I’m not convinced most of the “missed connections” on the Ann Arbor craigslist are actually real. But they sure make for fun reading. Check out this recent one:

You: pipe smoking boy in an “I rate A² too” t-shirt, reading an Urban Planning(?) text book in Liberty Plaza yesterday lunchtime. I think you were listening to an iPod.

Me: Gelato-eating girl in yellow hippie dress sitting opposite for a while, reading a Charles Baxter novel.

I said hi but I don’t think you heard me. Perhaps I’ll see you there again some day?

ps. I’m *really* interested in urban planning.

The Ann Arbor News reports that Joe Wagner, a 21-year-old Ann Arbor man who was an organizer for BAM-N in Detroit has been killed. The details surrounding the killing are unclear. (Via)

The University of Michigan recently unveiled a master plan for the University’s rapidly growing medical campus, which is explained in an article in today’s University Record. I am glad to see the university inching towards the realization that the medical campus that currently exists is a positively hostile place for pedestrians esthetically, visually, and literally. Walking around the medical campus today is a daunting experience for the pedestrian: there is no grid or explanations about how to find one’s way, and the buildings are designed with their internal functions in mind. In fact, it is almost entirely designed around the auto. What is needed is an element of urbanity in the medical campus that is currently lacking.

Too often the sort of campus planning conducted by the university is the sort that looks down from above and maps out parking and pedestrian flows, and where buildings can be build or expand in harmony with the existing structures. (This graphic is a detail from a larger image from the new Master Plan) Although this sort of planning is very important, it overlooks how important the experience of the campus is from the pedestrian level. Up to this point the U-M hospital complex has taken the form of what I think of as “postmodern urbanism” - that is, extremely high levels of density that nonetheless are unpleasant for pedestrians and confusing for visitors because they are designed for access from autos and designed to contain pedestrians inside the structure exclusively. The buildings do not interface with the street, frequently containing entrances only from parking structures or from special roundabouts designed for autos. All commercial activity is sequestered inside food courts difficult or impossible to access from the outside, despite the thousands of students living in hill dormitories.

Consciously constructing an environment of pedestrian urbanism would not only create a pleasant environment for the employees and patients of the hospital, but also cater to the needs of the tens of thousands of students who live in hill dorms and would patronize any potential common space or retail. (I find it ironic that Michigan’s hospital has a great cardiac unit, but it’s easier to drive around the medical campus than walk and the food court contains a Wendy’s.) How might the university provide for growth but also encourage such an environment? Build the large laboratories that are needed, but reserve some ground floor space next to the sidewalk for permeable functions - either a lobby adjacent the street, or small shops open to the street. At least one convenience store was destroyed to make way for parking, and I don’t imagine it would be too hard to find a vendor interested in occupying a small space, say, across the street from the massive Mary Markley dorm. In the long term, the rent from university-owned commercial space could bring the university revenue.

I am encouraged by the glimmer of awareness to these needs that can be found in the master plan - they’ve identified “Integration of physical facilities with the natural environment and community” as an important goal, and even have a slide listing “improved pedestrian amenities” (where this image was found) as part of a Powerpoint presentation about the plan. Whether or not they have the understanding of how to make this a reality - beyond sterile walking paths that go nowhere and nobody can find - remains to be seen - notice the streetscaping in the image is great, but the building is just a blank wall. The ultimate irony is that the university’s planning and architecture schools has some of the nation’s pre-eminent new urbanist planners and thinkers, who gave many suggestions similar to these when tasked by interim president B. Joseph White for creating a plan for North Campus. The university is slowly realizing - like most cities have - that chewing up their urban fabric to create unpleasant and banal suburban spaces in fact ruins what makes Ann Arbor so attractive to students, professors, and residents alike.

Related Posts:
> See my post on the University’s destruction of the Planada building to make way for medical campus parking, or my post on the Planada in Preservation Magazine.” Yes, they’re building a parking garage on that spot.
> See my post on broader University planning issues, in response to an op-ed in the Ann Arbor News
> See my first rant about the need for street-level commercial space on Medical Campus

Looking back, I am beginning to sound like a broken record on this stuff. I wrote this in November 2003:

The University must recognize their role in destroying street life. Parking garages, massive office and laboratory buildings all enforce a uniformity of use on the surrounding streets: meaning they will only be used at certain times of the day, and there will never be businesses, no matter how many pedestrians pass buy hungry for a cup of coffee or a bagel. There is no rational or economic reason why all new University buildings must be single-use, only a cultural one.

Eugene Kang is a native Ann Arbor resident who is running for Ann Arbor’s City Council from Ward 2. He is a 21-year-old University of Michigan senior. If elected, he would be the first undergraduate on the City Council in many years. He is running against a former Republican mayoral candidate Stephen Rapundalo in an August 2 Democratic primary. Ward 2 includes Mary Markley, Couzens, Alice Lloyd, Stockwell, the Linden Street area and all the neighborhoods northeast of Washtenaw Avenue. To register to vote or check your registration or polling location, call the city clerk at 734-994-2725.

