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Friday, February 21, 2020
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Sanders sets up campaign 2 office in A , 150 attend
Bernie is second candidate to have staff in Ann Arbor, after Bloomberg SARAH PAYNE
Daily Staff Reporter
DOMINICK SOKOTOFF/Daily Engineering senior Logan Vear holds up a sign to encourage divesting from fossil fuels at the Regent’s meeting at the Richard L. Postma Family Clubhouse Thursday afternoon.
Board of Regents announces freeze on future fossil fuel investments ‘U’ becomes first Big 10 school to do so following student activism ARJUN THAKKAR & PARNIA MAZHAR Daily Staff Reporters
The University of Michigan is freezing its fossil fuel investments — for the time being. On Thursday evening, during the University’s Board of Regents meeting at the Richard L. Postma Family Clubhouse, University Regent Mark Bernstein (D) announced the board is looking into the University’s policy on investments in fossil fuel companies. New investments will not occur
during this time. “We will not bring forward new direct investments in fossil fuel companies while we study the investment policy of the University of Michigan with regard to all fossil fuel investments in a deliberative, thorough, inclusive, and responsible manner,” Bernstein said. “We will proceed with this assessment as quickly as possible and plan to take any appropriate actions in the months ahead.” After Bernstein’s announcement, the audience immediately erupted in
applause. The University is the first Big Ten school to pause future investments in fossil fuel companies. Approximately 80 University students and faculty and Ann Arbor community members were in attendance to observe the meeting. University Regent Shauna Ryder Diggs (D) called into the meeting from a remote location. Acting Provost Susan Collins was also present. University President Mark Schlissel took the beginning of the meeting to comment on recent allegations of
sexual misconduct that have surfaced against prominent University administrators. He encouraged students and faculty who were disturbed by the allegations to utilize University resources and continue supporting those who come forward with allegations of sexual misconduct. After Schlissel said he condemned all instances of sexual misconduct, an audience member interrupted his speech, shouting, “You knew!” See REGENTS, Page 3A
The campaign office for Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) opened on Stadium Boulevard in Ann Arbor Thursday night. The Democratic presidential candidate’s event drew more than 150 local supporters and featured guest speakers former gubernatorial candidate Abdul El-Sayed and state Rep. Yousef Rabhi, D-Ann Arbor. Sanders endorsed El-Sayed’s campaign for governor in 2018, and El-Sayed has expressed his support for Sanders’ presidential campaign. El-Sayed said Sanders’ consistent beliefs on issues like health care and the environment resonated with him the most. “Let me tell you why I am so excited to be out here for Bernie right now,” El-Sayed said. “It’s not just that Bernie is the frontrunner among candidates for president of the United States, it’s that Bernie has been talking about these issues since before I was born; it’s the recognition of the kind of policies that we need, but even more than
that, the kind of politics that it will take to get it done.” El-Sayed concluded his remarks by connecting Sanders’ campaign slogan “Not me. Us.” to the Constitution of the United States. “It goes back to those first three words ‘We the People.’ That’s not just a statement, that’s not just a description, it’s an ideal of people continuously choosing to come together beyond the differences that people tell them divide them,” El - Sayed said. “‘Not me. Us’ is about ‘We the People,’ it’s about us coming together in the best interests of our society.” Rabhi shared his excitement for Sanders’ campaign and vision for the United States, especially on health care. “I am proud to be here with so many fantastic people to fight for someone who is running, not just one person, but all of us,” said Rabhi. “To fight for an idea that we can create a healthcare system that leaves more money in our pockets and less money in the pockets of greedy CEOs.” See BERNIE, Page 2A
Petition calls for expansion of GSI’s line Student Mason in American Sign Language program rec sports ACADEMICS
protest of contracts
CAMPUS LIFE
Long waitlists show growing interest in learning ASL, supporting Deaf culture
Graduate Employees’s Organization arranges ‘grade-in’ after issues negotiating with admin
talk club standing
Successful applications give teams access to resources, status, usage of block ‘M’ imagery SOFIA URBAN & ROSE CRAMTON
KRISTINA ZHENG Daily Staff Reporter
Amid the usual bustling activity in Mason Hall, more than 200 University of Michigan graduate student instructors lined the walls on Tuesday afternoon to display the labor of graduate student workers. The demonstration comes on the heels of the University’s multiple rejections to contract proposals from the Graduate Employees’ Organization. GEO began contract negotiations with the University administration last November. The organization met with University Human Resources twice a week for a few hours to introduce proposals and language crucial to the bargaining process. GEO’s initial bargaining with HR resulted in productive developments on expanding trans health care access and building union security, according to GEO’s press release. However, GEO’s frustration with the University’s administration is due to HR’s rejections — with no counteroffers — of proposals related to climate, housing and food justice, a demilitarized workplace, disability and mental health accommodations and protections against sexual assault. Both GEO and HR have agreed to reach a tentative agreement by Mar. 1, 2020. See GRADE-IN, Page 3
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When LSA freshman Hannah Shipley started learning more about the deaf and hard of hearing communities in her first-year seminar, her interest in taking American Sign Language courses piqued. Upon further research, Shipley found out about the waitlist of more than 100 LSA students for RCASL 100, the ASL language sequence’s prerequisite course, which could block her from taking any further courses for two years. After speaking with her linguistics professor, Natasha
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Abner, Shipley started a petition in hopes of increasing the opportunity to learn ASL at the University of Michigan for both the deaf and hard of hearing communities and her hearing classmates. “She explained to me how small the program was, that there’s only one professor, that the Intro is only offered every other year and that the waiting list is so long that some graduating seniors will never get it,” Shipley said. “I was really frustrated … The only thing that came to mind was the petition. So really it started out of frustration that a program for a community that’s so
marginalized is so small.” According to the University’s ASL professor, Paula Berwanger, ASL 100 consistently has a waitlist of more than 100 LSA students in addition to more than 20 students from other schools across campus. In RCASL 100, Introduction to Deaf Culture, students do not learn ASL; rather, they learn about deaf culture in the United States, deaf identity and the historical roots of the language. After completing RCASL 100, students are permitted to continue on to elementary and intermediate sign language courses. Because all students still
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have to take ASL 100, those who place into ASL 102 or further get precedence in registering for ASL 100. Additionally, Berwanger wrote in an email to The Daily that students who are deaf, hard of hearing or who have immediate family members using ASL get preference. LSA students are also shown preference. “As more high schools now offer ASL, the number of students testing into ASL beyond the first-semester language class has steadily increased,” Berwanger wrote.
Vol. CXXIX, No. 75 ©2020 The Michigan Daily
The Universit y of Michigan’s NCA A Division I standing and Big Ten membership provide students on campus with a source of spirit. However, not all athletes on campus compete at the varsit y level. Many students find their desire to compete athletically fulfilled by membership to club or intramural sports teams, which are primarily student-based and organized. To achieve club status, a team must apply through the Universit y’s Club Sports Office. Before this process can occur, the Club Sports Prog ram must assess their abilit y to add more teams. Laurel Hanna, assistant director of Club Sports, explained how the Club Sports Prog ram decides to open up more spots for student organizations to achieve club status.
See ASL, Page 3
NEWS .........................1 OPINION.....................4 CLASSIFIEDS.............6
See CLUB, Page 3
SUDOKU................6 ARTS...............5 SPORTS.............7
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2 — Friday, February 21, 2020
MONDAY: Looking at the Numbers
TUESDAY: By Design
WEDNESDAY: This Week in History
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THURSDAY: Twitter Talk
FRIDAY: Behind the Story
B EHIND THE STORY Every Friday, one Daily staffer will give a behind-the-scenes look at one of this week’s stories. This week, LSA sophomore Callie Teitelbaum on her story “Students protest Paul, Weiss recruiting event in support of #DropExxon”: “When I was assigned the story I immediately started researching Paul, Weiss’ relationship with Exxon and reading about different lawsuits Paul Weiss defended Exxon in. I interviewed a participant and organizer of the protest prior to the event to understand why law students around the country are taking a risk in boycotting one of the most competitive law firms. I also wanted to understand why this battle against Exxon is one law students are particularly passionate about. After witnessing the protest, I combined my research of past Exxon controversy with the message from law students to Paul Weiss to paint a picture of why this national movement is occurring at other law schools, and why law students are using this time to take a stand…. The most interesting part of the story is how law students are using their power in the process of recruiting to take a stand on climate change. The extent to which Exxon’s historical role in climate change is causing law students to question the ethics of different law firms is extremely interesting.”
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This action will waste more than $275,000 of taxpayer money and, as the Council majority admits, is entirely without cause. Mr. Lazarus has done nothing wrong. This is a political termination that is bad for Ann Arbor.”
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New Center for Ethics, Society and Computing to study inequity in tech Launch hopes to centralize resources related to evolving field of ethical computation on issues such as algorithms deciding bail rates to concerns related to mass surveillance HANNAH MACKAY Daily Staff Reporter
The University of Michigan’s brand new Center for Ethics, Society and Computing opened in January with the goal of addressing inequality produced by digital media and computing technology. With the prevalence of computing technology across almost every professional field and modern, everyday life, the potential for inequity and exclusion exists across many disciplines. The center aims to use University resources to better understand this and educate people. ESC Director Christian Sandvig, associate communications professor, highlighted the need for organizations like ESC, especially given how rapidly the use of computing has grown. “Generally speaking, there’s a moment at which we as a society are reflecting about advances in computing,” Sandvig said. “Computers are doing these things that they never before did, and they’re definitely good at things we didn’t think they would be good at, but they’re often being
rushed into situations where there hasn’t been necessarily a lot of thought about some of the implications or the consequences, and sometimes the designs are rushed.” Recently, interest in ethical computing has been on the rise as algorithms are implemented in everything from deciding bail rates in our justice system to credit scores and social media feeds. Sandvig discussed the breadth of this new center, emphasizing that prior to its launch the University had no centralized resource issues related to this new and evolving field or students interested in it. “If you were interested in, for example, the ethics of working for different companies in the tech industry or interested in issues of justice and fairness and computing or mass surveillance, it wasn’t really clear where the community was, so our job we think is to answer that,” Sandvig said. “We have faculty from art, we have faculty from architecture, music, LSA, information, public health, it’s a pretty broad group of people and they’re all interested in these problems of computers in society.”
