Posts by Donn M. Fresard
Overheard on campus: First day of classes
By Donn M. Fresard, written on Sep. 6, 2006
“Oh, no. Oh my God, please. I _need_ coffee.”
- ??Student in Angell Hall, trying repeatedly to insert her dollar bill into a coffee machine in Angell Hall around 11 a.m. Tuesday.??
We hear you.
Campus NAACP denounces BAMN
By Donn M. Fresard, written on Oct. 28, 2005
Alex Moffett, vice president of the campus chapter of NAACP, announced in an e-mail tonight that the NAACP is denouncing BAMN for its actions at the Diag rally. NAACP members objected to BAMN’s use of middle- and high-school students in the rally. Full e-mail ahead.
The U of M Chapter of the NAACP would like to personally thank each and everyone of you
that participated in today’s day of silence.
Whether you wore a gag, were an ally, or just gave a participant a hug/kind word/thumbs
up, we would like you to know that we appreciate you.On a more personal note I (Alex Moffett), would like to express my pride in all of you.
My heart was really filled with love for the solidarity and unity that was shown by
people from all across campus. It really was beautiful.I want to send out a special thank you to those gagged students that were present during
the foolishness that was the bamn rally today. For those of you that broke your silence
in an attempt to give guidance and direction to the young black students (because they
obviously had not been given any by the rally organizers). I would personally like to
thank you. It broke many of our hearts to see those young black students tokenized and
made a fool of in the way that they were. The fact that the bamn organizers would allow
those students to come to campus with no prior preparation or supervision was
reprehensible. All that bamn was successful in doing today was perpetuating untruths
about todays black youth.
The U of M Chapter of the NAACP is publicly denouncing bamn and their actions today. As
an organization we believe that bamn’s behavior has been unacceptable and as a community
we will not allow our people to be represented in such a fashion.
In the upcoming days you will be hearing more about the action that the U of M Chapter of
the NAACP plans to take against bamn.yours in the struggle,
peace
Alex MoffettU of M Chapter NAACP Vice President
Divest from AVI Food Services
By Donn M. Fresard, written on Oct. 11, 2005
Who is in charge of the coffee vending machines in Angell Hall, and when are they going to be fixed? My morning routine has been shot for the past couple of weeks.
House fire on Arbor
By Donn M. Fresard, written on Sep. 22, 2005
A student rental house on Arbor burned down early this morning, critically injuring one of the seven students in the house. We’re working on the story now.
So far it’s not clear what caused the fire. At least one student has reported hearing an “electrical popping sound” while fleeing the house, but there are also reports that the fire department is looking into a porch couch as a possible cause. This story is the most up-to-date one online at the moment, but, like all local TV news, it looks to be pretty loose with the facts. The last paragraph, for example — “If it was the couch that burned, there is a 1-year-old city ordinance that prohibits anything but outdoor furniture on porches in Ann Arbor” — is completely inaccurate.
NYPD rainbow flag taken down, and more on LSA language requirement
By Donn M. Fresard, written on Sep. 18, 2005
I got an e-mail — an “Alleluia Alert,” to be precise — from Ave Maria law student and former president of the University’s Students for Life chapter Andrew Shirvell yesterday regarding the rainbow flag decal at New York Pizza Depot, which was the subject of some controversy over the summer. Shirvell, who tried to organize a boycott of NYPD because of the decal, is now declaring victory because the owners have removed it from the door. In case you missed it, here is the Daily’s coverage of this issue from the summer:
Gay pride sticker sparks controversy at pizzeria
Editorial: Rainbow decal at NYPD shouldn’t make Christians feel unwelcome
Selected excerpts from the e-mail:
“Dear Pro-Family Activists & Friends:
It is with profound thankfulness to the Almighty that I announce to you that the divisive rainbow flag decal on the front door of Ann Arbor’s New York Pizza Depot restaurant (on Williams Street) has been completely removed, apparently by NYPD’s owners within the last few days.
This is a HUGE victory and a direct result of our pro-family campaign this past summer to gently persuade NYPD’s owners to stand up to Ann Arbor’s radical homosexual community. As the leader of this pro-family effort, I want to thank the many, many of you who actively, and prayerfully, supported the campaign. Thank you for putting your faith into action!
(…)
Remember, this campaign was ultimately about drawing attention to the intimidation tactics utilized by some Ann Arbor gay activists in their pursuit to coerce small businesses into supporting their radical homosexual agenda – and in this we surely succeeded. Now that the hardworking, immigrant owners have finally taken down the decal in its entirety, we can once again patronize this fine business establishment. Once again, thank you for your support. In the end, truth always triumphs.
For the Kingdom,
Andrew L. Shirvell”
Also noteworthy is an online poll being conducted by LSA-SG to gauge student opinion on the proposed change to the LSA language requirement. Take the poll if you’re interested in letting the faculty know how you feel about the proposal — it would be a pretty big change to the LSA curriculum, so student input in the decision is valuable. Here’s the survey:
And if you want to read up on the proposal, here is some Daily coverage:
Faculty delays on LSA language proposal
LSA language requirement may be altered
LSA language requirement and The Statement
By Donn M. Fresard, written on Sep. 15, 2005
Read this story:
LSA language requirement may be altered
It’ll be interesting to see whether LSA-SG’s resolution in favor of the proposed language requirement change ends up making a difference in the faculty’s vote. From what I saw, the faculty seemed unenthusiastic about the proposal last time it was brought up. Whether or not they care to take student opinion into account in academic decisions is anyone’s call.
Another point, which colleague Jason Z. Pesick brought to my attention, is that Romance Languages chair Peggy McCracken seems suspiciously receptive to student input in this case. I wonder if it has anything to do with overcrowded Spanish, French and Italian classes, which would shed some excess undergrads to more exotic languages under the proposed change.
Finally, a bit of self-promotion: Read the first issue of The Statement, the replacement for Weekend Magazine, in today’s Daily. There’s an excellent essay from Daily news reporter Jeremy Davidson. And I think the cover story, which I wrote, is worth reading if you have the time. Here are the links: