The University of Michigan’s National Center for Institutional Diversity held a virtual panel titled “Thinking Beyond Stereotypes in Asian American Media” Tuesday afternoon in which four Asian American authors discussed stereotypes of Asian Americans in the media. 

Panel moderator Melissa Phruksachart briefly introduced the authors before they each took time to explain their work. Lori Lopez, professor of communication arts and director of Asian American studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, discussed her book “Micro Media Industries,” which describes how minority groups have managed to maintain a presence in the media through micro media outlets.

“All Asian American media communities struggle with size and scale because Asian Americans are a minority within the U.S.,” Lopez said. “In trying to legitimize and better understand these long micro media industries, I’m definitely trying to give us tools for understanding Asian American media industries on a broader scale.”

Phruksachart began the Q&A portion of the panel by asking the authors to address how the exclusion and erasure of Asian Americans in the media can be used as a starting point for understanding how to improve these media representations. 

“I actually think each of your books similarly challenges this conception of lack,” Phruksachart said. “So can you each speak to ideas like absence, reference, the minor or the micro as critical openings, rather than as assumed foreclosures in your respective books?”

Denise Khor, associate professor of Asian American studies and visual studies at Northeastern University, said her book titled “Transpacific Convergences,” describes what is lost from the typical representation of Asian Americans in film as well as what is present and possible to display.

“My book really tries to think through multiple layers of loss,” Khor said. “We think about loss in terms of the absence of certain films from the film canon, absence from what gets preserved. But for me, this question of loss also comes through in thinking about what happens to the cinema that I recover in my book — where does it go?”

The Q&A was then opened up for the audience to ask the panelists questions. In response to a student’s question about how people can change how historical stereotypes contribute to Asian American representation in media, Zuo said she believes actors can play a large role in this process.

“I guess I always want to suggest that there are ways in which the actors themselves are more essential than we perhaps might give them credit for and that there are moments where they are also engineering some kind of subversion within the dominant text,” Zuo said. 

Phruksachart ended the conversation by asking Huang how she believes academic writers can effectively communicate these methods of combating stereotypes to the general public, especially if they are not deeply politically engaged. In response, Huang said that she had not yet figured out how to convey these sentiments to public audiences.

I feel like there’s still a lot more thinking that I would like to do about what it means to translate academic works for public audiences outside of just the standard — turn it into (something) like a news article that’s written in more legible language,” Huang said. “I tried to write my books in legible language, but I think that’s a puzzle that I haven’t quite cracked yet.”

Summer News Editor Sneha Dhandapani can be reached at sdhanda@umich.edu. 

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Over 100 University of Michigan students and faculty members, as well as Ypsilanti community members, packed the Historical Ypsilanti Freighthouse Thursday evening to attend the public participatory event “Reconnecting Currents: A Healing at the Huron.”  

The event was organized by Marsae Lynette, a graduating Music, Theatre & Dance senior who has dedicated the past two years to researching dances and songs about the connection between women of the African diaspora and freshwater. The event was part of a collaborative effort between the University Musical Society and the city of Ypsilanti to provide interactive arts programming for Ypsilanti residents. 

Upon entering the Freighthouse, attendees were greeted with a setting meant to introduce them to African Yoruba traditions. It included the aroma of incense, sunflowers, cinnamon and palo santo sticks, which represent the spirit of the Yoruba fertility goddess Oshun. They were also asked to write a wish on a biodegradable piece of paper made of seeds that will eventually be planted.

The event opened with a libation ritual in Yoruba, meant to honor Oshun and the ancestors, as well as wish for a peaceful experience for all the attendees. 

Lynette then played a documentary about her participatory research project in Cuba during the summer of 2022. Around 70% of Cubans practice Santería — a syncretic religion largely drawn from Yoruba tradition — or some other religion based in African tradition. She told the audience Cuba provided her with geographical and cultural context that helped advance her understanding of Yoruba heritage.

“I traveled to Cuba in July 2022 to learn more about the traditions, rituals and dances of Santería Lucumí, an Afro-Cuban belief system that is the descendant of the Yoruba spiritual system. ” Lynette said. “I had the opportunity to take classes at both the Havana Middle School for the Arts and the High School for the Arts, and I can tell you these kids were terrific.”

After the documentary, Lynette and other dancers performed a Yoruba dance accompanied by rhythmic African drums. She also led a procession across Frog Island Park from the Freighthouse to the Huron River. After singing the Chant to Oshun, the audience offered sunflowers to the river and watched the streams carry their sunflowers and thoughts for their ancestors away.

In an interview with The Michigan Daily after the event, Lynette said the performance not only highlighted the connection between the human body and water, but also between the U-M and Ypsilanti communities. She credited an Ypsilanti community member with introducing her to Burns-Stokes Preserve, where she was inspired to explore artistic forms in the context of rivers.