The center aims to be a research hub focused on understanding computing inequalities. For example, Sandvig brought up a past research project in which he and a group of students tried to determine why a Facebook algorithm provided the option of a gay pride flag emoji reaction to only some users during June of 2017. “It’s pretty interesting that Facebook thinks that it should be, probably algorithmically, profiling your support for homosexuality,” Sandvig said. “We tried to reverse engineer how Facebook was deciding where to deploy the gay pride emoji.” Sandvig said the University provided ESC with an opportunity to address these issues with multidisciplinary efforts and fill this unique gap. “Michigan is really remarkable in that it has a really large group of faculty that are experts in areas relating to computers, but also to justice, or fairness, or ethics or morality,” Sandvig said. “The idea was, what if we are able to showcase our University’s strength in this area by organizing all of
the professor’s together and to try and form a community around the students that are interested in this area.” Art & Design assistant professor Sophia Brueckner, former Google software engineer, does research with ESC that focuses on people’s perspectives regarding the role of technology in the future, both good and bad. She does this partly by analyzing and studying science fiction, using a variety of mediums to showcase her findings. “Often I find myself thinking about what visions of the future are industry offering us?” Brueckner said. “Everything right now seems to be free but really we’re paying for it with our attention and our data, and that’s what’s shaping the trajectory of a lot of these technologies, in particular wearable technologies and most internet technologies. If we weren’t constrained by that what might be a person’s vision for how they might live with technology or incorporate it in their body be?”
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BERNIE From Page 1 Rabhi said Sanders’ health care policies would lead to more comprehensive coverage for Americans. “Too many Americans have died because they do not have healthcare or they lack adequate access to healthcare,” Rabbi said. “How many more will we allow to die? Not a single one under a Bernie presidency.” Rabhi closed by commenting on his own experiences in
government and said he trusts Sanders’ judgment to do the right thing. “One of the things that I like about this campaign is as someone who has been in the hot seat, somebody who has seen in the bullpen how things work in politics, I can tell you that just about every day I am truly disgusted that our American political system has become what it has,” Rabhi said. “They say that money influences policy… but I have seen it firsthand. And what I like about Bernie Sanders and this campaign, is that there is no
monied interest, no corporation that he puts first.” Medical School student Solomon Rajput, who is challenging U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich, spoke to The Daily about his excitement for Sanders’ campaign. “I am so excited to support and endorse Bernie Sanders for president of the United States. He’s the man with a vision,” Rajput said. “He knows what we need to get done to improve the lives of the regular people in America and we’re going to stick it to the rich.”
LSA freshman Porter Hughes, a member of Students for Bernie at the University of Michigan, said he hopes to see the office as the beginning of a surge of support for Sanders in the coming months. “This field office is just one piece of the giant grassroots network that Bernie Sanders is building to help start a movement to not only get him elected President but change the politics that are in our country,” Hughes said. “There are so many issues that people are passionate about, and they are ready to make a change. Bernie is that change.”
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REGENTS From Page 1 Schlissel addressed the actions the University had previously taken in response to allegations of sexual misconduct against the late Robert Anderson, former director of University Health Services and an athletics team physician. In 2003, Anderson retired from the University. “The patient-physician relationship involves a solemn commitment and trust,” Schlissel said. “The allegations are highly disturbing. On behalf of the University, I apologize to anyone who was harmed by Dr. Anderson … To those who reported Dr. Anderson and to anyone who has reported sexual misconduct in any case, I express my sincere gratitude for your courage.” Schlissel also commented on the recent investigation into Martin A. Philbert, the University’s provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, who was accused of multiple allegations of sexual misconduct. Schlissel said the University has hired an outside independent law firm to investigate the situation and therefore, he will
CLUB From Page 1 “Annually, club sports administrators, so myself, our coordinator, my supervisor and our financial specialist look at our capacity to serve the clubs that we already have,” Hanna said. “And then if we have something that’s changed and maybe if we have the ability to add more organizations, which happened last year, then we open the application process.” According to the Club Sports Handbook, available by request at the Recreational Sports Office, there are multiple requirements that teams must meet to apply for club status. These include being recognized as a student organization for at least two years, demonstrating fiscal responsibility during this time, having at least ten competitive members and showing evidence of a leadership transition beyond its original founders. Potential club sports teams must also have a nonstudent coach and a national governing body for their sport, which allows them to compete against other universities. The process of reviewing the application is then taken up by the executive board, which is a body of students who have been elected by the Club Sports Council. Hanna said applicants must meet with the e-board to answer questions about their interest in club status. The e-board then makes
ASL From Page 1 “Due to this increase, fewer than 12 students from the waitlist (who have not studied ASL previously) are able to begin the ASL sequence each year with the first-semester language course.” The ASL program was established in 1999 in response to a student-led initiative to bring ASL courses to the University. Though the program was originally housed in the Department of Linguistics, it moved to the Residential College with the reopening of East Quad Residence Hall in 2013. While the RC houses ASL, ASL is not part of the RC language program. The fourth semester of RCASL satisfies the LSA language requirement, but not the RC language requirement. Still, RC Director Catherine Badgley said the RC is looking into updated plans for all of their courses, including ASL, to adjust resource allocation and waitlists. “The ASL Program became part of the Residential College in 2013,
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not publicize the specifics of the case. “Because this investigation is so critical and because we must ensure that the outside independent firm is able to conduct their investigation in a thorough, reliable and fair way, I will not be able to share any details while the investigation is underway, even though I know that there’s wide interest in the case,” Schlissel said. Public Policy junior Ben Gerstein, Central Student Government president, also spoke at the meeting. His address began with a statement reaffirming his apology for comments he made in 2017 on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Multicultural organizations on campus called for public apologies from Gerstein and CSG Tuesday night, as well as anti-Islamophobia and anti-bias training for CSG members. “I want to reaffirm that apology and just reference my commitment and CSG’s collective commitment towards ensuring this campus is inclusive for our Palestinian, Arab and Muslim students,” Gerstein said. “We look forward to getting to work in the last four weeks of my administration to take action and show solidarity with students who
felt impacted by my past words.” Gerstein continued by addressing a survey CSG released to the campus community at the end of December about mental health and well-being on campus. According to Gerstein, of the 2166 respondents, 55 percent noted that Counseling and Psychological Services appointment wait times were a significant barrier toward seeking treatment. He also described the issue of a lack of wellbeing resources for students on North Campus. “I think it’s important that we recognize the incredibly difficult work of being a CAPS counselor, so I want to thank them for the work that they do when our students are able to see them,” Gerstein said. “But because of the extreme costs of off campus care, CAPS exists as really the only option for many students on campus who are seeking counseling, and so I think it’s important that we reaffirm our commitment to those resources and ensure that students aren’t waiting to seek help.” The Regents announced the creation of a new, permanent committee chaired by University Regent Michael Behm (D) called The University of Michigan-Flint and the University of Michigan-
recommendations on if the applicant group should be granted club status. “From those recommendations, the administrative staff reviews them,” Hanna said. “We look at our situation as far as what our capacity is and where our capacity is, whether it’s facility space or advising time or financial resources. Then we look at what the need is from the clubs that have applied.” In 2019, the competitive weightlifting team successfully petitioned for club status. The team has won multiple titles in different weight classes at the regional and national levels. LSA senior Celia Gold, co-president of weightlifting club, said club status achievement was an intensive process from the student perspective. “The process to become a club sport is very rigorous. It includes many components that must be signed off on by staff,” Gold said. “Additionally, the club must prove they will be successful and fund themselves in order to get off the ground.” Gold explained how her experience as an athlete changed as a result of the team’s new status. “Beyond being able to utilize the block ‘M’, we now have access to club sports resources and a whole network of teams who have succeeded before us,” Gold said. According to the recreational sports handbook, one of the ways club sports provide an inter-
sport network is through representation in the Club Sports Council, a body of representatives from each of the 30 club sports at Michigan. The Council provides the opportunity for teams to collaborate and learn from each other, promoting camaraderie across the University sports community. The student swim team, Swimming Wolverines At Michigan , is an example of a student athletic organization on campus that has faced issues achieving club status. Engineering sophomore William Soobert, administrative chair of SWAM, explained why a club swim team is important to non-varsity swimmers on campus. “A few years ago, Andrew Westfall (created) Michigan club swimming, SWAM, for people like us who want to continue to swim in college but aren’t necessarily able to swim on the DI team at Michigan,” said Soobert. “We have turned it into more than just a swim team. We have turned it into a community, a family, we have all sorts of social events and all sorts of meets throughout the year.” Soobert said the team, despite not being officially affiliated with the University, has competitively represented the University successfully this past year. “We compete on a national level every year. Last year we placed top 30 out of over a hundred teams,” Soobert said. “We are pretty competitive even though we have only been around for
and enrollments in ASL courses have been robust since then,” Badgley said. “In the RC, we are in the process of reviewing longterm plans for all of our academic programs in light of enrollment trends, faculty availability, and resources.” According to the Modern Language Association’s most recent report on United States higher education enrollments in languages other than English, ASL is the third most studied language following Spanish and French. Berwanger said the limited number of ASL professors is a nationwide issue and Shipley noted ASL differs from most other languages taught because of its high student demand and low supply of professors and courses. Even compared to other less frequently taken languages, Shipley said, ASL has a long waitlist. “There’s obviously some languages that most people take that have endless sections and that don’t have waitlists because there are endless sections and endless professors,” Shipley said. “Then there are other languages that have the same issue where the programs are really small, but ASL differs because of
that waitlist. There’s just a higher demand for it.” Badgley said the waitlist signifies growing interest from students in both ASL and supporting marginalized communities. She also praised the studentled aspect of the petition. “We are aware of the strong interest from students in having more courses in ASL and applaud the activism behind this petition,” Badgley wrote. Dentistry student Joseph Samona wrote in an email to The Daily his experience as a deaf student at the University has been positive with regards to accommodation and interpreters. “My experience at U of M has been great,” Samona wrote. “I was born profoundly deaf and I grew up with American Sign Language. At U of M, I have been using ASL interpreters for my education and having these kinds of accommodations play a big role in my education.” While Samona has not taken ASL courses at the University, he said other students he knows who have taken it have enjoyed delving deeper into the language and culture.