> Contact the Kang campaign at kangforcitycouncil (at) gmail.com or (734) 972-7254.
> View his platform
> Read articles printed by the Ann Arbor News and the Michigan Daily about his candidacy
> Join the Kang for Council Facebook Group

The Kang campaign just sent me a piece of literature they have been distributing in Ward 2 with a letter from Eugene and his platform for City Council. Here’s the text:

EUGENE KANG FOR WARD 2:
WAKE UP THE CITY COUNCIL!

Dear Neighbor,

My name is Eugene Kang, and I am running for Ann Arbor City Council. I am proud to have lived in Ann Arbor for my entire life. And I am proud to have spent almost my entire life right here in Ward 2.

Many people have asked me why I want to run for office. The answer is simple: I want to give back to this wonderful community. I attended King Elementary School and Greenhills School for 6-12th grades. Next year I’ll be a Senior at the University of Michigan, majoring in English and Philosophy.

I am energetic, dedicated, and I know I have a lot to learn. I hope that I can serve a unique role as someone connected to both U of M students and to the greater Ann Arbor community. Because the City Council should be more responsive to your concerns, I have launched a precinct-by-precinct listening tour. Together, we can make Ann Arbor an even greater place to live.

As a lifelong resident of this community, I am aware of the challenges facing Ann Arbor. And, on the next page, I have identified key areas in which I plan to focus my attention. I look forward to listening to your concerns and working for you in the future.

Sincerely,
Eugene Kang

And his platform:

Increasing Fiscal Responsibility
• Our city budget has been in deficit for the past five years and expenses are expected to exceed revenue for at least the next two years. We need to close this gap – but not on the backs of taxpayers who are already paying more than their fair share.
• The cost of living in Ann Arbor is already significantly higher than that of similar cities in the Midwest, and higher taxes will only make it more difficult for people, especially new homeowners, to remain in our City.
• I am committed to balancing Ann Arbor’s budget and look forward to meeting with you to discuss your priorities and listen to your ideas.

Making Ann Arbor More Affordable
• Making Ann Arbor a more affordable place to live is critical to the City’s future. We cannot allow our middle-class and economically disadvantaged citizens to be pushed out of our City because of sky-high housing prices.
• Ann Arbor spends $5.6 million dollars a year to discourage Ann Arbor residents from moving away. Unfortunately, we spend only 10% of that amount to encourage people to live in our City by making housing more affordable.
• To curtail urban sprawl and enable people who work in Ann Arbor to live here as well, we must provide incentives for residents to remain in the City.

A Practical Approach to Downtown Density
• Downtown density is inextricably connected to the issue of affordable housing. While I recognize that building taller structures downtown would create more space for residential and commercial enterprises, I am sympathetic to how these structures would change the downtown aesthetic.
• I support a pragmatic case-by-case approach that would carefully consider each proposal and weigh the benefits of density with the costs to aesthetics. It is Ann Arbor’s sense of community that makes it so special. We must not alter the City’s unique appeal as we work to make sure as many people as possible can afford to enjoy the Downtown area.

Listening to Every Voice
• The Arbor City Council is not representative of Ann Arbor’s population. University of Michigan students are Ann Arbor residents. Their views should be represented on the City Council. An accusation often leveled against my generation is that we are politically apathetic. My peers and I are working hard to change this perception.
• Young people do care about politics and I believe that the student body does care about the greater Ann Arbor community.

Contact us at kangforcitycouncil at gmail.com or (734) 972-7254

> Download a PDF of the Flyer Here
> See my coverage of the Kang campaign
> See my viewpoint in the Daily: “A Perfect Storm Brewing in City Politics”

I just spoke to someone with Eugene Kang’s campaign. They sound like they’re building a sound infastructure, and promise a website is coming soon …

Is it serious? The first missed connection has been posted to the Ann Arbor craigslist: “To the cute waitress working the check out on saturday afternoon. I was the quiet bearded boy in a the yellow ‘734′ shirt who ordered a tempeh reuben and chai latte. We joked about my shirt and I think there was some chemistry?? Now I’ve posted this I’ll be too mortified ever to come in again, so please reply if interested.” Of course, there’s been A2 connections on the Detroit site for a while …

I haven’t been paying much attention, but after a little research: Sounds like a good idea to me.

Predictably, there’s a little controversy. Doug Cowherd, co-chairman of the local Sierra Club and czar of the local NIMBY “environmentalists” who lobby like hell for little parks in their back yards but could care less about planning for development from a regional perspective, has started a lobby to oppose the plan. Because I couldn’t resist, more info after the jump.

(more…)

According to an email I was forwarded, the featured speaker at a fundraiser in for MARAL Pro-Choice Michigan in Ann Arbor Thursday is non other than Miranda Massie.

Miranda was the lead attorney for one group of student intervenors (the law students - not the undergrad intervenors) in the Grutter v. Bollinger affirmative action case. She’s also the sister of Luke Massie, an organizer for the organization Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action By Any Means Necessary (BAM-N). She’s also one of the core leaders of a Trotskyite sect called the Revolutionary Workers League which goes by the name BAM-N in public. RWL was founded by George Washington, an activist attorney who built up a practice with a small group (Scheff & Washington) in combination with his efforts to build a revolutionary Trotskyite organization.

