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Racism : The Never Ending Story |
U Michigan - September 2005 |
UPDATE: There is now a blog - u mich stop the
hate - where all of the below and lots more are being added to daily:
http://umichstopthehate.blogspot.com/
Original News Article: See below
http://www.aa2sbu.org/N5RacismUMich.shtml
Letter to U Mich President Coleman:
http://www.aa2sbu.org/N5RacismLettertoColeman.shtml
News Article on Coleman's Response:
http://www.aa2sbu.org/N5RacismUMichColeman.shtml
Suspects Dispute of Events:
http://www.aa2sbu.org/N5RacismUMichSuspectsDispute.shtml
Students may face charges
for racially motivated felony
http://www.michigandaily.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/09/21/4330f61d9f9f0
Police say there is a good chance victims will file a
lawsuit
By Rachel Kruer, Daily Staff Reporter
September 21, 2005
The Ann Arbor Police
Department has issued warrants for two University students for allegedly
yelling obscenities and urinating on two students in a racially motivated
act.
The incident began when one of the suspects, a 21-year-old,
allegedly urinated from a second-floor balcony on two Asian students walking
down the 600 block of South Forest Avenue Thursday night.
After the couple asked why they were being urinated on, the
suspect and another student reportedly began to use racial slurs disparaging
the couple’s Asian heritage.
The situation escalated, according to a police report, when
at least one student began throwing items, which the couple suspected were
eggs, at the couple.
One of the students was immediately taken into custody. The
other student who urinated on the couple, barricaded himself in the apartment,
which the police could not enter without a warrant.
However, the AAPD knows the identity of the student, who
could face jail time if prosecuted.
AAPD Lt. Michael Logghe classified the crime as ethnic
intimidation, or verbal or physical attack against a person of another race or
gender. Logghe said ethnic intimidation is a felony and carries a maximum
penalty of four years in jail. The suspects could also be charged with
assault, and one of the suspects could face a charge of indecent exposure,
which would require him to register as a sex offender.
Keith Elkin, director of the Office of Student Conflict
Resolution, said he could not comment on whether OSCR was handling the case.
However, he said crimes involving ethnic intimidation do not
only break city law, but also violate the University’s code of conduct.
“We protect student rights and have the responsibility to
talk to students,” Elkin said. “Also, we have the ability to consider if the
violation was motivated by bias, in which (case) we could consider sanctioning
a student.”
If OSCR were asked to intervene, Elkin said there were a
range of consequences a perpetrator of ethnic intimidation could face, from a
formal reprimand to expulsion from the University.
Sgt. Angela Abrams of the AAPD said the victims will likely
prosecute.
The police report also included a statement from an
independent witness — an employee at a parking structure on South Forest — who
said she saw the men assault the couple.
The incident has galvanized members of the Asian community —
some of whom have also faced the humiliation of ethnic intimidation
first-hand.
Cindy Chuang, LSA senior and president of the Taiwanese
American Student Association, said she was appalled and shocked that a fellow
University student could be demeaned in public.
But she herself said she has experienced racial bias from
fellow students, who she said were drunk when the incident occurred.
While walking down South University Avenue, Chuang said a
group of students yelled, “Wow, you speak really good English” and “You talk
with a white accent.”
LSA senior and former Korean Student Association President
Paul Yun said he was disgusted by the incident but not surprised that it
happened.
Yun said that he has also faced discrimination in Ann Arbor.
While using a public restroom at Good Time Charley’s, Yun
said he was referred to as “Bruce Lee” and “Ching Chong.”
He also said that many of his friends have experienced
similar incidents.
Yun said that the issue needs to be addressed immediately.
He said he expected the United Asian American Organizations — an umbrella
group for the Asian student groups on campus — would be the first to respond
to the matter.
At the very least, Yun said this incident will call
attention to a problem on campus and could potentially empower the Asian
community to improve the climate for minority students at the University.
