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(05/15/14 2:23am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>She still remembers the day she got into Berkeley three years ago. She’d been rushing to and from the mailbox each day, consumed with trepidation and anxiety. She had opened each admission letter with trembling fingers and bated breath.When Dohkyung Kim got the letter from Berkeley, she didn’t celebrate. She didn’t flounce about emitting a high-pitched squeal of excitement.The university had not offered her funding of any kind, and there was no way her parents could pay for the high costs — not when she was an international student ineligible for student loans or financial aid. Kim’s most cherished dreams slipped away in an empty envelope.***Assistant professor of history Ellen Wu said America is often conceptualized as a melting pot and a nation of immigrants, but both historical and current immigration policies have proven this to be false.“America likes to tell itself that it stands for freedom, democracy and tolerance, but the real story is much more one of white supremacy, exclusion, imperial domination and slavery,” Wu said. “The impetus for regulating Asian immigration came out of the desire of Americans to exclude people from Asia altogether — to bar them from entry, bar them from citizenship and meaningful participation in the U.S.”An examination of the lives of Asian immigrants in Bloomington challenges the concept of universal equality in America. Student Dohkyung Kim, along with business-owner Kyungsil Choi, have both discovered they are not privy to the same opportunities as Americans because of their race and lack of American citizenship. Under U.S. immigration policy, junior Dohkyung Kim is classified as a non-immigrant visa-holder despite the fact that she has lived in Bloomington since she was 12 years old.She came to America as a dependent on her father’s student visa back in 2004. While she speaks English fluently and has American friends, Kim continues to feel unwanted in the U.S.“I don’t feel like I belong here,” Kim said. “We’ve been here for years, and we pay taxes, but we don’t get any benefits.”She has felt this way since her younger brother was initially denied an F-1 student visa to go to college in the U.S.“My brother is completely American, and the possibility that he might not get to stay here really scared him,” Kim said. House Bill 1402 passed in 2012, and it classified her brother as a non-resident for tuition and fee-paying purposes, adding another significant weight to her parents’ already-strained budget.Because Kim does not want to burden them, she plans to return to Korea to get a job and, eventually, to attend graduate school. “The American dream doesn’t exist. To me, that means the opportunity to be happy and live a good life,” Kim said. “For us, for immigrants, there are so many laws that impede our success here.”Wu said understanding exclusive immigration policies is crucial to making sense of American identity. “In thinking about debates on immigration, we end up reflecting on profound, fundamental questions of who is American,” Wu said. “Who gets to consider themselves American? Who gets the power to decide the answers to these questions?”***Kyungsil Choi, 55, owns and manages Sobon, a Korean restaurant in Bloomington. She said she has felt a similar sense of isolation since moving to Bloomington in 2010. Choi immigrated to the U.S. because her two daughters wanted to study in America. Back in Korea, Choi was a music teacher in secondary school. Her younger daughter professed an interest in music and wanted to attend IU to study cello.As a teacher, Choi was well aware that the Korean education system benefits only those who can excel in academia. “You have to be good at studying, or you’re nothing,” she said. “Your rank in school follows you for life. That’s not the case in America — there are opportunities for everyone.” Because Choi did not want her daughters to fend for themselves in a foreign country, she moved with them. “It was a difficult decision, leaving everything behind,” she said. “I didn’t want to break up the family.” Yet, she bid farewell to her parents, siblings and even husband to start a business in America. She applied for an E2 investor visa, which allows individuals to enter and work in the U.S. provided they have a substantial investment large enough to capitalize a new venture and employ American workers. “It is a really hard visa to get,” Choi said. “I was rejected the first time I applied because I didn’t have enough documentation. You have to have money, investment, capital.”Soon she found herself a restaurant owner in America with little experience in managing or operating such a business. Because she does not have a large staff, Choi works an average of 15 hours per day in order to ensure her business operates smoothly. “I have to do everything — cooking, accounting, sorting through tax issues and managing the employees,” Choi said. “Life here is so, so hard — a hundred times harder than life in Korea.” Choi said one of the worst aspects of life in the U.S. is the discrimination she faces from Americans because of her foreign appearance and lack of knowledge of the English language.According to the Pew Research Center’s 2012 report, “The Rise of Asian Americans,” merely 30 percent of foreign-born Korean immigrants in America reported they can speak English well. Choi is not proficient in English and feels uncomfortable whenever she attempts to carry out a conversation with an American. “When I have to go into an office or buy supplies or deal with problems with Americans, I have trouble conveying my meaning,” she said. “I don’t like interacting with Americans because I feel ignored and dismissed. I get so frustrated because I just have to go along with whatever they say since I can’t speak English.”Choi has no American friends in the U.S.“I’ve been living next to my American neighbor for years, but I haven’t ever exchanged one word,” she said. While she interacts more with the Korean community and attends a Korean church, Choi generally keeps to herself and her family. Most of her time is eaten up at the business anyway.“That’s one of the things I miss the most about Korea — the sense of camaraderie you have with others,” she said. “I am grateful for the opportunity to do business in America, and there are many good things here, but this life is so difficult.” ***Wu is often frustrated by the attitude of some Americans that immigrants have no right to complain about the way they are treated in the U.S. since they came here voluntarily.“A response like that doesn’t take into account issues of power and inequality of resources,” Wu said. “Worldwide inequality in terms of resources leads people to seek better lives, however they can, and the kinds of choices they have are limited by circumstances beyond their control.”The influx of Asian immigration into the U.S. is also a result of American presence as a global and imperial power in Asia, she said. “I would like to live in a world where access to opportunities and resources are not tied to such circumstances like accident of birth,” Wu said. “Unfortunately, this is not the case in America.”