This one is tough: Massie is no doubt an accomplished attorney and the law firm has certainly litigated a number of worthy cases. In general I have heard only good things about MARAL, and I trust they simply don’t know much about BAM-N, but I question their wisdom of inviting Massie to speak. Despite the slickness of their “Speakers’ Bureau” webpage, there’s a lot about BAM-N they wouldn’t like you to know. BAM-N’s recruitment tactics verge on cult-like (One former member was brought to Detroit to participate in hours-long Marxist study sessions), and their organizing tactics are always divisive, sometimes violent, and frequently downright nasty. In his role as organizer for the group, Luke Massie has physically intimidated friends of mine, engaged in yelling matches, and called one of my best friends (an ACLU member and committed progressive) a “white devil.” Nathan Newman, a well-known journalist and blogger and columnist for the Populist Progressive, has called BAM-N a “threat … to the affirmative action and civil rights movement” and said his research, “In twenty years of political organizing, I have never seen such violent and thuggish behavior, a step beyond the worst sectarian acts I had ever imagined.” The Michigan Daily has harshly criticized the organization in an editorial.

So, I guess I wouldn’t invite a member of the group to come to speak at my fundraiser. But that’s just me. Here’s the bio they circulated on their email:

About Miranda Massie
Miranda Massie is a civil rights attorney with Scheff & Washington in Detroit, and has been actively involved in organizing for women’s rights and civil rights throughout her education and career. Massie is currently representing a sixteen-year-old male from Macomb County charged
with a major felony for trying to assist his girlfriend in terminating her pregnancy. He is being tried for intentional conduct against a pregnant individual resulting in miscarriage or stillbirth, a 15-year felony. Massie argues that it was not assault because the girlfriend consented to the means of the termination, and that the young girl was simply exercising her right to an abortion.

Massie received a B.A magna cum laude from Cornell University, an M.A in History and American Studies from Yale University, and a J.D. cum laude from the New York University School of Law in 1996. One of her best known cases is Grutter v. Bollinger, for which she served as lead counsel to student defendants in the University of Michigan affirmative action case.
Massie is also currently a member of the legal team challenging Ward Connerly’s attempts to ban affirmative action in Michigan.

These days, BAM-N spends their time blowing hot air about MCRI. For organizing that’s not from a freaky fringe group on MCRI, check out Citizens for a United Michigan. For more info, see my somewhat outdated information page: NoBAMN.com, or if you’re new to all this check out my BAM-N Update post from January 2004.

My friend George just posted something about Kang’s race in the 600-member Ann Arbor / Ypsi Live Journal Community

Upon the request of summer Michigan Daily editorial page editor Donn Fresard, I adapted my recent blog post on the status of student power in Ann Arbor into a viewpoint for the Daily. In it, I point to the Ann Arbor blogosphere, new student and renter-oriented neighborhood organizations, and Eugene’s candidacy as three conditions which could allow for the fundamental shift in student politics I’ve been rooting for for years:

Student and renter attempts at community organizing have been stymied in recent years. Whether by student apathy, the hostility of the city’s political elites or a lack of serious and motivated candidates for Ann Arbor City Council, efforts to involve a major part of the city in the local public life have sputtered. However, I believe a number of recent developments has shown that a group of students and renters has coalesced that will seriously contend for power in the city: Conditions are ripe for a perfect storm that could revolutionize Ann Arbor politics. …

No matter how perfectly aligned the conditions, the storm won’t strike without unprecedented energy fueling it. If they set their minds to it, students have both the political base and intellectual resources to be a potent political force that could fundamentally reshape the city’s political landscape. An atmosphere of complacency and pessimism about what is possible for the city hangs around city hall. Let’s imagine a city where tenants’ rights are a top priority; the planning commission and council aggressively pursue an agenda of dense, sustainable development; and new and radical ideas to provide affordable housing — such as subsidized housing and rent control — are earnestly explored. If they set their minds to it, students like Dale Winling and Eugene Kang — and their supporters — could begin to make this vision a reality.

> My viewpoint in the Daily: “A perfect storm brewing in city politics”

My friend Ed Vielmetti tipped me off that Craigslist has expanded to a whole slew of new cities, including Ann Arbor and a bunch of others like Fresno, Wichita and even the entire state of West Virginia. Thoughts? I am still waiting for Portland, Maine.

Update: Maybe I missed it last night, but there’s now a Craigslist for Maine.

I found this photo of Eugene Kang, a 21-year old U-M senior running for City Council, on his facebook profile.

Kang was profiled in this week’s Michigan Daily. Readers of my blog will find some of these themes very familiar:

“The only people who can live Ann Arbor are the extremely wealthy. Those in the middle who don’t make $150,000 per year won’t be able to live here,” he said.

Kang said that current residential areas in Ann Arbor that people enjoy would not exist if introduced to the city today.“A lot of the cooler places built down Main Street could not be built now because of city zoning,” Kang said.

Kang said he is also concerned about student participation in city politics. Alex Donn, one of Kang’s campaign advisers and a third-year Law School student, said that the political limitations placed on students have been a concern of his for quite some time. “Local voting regulations impinge on the rights for students to vote in Ann Arbor,” Donn said. “The same people who say students should pay attention are putting voting regulations on them.”