“It was (an Ypsilanti resident) who introduced a person who introduced another person who then introduced me to Burns-Stokes Preserve,” Lynette said. “They called it ‘the river church,’ which is a very beautiful and holy space. Without them, my project could not have become what it is today.”

Some of Lynette’s friends from the University also participated in the event. LSA graduating senior Anika Love told The Daily she has visited Burns-Stokes Preserve with Lynette in the past and has since attended her other river-themed performances. She said she could relate to Lynette’s spiritual feelings for the rivers.

“Every time I listen to the river, I feel clarity and serenity,” Love said. “Just watching the water flow allows me to surrender to my emotions and the flow of my mind.”

In an interview with The Daily after the event, Music, Theatre & Dance graduate student Njeri Rutherford, who traveled to Cuba in the same cohort as Lynette, said learning Yoruba dance in a place permeated by Yoruba culture made it a genuinely educational experience.

“I had never done any traditional Yoruba dances prior to coming to the dancing department,” Rutherford said. “They invited a Cuban dancer to come to the dancing department to teach us Yoruba dance and that was my first introduction to it. And (then) we traveled to Cuba last summer … Learning a dance in a geographical region where it was derived from and influenced was very impactful for me.”

Ypsilanti resident Donald Fields told The Daily after the event that he heard about this performance through a family friend and wanted to attend because of how his own religious practices are connected to rivers. He said he felt Lynette’s performance empowered community members regardless of their religious beliefs.

“The river is related to baptism and my religion,” Fields said. “But for me, my biggest takeaway is the self-affirmation of African females in the creation and its spiritual root in our Black community.”

Daily Staff Reporter Chen Lyu can be reached at lyuch@umich.edu.

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The University of Michigan’s Big House was full of excitement and energy Saturday morning as graduates and their loved ones filled the stadium for the University’s annual Spring Commencement. The U-M Men’s Glee Club and Women’s Glee Club performed the national anthem as graduates filtered through the tunnel entrance to the stadium and commencement attendees took their seats.

University Provost Laurie McCauley welcomed students and families to the ceremony and congratulated graduates in a set of opening remarks.

“Graduates, today marks an important milestone,” McCauley said. “Today marks the day when people stop asking you what you’re studying and start asking you what you plan to do now that you’re entering the real world. As far as small talk goes, it’s a pretty drastic shift.”

From virtual classes due to COVID-19 to surges in political unrest on campus and beyond, the class of 2023 has not had the traditional college experience. McCauley said these challenges will better equip graduates for whatever they may face in the next stage of their life.

“Through your presence here today, you have proven that you are more than equal to the challenge,” McCauley said. “You already live in the real world, and you have earned your place. We who remain at the University can’t wait to see what you do next. As you join a global community of (U-M) alumni, we will be watching and cheering you on.”

McCauley then introduced the ceremony’s first student speaker, graduating Art & Design senior Nicholos Daniel. In his speech, Daniel said the hardships he and the class of 2023 faced have shaped him as a student and a person.

“During this journey, I have come to truly understand that life is not always cheerful and joyful; it’s hard but fair,” Daniel said. “Graduates, I stand here today to pour my heart out so that yours may be filled with a new fire, a new passion and drive to carry you through life as you enter a new chapter in your own worlds.”

The next opening speaker, LSA Dean Anne Curzan, was interrupted by a passing plane during the beginning of her remarks. The plane, carrying a banner that read “Congrats! So proud! Love from striking GSIs” was a part of the Graduate Employees’ Organization’s plans for protesting at commencement. In addition to the banner, GEO held an informational picket outside of the stadium. After the disruption, Curzan continued with her remarks. In her speech, she said a U-M degree comes with great potential and responsibility. 

“You all now have this remarkable education from one of the best universities in the world,” Curzan said. “Look at your friends and classmates who are sitting around you who have learned and led through some of the most challenging years in American history. Your many accomplishments and your Michigan degree will open doors for you, and with those open doors comes responsibility. Others are going to look to you as leaders and models, and your words will carry weight.”

University President Santa Ono then addressed the stadium and said their college experience was unique from every previous graduating class.

“Remember back to when you came to Ann Arbor four years ago,” Ono said. “You knew that your lives would be changed. I suspect that you expected education steeped in tradition and shaped in excellence … But you have also been tested in unexpected ways. Through COVID-19 you found unexpected reservoirs of adaptability, endurance and resilience.”

The Board of Regents then presented honorary degrees to former University President Mary Sue Coleman; Wynton Marsalis, artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center; and playwright Dominique Morisseau. In his commencement address, Marsalis called upon graduates to use their education for good.

