him to get the ball, catching it nearly 30 feet from the basket, and the shot clock dwindled down to 15. It seems unlikely Beilein told his team “Let the clock trickle, and get Abdur-Rahkman and Wagner in a pick-and-roll,” but that was the result.
Finally, with eight seconds on the shot clock the senior guard dribbles into a Wagner pick, once again earning the switch. If either Abdur-Rahkman was confident enough to exploit Haas or he could get the ball to Wagner on the guard, a go-ahead bucket would seem imminent. Instead, a hesistant Abdur-Rahkman stutters right, trying to finesse himself free on the seven-foot defender. The result? An errant step-back, fadeaway three pointer that clangs the back right portion of the rim. The adjustment: This play was just one of several poorly executed possessions down the stretch of the 70-69 loss. Michigan failed to score in the final 2:54 of this game, and while some can point to the referees as blame for the loss, a lack of late-game execution played a major role. For neither Wagner or Matthews to get a touch on this possession (Wagner didn’t touch the ball in the final three minutes) represents a negligence on the Wolverines’ part. And that was not a result of Wagner being smothered defensively, either. “Give Zavier Simpson credit, he almost beat us. My man didn’t beat us — Moe Wagner,” said Purdue coach Matt Painter. He destroyed us last year. I wasn’t going to watch that again. I’ve got all the respect in the world for (Simpson), but Moe Wagner is a stud.” That perspective, from the opposing coach, about sums it up. For a team that lacks dominant perimeter scoring, it must position Wagner for success on its most important possessions. He is the team’s most gifted offensive player, and the advantage he presents with his ability to stretch the perimeter is only amplified by Purdue’s plodding big men. If this game is close late, he must have the ball in his hands — or at the very least, be directly involved in the play.
In No. 3 Purdue, Michigan faces toughest test MIKE PERSAK
Managing Sports Editor
John Beilein believes Purdue might be the best Big Ten team Michigan has faced. No, not this season. The best ever. Beilein began Wednesday’s press conference by saying as much, comparing the thirdranked Boilermakers to great teams of the past. “I’ve been here long enough to tell you there’s some pretty good teams in this league we’ve seen,” Beilein said. “Look at the great Wisconsin teams, the terrific Purdue teams from earlier in my career that were so good. Indiana, ourselves had games where there were just incredibly talented, these guys are still playing in the league. Purdue has everything that all those teams had. And maybe more than any of those teams, they have incredible experience. … I haven’t seen anything like this.” It’s high praise, but with the
way Purdue has been playing recently, it’s easy to see where Beilein is coming from. The Boilermakers (8-0 Big Ten, 19-2 overall) have won three straight games by at least 23 points, rising to the No. 2 spot in the KenPom rankings along the way. They’re the same team the Wolverines (6-3, 17-5) lost to by a point two weeks ago in Ann Arbor. They still impose their will on the inside with 7-foot-2 center Isaac Haas and his backup, 7-foot-3 Matt Haarms. They still threaten teams with their outside shooting — they made 20 3-pointers in their win over Iowa. And they still play elite defense both on and off the ball. Michigan was able to counter all of that to make the first game close. If anything, though, the first matchup has propelled Purdue to new heights, as its last three outcomes may indicate. Needless to say, the Wolverines have their work cut out for them. “It presents a great
“Purdue has everything that all those teams had.”
challenge for us — a really good opportunity,” said fifthyear senior forward Duncan Robinson. “Like (Beilein) said, they’re a really tough team to beat, especially at their place. But we’re excited for the opportunity for sure.” Perhaps the biggest thing the game against the Boilermakers did was give the blueprint on how to guard the Wolverines. Purdue switched on every ball screen in that matchup, refusing to allow junior forward Moritz Wagner get open for his patented pick-and-pop 3-pointer. Since that game, Nebraska guarded Michigan the same way, quite successfully. It’s a problem that Beilein’s teams have faced before, but even he admits that it’s been an easier conundrum to solve in the past. On Wednesday, he cited how former guard Trey Burke was able to break those defenses by simply shooting over them. This year’s team has tried a variety of solutions, such as attempting to feed Wagner
on the post and drive past bigger defenders with guards. Against the Cornhuskers — and the Boilermakers, to an extent — that strateg y didn’t work. But in the end, Beilein says, there’s only so much gameplanning the coaches can do. At some point, the players have to be the ones to beat the defense. “It’s not only a schematic thing,” Beilein said. “It is a thing, ‘Alright, can you actually score against somebody doing this? Can you actually score — guard score on a big, and a big score on a small? Can you make that entry pass in there? So we’ve tried to think of everything, and I know I grow as a coach every day of what we can do. But I don’t feel, like, ‘I can’t wait until people switch on us right now, because we’ve got the answers.’ We’re still solving that.” In the end, Thursday’s game will be a litmus test for the offense against a particular defensive scheme, sure, but it will also mean more than that. With the relative lack of depth in the Big Ten, this game will be one of the Wolverines’ final chances to prove themselves against an elite team. They don’t play Michigan State again, and their one remaining game against a ranked team is at home against No. 13 Ohio State. It’s not like Michigan is in need of a resume boost with the successes they’ve had so far this season, but Thursday’s game is one of the last regular season opportunities for the Wolverines to prove they can hang with the upper echelon of college basketball. It’s one of the final chances for Michigan to prove it belongs.
“But we’re excited for the opportunity for sure.”
SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily
Michigan men’s basketball coach John Beilein believes that Purdue may be the best Big Ten team he’s ever seen.