“The primary takes place when all the students are away.”
“It’s not like they all decided to take a three-day vacation and missed the primary. Students are here 75 percent of the year,” Donn said. Kang said that the five wards prevent students from collectively raising their concerns to the city and that the wards that divide up Ann Arbor were created to better represent diversity.“Unfortunately, that hasn’t been achieved,” Kang said.

The Ann Arbor News also had a recent story on Kang, reproduced below. (Via ArborUpdate)

University student plans run for council
U-M’s Eugene Kang wants 2nd Ward seat
Friday, June 17, 2005
BY ART AISNER
News Staff Reporter

Eugene Kang, 21, said Thursday he has collected well more than the 100 petition signatures required to run for council in the 2nd Ward and will file with the City Clerk’s Office by Monday’s 4 p.m. deadline. His entry into the race would guarantee a second Democratic primary for a council seat this August, a rarity in recent council elections. A contested primary is also expected in the city’s 4th Ward.

“I don’t see this as my future but as a community service,” said Kang, a life-long resident of the 2nd Ward majoring in both English and philosophy en route to a career in law. “The City Council, in general, has the best ability to give back to the community and do positive things for the city, which is what I want to do.”

Former Republican mayoral candidate Stephen Rapundalo announced earlier he is running as a Democrat for the 2nd Ward seat. He filed his nominating petitions Wednesday, city officials said.

Second Ward Council Member Mike Reid, the council’s lone Republican, in April announced he will not seek a third term this fall.

Ann Arbor attorney Thomas Bourque has indicated he is circulating petitions to run as a Republican, but had not filed by Thursday, city officials said.

Kang, whose parents immigrated to the United States from Korea in 1969 and settled in Ann Arbor in 1973, said he believes now is the right time to make his first attempt for public office.

“As a student, my time is my own and I can dedicate as much of it to the city and researching issues as I can,” said Kang, who is entering his senior year at U-M.

He sheepishly admits to spending hours watching City Council meetings on television and reviewing agenda packets at the library, which have helped him develop a platform to address ongoing budget problems, affordable housing and improving political participation from all segments of the community.

He said his age should be viewed as an asset rather than a detriment because he can offer fresh ideas. Also, growing up in the 2nd Ward and attending

U-M gives Kang a unique perspective into issues that intertwine both the city’s and university’s interests, he said.

Five of the council’s 10 ward seats are up for election this year.

Art Aisner can be reached at aaisner at annarbornews.com or (734) 994-6823.

Arborupdate: U-M Committee Recommends Coca-Cola Investigation

Also, PFAW: Save PBS Now! - (Send a letter to your congressperson)

‘Perfect Storm’ Brewing in A2

The other day I sat down with Dale Winling to talk about a couple organizations he recently launched. Dale is a first year PhD candidate in Architectural History at the University of Michigan. He has undergraduate and graduate degrees in history from Western Michigan University and is from a town outside of Kalamazoo. I met with Dale to talk about two organizations he has founded in Ann Arbor: the New West Side Association is a neighborhood association targeting students in Ann Arbor’s west side, and the Ann Arbor Alliance, a membership organization open for members from anyone in Ann Arbor. The NWSA has a website and blog, and was written up in the Daily and on Arborupdate.

We talked about the role of students in Ann Arbor politics, which has been in recent years very small. This is something I have long bemoaned: in a city where over 1/3 of the population consists of students and renters, that community plays a minimal role in city politics. Furthermore, instead of treating this massive affront to democracy as a problem to combat, city leaders have been all too content to build a status quo which excludes most of the city from meaningful political participation. Although virtually all freshman live in the dorms, by their senior year almost every undergraduate at the University of Michigan will live off campus in a house, apartment, or fraternity or sorority.

However, I believe have been a number of recent developments indicate a group of student and renter citizens has coalesced which will seriously contend for power in the city. A perfect storm is brewing which could revolutionize Ann Arbor politics. The key components have fallen into place: an alternative media structure open to new voices (blogs, Arborupdate, student media), progressive public policy (the engagement of planning students), and viable political candidates. (Yes, the triad is similar to Wellstone’s formula for a “winning politics")

First, through the activism of a small group of blogs, there has developed an online community interested in engaging in local issues. This website has played a role in that, as well as Arborupdate (which I founded last summer), and Ann Arbor is Overrated, among others. Arborblogs, an effort to create a directory of Ann Arbor blogs has flourished under the able control of George Hotelling, and plays a role in connecting the Ann Arbor blogging community. Arborupdate in particular has become a venue where voices who otherwise not have a platform, like graduate student June Gin, can pose the question: “Will [Ann Arbor] continue to be a diverse, multi-cultural community where arts and ideas flourish? Or will it be transformed into a commodified playground for wealthy bored people? … Is urban apartheid part of our “Cool Cities” vision for Ann Arbor?” Second, there has also been interest building in the larger political community in engaging students in city council politics - College Democrats has discussed it at meetings and at least one student has run recently for City Council (Rick Lax). The issue of the greenbelt engaged students in unprecedented levels in local politics. Furthermore, the increase in knowledge and interest in community planning and design by undergraduates has been fueled in no small part by popular history professor of Matt Lassiter and the general coming into vogue of New Urbanism. This heightened level of activity has been a long time coming: My junior year as an undergraduate a friend organized a Student Neighborhood Action Project through the student government and a class to pick up garbage in the Student Ghetto (and hold a barbeque).