“Each and every one of you dreamt, at some point, of this day,” Marsalis said. “Now here we are. From engineering to public policy, from business to nursing, all the disciplines represented here are an important part of the whole … You all are needed out here … Loudly declare your intentions and spend your life making those dreams, whatever they may be, a reality.”

To conclude the ceremony, Ono and the Regents officially confirmed the class of 2023 as recipients of bachelor’s degrees from the University. As Ono began to confirm the graduates, the clouded sky opened up and sunlight blanketed the Big House.

“The sun is shining on you, do you notice that?” Ono said. “Congratulations and go blue!”

Summer Managing News Editor Mary Corey can be reached at mcorey@umich.edu. 

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The University of Michigan Museum of Art was temporarily transformed into a jazz club Thursday night as U-M student organization Touch of Blue: New American Vocal Ensemble held their final concert of the school year titled “Discover Possibility.” 

A jazz-centric American vocal music group, Touch of Blue presents semesterly jazz concert repertoires which showcase the ensemble, as well as individual members, through solo and duet performances. Music, Theatre & Dance junior Lucy Koukoudian, business manager of Touch of Blue, told The Michigan Daily the ensemble is focused on expanding their jazz choices. 

“We’ve really been trying to premiere works that focus on new jazz composers and focus on a side of jazz that isn’t really covered in how we traditionally approach the genre,” Koukoudian said. “To have this concert is really exciting for us.” 

Rackham student Harry Castle, music director of Touch of Blue, said he was excited for the group to hold their first concert outside of the Music, Theatre & Dance School. 

“All of our previous, larger concerts like this have been at the music school,” Castle said. “So it’s really great for us to be performing somewhere that’s on Central Campus in a space that’s not specifically associated with the Music Department or even vocal performances in general.” 

Koukoudian said the ensemble spends a great deal of time rehearsing as a group, which allows the vocalists to successfully improvise in collaboration with the instrumentalists during the performances. 

“There (are) different sections where the ensemble just gets to close their eyes and sing anything within a set of chords,”  Koukoudian said. “Those require a lot of rehearsal and making sure that we are all on the same page vocally — whether that be in tune or we’re all just syncing … with our breaths and making similar choices as an ensemble.”

Castle said this ability to improvise is what makes Touch of Blue such a successful and close-knit group. 

“Building some spaces into the program where we can do what we want and improvise as an ensemble together is really important for us in this concert,” Castle said. 

Music, Theatre & Dance freshman Justin Ingui attended the concert and told The Daily he was moved by the performance. 

“The singing was incredible,” Ingui said. “The last piece, especially, was outstanding. I thought the blend of instruments and voices was phenomenal. I’m sad it ended.” 

Music, Theatre & Dance freshman Alondra Damian-Noyola also attended Thursday’s concert and said she felt the experience was particularly unique because the songs were composed on the spot and would never be played in the exact same way again. 

“I was really mesmerized the whole time,” Damian-Noyola said. “I think this is a really beautiful space to sing in. It makes me so sad knowing that I could only listen to these songs once, because they are all original compositions. I feel really special to be in this audience.”

Castle said she believes Touch of Blue’s form of communal singing is especially meaningful.

“There’s so much joy to be had in communal singing, and a lot of people think that it only has to look like choir, for example, or something that maybe they are not already interested in,” Castle said. “But this is something different.” 

Daily News Contributor Hannah Cuenca can be reached at hcuenca@umich.edu.

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Anne Huhman was named director of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center at the University of Michigan April 1 after previously serving as the center’s Program Manager for Education and Prevention since 2005. 

Created in January 1985, SAPAC offers confidential support to the U-M community through trainings, programs and community engagement to address various forms of sexual and gender-based harassment on campus. 

Huhman has worked with SAPAC for 18 years, building expertise as a policy and research coordinator, advocacy specialist, program manager and interim director. In an email to The Michigan Daily, Huhman detailed what she plans to address during her time as SAPAC director.

“SAPAC comprehensively addresses very complex social justice, human rights, and public health issues,” Huhman wrote. “I see great opportunity (for improvement) in (those) four key areas: a strategic campus-wide prevention plan, more nuanced, complex conversations, community building and inclusion within SAPAC and expanding and diversifying SAPAC’s services and programs.”

Before being appointed director, Huhman previously served as interim director of SAPAC from May 2022 to April 2023, helping to promote diversity and inclusivity among the center’s staff. She succeeds Kaaren M. Williamsen, who completed her six-year term as director last year. Williamsen told The Daily in an email that she admires Huhman’s work so far and is excited to see what she accomplishes in the role of director.

“She is a dedicated and talented prevention professional and survivor advocate (who) leads with compassion,” Williamsen wrote. 