(05/06/13 3:19am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Mayor Mark Kruzan announced Bloomington will be recognizing Be Kind to Animals Week starting Sunday, along with the American Humane Association which has celebrated it every year since 1915. To encourage adoptions, Bloomington Animal Care and Control will reduce all dog and cat adoption fees to $40. Emily Herr, outreach coordinator at the City of Bloomington Animal Care and Control, said she hopes this reduction will spark some interest in the community. “It helps bring awareness and maybe would get some people in here who wouldn’t normally come here to meet the pet of their lives,” she said. In addition to lowering prices, the shelter brought dogs and kittens to the Farmers’ Market on Saturday to entice shoppers. They also held a poster and essay contest for grades one through six, picking winners in every grade level who will then get to attend a behind-the-scenes tour of the shelter. “Being in a shelter is just hard on animals in many ways,” Herr said. “If we can promote the dogs and cats that we have here, and really promote them with Be Kind to Animals week, that would be great.”Any stray animal brought to the shelter is currently held for five days. Any animal that the owner relinquished will be evaluated for temperament and health. “As long as they don’t injure someone by biting them or have health problems, they stay on the adoption list until they get adopted,” Herr said. “We euthanize only if they have problems.” Some animals have been in the shelter for so long that their mental conditions deteriorate and they must be transfered to a different shelter or find foster homes for them. Even those unable to adopt an animal can find a way to help. “Making donations is always a good way to help,” Herr said. “If you see an animal that’s in need of assistance, there are people out there that can provide help. And of course, volunteering is always a good way to start if you’re unable to adopt an animal.”Adoption counselor Allan Tharp, a graduate of IU as of Saturday, is one such volunteer. He said he has been there for three years. “I’ve always been an animal lover but I’ve never been able to have a dog,” he said. “Getting to work with animals that haven’t had loving individuals around is very rewarding.”He especially enjoys the feeling he gets when he is able to successfully match an animal with a family.“If they come in looking for specific breeds or personalities, I can immediately say, ‘Oh, I know a good animal that would match that description,’” he said. “It’s the best, most enriching feeling.”Tharp said events like Be Kind to Animals Week are very helpful for the shelter.“The city of Bloomington has been very open about taking initiatives to do things for the city animals,” he said. “The special rates and promotions will make it more desirable and appealing for people to come into a shelter, instead of a pet store.”The Monroe County Humane Association will promote Be King to Animals Week by continuing to educate the community.“It’s the time to celebrate and promote awareness of animals in our everyday lives and what we can do for them,” said Sarah DeLone, education program director. “We try to make every week Be Kind to Animals Week.”The MCHA sends out a newspaper to schools every other month that reaches around 60 classrooms. These focus on positive animal care and encourage spaying and neutering. They are currently focused on elementary schools.“We talk about anything from responsible pet care to animal sheltering issues to caring for our natural resources and wildlife,” she said. “One of our animal ambassadors is a permanently injured great horned owl.”The ambassadors discuss what the kids can do to care for their pets, as well as other animals in the community. They do a dog bite prevention program to help kids learn how to be safe around animals. Throughout the summer, the MCHA holds a Paws and Claws camp that focuses on responsibility and care toward animals. This week, employees will visit a school in Green County. They will also make a therapy animal call at Meadowwood and Redbud Hills. “It’s a great idea whenever we can embrace celebrating the role of animals in our lives and how we can make their lives better,” DeLone said. “Bloomington is a great place for animals.”