Furthermore, the existing city politicians have done much to fan student organizing in the past few years. The eminently reasonable and limited proposal introduced for Accessory Dwelling Units in the city was smacked down by the City Council in 2002, which subsequently fueled much organizing by Students for PIRGIM. City government was restructured to eliminate the planner and move more power to the council members and neighborhood associations. A draconian towing ordinance hit many students unawares with large fines that were reduced after an uproar. Murmurs of a couch ban last summer sparking unprecedented vocal participation in local politics many who had not spoken up before. (See my post on the role of blogs in the controversy)

Most recently, I have heard of perhaps the most encouraging sign yet: a serious student contender for city council. Eugene Kang is a lifetime Ann Arbor resident who will be running in a primary against a moderate democrat. And that brings me back around to Dale’s groups. We spoke how the two could be resources for tenants, advocates for progressive city planning based on the principals of New Urbanism, and a badly needed voice for the downtown renter community in Ann Arbor politics. I believe the combination of a large number of engaged undergraduates and professional planning students provide both the political base and intellectual resources to advance an agenda dedicated to affordability, sustainability, and inclusively. Ann Arbor doesn’t have particularly bad policies, however an atmosphere of complacency and pessimism about what is possible for the city hangs around the Guy Larcom building on 5th Ave. If they set their minds to it, students, renters, and their allies could be a potent political force who could fundamentally re-shape the city’s politics and also urban form. Imagine a city where tenants’ rights are a top priority, the planning commission and council aggressively pursues an agenda of dense, sustainable development, and new and radical ideas to provide affordable housing are earnestly explored. If they set their minds to it, students like Dale Winling, Eugene Kang, and June Gin – and their supporters – could begin to make this vision a reality.

Another student is running for Ann Arbor city council. Although I don’t know much about Kang, my friend Scott recently met him and seems to think he’d be a good candidate:

Kang definitely seems like he’s on the same page as I (and my cohorts) in terms of development, and how it relates to affordable housing, the environment, and the future of this small city. Given the relative homogeneity of the Council, I think Kang would be a great addition. He’s an Ann Arbor lifer (he grew up here, went to U of M, and intends to stay). He’s a student, who’s voices are woefully under-represented in city politics. Hopefully his campaign will also have the effect of mobilizing the significant, but politically uninvolved Korean-American community in Ann Arbor.

> SS Trudeau: Kang for Council

Via Murph on Arborupdate, the Detroit News reports Google is looking for space in Ann Arbor. 200,000 square feet of space for 1,000 jobs - in a state that badly needs them.

Remember all the backlash in the last year against Richard Florida and his Cool Cities theory? According to the News: “Boston and Boulder, Colo., are other cities Google is considering for the project, which seeks to tap communities with a large population of recent college graduates from 22 to 30 years old. … ” Shocking, I know. Now, do you think that there will be more or less companies like Google in the future?

The article also has this tidbit:

Google is also looking for space to digitize thousands of bound materials within U-M’s library system, said John Wilkin, associate university librarian. “I wish we could accommodate them on campus, but we simply don’t have the room.”

Google personnel are working at U-M’s Buhr Remote Shelving Facility, but Wilkin didn’t have an exact employee total or the amount of space they were using.

The project began last July, with a goal of finishing in six years, but the work could be done in three years, Wilkin said.

See the coverage on ArborUpdate of the group (which I posted about last week). The Daily story includes a mention of this website, and ArborUpdate.com (a community website I founded):

After the proposed couch ban that the Old Forth Ward Association brought to the Ann Arbor city council last summer, many students began discussions on blogs and other websites to counter the idea that house fires are related to the couches many students and renters keep on their porches. Because homeowners in the ward have been organized, they have been able to promote their agenda in the community. But since students and renters have in the past been highly disorganized, they have normally only associated with one another through school programs, not through neighborhood associations — giving them limited capacity to voice their concerns for the neighborhood itself. …

The New West Side is also working toward legalization of accessory dwelling units, sometimes called “granny flats.” The association said these add-ons could be rented out, creating affordable means of living and a source of extra revenue for the homeowner. …

Students and renters are able to communicate using blogs created and utilized by many of the participants of the West Side, including arborupdate.com and goodspeedupdate.com, as a tool to get informed about local issues and get their opinions heard by other students, renters and leaders of the community.

“These tools in no way replace seeing our neighbors on a regular basis. They serve to augment and improve these relationships,” Winling said.

West Side’s first call to action is its endorsement of a counter-proposal to a bill introduced by Rep. Chris Ward (R-Brighton) to the Michigan House that could potentially limit the ability of cities to have house inspections. Ward’s bill would change the Ann Arbor’s current inspection policy, which mandates inspections every two years, to a minimum of one inspection every five years and a maximum of one every three years.

“This merely loosens protection on the poor,” said Dan Faichney, LSA senior, and West Side member. Representatives from West Side said if Ward’s proposal passed, it could decrease the frequency of follow-up inspections to make sure houses are up to code, causing houses to remain dilapidated for much longer than they would under current limitations.