LSA senior Courtney Banks, a member of the leadership team at University Students Against Rape, said she appreciates Huhman for directly connecting with the organization during their Take Back the Night rally. 

“We like to have different organizations relevant to the subject share their resources and SAPAC is one of those,” Banks said. “I hope that we can continue to foster a good relationship with SAPAC.” 

Laura Blake Jones, associate vice president for Student Life and Dean of Students, oversees SAPAC and works directly with Huhman and her team. In an email to The Daily, Jones said she is confident in Huhman’s leadership and looks forward to supporting her visions for the future of SAPAC. 

“I am honored to have been able to support (Huhman) as the next director of SAPAC,” Jones wrote. “She is fundamentally committed to social justice and believes in the power of enacting transformative change.” 

A U-M alum herself, Huhman received her master’s degree in social work from the University with a concentration in community organizing in 2006. She has worked with SAPAC since 2005, starting as a graduate assistant intern. Prior to working for SAPAC, Huhman worked closely with survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking at Underground Railroad, a nonprofit organization in Saginaw, Mich.. Huhman wrote she learned about the impact of prevention education through this job, which is what ultimately led her to SAPAC. 

“Through my work in direct survivor support and community education (at the Underground Railroad), I realized that this set of work was where I wanted to direct all of my energy.” Huhman wrote. 

Huhman said she believes her experience as interim director will help her transition to permanent director. 

“I’m grateful that I had a year in the interim position to experience what that feels like,” Huhman wrote. “Now I get to take the reins with both hands and continue building upon the positive momentum happening across campus.” 

Daily News Contributors Kally Van and Hannah Cuenca can be reached at kallyvan@umich.edu and hcuenca@umich.edu.

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On the intersection of South Division Street and Hill Street sits Elbel Field, a recreation space that holds two sand volleyball courts, a soccer field, a football field and space for students to lay in the grass or practice their marching band routine. As the date to start construction of a new residence hall on the field approaches, University of Michigan students and U-M Recreational Sports Department are saying goodbye to Elbel Field.

Recreational Sports hosted a Farewell to Elbel Field event Wednesday afternoon featuring outdoor games, food and a used gear sale for students to browse. Over 100 U-M students and Recreational Sports staff filtered in and out of the field to play spikeball and soccer and grab a bite to eat while reminiscing about their memories of the field. 

Elbel Field was previously the practice site for the Michigan Marching Band. Upon its closing, the band will be relocated to a new practice space located on South Fifth Avenue. The field will instead host a new 2,300-bed residence hall, featuring an outdoor courtyard and dining hall, that is set to be completed in fall 2025. 

Mike Widen, director of the U-M Department of Recreational Sports, said the Recreational Sports staff planned the event to celebrate student engagement with Elbel and say goodbye to the space. 

“From a Recreational Sports perspective, it’s bittersweet,” Widen said. “It’s certainly sad to lose the space that we know is here and we know continues to get used by students for recreational programs. These are important spaces because we know the types of engagement that can occur … A lot of people meet their best friends because they met them playing a pick-up game of soccer here, or got an opportunity to throw the frisbee with their roommate.”

Though the closing of Elbel will offer fewer opportunities for outdoor recreation on Central Campus, Widen said the opening of two new fields on North Campus will work to balance this out. The Board of Regents approved the construction of these new fields, which will be located on Hubbard Road, at their March meeting. 

“The good thing is, we’re not losing the spaces, we’re just losing the address,” Widen said. “We’re looking to get (the new fields) open this fall so students that are in club sports and intramural sports and other students can just use those.”

Kinesiology sophomore Logan Edwards is an auxiliary facilities supervisor for Recreational Sports and said he will miss the field because of the way it has brought the U-M community together.

“Elbel Field is one of the only major University-owned big parks around the southern side of campus,” Edwards said. “So obviously, we’re losing a big part of the outdoor atmosphere. I mean, I worked here several times when there was a 70 (or) 80 degree weekend (and) the entire turf was filled. I don’t know where else sand volleyball is (offered on campus) either. I think we’re just losing a big part of campus.”

U-M alum Sarah Elgin, director of aquatics and risk management within Recreational Sports, helped organize the farewell event. Elgin said she wanted to get involved because she lived down the street from Elbel when she was a student and felt nostalgic about the closing of the field.

“(With) me being with risk management as well as being an alum who spent their time during college here and lived down the street, (I) wanted to be part of (planning this) and just give it a good, solid farewell because I know it’s been a big part of the community,” Elgin said.

Adventure Leadership, a program within Recreational Sports that organizes trips to teach leadership and outdoor skills and whose trip center is located on Elbel, previewed their used gear sale at the event, which will take place on April 21 and 22. The center  welcomed students to browse the bikes, tents and other recreational items they will have for sale later this week.