Dearborn Committee. The committee will receive reports and data on the finances, enrollment, student success, diversity and other factors regarding the Flint and Dearborn campuses. It will also report regularly to the board and meet with both campus chancellors. “After holding town halls and each of us (The Regents) having meetings with different stakeholders of the two campuses, we feel it’s important to establish this standing committee,” Behm said. The board approved several construction projects to update facilities and infrastructure on campus. One approved resolution is a $145 million addition to the Bob and Betty Beyster Building to expand facilities for the computer science program and provide a new location for the School of Information. Other approved resolutions include a $4.8-million renovation of Hutchins’ Hall Auditorium 100, and a $39-million design for the proposed Dean Road Transportation Facility to provide the infrastructure for bus transportation equipment. Bernstein commented on the resolutions to expand the Bob and Betty Beyster Building
five years.” Engineering junior Robbie Amori, co-president of SWAM, explained why SWAM is pursuing club status so persistently. “We want to be able to represent the University to our fullest potential,” Amori said. “We are currently representing them at the national level. We would like to do it in a more official capacity by wearing the block ‘M’. It would also be great to have other side-benefits, like using the natatorium and to host meets for club funds.” Amori said SWAM has been told they are unable to achieve club status due to their lack of resources. “I think one of the things that they say is that they can only support so many programs at a time,” Amori said. “Which is one reason why they won’t let us become sports status because they don’t have enough ‘resources,’ is the word they say.” Hanna explained why some organizations are not offered club status by the Club Sports Program. “Typically the reason that clubs are not offered sponsorships when they have applied is because there are (other) clubs that have a need that best matches what we have available at that time,” Hanna said. “So it’s not that they’re being denied, it’s that they are not being offered.” Reporter Sofia Urban can be reached at urbanso@ umich.edu and sports writer Rose Cramton can be reached at rcramton@umich.edu “I have not taken any courses but I know few students that did,” he wrote. “They love learning ASL because it is a unique and creative language. They also got a chance to be involved with the Deaf community where they can experience the Deaf culture.” Samona said he supports the petition and believes it will positively impact all students at the University. “I think the need to expand the ASL program is important for the University of Michigan,” Samona wrote. “There are many students that have shown strong interest in ASL and this will be a wonderful opportunity for them to learn ASL and the Deaf culture.” LSA junior Zachary Layle is president of the ASL Club, an organization bringing together hearing, deaf and hard of hearing people from the University and the Ann Arbor community to learn and practice ASL. Layle agreed that RCASL 100’s long waitlist, along with the course sequence having only one hearing professor, limits learning opportunities for interested students. While he considered
Friday, February 21, 2020 — 3 and construct the Dean Road Transportation Facility, saying that future capital projects should line up with the University’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2030. “For every major capital project, I’d like to see U-M’s architecture, engineering and construction team … provide a total life cycle analysis for a net-zero building,” Bernstein said. “What it will demonstrate is while the cost of a net-neutral building is probably larger up front, the longer-term cost of that building … is competitive or very likely cheaper.” In a statement released shortly after the meeting, the Climate Action Movement praised the decision to freeze future fossil fuel investments while reiterating their demand for full divestment from fossil fuel companies. “While this is a major victory for the fossil fuel divestment movement, it is only the first step,” the statement reads. “It is not enough to refrain from making additional divestments—the University must commit to divest the $1 billion it currently has invested in the fossil fuel industry.” At the conclusion of the Board of Regents meeting, 15 public
commenters had the opportunity to directly address University of Michigan administrators. Eleven of the comments touched upon issues of University climate policy. The remainder spoke about a lack of affordable housing, support for international students and equity across all three U-M campuses. Rackham student Akash Shah, co-director of Climate Blue, read from the letter the organization sent to the board and Schlissel last week reflecting on experiences from the 25th United Nations’ meeting of the Conference of Parties and recommending carbon neutrality by 2030. Shah called for the University to recognize the global impact it has on climate change. “As a citizen of Kenya and India, I can personally attest to the disproportionate effect of climate change on the global south, and U-M needs to reiterate its global commitment through local action,” Shah said.
GRADE-IN From Page 1
In 2017, the University and GEO reached a contract agreement addressing pay caps on mental health services, formation of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Graduate Student Student Assistant positions and greater protections for international graduate students. This contract was the result of 27 bargaining sessions, multiple sit-ins and threats of a walk-out. Gauld said the purpose of the grade-in was both a response to HR’s proposal rejections and its impact on the future of graduate student workers. “We see it really as an opportunity to make the labor that graduate students do visible,” Gauld said. “We’ve been asked more than once at the table what does the University get in return for the asks that we’re making, which is a bit of a trick question because they’re already getting our labor. So we want to make sure that it’s clear what exactly that labor is, how much we put into this University, and that our asks do not outweigh the work that we do.” Rackham student Sumeet Patwardhan, co-chair of the GEO Bargaining Committee, attended the grade-in and spoke to The Daily about how GEO’s purpose and values impacted him. “When I first became a graduate student here, I didn’t even know what a union was, that’s where I was sort of coming from into this process,” Patwardhan said. “I just felt it was very empowering to know that I wouldn’t have to fight for my rights and protections as a graduate student worker all by myself but that there is this union that would be collectively fighting for us.”
GEO President Emily Gauld, a Rackham student, spoke to The Daily before the grade-in and described GEO’s disappointment with the University’s rejection of proposals for promoting equitable and accessible working conditions. “We spent many hours answering questions about the language and trying to start problem-solving,” Gauld said. “They were really trying to understand the root of the problem we were getting at, we were trying to articulate that as clearly as possible. We were hoping their counters would provide us with some sense of how they saw we could address the problem or where they could meet us in the middle. And to get rejections on everything felt like all of those conversations were essentially wasted.” In an interview with The Daily in Dec. 2019, University President Mark Schlissel said he values unions and believes in negotiating to find reasonable solutions all parties are satisfied with. “What unions do with employers is they negotiate,” Schlissel said. “So demands aren’t negotiation — they say ’you must do this.’ The idea is to spend time understanding each others’ goals and figuring out which ones are the most important, since no one ever gets everything they want in a negotiation, and then you sit down and work. And it’s hard work. And they’ll meet a couple of times a week for many months trying to figure out what’s a win-win. There are some things GEO is going to want that they just aren’t going to get. There are other things they want that are reasonable and they will get them.”
taking the University’s ASL courses, Layle ultimately decided to learn through the club, which he said is a decision he is happy with. “I’ve learned an immense amount just from going to meetings and just practicing when I can,” he said. “I mean I’ll walk down the street and see a chair and I’ll fingerspell for ‘chair,’ so just little things like that. And I’ve grown immensely from where I started.” Layle is also supportive of the petition and has circulated it through the club in hopes of getting more professors and resources for ASL. “I think it’s awesome,” Layle said. “I’ve sent it out to any other groups I’m involved in and I said, ‘Hey, please just sign this. This is very important.’ Because it desperately needs to be expanded and even one more teacher would immensely improve the program at the University.” While Shipley’s main goal with the petition is to shorten RCASL 100’s long waitlist, she also wants the University to allocate more resources to the program. She hopes to eventually see a minor in ASL through the program.
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
Read more at MichiganDaily.com “The biggest concern is eliminating that waitlist,” Shipley said. “But with that comes a huge bottleneck effect, like if you get all these students off that Intro 100 or 101 waitlist, then what are you going to do when you get to 102? So ideally we’d like to add more sections of each course, really each level of ASL. The end goal would be an ASL minor, which doesn’t exist right now.” Layle believes the University can improve both the resources and attention it gives to ASL and the ASL program. Layle stressed the importance of treating ASL as its own language and allocating the necessary resources to it “I think a lot of hearing people see ASL and deaf culture as not its own language,” Layle said. “They don’t put it on the same level as they do say Spanish or Russian or French. It’s got its own culture, it has its own slang, it has its own grammar. It’s its own language and it deserves to be treated like every other language.” Reporter Sonia Lee can be reached at sonialee@umich. edu.
Opinion
4 — Friday, February 21, 2020
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ARJUN LAMA | COLUMNIST
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FROM THE DAILY
Resist disillusionment in the wake of the Iowa caucus
O
n Feb. 3, millions of Americans, including many in the University of Michigan community, tuned in to watch the first votes of the 2020 election cycle. The Iowa caucus was supposed to be a night that provided clarity in the crowded race for the Democratic nomination and demonstrated Democrats’ first step in their quest to win back the White House. Instead, Iowa provided more questions than answers as an under-tested app severely delayed the results of the caucuses and underscored concerns about Iowa’s spot as the nation’s first primary.
Results from the caucuses were delayed by almost 24 hours as a hastily built app, meant to expedite the tabulation process, made reporting more difficult. Iowa Democratic Party spokesperson Mandy McClure clarified that “the app did not go down,” but users at the precincts said they were unable to connect to the app’s central server, and phone lines were so busy that in some cases the workers were on hold for more than an hour. Iowa is not the only state pushing to implement technology into the election cycle. West Virginia, Oregon, Colorado, California and Utah are all at different stages of testing new remote voting systems, despite strong warnings from leading cybersecurity experts. However, the decision to use an app in the Iowa caucus showed a significant failure in judgement. The app was the result of a $60,000 contract with a software company called Shadow Inc., and was put together in a matter of months. In such a critical and contested election year, it’s shocking the Iowa Democratic Party decided to implement an untested, vulnerable app that could have jeopardized the integrity of the election. The fiasco in Iowa has also reignited the debate over Iowa’s role as the first state to vote in the primaries and the caucus system in general. Since 1972, Iowa has been the first state to vote for both the Democratic and Republican nominees. Being first gives Iowa outsized influence in the nomination process, as well as a massive financial windfall, with campaigns spending on everything from TV ads to hotel rooms. Additionally, there are some valid concerns about the fairness and accessibility of the caucuses. Just as the outdated nature of the caucus system has been mentioned across the country, many voters have voiced their desire for a more representative state to begin the primary process as the Democratic Party stands to represent a wide swath of minority groups. 90 percent of Iowans are white, much higher than the national average of 60 percent. The Iowa caucus is also held on a specific night at a specific time with no exceptions. There are no early voting or absentee ballots for the caucus, and people are forced to spend hours participating in them. This can
be difficult for parents, minimum wage workers, students and people with disabilities. This year the Iowa Democratic Party tried to address these problems by adding caucuses in places like nursing homes while implementing satellite caucuses — including one in Ann Arbor. However, questions still remain about whether the caucus system should continue, given that its structural inflexibility can be a barrier to many voters. States like Nevada, which also has a caucus, have taken even more proactive steps to address these problems by instituting early voting and putting caucus sites in casinos to give casino workers the chance to vote. It is changes like these that could help make nominating a candidate more fair and democratic.