Sampling of Feedback:
Posted 09/23/2005 |
As a former student at The
University, I am glad that these pair of men are being made to pay for
their racist actions.
Unfortunately, many recollections of my time at Ann Arbor involved
incidents of racism such as this, so it did not surprise me one bit. To be
specific, when I was a student I would often see drunk white males stand
in front of Bubble Island, and yell obscenities and racial slurs at the
Asian patrons inside.
It's my hope that the animosity towards Asians has lessened since then,
but after reading this article I highly doubt it.
J. Lin
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Posted 09/23/2005 |
It's really interesting that
the ethnicity of the perpetrator isn't mentioned. But, I have to assume
that if the men pissing on asian students were anything but white, that
would have been mentioned, and their pictures probably would have been
provided.
It seems that the media, including the Michigan daily, has a hard time
admitting that *white* people are doing things like this. Heaven forbid
somone associated this type of thing with a white man. But at the same
time, if it were a black man his ethnicity and possibly his picture would
be paraded around the news site.
While you are reporting on racial Bias, don't forget to dish some out. Way
to go Michigan Daily!
Stepping_Razor
stepping_razor_sf@hotmail.com
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Posted 09/26/2005 |
I think it's important that
the article distinguishes between Asian students (from Asia) and Asian
American students (Americans of Asian descent). Calling the Asian American
community "Asian" further serves to set them apart as foreign and strange.
Wendy
09wl@williams.edu
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Posted 09/26/2005 |
In this time of outrage, I
encourage people from all backgrounds to rally around each other and speak
out against the intolerance that remains so vivid today. It is quite easy
to begin dividing ourselves by stating what would happen if someone from
African American heritage had been targeted. This only lifts up the white
racism we are fighting and continues to push people of color down. Do not
allow white racism to divide us from acting as an empowered group of
anti-racists no matter what our background. In addition we need to hear
the voice of disgust from white students and administrators.
Sarah
sarita_g76@hotmail.com
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Posted 09/26/2005 |
I've begun my third year at
the University of Michigan, and though it's unfortunate, I can't say that
I am surprised by this incident. Racism not only exists, but at the
present time, it has the potential to become more dangerous and damaging
to the fabric of society, than at any other point in history. America has
allowed itself to be deceived; accepting the belief that racism died after
the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's, when in fact, I've seen enough
racism in the last four years (aftermath following 9/11, response to
Hurricane Katrina) to undo the decades of hard work and sacrifice our
nations' TRUE LEADERS devoted to the struggle. It was Dr. Martin Luther
King Jr. who said, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."
When hatred rears its hideous face, we must respond diligently regardless
of who's involved. In this instance, the victims were Asian and the
assailants were White (a noticeably overlooked fact by The Michigan
Daily). The victims and perpetrators of the crime could have been of any
race, of any color, and my stance would be no different. Such deliberate
disregard for another person's right to common respect cannot be
tolerated. I would hope that The University takes a stand, not only in
punishing the young men who committed the attack, but also taking the
necessary measures to prevent such attacks from happening again.
Additionally, I must respond to a statement made in another post. Max says
that if the victims of attack were Black, there would have been "MUCH
MORE" media attention than what has been given to this atrocity so far. As
a Black man, I would just like to say, YOU DAMN RIGHT! Our community would
have been up in arms about such a blatant display of racism, and The Daily
would have been just one of a laundry list of media outlets that would
have been FORCED to cover the story.
*SIDE NOTE: Let us not forget the history of racism against Blacks in this
country, since the time our ancestors were taken from their land and
brought over to America.
Furthermore, if the perpetrators were Black, I guarantee that the names
and faces of those men would have been broadcast to the world. And I do
not have the time to go into detail about the manner in which this
situation would have been reported if victims were White. A despicable act
is a despicable act. The extraneous side-talk takes the focus off of what
is important: There's a problem with racism in America. The University of
Michigan needs to deal with theirs.
Walter Lacy
wlacy@umich.edu
student
Ann Arbor
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