LSA senior Aleksandra Thomas, Recreational Sports and Adventure Leadership employee, told The Daily she is sad to see Elbel closing after creating so many memories there, but excited to see the new residence hall’s impact on the campus community. 

“It’s definitely a little sad, but I know it’s going to be repurposed for student housing,” Thomas said. “So, that just gives more access and space for incoming students so I can support that, and I know we’re gonna move to a new field.”

Daily News Editor Rachel Mintz can be reached at mintzrac@umich.edu.

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As “decision day” approaches for prospective Wolverines, many opt to take admitted-student tours and participate in Campus Day activities. Every year, admitted high school seniors have until May 1 to commit to their future college. Incoming members of the class of 2027, however, may have seen a new addition to the typical tour route: the ongoing Graduate Employees’ Organization strike. For tour guides and Campus Day leaders, navigating picket lines and protests has presented its fair share of challenges.

Public Policy senior Grace Watson has given multiple tours since the strike began. In an interview with The Michigan Daily, she said her tour groups often come across GEO picket lines as they walk around campus.

“The most obvious impact (of the strike) is simply the physical pickets on campus,” Watson said. “We take prospective students and their families around the main parts of Central Campus, including the Diag, the Michigan Union and Mason and Angell Halls, so at many of our stops the pickets are visible and sometimes we hear their chants.”

Campus Day leader Matthew Peal told The Michigan Daily he often finds himself taking minor detours on his campus tours to avoid any potential obstructions caused by the strike. 

“It hasn’t impacted (the tours) as much as you might think,” Peal said. “Minor changes to our tour routes have taken place, but for Campus Day, since each of us doesn’t do the exact same tour route, it’s just minor changes. If we’re talking about academics, maybe we’ll go to a different building where it’d be a better space to do so.”

Watson said she now avoids taking her tours through the Michigan Union or any buildings where she has to cross a picket line due to ongoing GEO demonstrations. 

“As a supporter of GEO, I do not feel comfortable crossing the picket line,” Watson said. “It’s also just not really possible to give information to families at the steps of the Union while the strikers are chanting, so I’ve had to forgo doing that stop entirely.”

Parents of prospective students have expressed concern about how the GEO strike has affected their children’s perception of campus culture. One incoming student’s mother — who has requested anonymity due to fear of harassment and will be referred to as Ann — recently attended a campus tour with her family. She said the tour guide declined to show them the building containing Mason, Angell, Tisch and Haven halls in order to avoid crossing a GEO picket line. 

“The student who was giving (my family) a tour didn’t want to cross the line to enter a building to take them in as part of their tour because they didn’t want to be (looked down upon) by other students for crossing that line,” Ann said. “I was really surprised. This is a college tour, and then here (at the University) a student felt intimidated and didn’t want to cross the line.”

Some tour guides have also incorporated the strike into the information they provide to potential students and their parents. Watson said she informs her tour groups about the strike and GEO’s demands at the start of each tour. 

“I always give my tours a heads up that we will be encountering striking graduate students, and explain briefly their ask for a livable wage, among other measures,” Watson said. 

While Ann said her family didn’t interact directly with GEO, she viewed GEO picketing during campus tours as a negative experience.

“I felt that (GEO was) only thinking about themselves,” Ann said. “This was during a time when kids are on spring break, so they’re touring different universities, (and) they had to be aware of that. I felt … that this was not going to come across as a positive, because when I talked to other parents and I shared my experience, they were shocked that (this) was going on.”

Watson said she and other tour guides have occasionally experienced GEO members yelling at or approaching tour groups, sometimes aggressively.

“While I support GEO and their platform, and thus do not wish to cross picket lines, myself and other guides have encountered picketers who have been aggressive, shouting loudly in families’ faces to not come to (the University),” Watson said.

In an interview with The Daily, GEO vice president Ember McCoy said she isn’t aware of any aggressive actions taken by picketers and instead has experienced the opposite. She said she has seen parents joining picket lines and expressing support to graduate students on strike.

“We’ve had parents join our picket lines that I’ve seen,” McCoy said. “We’ve had multiple prospective (undergraduate students) reach out and say they thought it was really cool to see the (graduate) students picketing. I had a parent come up to me and say they’re from New York City and so they’re very used to seeing people on the picket lines. So … we’ve only heard positive interactions with the picket lines and parents being supportive of what we’re out here doing.”

McCoy said GEO does “informational pickets,” where they provide information to undergraduate students and tour groups as they walk by. She said the picketers are happy to explain to prospective students and parents on tours why GEO.