(04/08/13 10:26pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Classrooms can be tight quarters, especially in crowded lecture halls across campus. So, if you find yourself sitting next to someone who smells, here are tips from tried and true etiquette experts. Use these to address the issue that will save your nose and the dignity of the person in question. Emily Post wrote “Etiquette in Society, in Business, in Politics, and at Home,” an elaborate book crammed with tips on how to behave and impress:“You might say, ‘Tom, I’d like to talk to you about a difficult issue. I hope if the situation were reversed that as my friend, you would talk with me. Are you aware that you have body odor?’”Dear Abby, the advice column founded by Pauline Phillips in 1956, answers readers’ pleas for help in all areas of life: “You must tell her! But do it with kindness ... Tell her it is essential that she bathe and change all her clothes daily. (P.S. If she is bodily clean, and her clothes are clean, she should see a doctor. A strong body odor can be a symptom of a serious disease.)”Anne the Agony Aunt, the British version of Dear Abby, gives insight to those in dire need:“Say something like, ‘I’m awfully sorry to be the one to tell you, but I like you and it’s something that will help you so please forgive me. I’m afraid you have a problem with body odour.’”Christine Adamson, senior elementary education major “When my brother was going through puberty and would smell bad, I’d say, ‘Ew, you smell like boy. Go put on deodorant.’ I think he felt kind of bad at first, but then he got used to it. “I also work with first-graders, and they have hygienic problems, but I can’t tell them they smell. So if they get really close to me or something, what I generally do is say, ‘You’re in my bubble. My personal space.’ Then they just giggle and back off.”
(04/08/13 7:57pm)
When we’re peeling off our spirit wear after watching an intense home game, we seldom pause to consider what other kinds of sweat have gone into those clothes. But IU’s Anti-Sweatshop Committee did.
Established in 1999 to make sure all IU-licensed apparel was made by individuals with basic workers’ rights, the committee closed shop in 2010. Lynn Duggan, associate professor in the labor studies department, was a part of the committee for 11 years, and she shares how the organization’s impact has continued on.
Tell me about IU’s committee.
This is part of a national student movement that’s been going on since the ‘90s against exploitation of workers. We established a code of conduct for our suppliers to abide by. The code makes sure that workers have basic rights, like the right to organize.
Why was it established?
We wanted to increase labor rights for workers around the world that produce goods with IU logos on them. We know students don’t want to wear things that students don’t want to wear things that have been made from sweatshops.
We make sure that students don’t exploit these workers. It’s not right for us to use things made by workers with no rights.
What kinds of things did the committee seek to accomplish?
We ended contracts with companies that had subcontracted to smaller companies that were denying workers their fair rights. Sometimes, we threatened to do so and that was enough initiative for them to clean up their act. A lot of it was just publicity, telling students this was going on and that they needed to stop it.
I remember Russell Athletic closed its factory that violated workers’ contracts due to pressure from universities all over the country.
Why did you choose to become involved?
I care about workers’ health and safety and working conditions. I think it’s possible to improve labor conditions for everyone in the world. We met with the students and helped them in their efforts to educate the administrators and gave advice.
So why did the committee stop being so active?
The most active students who were really passionate about the issue graduated in 2010. The chapter came to an end in 2010, and a few people tried to revive it from 2010 to 2011, but it didn’t last long. We just didn’t have enough members. We’d be happy to continue to meet if student interest revived.
Why do you think the interest decreased?
When something’s new, it’s more fashionable. Other new things were happening around campus. Students didn’t realize this is a current issue that’s ongoing, and that they need to care about it because it’s important.
Sometimes, students think other people are on it, and they don’t have to worry about it. Activist students are few and far in between. We need students to be active and cause positive social change. But the “No Sweat” movement doesn’t seem as pressing to students now as the tuition increases.
How do you feel about that?
I’m disappointed. I think that if we work together in something like this, there’s great potential for improving workers’ rights and wages. But we need students to get on board in order for this kind of activism to continue.
***
What’s happening now?
Valerie Gill, Director of Licensing and Trademarks at IU, says that even though there is no longer a student organization like the Anti-Sweatshop committee, IU still monitors where its apparel come from.
“We are still a member of the Worker Rights Consortium,” Gill says. “The WRC routinely provides us with information on our licensees.”