The Democrats cannot afford any more mistakes in the coming primaries. With the Iowa caucus debacle remaining unresolved, the Democratic National Convention (DNC) head was forced to call for a recanvass, causing the race to remain in largely the same place as it was before voting began in the immediate aftermath. Despite the claims that Iowa is unrepresentative and that it only has 41 delegates up for grabs, its significance has persisted. Iowa has long been used to filter the field and narrow the choices for the following primary states, and for Iowa to signal to the rest of the country which candidates have support and momentum that can be used in the general election. The quintessential Iowa success story comes from 2008, when thenSenator Barack Obama increased his profile by winning 37.6 percent of the vote in Iowa, a result which propelled him through the primaries and into the White House. While candidate Pete Buttigieg, Mayor of South Bend, Ind., ultimately boosted his profile by winning one more delegate than Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., the results and delegate allocation shifted multiple times in the days
following the caucuses and both Buttigieg and Sanders have since asked for a recount of select caucus sites. Buttigieg and Sanders each declaring victory eliminated the opportunity for a clear frontrunner to take hold before the race moved on to the New Hampshire primary on Feb. 11. While New Hampshire only has 24 delegates in contention, its results stood in as the Iowa of the 2020 election, helping determine which candidates have support as the primary schedule heats up — again, Buttigieg and Sanders. The failure of the Iowa caucus leaves the race crowded for voters making decisions in early voting states, such as California, where 15 million ballots were sent by mail the same day Iowa voting commenced. The results of the primaries moving forward will be increasingly called into question and dragged out due to the failure of Iowa out of the gate. The Democrats cannot afford any more mistakes in the coming primaries and caucuses. On Super Tuesday, one-third of the total delegates are available, as 16 states and territories will take to the ballot booths. A crowded field of candidates into New Hampshire and a close race into Super Tuesday hinders the decisiveness that the primaries are meant to show to voters moving into a pivotal year for the Democrats. The DNC’s failure in the Iowa caucus reflects the need for precision and care moving forward. The purpose of early primaries and caucuses is to signal to the coming states which candidates have widespread support. We, as The Michigan Daily Editorial Board, call for greater transparency from the DNC and more careful consideration of how the primaries are to be carried out. Through this, we can ensure the voices of the nation are heard and represented equally. Despite the setback in the Iowa caucus, we encourage our readers to remain politically informed and not to let this disappointment deter them from exercising their political vote. Further, we also urge voters to resist becoming disillusioned with the electoral system and to continue to stay engaged and up to date ahead of the Michigan primary on March 10.
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T
Shaping the power of cinema
he 92nd Academy Awards mark another year of cinema in an ever-changing social climate, one that does not embrace the cinematic experience in the same way it used to. For this reason, two of the Best Picture nominees provide particular interest in this day and age. Both Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman” and Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” are films that attempt to restore themes of old cinema. For Scorsese, “The Irishman” represents a final collaboration between the classical acting legends Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci. “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” attempts to recreate the old Hollywood style of film and demonstrate its impact in the culture of the film’s period. Today, with the rise of short-form entertainment and the increased “Netf lix culture” of college students, can cinema truly impact our lives like it used to, and moreover, should it? Over Winter break, while bickering over which movie to watch together one night, my family, mainly under the jurisdiction of my parents, chose “The Irishman.” I spent the first twenty minutes on my phone, having made up my mind that a three and a half hour movie starring actors all over 70 could only be a snoozefest. Throughout the course of the film, however, I became fascinated with the plot and particularly the mood. Having never watched “Goodfellas,” “The Godfather” or any other prominent mob movie, I was enthralled by the loud personalities of the characters shown and the stark contrast in theirs to any sort of life I had lived or witnessed before. Films like “The Irishman” make one question the values that are drilled into
us early in our lives about the ramifications of morally unjust actions, what true loyalty means in friendships and how much we can judge others for living societally frowned upon lifestyles. Frank Sheeran, as portrayed in the movie, fits the description of someone engaging inpsychopathic behavior on the surface. He killed men for a living without thinking twice about some of their deaths. Yet De Niro is able to demonstrate an extreme rationality in the character in that his ultimate goal is to provide for his family and only kill when he has to, without celebrating the deaths of his victims. His decisions throughout the movie are to protect those he loves and they ultimately backfire toward the end of his life, when he ends up alone as a consequence of the violent actions of his past. He is forced to ask if it was all really worth it. Too often we watch movies as an isolated experience, nothing more than an extended amusement park ride, meant for pure entertainment over the course of a few hours. However, movies often provide clues about society and the state of the culture at their time. The movies that are able to transcend time, however, have the ability to shape society and set its course for the future rather than ref lect what society is. Cinema is also unique in that it can open up new lenses and perspectives on life in ways no other medium can. Nowhere else can you live through someone else like in the theater and understand their struggles, motivations and most of all emotions — without driving to the closest theater and buying a movie ticket, that is. Literature and
physical artwork can paint a picture in a viewer’s head, but there is something to be said for the ability to see a thousand mixed emotions in a character’s expression and, in a literal sense, see the picture the creator of the work intended. As the rising generation, our ability to propel the future depends on an ability to see the present clearly from different points of view. Cinema can provide the opportunity to do that, and actually do so in a way that captures attention and passion, if we have the patience to let it. By showing interest and appreciation for cinema that moves culture forward, artists with revolutionary ideas can be given a platform and continue to benefit the world around us. In the world of shortform media — from news on Twitter to communication via Instagram memes — it is easy to get sucked into the short-term rush of instant entertainment. While this form of media consumption may have some effect on society, much of the time there is little thought given to what those effects may be. As a result such mediums do not drive us forward as a people. Netf lix was the only company willing to fund “The Irishman,” an indication of the course that today’s audience is paving. So as I write this article from the sudden all-knowing position of a college student who has seen one Robert De Niro movie, I end with an equally pompous, but nonetheless true, reminder to my peers: Art can only continue to shape the world around us if we allow it to. Arjun Lama can be reached at arjunl@umich.edu.
EASHETA SHAH | COLUMN
A
Stop and smell the coffee
s a self-proclaimed coffee enthusiast, I’ve always had an incessant curiosity for coffee shops — the people, the atmosphere and of course, the coffee. The process of examining the menu of roasts, consulting a barista to validate my decision and sipping my selection over good conversation is my definition of heaven. Unfortunately, as school gets busier, heaven becomes a little harder to recreate, and good conversation is replaced by a hurried “please,” “thank you” and “have a good one.” Coffee culture as a whole has taken on a new meaning where the only connection we’re seeking is the WiFi. College has taken my caffeine intake to new heights, and I’ve learned to embrace my routine, from the cup that starts my day off to the unapologetic second and third coffee runs at the UMMA Cafe or Espresso Royale. I’m hardly alone in my tendencies: Nearly 22 percent of all college student beverage consumption is coffee, and of students who drink “pick-meup” beverages, 52.4 percent prefer coffee. Whether it’s staying holed up at a corner table of the ever-crowded Starbucks on State Street for hours on end or running in and out of the store gulping down a Venti-sized drink, trips to the coffee shop have simply become an intermediate between the person and their beverage of choice. Even the role of baristas has been diminished to acting as a middleman. As if headphones and hectic schedules weren’t enough to distract customers from engaging with their surroundings, mobile orders have granted us a far more convenient way to minimize any face to face interactions. With the introduction of mobile orders now making up about 30 percent of all Starbucks transaction payments, any potential barista-customer conversation has come to a screeching halt. I too, the coffee aficionado myself, am guilty of giving in to the quick swipe on my phone, too preoccupied with chemistry homework to be bothered to walk the five
steps toward the register. It took me several occurrences of picking up the wrong drink and being envious of the occasional customer who was on a firstname basis with their favorite barista to realize that I have a problem — never with my intake of course, but with my method. In all the madness that is college, I realized I’ve been cheating myself out of the coffee culture I was once so excited about experiencing here in Ann Arbor. I’m surrounded by coffee joints at every corner, but there’s something missing: I’m in the coffee shop, but I’m not all there. None of us are. We’re too engrossed in textbooks to notice the barista calling our order. We’re too consumed by deadlines to hear the girl standing in front of us ask, “Is anyone sitting there?” The campus coffee shops have become a place where heads are down, and people are not really people. But this is not how coffee shops are meant to function. Coffee shops are an example of what urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg considers a third place. Third places, like bars, bookstores and cafes, are meant to be an escape from work and home life. They foster a sense of community, spark lively conversation and encourage creative interaction between the people inhabiting the space. Per this theory analyzed in Oldenburg’s book, “The Great Good Place,” people must find their balance between their domestic place, their productive place and their socially inclusive place. Leading a healthy lifestyle suggests harmonizing these “three realms of experience.” For me, that means Mary Markley Residence Hall, the Chemistry Building and Espresso Royale. Oldenburg emphasizes the importance of differentiation between these three spaces, and therein lies the problem. Markley Hall becomes so socially inclusive it seems to expel a need for the third place. The long hours of backto-back lab, lecture and study group make the Chemistry Building seem too much like home. And the coffee shop run
ends up becoming a quick fuel recharge of the exhausting twomodel system Oldenburg warns against. College students have become so reliant on coffee as a source of caffeine that we lose sight of the rich culture coffee shops provide us with. We forget that it can serve as a third place, as it does in so many countries. A coffee shop in the Netherlands would mock the “to-go” order endlessly. There, caffeination occurs gradually, in small sips, surrounded by good company — which sounds much more relaxing than downing a triple shot in the Hatcher Library reference room staring at an outline for a nine-page philosophy paper. Third places are meant to serve as a leveler where inclusivity thrives, where workers and non-working individuals tread the same ground and where the purpose of gathering is “pure sociability.” The characteristics of third places are so vividly present in coffee shops, if only we had the time to notice them and engage in them. Of course, I understand that as college students, we don’t have the luxury of being able to spend two hours over a dark roast pour-over, reminiscing about life. We’re busy, and for us, coffee is just a means. The constant need for a pick-me-up is ingrained as part of the college student experience, but it’s time we reclaim our favorite coffee shops on campus. It’s time we reinstate coffee culture as a sitdown experience. We need that third place to unwind from our busy lives, so why not seek out that relief in something that is already so heavily incorporated into daily routine? Next time you’re having an “I need coffee in an IV moment,” take a second to engage in that superfluous conversation with the barista. Glance up from your textbooks once in a while and notice the regulars. Peel away from your laptop screen and admire your home away from home. For your own sake, stop and smell the coffee. Easheta Shah can be reached at shaheash@umich.edu.
Arts
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Friday, February 21, 2020 — 5
FILM REVIEW
What ‘Portrait of a Lady on Fire’ says about queer cinema ANDREW WARRICK Daily Arts Writer
Coming out of the theatre after “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” I felt a little disappointed. The plot had seemed right up my alley: in the late 1700s, a painter (Noémie Merlant, “Heaven Will Wait”) and her subject (Adèle Haenel, “Suzanne”), an aristocratic woman about to be married to a stranger, fall in love. The performances were great from the start, which was a good sign. Both Marianne, the artist, and Héloïse, the aristocrat, are played wonderfully by Merland and Haenel. The cinematography is immaculate too, perfectly capturing a rustic French villa that lies next to a sparkling sea. Still, for most of the movie, I was bored out of my skull. We never learn much about the two characters, except that one is a painter and the other is an aristocrat who doesn’t want to get married. Certain questions that more conventional movies would address, such as what it’s like growing up LGBTQ+ in a hostile time, are thrown to the wayside for understated scenes where little is said. Mostly, characters spend time walking on the beach, painting, looking at paintings, and making out. I wasn’t sure what these women saw in one another, or what they got out of their relationship. It’s hard to care about them without knowing what’s at stake. The movie plays out like a long, hazy daydream about two 1700s-era women I knew little about.
There are moments that blow past this subdued temporal distance, especially the titular scene: a black dress burns while the woman wearing it stares intently into the camera. In another, a maid discovers she is pregnant and frankly admits she wants an abortion, blowing through usual “period piece” stereotypes. These piercing scenes were few and far between, though, and mostly I was underwhelmed. This is a shame, because one of my favorite genres is LGBTQ+ cinema. Why didn’t “Portrait” affect me like “Moonlight,” “Call Me by Your Name” and “Love Simon” did? On my way home from the movie, I realized what was lacking: joy. In “Moonlight,” Chiron discovers his sexuality through a moonlit kiss on a Californian beach. In “Call Me By Your Name,” Elio and Oliver first kiss in a whispering grass field under a shady tree. The kiss in “Love Simon” is atop a ferris wheel during a fireworks show, while an entire high school cheers the couple on. Even “The Favourite” had joyous (albeit deranged) love between Queen Anne and her female suitors. The ending of “Portrait” has no crazy leap of faith, no unexpected, perfect lovers’ reunion and there’s no ferris wheel to be found. It ends sadly, and I wonder why these two women let things end without putting up any kind of fight. Yet is it realistic of me to ask for a happy ending for characters who lived in a time when LGBTQ+ identities were ignored, marginalized and directly attacked? Perhaps I’ve been a tad spoiled by the
I wasn’t sure what these women saw in one another, or what they got out of their relationship. It’s hard to care about about them without knowing what’s at stake.
NEON
recent f lourishing of queer cinema. While essential, and utterly triumphant, the cinematic mainstream’s embrace of LGBTQ+ characters has been a tad one-dimensional. Take two recent examples from this past summer. In “Rocketman,” Elton John goes through a tumultuous journey of fame and self
Love is a spectrum, and queer cinema should reflect that.
discovery that culminates with the perfect American husband and kids. In “Booksmart,”
Amy’s first time ends with her puking on the girl, but she still somehow gets her phone number by the movie’s end. Love is a spectrum, and queer cinema should ref lect that. It can be sublime, but more often than not it has shades of frustration, confusion and, yes, boredom. Endings aren’t always happy, and beginnings aren’t either. Would it really be realistic for a film set in the 1700s to have two women find perfect, unrestrained happiness in a relationship deemed a mortal sin by their society? In that situation, I’d be hesitant too. While it’s been great to revel in the colorful, excited sense of romance in recent LGBTQ+ movies, more complex fare must be encouraged too. Other countries, time periods and experiences should be brought to the table, and every queer film is valid no matter the amount of fireworks. In retrospect, I’m glad “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” took such a realistic approach, and look forward to seeing it again.
BOOK REVIEW
‘Darling Rose Gold’ has a smart premise but falls flat TATE LAFRENIER Daily Arts Writer
As enticing as a story about a manipulative mother who systematically poisons her daughter for years sounds, Stephanie Wrobel’s debut “Darling Rose Gold” manages to add an even more interesting wrinkle to this premise. It’s likely you’ve heard of Munchausen syndrome by proxy (MSBP): A child’s caretaker fabricates illnesses to make the child seem sick. This form of child abuse is a focal point of depictions such as HBO’s documentary “Mommy Dead and Dearest” and Hulu’s “The Act.” For the most part, such narratives culminate with the revelation that leads to the caretaker’s arrest, but Wrobel states that her novel “begins where most novels … end — with the reveal upfront.” Patty Watts has been in prison for five years, and the novel begins with the day of her release, when her daughter, Rose Gold Watts, takes her in, seemingly forgiving her for poisoning her for eighteen years of her life. The reader experiences the present through Patty’s eyes, and the five years during which she’s imprisoned through Rose Gold’s eyes, and as these two narratives come closer to intertwining, the question remains: Why would Rose Gold give her mother shelter? Wrobel draws out the suspense of this question well, and the uncertainty of the answer carries much of the novel’s momentum. But not effectively enough. I was struck by how poor the novel’s attempt
was at creating a compelling and realistic on the back for pissing off the reader with her abusive mother, and when half the novel willful obstinance. All this being said, I had no devolves into disengaging and inauthentic first- problem with Patty’s actions themselves. Her person narration, it’s difficult to take the story character would have been better served by seriously. The concept of “show don’t tell” is subtlety and humanity. She should have been nonexistent here. Patty is reduced to a hand- a character who the reader wants to hate, but wringing caricature, comically thinking to can’t quite hate because the reader understands her on some level. herself about how she can In contrast to this, the manipulate her daughter eponymous character, Rose again, “She’s not the only Gold, does add an intriguing Watts capable of forming a level of depth to Wrobel’s plan … Now I know her weak “Darling Rose debut. Ironically, Wrobel spot: Adam,” (Rose Gold’s Gold” stated that her biggest infant son). Patty’s character difficulty in writing the lacks nuance, her reasoning Stephanie Wrobel novel was “getting Rose is simplistic. While MSBP Berkley Gold’s voice right.” While is a real phenomenon, and Rose Gold suffers from there have certainly been March 17, 2020 some of the artless oneindividuals similar to Patty dimensionality Patty does, Watts, Wrobel’s novel lacks her character arc throughout an awareness that such the novel is both engaging individuals are still human, and realistic. For the most and should still be portrayed part, satisfactory character as such. Regardless of the morality of a character’s development is hindered by the time spent on actions, they should still be sincere. Patty her mother’s character, and if more time were is jarring, not because of the audacity of to be invested in her character (and less in her her actions, but because of the lack of depth mother’s), the novel would be considerably underlying them. Few people explicitly declare better. Regardless of these caveats, Rose Gold and acknowledge the intentions, biases and effectively inspires pity and dread as the reader motivations behind their every thought. Wrobel witnesses her embark on an increasingly toxic hamfistedly pushes the narrative that Patty trajectory. Her struggle to break free from Watts is one-dimensionally bitter, vengeful and Patty’s legacy, even as Rose Gold is haunted by hateful. Every other page, Patty pats herself similarities she shares with her mother, is tragic
and sobering. Though a few of the similarities Rose Gold begins to show are somewhat incongruent with the rest of her established character, she remains a grim reminder of how children of abuse struggle to break free long after they escape the abuser. Thus, much of the suspense is built upon whether or not Rose Gold is able to mature before her path is cemented. One of “Darling Rose Gold’s” biggest strengths is the novelty of the premise. Though MSBP is commonly depicted in media, Wrobel portrays a stage of headline-making criminal cases that is often ignored: the aftermath. Her novel shows the unpleasant reality that, often, after justice is served, a happy ending isn’t a certainty, and recovery isn’t easy. The novel illustrates one of the many shortcomings of the punitive American criminal justice system, which often accounts for neither the victim’s nor the perpetrator’s welfare following the verdict. It’s a relevant issue to consider, and the intrigue of Rose Gold’s emotional transformation throughout the novel demonstrates the potential for such narratives. Though the novel’s third act was by far the strongest, with a page-turning climax and an unexpectedly somber ending, the same could have been accomplished if the novel had focused solely on Rose Gold’s recovery and struggles. It’s unfortunate that so much of “Darling Rose Gold” was defined by what could have been, but the novel struggled to fully develop fruitful emotional connections with the reader, and what resulted was a so-so character study of a warring mother and daughter.
DAILY DIY COLUMN
Making DIY music work in Southeastern Michigan RYAN COX
Daily DIY Columnist
DIY can be difficult. Finding venues for your band to play can be a nearly impossible task, especially when you’re trying to perform outside of your hometown. Frantically reaching out to strangers or friends that might be loosely connected to a scene can be very hit-or-miss, and pay-to-play venues rarely work out in your favor. However, for bands looking to play Southeastern Michigan, it might be easier than you think. Outta This World Booking is a group that aims to help smaller, self-run bands find shows around Michigan. “I’ve been playing shows since the end of high school, and I grew up going to shows,” Pat Ray, the founder of the booking group, said in a phone interview with The Daily. “I was booking shows regularly for a couple years, sort of as a one-off thing where I would help out a friend or someone would message me and say that they could return the favor of booking my band.” “But since graduating college, and working and being more quote unquote adult, I felt like I could make this all a bit more organized than the way I was doing it. And then, about a year ago, in the spur of the moment, I just decided to make a Facebook page and come up with a name that I can use as a banner to promote shows.” From there, Ray recruited some friends and started Outta This World Booking, with the mission of helping out the local music community. For many groups without a manager or a record
label, touring can be a daunting task. He added,“It’s hard to be like, ‘I just started this band. I want to play a show in New York. I don’t know anyone in New York … how the hell do I do that?’ And most of the time, you just have to take a couple shots in the dark.” But Ray hopes to make this process easier for bands traveling through Southeastern Michigan. “Touring is always hit or miss — sometimes it’s
It’s hard to be like, ‘I just started this band. I want to play a show in New York. I don’t know anyone in New York ... how the hell do I do that?’ a Tuesday night and there’s like, ten people there,” Ray said. “The difference I try to make is that when these bands come through, I want to make sure they feel welcome, and that they’re getting a worthwhile experience.” Since its founding, Outta This World has expanded into a team of eight or nine individuals, taking more of a do-it-together approach. “I don’t really think of it as mine anymore,” Ray said. “I have a team of wonderful people that …
more than pull their weight.” Ray said that in the future, they’re hoping to expand their base with more like-minded and passionate people, and bring more consistency to their shows. The group is also trying to branch out with new events and festivals. “We’re also trying to do some more cool projects,” Ray told me. “We recently did a new event called New Year, New Music, where we had a bunch of artists submit demos to us, and then we picked the top ten of these artists to perform at the Loving Touch. We recorded all of these performances, and will be releasing them later on this year.” Setting up a show can be pretty chaotic. The process consists of “a lot of frantic messaging,” according to Ray. Bands constantly reach out to the group in an effort to find a show in the area. After checking out their music, Ray said the group will also make sure that the band doesn’t have any history of unfriendly behavior. “A big part of DIY is the ethical and moral beliefs that are inherent to this community,” Ray said. “We don’t really think that bands with drastic differences in those areas would fit very well in our community.” Once the booking group has a band they’re excited about, they need to find a venue and local support for the band. Since a good chunk of the members on the team have played frequently at venues in the area, the group is at the point now where they can find a venue or house show contact point quickly in order to get the show set up. The next step is reaching out to artists to play along
with the touring band. “Something that I, and I think every booker could be better at is … when you’re setting up a bill, making sure that it’s not just an all-white-dude show, you know?” Ray said. “We want to make sure we’re giving a voice to the more marginalized communities.” From there, the group is responsible for promoting the show with fliers and Facebook events and making sure the show runs smoothly the day of. Since being exposed to DIY in southeastern Michigan almost four years ago (at a show Ray was playing, no less), I’ve really been fortunate enough to see it grow as much as it has because of people that care as much as Ray does. “It’s really just a very inspiring community,” Ray told me. “I’ve become friends with people all throughout the country because of this community. And it’s awesome.”