“We’re doing informational pickets, so explaining why we’re on strike (and) why we’re out here,” McCoy said. “I think one important statistic that we say sometimes for the tours is that one semester of out-of-state tuition for one student is more money than graduate students get paid in an entire year.”

Though Watson said many guides provide resources to educate themselves on the strike during their tours, she said she is frustrated by some of the encounters she has had with GEO members while conducting campus tours.

“I understand GEO’s frustration, but I know that myself and my fellow guides have been frustrated by the few instances in which the strikers have been very in-the-face of tours, which are composed of young high school students who have little-to-no background on these issues,” Watson said. “While I appreciate and encourage GEO strikers to hand out flyers to my tour groups or vocalize general information as we walk through campus, I haven’t appreciated the aggressive nature myself and other guides have sometimes encountered.”

Daily Staff Reporter Joshua Nicholson can be reached at joshuni@umich.edu. Daily News Contributor Grace Lim can be reached at gracelim@umich.edu.

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Along with its picket lines, rallies and protests, the Graduate Employees’ Organization has begun endorsing and collaborating with other students on strike parties and community concerts. With the support of GEO, University of Michigan students organized a rally concert on the Diag Saturday to promote awareness of Camp Grayling’s expansion, advocate for decreasing the campus police presence and show support for GEO. 

The event was primarily organized by LSA freshmen Henry Barron, Salem Loucks and Cole Nogawa. Nogawa told The Michigan Daily that the group independently organized the event to bring together students who are passionate about similar social issues. He said he felt music was the best way to unite the campus community.

“We wanted to bring people together and have music as a draw to educate about some important environmental issues as well as show solidarity for (the) GEO strike,” Nogawa said. “We are actually not doing this as a part of any club or organization. We’re just a handful of interested students who decided that these are causes we believe in.”

GEO also led a Hot Labor Summer Strike Party at noon on Friday, followed by a rave in Ypsilanti later that night. Rackham student Isaac Blythe, a GEO departmental steward, told The Daily that GEO wants to connect with as many students as possible to show that the strike is not just an issue for graduate students.

“A big part of (the strike) is (ensuring that) everyone (remembers) that we are a community and we’re in this together,” Blythe said. “We’re in this for each other, and that involves not just what (collectively) impacts us as individual (graduate students) on campus, but also what individually impacts us as people outside of just on campus.”

GEO member Sasha Bishop said more casual social events like parties and concerts help promote GEO’s mission in new ways.

“There’s two sides,” Bishop said. “One where you’re … going after the institutions and infrastructures (that) perpetuate oppression … and while you’re doing that, you’re simultaneously building (a community). … I think that social events have a very tangible benefit, (like) recruitment and bringing people in and giving (them) an opportunity to talk to each other.”

GEO President Jared Eno was the first speaker who presented at the concert between musical acts. Eno thanked the student organizers and encouraged attendees to seek any opportunity to demonstrate solidarity, helping the strike to continue.

“Let’s not let this university get away with screwing us all over,” Eno said. “It’s about us looking to each other for support, instead of these broken institutions that care only about profit and prestige. I feel that support and that solidarity on the picket lines. I feel it with you here at this concert.”

Engineering senior Brendan Ireland helped organize the concert. At the event, Ireland specifically discussed the expansion of Camp Grayling, a military base in Greeley, Mich. Ireland also mentioned the “Stop Cop City” movement which aims to stop Atlanta from building the largest police base in the United States in a primarily Black area.

Ireland explained how all these issues interact with each other, and with the GEO strike, in a way that amplifies the event’s focus.

“To be able to have all these different focuses that all come together and are able to amplify each other is really powerful,” Ireland said.

Student band The Streaks performed at the rally concert. In an interview with The Daily after the event Music, Theatre & Dance senior Evan Holifield, a member of the band, explained how the concert organizers had reached out to them over social media.

“We were contacted by someone on Instagram who was really nice,” Holifield said. “(He asked): Would you be interested in playing for the protest in support of GEO and against the cop city stuff happening? I had heard a lot about that. It was something that I’d already cared a little bit about, and I hadn’t really known of any outlets to support that. As a student in undergrad, you still have to go to class every day, and you feel a little guilty.”

Holifield explained the significance of standing up as an artist because music holds a power that speeches and statistics may not.

“The kind of music we’re playing is such a rich tradition in punk music and grunge and rock of protest, and using it to send a message and disseminate sort of an outlook or an opinion,” Holifield said.

Daily Staff Reporter Sneha Dhandapani can be reached at sdhanda@umich.edu. 

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The University of Michigan chapter of the Sierra Club hosted a “Planet Party” on the Diag Sunday afternoon to inform U-M students and Ann Arbor residents about climate change, related current events and sustainability initiatives. The event featured informational tables from organizations such as Fridays for Future, the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, Mighty Earth and the Food Recovery Network. Attendees also participated in screen printing, crocheting with plastic bags, educational games and sustainability-themed giveaways. 