The WRC, an international, independent organization, monitors labor rights and routinely releases investigative reports on different manufacturers and major global brands. IU joined the WRC in 2000 and is one of more than 180 college and university affiliates of the WRC.
(04/08/13 2:18am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>More than 7,000 miles lie between Bloomington and Uganda. This week, the IU chapter of Building Tomorrow is determined to have students and faculty bike that distance. As the organization’s biggest fundraising effort of the year, the money raised during the event will go toward establishing an IU-sponsored school in Uganda.There will be five stationary bikes set up by the Clock Tower behind Woodburn Hall from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., today through Thursday. Those who are interested can sign up for a half-hour slot to bike with a registration fee of $5. This year, the IU chapter will be racing Purdue University’s chapter to bike 7,000 miles and raise $7000. Building Tomorrow, a non-profit organization based in Indianapolis and founded in 2006, provides funds that cover the cost of construction materials and skilled labor. In return, the local government and community commit to paying for the teachers and supplying 20,000 hours of unskilled labor.“Children in rural Uganda don’t have the opportunity that we do. Less than half the kids advance to first grade,” said sophomore Brigitte Hackler, the IU chapter’s president. “Some of them have to walk six miles just to get to school, and, sometimes, a teacher just gathers students under a tree. Just having a building that they can go to would improve their education.”Each school costs $60,000 to build. IU has raised more than $36,000 since the chapter started five years ago. “Our goal is to make it bigger than last year and raise awareness,” she said.They have even established “celebrity bikers” — well-known professors on campus whom many students encounter during their careers at IU. “We’re saying you can have one-on-one time with these professors during those sessions,” Hackler said. “We’ve actually had students try to rearrange their times so they can bike with the professors.”Steven Kreft, an associate professor at the Kelley School of Business, is one of them.“Last spring, the event organizer ... asked if I would be willing to jump on a bike for a good cause. I was happy to help out,” he said. Kreft is planning on participating again this year. “This year, I am particularly excited to ride as my wife, Ellie Mafi-Kreft, will be riding alongside me, so it is turning into a family affair,” he said. “I love how easy it is to support a great cause. I get to enjoy the amazing spring weather in the heart of Bloomington’s beautiful campus, and at the same time I get to help raise money to build schools across the globe. What better way could I spend my afternoon?”This will be the third time IU has participated in Bike to Uganda. The goal of biking 7,000 miles has never been reached, but Hackler remains hopeful this might be the year. She said she is excited to see it all come together. She joined Building Tomorrow her freshman year because she wanted to be part of something meaningful.“A dollar here buys 10 bricks in Uganda. Every dollar helps raise that building,” Hackler said. “I like knowing that every little dollar will make a difference, not just in one life, but in the lives of all the students that will eventually go through the school.”Senior Carli Bolanowski, the vice-president of IU’s chapter, said that she hopes the event will eventually be as widely known and supported as the IU Dance Marathon. “I think just knowing that if we do reach our goal, IU will be able to fund a school — that’s amazing,” she said. “I’m a senior, so leaving and seeing something completed, seeing that something was accomplished, would be a great feeling.”
(04/03/13 3:30am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Commission on Multicultural Understanding had its 25th annual awards ceremony in the Indiana Memorial Union on Monday, honoring faculty, students and staff who have been active in promoting diversity at IU.Recipients for the six individual awards presented were chosen from a pool of more than 100 nominations that COMU received this year — the highest number yet.“It’s one of the only ceremonies that recognizes the work individuals do for diversity,” said Cameron Vakilian, COMU graduate assistant. “Events like this promote the good work that has been done and help us move forward to accomplish our goals.”Rasul Mowatt, an assistant professor at the recreation, park and tourism studies department, received the faculty award. Eric Love, director of the Office of Diversity Education, said Mowatt has been an ongoing resource for student organizations on campus, as well as a dedicated Union Board adviser and an inspirational teacher. He also mentioned Mowatt’s research in issues of social justice and racial identity. “I highly respect those who have nominated me and been supportive and allowed me to be me,” Mowatt said. Senior Alicia Nieves was the recipient of the undergraduate student award. Nieves has been active in issues of immigration on campus. As the coordinator of Dream IU, she actively promoted the Dream Act that sought to provide more rights for undocumented students. When state legislatures introduced the controversial Senate Bill 590 and House Bill 1402, which raised fears of racial profiling, she contacted officials and urged them to reject the bills. Nieves