Upcoming DIY Shows: Harvey Waters Dearly Somber Labour Day Weekend Dogsneeze at Buttom & Bella’s Music Box in Ypsilanti on Feb. 22 Deau Eyes Jackamo Craig Garwood at PJ’s Lager House in Detroit on Mar. 1
Arts
6 — Friday, February 21, 2020
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
MUSIC REVIEW
DAILY ENTERTAINMENT COLUMN
‘And It’s Still Alright’ is Looking back at the brutal stripped-back and cliche ending to ‘Animorphs’ KAITLYN FOX Daily Arts Writer
The struggle between producing content that music consumers want to hear and staying true to the artist’s heart is, and has been, the plight of the singer/songwriter since the genre gained traction. It’s the fine balance every artist struggles with until they finally decide to do what every artist before them has done — release an album that strays far from their traditional sound in an attempt to reach new and profound conclusions. Nathaniel Ratecliff embraces this cliche on And It’s Still Alright, his third solo album. He grapples with his recent divorce and the death of a close friend, dedicating the album to processing the loneliness and sorrow of loss. After breaking into the music scene by belting burly soul music with the Night Sweats, Rateliff has swung to the other extreme of Americana, designing this album to be intimate, confessional and cathartic — everything a Night Sweats album is not. Taking a more stripped back approach, the album focuses on Rateliff’s vocals and acoustic guitar while all other elements (soft strings, muted finger snaps and quiet percussion) seem to fall around the centerpiece. “Time Stands” is a collage of ideas — waiting for true love, mourning a failed relationship and the harshness of passing time — which ultimately creates a meaningless yet profound account of losing the one you love. “Time stands in a duel and I stand for you,” Rateliff bellows over an acoustic guitar backed by a high-pitched organ, as if to create a
glimmer of light shining through darkness. The album’s raw aesthetic oddly clashes with its intentions for a close listen. Rateliff mumbles over twangy guitar riffs, producing a vocal performance that lacks any shape or mood. He writes to burrow inward, inviting listeners into that part of himself, but his slurred phrasing and lazy diction contradicts this invitation. The album’s final track, “Rush On,” is one of the more somber tracks on the album, featuring low guitars, a heavy bass drum and Rateliff lethargically stringing together lyrics whose meanings get lost in his long, drawn out mumbling. But Rateliff doesn’t leave the album too somber. The album’s first track, “What A Drag,” is a bluesy, playful tune that contrasts its rather melancholy lyrics. “I left, I left feeling alone / But you can undo it, man,” Rateliff sings with twangy optimism. The album’s title track is also more optimistic in nature with its graceful front porch strides and light, upbeat guitar riffs. While the album is beautiful in its raw, authentic approach to music and the human experience, Rateliff has clearly fallen into the cliche singersongwriter trap. He uses this album to dig deep into his “real emotions,” but takes an exaggerated step away from his retro, soulful sound with the Night Sweats, overemphasizing how this album is supposed to deliver something different than anything he’s ever written before. Despite this misstep, And It’s Still Alright delivers some heavy emotions with grace, and like much of the folk music we hear today, reminds us of how music can pull us out of our pain and suffering.
NEON
IAN HARRIS
Daily Entertainment Columnist
To an elementary school kid with an insatiable thirst for reading, there was no greater joy than going to the school library. In a way, besides the books in your own home or the books you might occasionally buy from a store, the books contained in a library were all that there was. All the books contained in that school library were books you could find easily, checkout and read. Everything beyond those walls was an enigma, out of reach and out of sight. Libraries, by their very nature, exist a few years behind in terms of their book availability. School libraries even more so. Because of this, in the early 2000s when I was growing up, the library at Wines Elementary School still contained many books from the late 90’s. There were dozens upon dozens of “Boxcar Children,” “Goosebumps,” and “Babysitters Club,” but by far the coolest looking books on the shelf were “Animorphs.” With each cover showing a kid turning into an animal and the scary blurbs on the back warning of an impending alien invasion, those books were basically crying out to be read by sci-fi-minded children. Our library had almost every one of them, books 1-53 and a plethora of spinoffs. All except one. The final book in the series, number 54 “The Beginning,” was nowhere to be found. While kids are certainly curious individuals, they don’t quite have the attention span of adults. And while I certainly wondered how the whole thing was supposed to end, this small mystery, along with most of my memories and feelings about Animorphs in general, faded into the dark recesses of my mind, packaged away with memories of the playground and kindergarten. This past summer I while I was interning in LA, I took a weekend trip to Portland, Oregon to visit some old camp friends I hadn’t seen in years. While there, we went to a used bookstore in the city. Lo and behold, while casually looking through the shelves, I stumbled across the entirety of the Animorphs series, including that elusive final chapter. Memories flooding back to me, I decided it was long overdue that I found out how the whole thing wrapped up. I bought the penultimate book as well so I could re-acquaint myself with the story and threw the two 100 pagers in my backpack for the flight home. How little did I know what was awaiting me… You see, it turns out there was a reason why my children’s library didn’t have the final book in this children’s series. While it could be a mighty coincidence, after reading the end I’m left to assume some adult somewhere decided this was too much for kids and removed it from the library. “Animorphs” was a kids series through and through for much of its run. Sudoku Syndication In every book the heroic “Animorphs” (kids who could
turn into animals) would acquire a new “morph” (or animal to turn into), allowing them to solve the problem of the day that usually involved the alien Yeerks who were trying to take over the planet. Nothing much really changed from book to book and the battle with the Yeerks more or less felt like a stalemate designed to last forever and make as much money for publishers as possible. Not so in the last act. In the penultimate novel, Jake, arguably the main character of the series, orders a ton of secondary animorphs to their deaths (all of the animorphs are children, by the way) and then commits an act of genocide by flushing millions of unarmed Yeerks into the cold vacumm of space. Book 53 ends on a cliffhanger, with the conclusion of the war still to come. In 120-page “The Beginning,” the war ends in the second chapter. The rest of the book is about the aftermath. And what a terribly depressing aftermath it is. As the final step in his master plan to defeat the Yeerks, Jake orders his cousin Rachel to her death. Tobias, Rachel’s lover, never forgives Jake and goes to live out the rest of his life in exile. Jake himself suffers from PTSD and is unable to live a normal life, griefstricken over the things he did in order to win the war. It’s a coda at the end of what had been a relatively breezy series about kids battling aliens that takes a sharp turn into major anti-war writing in the last two books. I got off the plane and felt cold and empty inside. In “Animorphs” there is no “Nineteen Years Later,” no “All was well,” no Ewok celebration or fireworks after the funeral of Tony Stark. There is only war and the pain it inflicts upon all those who take part in it, no matter the righteousness of the cause. These are heavy themes, certainly not ones that I would have understood at age 9. But when I got off that plane my mind was totally blown. I wondered what I would have thought if I had read that book all those years ago. I read the penultimate book and never realized it was setting up Jake as a PTSD-stricken genocidal warmonger, so maybe the events of 54 would have gone over my head as well. Or maybe not. Maybe some other kid, years before me, read number 54 and burst into tears, inconsolable until an adult took the book from their hands, locked it in a dungeon, and made sure no Wines Elementary school student would ever read it again. Whatever the case, for a series that I read fifteen years ago to reach across time and move me today, I have no choice but to give my respects. Not everything needs a happy ending because not everything in life has a happy ending. I don’t know what I would’ve thought of this when I was nine, but as a 21 year old with an uncertain future, I tip my hat to K.A. Applegate, Scholastic Books and all the rest. These were books about kids turning into animals to fight slug aliens. There were trading cards and a crappy TV show on Nickelodeon. “The Beginning” had no right to be http://sudoku such a moving end.had no right to be such a moving end.
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Release Date: Friday, February 21, 2020
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
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46 Surfing equipment 47 Hint 48 Dior design 49 Some big box stores 50 Neuters 51 Canadian Thanksgiving mo. 52 Well-used 53 Vagrant 54 “Dang!” 55 Objection
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Sports
Friday, February 21, 2020 — 7
Michigan’s defense begins to fall into place Mentality the key to pinch-hitting success AIDAN WOUTAS Daily Sports Writer
With two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning on Saturday, Michigan was on the cusp of an 8-5 victory over Cal Poly. The bases were loaded when the Mustangs’ Nick Marinconz fired a chopper down the left side off a pitch from freshman right-hander Cameron Weston. For a second, it seemed a tied game may have been in the cards. But junior shortstop Jack Blomgren met the ball where it bounced and rocketed it toward fifth-year senior Matthew Schmidt at first base to end the game. The team’s defensive sharpness, exhibited by Blomgren and Schmidt in that game-ending play, was a useful complement to Weston’s first career save on Saturday. It also demonstrated the likelihood that defense will be a crucial part of Michigan’s winning equation. The Wolverines’ coaching staff has taken an approach that emphasizes the infield defense’s importance to giving pitchers a degree of comfortability and providing the offense with some cover. “That was just the game plan that (pitching coach Chris) Fetter came to all the pitchers with,” junior right-hander Blake Beers said following his start against Cal Poly. “We have a lot of trust in our defense behind us and getting ahead was crucial to beating these hitters.” Blomgren, now an upperclassman and elected as the team’s captain, anchors this season’s reinvigorated defense. Against Cal Poly, Vanderbilt and Arizona State, he managed to extinguish hit after hit with a swipe of his glove. “I really like our infield defense, highlighted by Jack Blomgren,” Michigan coach Erik Bakich said. “I think he’s a star … a tough dude, just a playmaker, and any coach would want to have him.”
ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
Junior infielder Taylor Bump hit a pinch-hit home run Sunday.
JARED GREENSPAN Daily Sports Writer
ALEC COHEN/Daily
Senior shortstop Jack Blomgren fielded the final out in Michigan’s 8-5 win over Cal Poly on Saturday afternoon.
On Sunday evening, his dominance was on full display against the Sun Devils — who are renowned nationwide for their power hitters, like Spencer Torkelson, who was ranked by Baseball America as 2020’s top college prospect. After a leadoff single in the eighth inning, trailing by three runs, Arizona State had its most powerful batters, including Torkelson, on deck. Sophomore reliever Jack White had a daunting task ahead of him. In a play echoing the Wolverines’ final out against Cal Poly, the Sun Devils’ Drew Swift knocked a fast-moving grounder toward a sprinting Blomgren. He then lobbed it straight to sophomore Riley Bertram at second base, who in turn connected to Schmidt at first to secure a double play and largely eliminate Arizona State’s threat. “He’s as good as they come,” junior right-hander Jeff Criswell said. “He’s the heart of the infield and he’s done a great job with (freshman third baseman) Teddy Burton and Riley Bertram to his right and left, both newer guys this year, and helped bring them along.
“As a pitcher, it’s definitely a great feeling to have those guys behind you.” Schmidt, who before this weekend had seen only eight career starts at Michigan with just one last season, seemed right at home as the Wolverines’ new starter at first base. Riding high off his game-winning home run against Vanderbilt on Friday evening, he gelled effectively with his fellow infielders. “Matt Schmidt had been patiently waiting to get his opportunity at first base,” Criswell said. “We saw new guys stepping up, and I think that was kind of the storyline throughout the entire weekend.” Schmidt, for his part, has bought in to Michigan’s defensive emphasis. “With (Nick) Schnabel, our infield coach, we take pride in that,” he said. “I think when one person makes a good play it feeds off to the rest of us … We don’t want our pitchers making any more extra pitches so we try and have their back.” Among the “newer guys” pointed out by Criswell was Danny Zimmerman, who took on
a new role at left field, where over the weekend Michigan’s outfield looked quite different than it did last season. Freshman Clark Elliot started in right field in all four of the weekend’s games, while senior Christian Bullock alternated with junior Jordan Nwogu in center field. Nwogu, whose starts last year were mostly at DH, has spoken of his self-appointed goal to be a great defender. The depth and flexibility of the outfield, especially in light of junior centerfielder Jesse Franklin’s early absence after a skiing incident, will also be an important component of the team’s success. “I like the depth of some of our position players, some of the interchangeable parts, especially in the outfield,” Bakich said. As Michigan works to replace noticeable gaps in its lineup made by departing seniors since last season, the defense will prove necessary to reinforce its efforts. But the importance of defence is by no means a new mindset for the team. Criswell summed it up well. “That’s what we really stress here — defense wins championships.”
Esman, Jimenez step up in second weekend ABBIE TELGENHOF Daily Sports Writer
Every year, the seniors on a team graduate and the freshmen move in. And along with the normal first-year worries, freshman athletes are sometimes expected to fill those senior gaps. For some, it’s a crushing pressure, and they never get the chance to see the field. For Michigan softball, it hasn’t been a problem — specifically for infielder Julia Jimenez and utility player Lauren Esman. With six Wolverine seniors graduating last season, perhaps the largest hole left to fill was former second baseman Faith Canfield’s spot. With multiple candidates for the position, it’s been a tossup between sophomore infielder Morgan Overaitis and Jimenez. But this weekend, it seems the spot was closer to being solidified. Jimenez has quickly established herself as the most viable candidate to start at second base. Starting at the top of the diamond for all four games this past weekend at the ACC/Big Ten
Challenge, Jimenez has continued to prove her ability to perform. She’s meshed well with the rest of the infield, especially with junior shortstop Natalia Rodriguez, her counterpart in the middle. “She came ready to play,” Rodriguez said. “I see that heart in her, she’s got a good IQ of the game. We’ve gelled pretty nicely in the middle, we have a little handshake. Also just on the mental aspect she asks a lot of questions and tries to know the game better. She’s a good second baseman.” Defensively, Jimenez had six putouts and three assists on the weekend. She also contributed to a double play and had no errors. “She fits right in,” Michigan coach Carol Hutchins said. “She’s comfortable, she’s competitive, she just has a great presence on the field. She’s actually a natural leader. We’re looking to find a way to put our bats in the game, but she really gives a good presence out there as a freshman. She doesn’t act like a freshman, I don’t even think she knows she’s
a freshman.” Her ability to play above her grade level and establish herself as a consistent face in the lineup this early in the season, according to Hutchins, will be instrumental in her potential success throughout the rest of the season. As one of the only freshmen seeing consistent defensive playing time, she’s opening up the idea of a breakout freshman season. On the other side of the plate, Esman has shone. On Sunday, the Wolverines found themselves tied for only the second time this season against Louisville. Calling upon Esman, Hutchins entered her into the lineup as a pinch-hitter for Rodriguez. In only her second collegiate at-bat, Esman shocked everyone with a grand slam. Adding four runs to Michigan’s total, and giving her a .500 batting average, the freshman showcased her capabilities at the plate. “Kids like Lauren Esman are only going to get better if they play every pitch,” Hutchins said. “And everybody in that dugout can play every pitch of the game,
and if they wait until the first time they see a pitch is when get their chance they’re not going to be ready. She swung at the first pitch and belted it.” Esman’s potential to step-up with timely hits will be a quality that makes her hard to not put in lineups. If she can continue her success at the plate, that potential becomes a stabilizing and potent reality. “Lauren’s a good hitter, I recruited her because I thought she was our kind of hitter,” Hutchins said. “She’s gotta learn hitting at this game, and pitching at this game, but we’d certainly like to get a lot of these young kids these bats. We’ve got a lot of good young talent, so it is our goal to get them in, it’s just a matter of, in tight games sometimes you go with what you know.” Tight games are bound to happen throughout a season, but being able to look toward younger position players could prove instrumental — not only in the Wolverines’ early-season matchups, but even further down the line.
In the fourth inning of Sunday’s game against Louisville, Michigan had trimmed a two-run deficit to one and was threatening for more with the potential tying run standing at first. Senior infielder Madison Uden was next in line to prolong the rally. But instead of letting Uden bat, Carol Hutchins opted for a change. Michigan’s coach looked down her dugout and summoned junior infielder Taylor Bump to pinch hit. A year ago, the situation would have f lustered an inexperienced Bump. On Sunday, it did anything but. She strode to the plate unfazed and confident, a sense of calmness drowning any would-be nerves. Moments earlier, Bump rode the bench. Suddenly, she was mid-home run trot around the bases, having reclaimed the Wolverines’ lead with a tworun rocket to dead center field. And she had a new mentality to thank. Pinch hitting is, to any softball player’s admission, not easy. It’s a role defined by an element of waiting, of suspenseful uneasiness, that no player welcomes. Starters have the luxury of knowing when their spot in the batting order is up and can prepare accordingly. Bench players, meanwhile, can be thrust into the fire any second. There’s a steep learning curve to such a stark role difference. Bump — now 2-for-2 in pinch-hitting opportunities this season — seems to have found comfort in her role. “The reason they want you to pinch hit in the game is because they actually believe you can get it done in the moment,” Bump said. “That’s something I struggled with last year. When I went in to pinch hit, I was putting too much pressure on myself in the moment. This season, I’m just able to focus on the one pitch and not, ‘What happens if I don’t get a hit on this at-bat, are my opportunities over?’ “Just having confidence no matter what. Owning that role, owning success.” Bench production has been integral to Michigan’s 9-0 start to the season. With a roster littered with skilled hitters, Hutchins has taken to f luidity in an attempt to get the most out of the team’s offensive talent. Hutchins has embraced f lexibility, showing an affinity for mixing and matching, not hesitant to yank starters in favor of substitutes. So far, it’s a tactic that has paid dividends. Freshman utility player Lauren Esman is the latest testament — she followed Bump with a pinchhit home run of her own on Sunday, this one a go-ahead grand slam. “One thing we’ve been doing well is we’re very engaged,”
BY THE NUMBERS Michigan’s bench production
.417
The batting average for Wolverines’ pinch-hitters this season, through 12 at-bats.
Two
Home runs have been hit by Michigan pinch-hitters, each giving the Wolverines the lead.
Eight
Runs have been driven in by Michigan’s bench, helping spur its 9-0 start.
Five
Players have appeared for Michigan as pinch-hitters in its nine games this season.
Hutchins said. “Player for player, not just the kids who are in the game. Everybody has a role. Everybody on the team has a role throughout the game. If you’re not a starter, then you’re either going to be a pinch-runner, pinch-hitter or you may come in as the next pitcher. You just need to be ready.” Being ready is, then again, the most difficult component of coming off the bench. To compensate for the fact that pinch-hitters are unable to thoroughly warm up, Hutchins has encouraged her players to be aggressive at the dish. It’s an approach that Esman put to use with her grand slam coming on the first pitch she saw. “I saw that pitch on video,” Hutchins said. “It was downtown. A lot of kids take that because they just want to see one.” Hutchins, as made clear by her drawn-out pronunciation of ‘see one,’ doesn’t care for merely taking a pitch. Rather, she stresses that her players stay engaged throughout the game by treating each pitch as their own. Everybody in the dugout can play every pitch in a sort of individual simulation. Track it. Make the decision for yourself. Become prepared. Breed confidence. When the real opportunity knocks, taking the first pitch is no longer necessary to get into the f low of the game. “When I’m watching a game, I just think of myself in the box every time somebody gets up,” Esman said. “What would I do with the pitch that is given to them, what things would I do with it — would I take it, would I swing? I just put myself in their shoes.” Staying engaged has become a teamwide initiative, embraced by every player. Success has, in turn, become the expectation. “When you get your chance, you step up,” Hutchins said. “Cause everybody is one pitch away from being a starter.”