The Sierra Club is a grassroots environmental organization that focuses on creating an influential environmental movement. Members often engage in current sustainability initiatives and environmental political engagement actions. 

Yousef Rabhi, District 8 Washtenaw County Commissioner and current member of the national Sierra Club’s executive committee, spoke at the event. He urged attendees to support various pieces of legislation related to environmental efforts, including bills to protect Michigan groundwater and reversing plastic bag restrictions.

“I passed the first ever Michigan plastic bag ordinance so that in grocery stores it wasn’t just a free flowing dispensary of plastic bags that end up in our environment,” Rabhi said. “What happened in response to that ordinance is that the Republicans that controlled Lansing at the time passed a bill specifically to ban local communities from regulating single-use items like plastic bags … Now that Democrats have a trifecta in Lansing, two bills have been introduced, one in the House, one in the Senate, to repeal the ban on bag bans, and I need your help to get those passed.”

Rabhi later spoke with The Michigan Daily about what he believes the University and Ann Arbor should focus on in regards to the climate crisis and the U-M carbon neutrality plan.

“Something I think that the University should focus on is the importance of natural areas in the context of carbon,” Rabhi said. “(The University) owns a massive amount of forest land in and around the community. On North Campus, there are a lot of beautiful forests. I have long been asking and pushing the University to create a program where it can actually inventory the carbon sequestration capacity of its own trees and forests.” 

Rabhi also said getting involved in environmental activism can take many forms. 

“It could be something as simple as falling in love with nature, like (going) to the Arb,” Rabhi said. “If you already have a deep love for the environment, then maybe take the next step and contact … your local government official and ask them to get engaged and involved on this issue. Maybe it’s going to a constituent hour and bringing these issues up.” 

LSA freshman Katya Deckelbaum, rising president of the U-M chapter of the Sierra Club, told The Daily she brainstormed the idea for the event last semester and spoke on her vision while organizing the event. 

“My vision was to promote sustainability, environmental education and sustainable development worldwide,” Deckelbaum said. “It seems that the word ‘sustainability’ can be tossed around at times so we wanted to make this event an engaging way to learn more about these current issues.”

Deckelbaum then spoke about shortcomings she has identified in Ann Arbor’s composting efforts and ways she hopes to increase sustainability metrics on campus. 

“Composting is so easy, however, it is not found much on campus,” Deckelbaum said. “For example, Sweetgreen serves their food in compostable containers. So, I will go there to get a meal and then eat it on the Diag with nowhere to compost what I have left. And with a University that has the means of providing this, it is really frustrating.” 

Deckelbaum also spoke on the importance of the University being transparent with climate information on campus with regard to both the successes and shortcomings of their sustainability initiatives.

“It is hard for students on campus to understand what is going on and how best to help with sustainability efforts,” Deckelbaum said. “For example, if students were to be informed about how much energy the University intakes is from DTE, more people would know how to address this issue better and organizations can focus their efforts on more specific climate related issues.”

Engineering senior Brendan Ireland is current president of the U-M chapter of the Sierra Club and also helped organize the event. Ireland spoke on the administrative transition between former University President Mark Schlissel and current University President Santa Ono, specifically highlighting how each have engaged in climate change efforts.

“It was a really fun experience to have the transition between President Schlissel and President Ono because one of the first things Ono wanted when he came into office was to be with as many students as possible and wanted input on how the University can be better in terms of sustainability,” Ireland said. “There has been a lot of work recently with the new president and it has been really great to see this, but there is still a lot of work to be done.” 

Along with the Sierra Club, the University chapter of Fridays for Future played a part in organizing the event. LSA sophomore RoAnna Pollock tabled for FFF and organized an educational game on how to dispose of different waste items. Pollock told The Daily the two organizations wanted to put on the event to celebrate Earth Day and educate students and community members.

“There are a lot of opportunities for students to get engaged with environmental work on and around campus that they’re not aware of,” Pollock said. “So one of our main goals was just to partner with other groups and show students all the different opportunities that they have.”

U-M alum Lena Swirczek is an organizer for the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, an environmental advocacy group. Swirczek told The Daily the organization is trying to build up their presence at the University and let students know about their program, and the ‘Planet Party’ was a great place to do that.

“It’s really nice to be able to talk to other people who are interested in sustainability because I think the state level is a lot of times where students don’t really know what’s happening about environmental legislation,” Swirczek said. “The Michigan Senate just introduced a bill that would potentially take Michigan to totally renewable energy by 2035, which is something I don’t think enough people are talking about. So, (we) want to really get out the word about what’s going on at the state level and how students can actually be part of the movement to pass important legislation.” 