> See more on the couch ban and how the internet is changing Ann Arbor politics here

Some Ann Arbor activists have set their sights on AAPD Chief Oates:

… Before coming to Ann Arbor in August 2001, Daniel Oates, an attorney, was the commander of the New York Police Department’s (NYPD) Intelligence Division. In that position, Deputy Chief Oates, while not a named defendant, was an important figure in three First Amendment lawsuits litigated by the New York Civil Liberties Union on behalf of Housing Works–an HIV-AIDS service provider and advocacy group that was critical of New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani’s AIDS policies. Three separate opinions of federal District Judge Harold Baer, Jr. reveal that Oates and other officials repeatedly violated the First Amendment rights of Housing Works and its supporters under the rubric of security concerns. […]

Less than a month before 9/11, Oates took over as Chief of the Ann Arbor Police Department. In October 2001, Ann Arbor News interview, Oates mentioned an FBI “watch list which has hundreds of Arabic names."[8] The watch list was part of a federal dragnet that swept up more than 1,200 US citizens and non-citizens–mostly south Asians and Arabs. The only person caught in the sweep who was ever charged with involvement in the 9/11 attacks—Zacarias Moussaoui—was known to the FBI before the attacks. Thus, while the FBI’s broad-brush approach had questionable anti-terrorist value, it spread fear and distrust in immigrant communities and, arguably, gave tacit encouragement for scores of post-9/11 hate crimes. Yet, the Oates interview reveals no concern about ethnic profiling or lack of probable cause. Instead, Oates complained, “We need descriptions, ages, dates of birth, drivers’ license numbers, pictures . . . to capture these people."[9]

Repeatedly, and often in cooperation with local police, the FBI has egregiously and systematically violated the constitutional rights of law-abiding Americans. According to former Deputy Chief Harold E. Olson, in the 1960s and 1970s, the AAPD, in cooperation with the FBI, “checked on possible subversives as a regular duty.” The AAPD also shared “political spying intelligence” with the infamous Chicago Police “Red Squad."[10]

The AAPD is a participant in the Detroit Joint Terrorism Task Force, one of 66 of such groups around the country convened by the FBI to coordinate intelligence for anti-terror efforts. The Colorado ACLU discovered the Denver Task Force had been “gathering information and building files on the activities of peaceful protesters who have no connection to terrorism or any other criminal activity. I have not seen much information about the Detroit group, but in December 2004 the ACLU of Michigan filed a FOIA request for information on the FBI’s activities in the state:

There is reason to believe that surveillance of law-abiding groups is occurring in Michigan. First, Attorney General John Ashcroft announced in 2002 that law enforcement would be permitted to spy on political and religious groups even though there was no suspicion that they were violating the law. Second, there are documented examples of JTTFs in other parts of the country investigating environmental activists, anti-war protesters, and others who are clearly not terrorists nor involved in terrorist activities …

>> See my post 2003 from the same group on the JTTF and AAPD’s role in the arrest of Rabih Haddad

In Ann Arbor? Check out this fundraiser Friday:

you are invited:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
come on out to a benefit dinner supporting
DETROIT SUMMER & BACK ALLEY BIKES!!!

~ Friday, June 3, 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
at 205 Division, Apt. 2 (Corner of Ann and Division), Ann Arbor

featured guest speaker:
GRACE LEE BOGGS

old timey music performers:
TWO DOLLAR BREAKFAST

fine organic foods courtesy of:
PEOPLE’S FOOD COOP, TANTRE FARMS, AVALON BAKERY

all are welcome.
suggested donation: $6 - $60
all proceeds support the summer programming of Back Alley Bikes & Detroit
Summer