has also been working to shed light on undocumented Asian students, “the neglected dream students” who are largely unheard. La Casa Latino Cultural Center director Lillian Casillas-Origel held back tears as she presented the award to Nieves, who received a standing ovation as she came to the lectern. Nieves will be graduating in May, but she is determined that this won’t be the end of her activism at IU. “I want to continue to contribute to IU,” she said. The graduate student award was presented to Gopinaath Kannabiran, who was nominated for the respect and compassion he showed while working with students as an assistant instructor as well as his enthusiasm for issues relating to multiculturalism. “When I first started my master’s program in 2009, I didn’t feel like I belonged here,” Kannabiran said. “My freshman year, I didn’t have any friends. I didn’t impress any professors with my work. I didn’t impress myself with my work.”His academic career was changed when one of his professors, without any apparent reason, decided to work on a project with him. He said he tries to demonstrate that same kindness and understanding to hisstudents. “Giving someone a second chance is the most human, kind act you can do,” he said. “You never know what can happen by just one simple act.”Other awardees included Lee Ann Jourdan, executive director of Girls Inc.; Brian Morin, assistant director of the Office of First Year Experience Programs; and the cast of “Catalyst”, a theater project that was inspired by Martin Luther King Jr. More than 70 people attended the reception and ceremony, sitting at tables that held “I won’t stand for hate” signs. Bryan Popa, an IU alumni and COMU member, said he was excited to see those who have worked tirelessly to promote diversity. “It’s a great opportunity to show these people that their work is important,” he said. “It makes me feel both proud and humble to know that these people, who are responsible for making our mission a reality, are being respected and honored.”
(02/18/13 11:25pm)
When freshman composition major June Lee listens to a song he identifies each note by pitch with ease. He doesn’t have to think about it — it’s a reflex, like someone bopped his knee with a musical hammer. After all, he has perfect pitch.
(11/27/12 6:08am)
Campus reflects our college experience in pieces — the place where we first met someone who changed our life, saw a flyer that jump-started a love for an organization, or the classroom where we had that “aha” moment.
(11/27/12 6:08am)
How IU is taking the Master Plan from concept to concrete... and what students have to say about it
(11/27/12 6:08am)
How IU is taking the Master Plan from concept to concrete... and what students have to say about it
(11/06/12 1:50am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Ask any college student how much sleep they get and you will probably receive the same answer: not enough. It’s one of those things that’s supposed to happen at night but always seems to be pushed back — kind of like tomorrow’s class readings.There are many substitutes for this elusive five-letter word. From Starbucks to Five Hour Energy Shots, college students often fake it to trick their bodies into believingthey’re getting the restorative benefits of sleep.Sometimes, there is no better feeling than when your head hits the pillow or even the armrest of a leather couch in the Indiana Memorial Union.When our bodies are asleep, our brains are wide awake. What happens when sleep is interrupted? And why do college students seem to be able to run on empty forso long?WHY DO WE NEED SLEEP?Hitting the sack is more than an excuse to stop studying. IU Professor of Psychological and Brain Studies Preston Garraghty says it is essential to restore and recharge the brain after each day.“When you look at what happens to your brain over the course of the day, in the morning your brain has gone back to start,” he says . “Over the course of the day, asyou experience stuff, there are transient changes in the connectional strength between neurons that reflect your experiences.”In other words, the brain is like a hard disc, Garraghty says. As day-to-day experiences are absorbed, the hard disc begins to fill. By nighttime, the hard disc is full, and sleep resets it again. In the morning, the hard disc is empty so it can store new memories the next day.“Sleep must be pretty important or we would have done away with it, because if an organism could get by without sleep, it would have a comparative advantage,” Garraghty says. “Apparently, no such advantage exists.”WHEN SLEEP GOES WRONGFor the third night in a row , IU-Purdue University freshman Megan Kirby stares unblinkingly at the dark ceiling of her bedroom.She can’t sleep.Kirby sits up in bed, tossing the covers in frustration, and dresses in running shorts and a T-shirt. She grabs her keys and walks out the door. She’ll run as far as she can, pushing her sleep-deprived body to the brink of collapse and then fall back into bed.Hopefully, she’ll be able to sleep.Kirby suffers from bipolar disorder and depression. Often, her anxiety and stress keep her up all night.“I got sick of just lying there, so I just began finding things to do,” shesays. “I go running. I create art. I talk to people who are awake.”Sometimes, after an all-nighter, Kirby says she feels happy — even refreshed. But that feeling doesn’t last long.“If I can’t sleep for a while, I just don’t function,” she says. “After three full nights without sleeping, my brain starts to go in weird directions, and I end up having a panic attack or nervous breakdown.”In her sleep-deprived state, everything becomes a challenge.