The Ecology Center, a nonprofit organization that works at local, state and national levels on environmental justice issues, partnered with the city of Ann Arbor to host a table educating attendees on waste disposal. Education director Katy Adams told The Daily the organization looks for opportunities to connect with the public and raise awareness about the topic of waste. 

“There is a lot of confusion around what can be recycled because there are different systems and different rules and different communities,” Adams said. “It’s really important to know what your local rules are and that’s why it’s really important also to get out and do regular education with the public on this … Recycling systems (are) very dependent on the public using them correctly so that we don’t get contamination and that we can have a good market for recycling down the road.” 

Following his talk, Rabhi spoke with The Daily on his opinion of the current climate crisis issue. 

“It is important to understand that climate change is all around us,” Rabhi said. “While of course we all enjoy these beautiful warm days we also know that this is not supposed to be happening. Hopefully this catalyzes people into action to make a difference so that future generations can live on this planet.” 

Daily Staff Reporters Astrid Code and Emma Lapp can be reached at astridc@umich.edu and emmalapp@umich.edu.

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About 100 University of Michigan community members gathered to hear discussions on the relationship between the environment and social and racial justice at Rackham Auditorium Thursday evening. Hosted by the Tishman Center for Social Justice and the Environment, the event featured local and national activists Maria Lopez-Nunez, Anthony Rogers-Wright and isaac sevier.

The panel was moderated by Nayyirah Shariff, a grassroots organizer during the Flint water crisisand co-founder of the Flint Democracy Defense League. They discussed the harmful effects of government silos, or when different departments work independently of one another. Shariff said this separation of various causes across government agencies means organizers need to work harder to address intersectional movements.

“(The) government intentionally silos our movements, and we have to work collectively to deconstruct those silos because we can’t just fight for environmental justice (and allow for) no one (to have) health care,” Shariff said. “We have to fight for it all.”

Panelist isaac sevier, an energy engineer and founding co-director of People’s Utility Commons, spoke about how conversations around clean energy projects — such as electrification — often don’t benefit marginalized communities.

“When we talk about electrify everything I ask, “For whom?” sevier said. “Because it is very easy right now, with the policies and investments that we have, to see that … it was designed just for some people.”

Shariff then asked panelist Anthony Rogers-Wright, director of environmental justice for New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, about the political forces behind the Inflation Reduction Act and the response from social justice organizations. The act, which aims to reduce inflation, increase domestic energy production and reduce carbon emissions, has been touted as a significant step forward in climate energy.

Rogers-Wright said the act has been praised by oil companies and that he believes it does not benefit the people it is intended to. He referenced a quote from Colombian Vice President Francia Márquez about the issue.

“Why don’t the demographics of the people who were so rhapsodic about this match the demographics of people most impacted by the climate crisis?” Rogers-Wright said.

The panelists also discussed President Joe Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to put 40% of federal money from climate-related investments into disadvantaged communities. Maria Lopez-Nuñez, deputy director of advocacy and organizing for Ironbound Community Corporation, said though Justice40 has potential to enact change, its impacts will depend on what people make of it.

“How are we holding people accountable — because this is at the federal level,” Lopez-Nuñez said. “That means that there’s opportunity for us at the state and the municipal level … I think it gives us a loose target to shoot for.”

As she urged audience members to actively participate in democracy, Lopez-Nuñez emphasized how she believes environmentalism and democracy are linked.

“I think we’re here for Earth Day, but (also for) social justice,” Lopez-Nunez said. “And we need to stop making Earth Day something separate from democracy, because it is democracy and public participation (and) public struggle that will help us and if we don’t … we might be doomed.”

In an interview with The Michigan Daily, Kyle Whyte, a SEAS professor who helped organize the event, spoke about what he took away from the event. Whyte said he believes the United States is moment in time with potential for a lot of climate action, but people have to take advantage of it.

“A big takeaway for me is that we are in a moment right now where there’s a lot of resources (and) a lot of attention on environmental justice, but whether we’re going to be able to take advantage of that moment depends on our attitude,] depends on our approach and especially depends on our relationships with other people,” White said.

Environment and Sustainability graduate student Srikari Punyamurtula told The Daily she resonated with what sevier said about talking to family members and close friends regarding environmental and racial justice.

“I guess the thing that took me the most by surprise was (sevier’s) point about how (if) you can’t talk to the people that love and trust you about racial justice, how are you gonna convince anyone else,” Punyamurtula said. “I think that’s something I really need to think about because I separate my family from my work and I don’t really go out of my way to talk to my family about it.”

Daily Staff Reporter Abigail VanderMolen can be reached at vabigail@umich.edu.

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