PLEASE RSVP IF YOU ARE ABLE TO ATTEND: email mmedow at umich.edu or call
248.224.7152
~~~~~~~~~~~~

Want more info on the beneficiaries? check out this article.

Ann Arbor folks: go join the New West Side Association! Check out their blog! It looks similar to an idea I had as an undergrad but never really got off the ground: a student neighborhood association.

Why? As I said in October “The Old Fourth Ward Association is a neighborhood association notorious in the city for doing everything they can to boost their property values by calling police for even small student parties, and agitating for restrictive, puritanical laws.” (See an example … ) AAIO should be all over this soon …

For four years, this blog was focused on events in Ann Arbor and at the University of Michigan.

- What was the old blog?: To read my last post before re-launching the site with different focus (I moved to Washington, D.C.) view my last entry with that template. The Michigan Daily also printed a short profile of the website.

- BAM-N: I have a website with information about the organization the Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action by Any Means Necessary: NoBAMN.com. You can also peruse more recent content in my BAM-N category.

- Ann Arbor City Council Elections: In 2003, I sent a survey to all the city council candidates. View the results here: 2003 City Council Candidate Survey

- 9/11 Photo Gallery: I have posted a collection of photos of the 9/11 events in a gallery that gets my site lots of hits from the right wing website FreeRepublic.com.

- Borders Employee Strike: I closely followed the strike of employees of Borders’ Books Ann Arbor downtown location (the first store the company ever opened.) The employees eventually won a contract, but not without a strike. See my materials here: Borders Strike, or use the search box on the top right.

- History of Activism Class: I taught a class on the history of student activism at U-M. My class website has more information: “Student Activism and Social Change at the University of Michigan” The extensive coursepack I prepared for this course is in the Bentley library.

- Hash Bash: A true Ann Arbor tradition, and I collected some photos and other information on my Hash Bash page.

- Michigamua: I published quite a bit of data about Michigan’s racist secret society, and most is on this page. You can also click here for recent updates.

- Naked Mile: Another popular tradition, this one ended by administrators. I compiled my information on my Naked Mike page.

- Planada Building: The University tore down the historic Planada Apartment Complex to make room for … parking.

- MSA Elections: My blog was well known for its comprehensive student government election results.

- University Employee Pay: I obtained a spreadsheet of how much all the University employees were paid. Of course, it’s on the web: 2002 Data, 2003 Data, 2004 Data.

- U-M Employee Political Giving: Interested to see what candidates and parties your professors and administrators are giving money to come election time? Check out my U-M Political Giving page.

- ‘Inside the Daily’: I wrote for the news staff and the opinion staff for the Michigan Daily, and was fired two or three) times (depending on who you ask). I sum it all up in my “Inside the Daily” Series.

- Birthday Freebies: My post on free things you can get in A2 on your birthday is always popular.

What are you looking for? If you have interests similar to mine, or are looking for more data than I have on the web for any of these topics, you may be interested in viewing my papers at the Bentley Historical Collection. Leave a comment.

The Fristabuster has come to Ann Arbor. Click on the image to see more photos, sent to me by participat Kristin Purdy, or see my story on Arbor Update.

Event organizer Kristin Purdy and myself will be on WCBN tonight at 6 p.m. - listen in online here!

$60 if you register before July 15 … apply online here.

EDUCATE - ADVOCATE - MOBILIZE
Make Your Voice Heard
Learn how at
Project Democracy’s Summer Activist Training August 15- 19th, 2005

The Summer Activist training will provide a unique opportunity for students from around the country to come together and learn how to run on-campus grassroots campaigns and voter participation campaigns. Students will be taught by some of the foremost activists and trainers
in the country, and will learn everything from the basics of tabling to how to run a sophisticated media campaign through hands on sessions. Become a campus leader. Apply now!

EDUCATE- Our trainers will educate students on the best methods of campus engagement, including the most effective ways to teach your fellow students about important issues.

ADVOCATE- Learn how to make the student voice heard on campus and by elected officials from the local level to national.

MOBILIZE- Go back to campus with all the tools you need to run a successful campaign and get others involved.

LCVEF’s Project Democracy Summer Activist Training The University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI August 15-19, 2005 Apply online at www.projectdemocracy04.org or email Seth Fiur at seth_fiur at lcv.org.

Cost: $75 includes housing, training, and some meals. Apply by July 15th to
receive early discount rate of $60.

Travel scholarships are available. Apply online.

Application Deadline: August 1, 2005

Project Democracy is a program of the League of Conservation Voters Education Fund, a non-partisan nationwide effort to train and mobilize young Americans to make their voices heard in elections and with elected officials.

www.projectdemocracy04.org

from ‘04 and ‘05 classes …

Lisa Yang (lwy) - USAC pres
Dana Baki (dbaki) - MSA
Antonina Nina Catalfio (acatalfi) - UMDM
Jaya Soni - Head Multicultural Greek Council (See the Daily on controversy)
Neal Pancholi - IASA president, AIO president, 2006 SAAN cochair

In my opinion, no self-respecting progressive should even consider joining Michigamua. If there was a very elite troup that performed blackface minstrelsy for around 90 years, and around year 100 asked you to join - would you? Of course not. I challenge anyone: go to the Bentley Historical Library. All of the organization’s internal communications are written in stylized english. All of the classes have taken nick-names. Their longtime letterhead contains gross stereotypes. The historical record is unambiguous - the group has an offensive history and identity. The leader interested in service has many options other than Michigamua. Plus, if you join Michigamua, when you try to run for public office or ask anyone I know for a job I will be there, holding you accountable for your actions.

> See more members.
> See Michigamua documents
> See related blog entries

I received this from an acquaintance, I’ve heard a bit about it but not much.

Many of you have probably already see the news clips about the marijuana bust at the University of Michigan. Some have read articles from the AAnews, Michigandaily you name it. For those of you who haven’t i have provided some links below.

