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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Graduation Edition 2022 — 3
NEWS
24 hours with the Robert Anderson survivor protesters outside Schlissel’s house
MADELINE HINKLEY/Daily
2021 DAILY NEWS, PHOTO & VIDEO STAFF
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:00 a.m. By 7:00 p.m. on Nov. 5, Jonathan Vaughn, the Anderson survivor and former Michigan football player who has been leading the protest, will have been camping out in front of President Schlissel’s house for 28 days. On a normal day during the protest, Vaughn wakes up in his tent around 6:30 or 7:00 a.m. and heads to the Michigan Union, where he orders a coffee and breakfast sandwich from Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea. One of his favorite parts of the day is enjoying a morning cigar with his coffee. At 10:00 a.m., Ann Arbor is a brisk 37 degrees, and Vaughn is getting out a pack of hand warmers from his tent to stuff in his pockets. Putting the hand warmers in his pants pockets, Vaughn said, targets a main artery and keeps his toes warm during the day. Spending anywhere between 14 to 18 hours of the day outside in the elements, Vaughn said staying warm is crucial to his endurance. In terms of the camp, Vaughn said he has gotten used to sleeping outside but will have to prepare his tent better for the winter ahead. Currently,
Vaughn said he relies on generators and heaters to keep him warm, but they do not last the entire night. What makes his days go by faster and what keeps his mind off the cold, Vaughn said, is being able to talk to his fellow campers and those passing by who stop to check in and offer their support. :00 p. m. At 2:00 p.m., the camp is humming along. Vaughn is playing some music from a bluetooth speaker, while Christian talks with passersby near their large sign. A few people sign the poster, but most who walk by either have already signed, or they ignore the protest and mutter quietly. “I walk past every morning, so I do know that it’s about the sexual assault, sexual allegation situation,” Engineering sophomore Collin McManus said. “I can see obviously it’s peaceful, these guys always have great energy. They’re making a statement for sure.” Christian shares that he is an artist, producing paintings for many notable celebrities and athletes, including head football coach Jim Harbaugh. Everyone is very excited for the campout scheduled for later in the evening. The mood overall is very cheerful. Christian dances,
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noting how he is grateful that he is still able to despite his prostate cancer diagnosis. “I dance everywhere,” Christian said after hearing a catchy song. “See, ‘cause the thing is, I was supposed to be dead two and half years ago. So it’s like, I dance every chance I get.” :00 p. m. By 9:00 p.m., the group of protesters grows to around 30. Huddling together in a circle, each individual takes turns sharing why they came out tonight. Some are here in solidarity, and others are also survivors of sexual assault themselves. But everyone here has the same purpose: to enact change. “No more hiding,” Christian said. “Those days are over. No more hanging my head in shame. Those days are over. No more denying what happened to us. Those days are over. Because why? Because I have a voice. I have a voice. I have a voice.” The group’s energy can be felt from a block away, with chants of “I have a voice” and “Hail to the Victims” ringing across the street. Very few people walk through the group. In fact, most passersby cross the street before reaching the tents. Soon after, a projector screen is created using a white blanket placed over the signature board, directly
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facing Schlissel’s house. A heartfelt video shows Christian and his son having a conversation about his diagnosis in 2016. Christian’s son then gifted his father a song titled “Superman,” which plays at the end of the video. The atmosphere is heavy, with many in the crowd tearing up, including Christian himself. Vaughn brings over a box of tissues for Christian, one of the many moments of sincere understanding and true friendship between the two. :00 p. m. A couple of microphones, a laptop and a speaker is all it takes to set up the first “Hail to the Victims Karaoke Night.” Both the Anderson survivors and those walking by sing various songs, inviting the rest of the crowd to join in. Vaughn raps along to a Run-D.M.C. song which he says was “his freshman song” and one he remembers singing in the school cafeteria. Business senior Job Mayhue is part of the men’s track and field team at the University, as well as a member of Take Back the Night, a student-run campaign against sexual violence. Mayhue told The Daily he heard about the Anderson survivors’ campout through his work with Take
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Back the Night, but Friday night was his first time visiting. Mayhue has several conversations with Vaughn and Christian throughout the hour and told The Daily that witnessing the simultaneous vulnerability and strength of the survivors is incredibly inspiring. “I think everyone should just take the time to really think about this,” Mayhue said. “It’s easy to see it and just go on with your life. But if we wait to care about problems until they are happening to us, that’s a really bad situation.” :00 a. m. A coalition of student organizations — Michigan Students Against Sexual Assault, Central Student Government and Roe v. Rape — begins a teach-in at 9:00 a.m. by listing out their demands for the University. The demands are split into four categories: prevention of sexual assault; adequate response to sexual assault allegations; resources for survivors and victims; and healing the community. As the teach-in begins, tour groups are spotted diverting through the Law Quad, entering from State Street and exiting from the archway next to Tappan Avenue. Notably, parents and prospective students are heard asking about the protests as they
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notice the tents. Of the six or seven tour groups seen walking by, the majority of guides do not address the questions, sticking to the usual tour script. One appears to mention it in passing as two people, an older woman and a girl looking to be in her teens, break from the group and begin reading the signs set up. The demands are now posted beneath the signature board outside of the president’s house. The student organizations who created the demands encourage anyone with suggestions for the demands to reach out to them. A second tour guide is heard directly addressing the protest and the goals, but no one from the group breaks away. At the back of this group, an older man dismisses the protest as “overreacting” to a boy who is presumably his son. With the streets abuzz with parents and students in anticipation for the football game, the survivors had not yet emerged from their tents at 10:00 a.m., bringing the day-in-thelife coverage to a close. The Michigan Daily News & Photo Staff can be reached at news@ michigandaily.com and photo@ michigandaily.com.
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