They actually believe you can get it done in the moment.
Everybody is one pitch away from being a starter.
ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
Freshman utility player Lauren Esman has helped fill in the gaps left by Michigan’s graduated seniors with strong early performances in her first season.
Sports
8 — Friday, February 21, 2020
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Simpson’s 3-point shooting a boon Johnson growing as a team leader JACOB KOPNICK Daily Sports Editor
For a while now, it’s been evident that Michigan coach Juwan Howard has transformed the Wolverines’ offense to live by one principle: If you’re open, shoot your shot. This wheeling-and-dealing style of play has led to a much faster-paced Michigan team that consistently runs the score up far past season averages of years past. While the philosophy clearly favors the team’s best shooters in its application, any guard who is not known for his prolific shooting ability may be placed in an uncomfortable situation, stuck between wanting to take the open shot and wanting to generate the most highpercentage opportunity for the team. Over the course of this season, this has been the predicament of senior guard Zavier Simpson. Simpson — assuredly not known for his shooting prowess — has been trapped between the decision to take the open 3-point shot or carry on with one of the other options he is more comfortable with, including driving to the hoop or finding another open man. But in an unexpected development, the veteran guard has added an effective 3-point shot to his arsenal, elevating the Wolverines’ offense. The senior made this addition even more apparent on Wednesday, when he hit two threes in the opening four minutes to ignite Michigan’s offense in its eventual 60-52 win over Rutgers. To be sure, this is unlike any development Simpson has shown before. While the team captain has shown progress and diversified his skill set with each year on the team, his shooting was always a sore
spot. For instance, after his sophomore season, Simpson added a now-patented hook shot to his shot selection. Simpson’s main source of offense came around the rim where he would consistently drive to the basket, so this shot — while unconventional — was in the realm of possibility given his skillset. But 3-point shooting? That was somebody else’s problem. Before this season, Simpson was a career 28.5 percent 3-point shooter. But the senior has taken great strides and is shooting a respectable 37 percent from beyond the arc — enough to add a paragraph in the scouting report about his shooting ability. It’s clear, though, that this uptick not only in the amount of 3s taken per game but the amount of makes stems from Howard. “Every shot that goes in is important, but it’s good to see the ball go in,” Howard said. “When they went under the screen, he was wide open. I
wanted him to take it. If he would’ve missed those two shots, I would say take the third shot. Any player, when they see the ball go in, it becomes an ocean sometimes.” The increase in 3-point shots could be attributed to confidence, as Howard suggests — confidence in his own shot selection, confidence from his coaches — or it could be the natural marriage of muscle memory and instincts. After all, the amount of 3-pointers Simpson has taken in practice or just shooting around over the years is essentially an incalculable number. Perhaps that is why this new development is not as surprising to his teammates and coaches. “It’s nothing new, he’s a smart enough player to know where the reads are,” Howard said. “Any time a guy steps off you and you’re able to line it up, massage the ball, line the seams up and shoot it, it’s great. “He was confident enough to take the shot; the ball went in.”
He’s a smart enough player to know where the reads are.
ALEC COHEN/Daily
Senior point guard Zavier Simpson is shooting 37 percent from three this year.
Slaker’s success leading Wolverines TIEN LE
Daily Sports Writer
Jake Slaker finished his lap around the ice with a deadpan look on his face. The senior forward had scored the opening goal Friday at Munn Ice Arena, and made it a point to turn to the Michigan State student section. Until that point, the arena had been moderately loud. The Michigan hockey team likes to joke Munn is a library in terms of atmosphere, but the jeers and chants rained from all around, contrary to its defamation. And after his goal, Slaker faced the student section and brought a single finger to his lips — doing what any person disturbed in a library would do. “Shhh,” Slaker said, silencing the rowdy crowd. He skated away with a smirk. It was a long time coming. He was finally playing with a level of confidence that matched his skill. He was finally producing. The silencer was by all means intended for the attendees, but in a sense, it was aimed at the doubters, the skeptics who were questioning if his production would ever come after a rough first half of the season. Slaker was held without a goal in the first ten games of the year and had just three goals heading into Winter break. Since the break, however, he’s scored nine goals and tacked
on eight assists, bringing the impact he had been expecting to bring all year. And as he’s found success, so has the team. Of the nine games he’s scored in, the Wolverines have won eight — he’s contributing, and Michigan’s reaping the rewards of his hot streak. “When (seniors) get going, it gets the entire team going,” senior forward Will Lockwood said Jan. 21. “When Slakes gets going, he brings a lot of energy in the locker room. I always say our team is doing the best when Slakes is putting the puck in the net.” It’s only natural that when goals are scored, teams find success, but Slaker’s goals in particular bring an unmatched vigor that trickles down through the rest of the team. It’s hard to bring positivity when there’s no production to back it up, even more so
when the team loses. But as he’s scoring, he’s making sure people know. His impact lies not only in the goals he scores, but in the energy he brings after each one. “Energy and energy breeds energy,” senior defenseman Luke Martin said. “Positivity creates positivity, and the more we’ve been able to have success, we’ve just kind of built on it, and it’s snowballing now and you know, we’re rolling. “I think (Slaker and team success) definitely have something to do with each other.” It’s how he built his game, a development that’s jumped since the start of his Wolverines’ career. With some of the best hockey his teammates have ever seen out of him coming in the last couple months, Slaker plays a team-complementary playstyle. He plays in the gritty areas. He cleans up the rebounds. He goes after the physicality of the game with no hesitation. “He’s not forcing anything,” Martin said. “Not to say that he was in the first half, but now he’s taking what’s coming to him and he’s not, you know, forcing anything or cheating the game, he’s playing the game the right way and on the right side and he’s having success.” He’s putting up numbers, but not empty numbers. His goals make an impact, and as he lined up his 12th goal of the season Friday, the final nail in the coffin in the third period, he put his hand to his ear to hear if there were any more complaints. Not a single one could be heard.
When (seniors) get going, it gets the entire team going.
It’s snowballing now and you know, we’re rolling.
KEEMYA ESMAEL/Daily
Senior forward Jake Slaker has scored in three of Michigan’s last four games.
KENT SCHWARTZ Daily Sports Writer
An hour before Wednesday’s game against Illinois, Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico pulled Akienreh Johnson aside. The senior guard — after watching her best friend go down with an injury, the emotional leader of the team follow suit and the best player on the team battle through her own setbacks — had seen her responsibility on the team grow exponentially over the course of the last few weeks. Barnes Arico wanted more from Johnson. Wanted her to take over the emotion on the team, to fight and inspire the rest of her teammates. After the shootaround, Johnson did what she always did — meditate. For fifteen minutes, she went over what Barnes Arico told her, then the plays and her role. She ran over and over what she needed to do in her head, playing out every scenario that could happen in the game. What if she’s hot? What if she’s not? What does she need to do to make sure the team wins? On Illinois’ first possession, both of Michigan’s bigs were pulled up to the top of the 3-point line, and the Fighting Illini point guard, Brandi Beasley, tried to lob a pass over the top of them — and would have connected for an easy two points, if not for Johnson. She sniffed it out before the pass even began, taking two steps and knocking down the pass. “It’s not really about your length, it’s about how hard you’re going to play,” Johnson said. “But I’m not going to lie — my length really does help it out a little bit, gives me a little extra step to get back and get those tips.” It was decided, then, that her game would be defensive. Johnson racked up three steals in the first quarter, often
MILES MACKLIN/Daily
Senior guard Akienreh Johnson has stepped up as a leader in recent weeks.
times being the only thing between a hot Illini and a bucket. While the Wolverines fought to keep in the game, Johnson took every opportunity she could to be the emotional boost they needed. Handing out high fives between plays, congratulating players on the tiniest thing, she did exactly what Barnes Arico needed her to. “She’s stepped up to that challenge,” Barnes Arico said. “I think she understands what it takes to be successful and that’s playing with a certain type of intensity and a certain type of fire. It doesn’t mean just shooting the basketball and scoring a ton of points, but we need to establish ourselves with that kind of fire and energy.” Added sophomore guard Amy Dilk: “She’s grown into a great, great leader, She has the ability to use her voice. It’s tough sometimes, when you’re in the motion of the game, and you’re thinking about 20 different things, you like lose your voice sometimes. … AK mastered that, and her voice on the court, she’s a great leader, she’s a great vocal leader.” And then, despite it seemingly being another game where Johnson would, nearly singlehandedly, limit the production
of an opposing team, she did something that’s becoming more and more common for her: scoring. Her seven first-quarter points led the team, and when it looked like it would be impossible to keep up with Illinois’ explosive shooting, she pump faked, sending a defender flying past her. Her second look clear, the ball soared in an arc from the corner, giving Michigan a big three and narrowing the deficit to five, in a game the Wolverines would eventually win, 80-59. In the five games since sophomore guard Danielle Rauch’s injury — the team’s biggest emotional leader — Johnson has scored in double digits four times. She’s thrown up wild shots that fell despite all laws of physics. She’s made big 3-pointers when the team’s needed her to. She’s sparked easy transition buckets that shifted momentum with her steals. As the season has progressed, Barnes Arico has asked more and more from the captain of her team. To lock down the most potent offensive threat in the conference, to replace the rebounds of the team’s secondbest rebounder, to get better and better. Every time, Johnson has met those expectations.
SLAKE SHOW
SLAKER’S 12 GOALS SPURRING MICHIGAN SLAKER
GAME RESULT
1 GOAL
L, 3-2 VS NEW HAMPSHIRE
1 GOAL
W, 3-1 AT WISCONSIN
1 GOAL, 1 ASSIST
W, 4-1 VS PENN STATE
2 GOALS
W, 4-1 VS FERRIS STATE
1 GOAL
W, 3-1 AT NOTRE DAME
2 GOALS
W, 6-0 AT PENN STATE
1 GOAL, 3 ASSISTS
W, 8-4 VS WISCONSIN
1 GOAL
W, 5-3 VS WISCONSIN
2 GOALS
W, 5-1 AT MICHIGAN STATE
Allison Engkvist / Daily