But what many of you may not have read about the same day as reports surfaced about students arrested on drug charges stemming from over 6 months previous to April 15th, is the Department of Justice’s Operation Falcon (http://www.usdoj.gov/marshals/falcon/state.html)
also go to cnn, msnbc, abc, or fox news and search Operation Falcon to read articles from April 15th.

The Ann Arbor news was quick to publish the names, charges (accurate or not), potency level of the marijuana found ("highly toxic” according to police chief Oates) but failed to report on the AAPD’s involvement in Operation Falcon - why the arrests of these students all took place simultaneously and without incident.

In addition, little to no coverage has been given about the rights of tenants and innocent college students who may be living in the same house/apartment building/rental units as those being investigated for marijuana charges. Due to reports by fellow students, who live in
some of the large community residents raided by the police, we know the news failed to report the lack of care given to upholding the terms for search/arrest warrants. The violation of innocent student’s right to privacy may have occurred.

I ask you all if there may be a collective response brought through editorials, research, reporting, civilian dissent and contacts at local news papers, that may help to ensure responsible media coverage - including a discussion of the facts presented, and reasons for the hype surrounding what should be seemingly routine drug arrests. Maybe this is a chance to also follow some of these students and study the effect of being a student at one of the countries top universities
(some of the accused may be middle-class to well off, some white and other minorities) - looking at the punishments given out in comparison with national statistics.

Below are the links for just two of the news articles.

WDIV report

Article from the Ann Arbor News

Libby Benton has posted some photos from the Divided State screening and the Michigan Independent launch in Ann Arbor this week.

This rock is at the base of the big flag pole on the Diag.

Seen in Ann Arbor

A building on Maynard Street in Ann Arbor.

My friend Scott has abandoned his Master of None blog and started up SSTrudeau.com, where he has already drawn some attention for a Starbucks internet gag. Go check out his site!

The first issue of the Michigan Independent hits the U-M campus tomorrow. The Independent is supported by the Center for American Progress’s Campus Progress program, and is a new progressive newspaper.

Yes, you read right. Current Magazine has selected this website for 2nd place in the “Best Blog” category in their 2005 Best of Washtenaw County. Ann Arbor is Overrated won first - congratulations!

Last fall I wrote about the release of a documentary about the life of Paul Wellstone. The film is going to be screened in Ann Arbor this week:

***Michigan Premiere of “Wellstone!” Documentary***

When: Thursday, March 31st, 7 pm - 8:30 pm.
Where: Rackham Amphitheater (4th floor), in the Rackham Graduate School Building, 915 E Washington, Ann Arbor.

Go to www.carryitforward.org to view a trailer. “Wellstone!” is about a remarkable man, Paul Wellstone, who defied tradition, became a U.S. Senatorfrom Minnesota, and brought politics back to the people. The film is funny, stirring and full of surprises.

$5 suggested donation at the door. (all donations will go to Wellstone Action! A non-profit, non-partisan organization).

Sponsored by the Ford School Student Affairs Committee, and the Ford School of Public Policy.

Questions? E-mail angela at aboatman at umich.edu

> Order a copy of the documentary

your presence is requested for a mid-day diag dance party hosted by yours truly,
dj max blixx.

come on out and get down to the best (only?) politically conscious disco-tech-house-boogie-funk in town. if you have class, skip it. put on your sneakers and prepare to dance. we are going to be setting up a sound system right on the diag from 12-1PM this wednesday, march 30. this is probably a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity at best, and it’s something i’ve always wanted
to do.

don’t be late, it’s only an hour long. i hope to see you there-

I found this stencil in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

This just in:

Tom Hayden will be speaking at the 40th Anniversary Teach-In this Thursday March24. The event goes from 6:30 to midnight in Angell Hall. There will be an open floor for students (and others) to talk at the posting wall followed by speeches in the Angell Auditoriums.

The first teach-in on the Vietnam War was held in 1965 at the University of Michigan. Today, students and faculty have organized a 40th anniversary event on the “Evaluating the American Empire” with a variety of U-M professors including Ian Robinson, Charlie Bright, Ivette Perfecto, among others. They have set up a website here.

There is also a teach-in planned by United for Peace and Justice and the Institute for Policy Studies, a progressive think tank, for George Washington University:

On the 40th Anniversary of
the first teach-in on the Vietnam War

NATIONAL TEACH-IN ON IRAQ: How Can We End This War?

Thursday, March 24, 7:00pm - 10:00pm
George Washington University
Jack Morton Auditorium, Media and Public Affairs Building
805 21st St., NW (Corner of 21st and H St. Map (PDF file)
Foggy Bottom/ GWU metro on Blue and Orange line

Free and open to the public!
Sponsored by the Institute for Policy Studies with United for Peace and Justice,
Black Voices for Peace, Students Against the War in Iraq, Military Families Speak
Out, and Global Exchange

Opening Remarks on the legacy of the Vietnam teach-in movement by Professor Marcus Raskin, GWU and the Institute for Policy Studies. Panel Discussion with: Naomi Klein, award winning journalist and author of No Logo; Phyllis Bennis, Institute for Policy Studies; Damu Smith, Black Voices for Peace; Anas Shallal, Iraqi Americans for Peaceful Alternatives; Celeste Zappala, co-founder of Gold Star Families for Peace and member of Military Families Speak Out, whose son, Sgt. Sherwood Baker, was killed in Baghdad in 2004.

Two years after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the tragedy of war continues and the U.S. has no plan for bringing the troops home. The death toll soars on all sides, especially among civilians. The cost of the war mounts daily as vital social programs are being cut at home. But many questions remain: Did the January 2005 elections improve the situation in Iraq? Is the US troop presence in Iraq helping stabilize the country, or is it at the root of Iraq’s deadly violence? And what
are the true costs of the war at home – its impact on military families and returning veterans, its $200+ billion price tag, and the legacy of occupation on the people of Iraq?

Join us in Washington, DC, to consider these issues to mark the 40th anniversary of the first Vietnam War teach-in in 1965. Simultaneous teach-ins will be held in San Francisco and Ann Arbor to launch a United for Peace and Justice education campaign on how to end the war in Iraq.