“When I don’t sleep well and still have to go to class and go to work, it’s just really hard for me to concentrate because I’m really tired,” she says. “Eventually, I’ll just collapse and not talk to anyone for a day or two, which isn’t very fun.”Kirby doesn’t take prescribed medication for sleep-related issues because of potential side effects, but she says she’s seen an improvement in her sleeping patterns since she began seeing a therapist.She doesn’t have so many thoughts bouncing in her head. She’s not as frequently upset or stressed as she used to be, she says.“I’m happier now from day today,” she says. “It makes everything easier.”IU sophomore Elias Orfan has had his own struggles with sleep.Last year, he was diagnosed with sleep apnea.“It’s a sleeping disorder that happens when the soft palate collapses and blocks your airway temporarily,” he says. “People can pass away when their airway is cut off for too long.”For Orfan, it meant waking up at least five to six times a night and living in a constant state of fatigue, dry mouth, and irritation. He says he had trouble staying awake in class, hiding behind computer monitors to catch a few winks of sleep. He couldn’t concentrate on his homework and would study for a test for eight hours only to find he had scored an average grade.When Orfan described the problem to his doctor, he was asked to participate in a sleep study. After considering the offer, he decided not to go through with it.“Why would I bother to do this sleep study when I know what the problem is?” he says.The problem — Orfan was 315 pounds at the time.He says the excess weight around his neck would force down on his soft palate, which is located at the back of the roof of his mouth.“The solution was simple,” he says, “I had to lose weight.”Orfan took last semester off to attend a weight loss camp at La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. He was there for five months and lost more than 80 pounds.“I didn’t look anything like the picture in my student ID, so I had to get a new one,” he says.Since then, he hasn’t experienced any problems with sleep.“It’s great,” he says. “I’m more rested, more focused and less lethargic. In fact, I just took a three hour nap earlier today.”
(11/05/12 3:12am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Wrapped in thick sweatshirts and The North Face jackets, junior Julia Lamorelle and a crowd of students huddled around a white tent Sunday in Dunn Meadow. It was time for the Civic Leadership Development’s annual Campus Cleanup Day, and they were ready. Armed with gloves and garbage bags, students departed in groups to five different parts of campus, covering the tailgate fields and various areas surrounding University housing. CLD co-president Lamorelle said she was excited to see students come together and give back to their community.“It’s a tradition,” she said. “We do this every year to make the campus more beautiful. It’s a great way to tie in volunteering with where you live and go to school, and it’s fun.”CLD is a volunteer organization in the Kelley School of Business. It reaches out to various campus organizations each year and invites them to participate. More than 150 students registered this year. “When people participate in an event like this, they get to see the impact that they have on campus,” Lamorelle said. “They’re usually shocked by how much trash there is. It makes them appreciate our campus more and change their own day-to-day lifestyles.”Senior Katie Merkhofer, a member of the Kelley Retail Association, said she joined the cleanup because she wanted to get involved and connect more with the people in her group through this shared experience.“I wanted to partner up with CLD because they have a great goal,” she said. “Everyone wants to make the campus better. Everyone wants students to be involved. Teamwork is great.”Divided into groups based on the organizations in which they were involved, students gathered trash in their assigned areas for about two hours. Senior Ashley Yu led a group of about 20 students from the Kelley Student Government, circling Briscoe and McNutt quads and the Kelley School. “My biggest goal was to bond with other people in my group and get to know each other outside of meetings,” Yu said. “We’re all having a lot of fun.”They collected five full bags of trash, comprised mostly of cigarette butts. “I thought the most common thing would be water bottles or paper or something, but there were cigarette butts everywhere,” she said. “It was disgusting. I’m surprised the school doesn’t have lung cancer.”While picking up cigarette butts strewn about campus isn’t usually what she envisions doing on a weekend, Yu said she was glad she participated. “Our school gives to us every single day, so the least we could do is come out for one Sunday,” she said. “I hope people will notice but, if nothing else, it will make the people who volunteered more aware of where they throw trash away.”As other groups returned to Dunn Meadow to report back and grab a slice or two of the provided pizza, CLD gathered the bags in one black heap and counted them.More than 75 bags of trash were collected this year, breaking last year’s record of 44 bags. “It’s great to see how much we collected, especially with such an increase,” Lamorelle said. David Rubenstein, a professor at the Kelley School who was present to encourage and cheer on the students, said he was impressed by all their efforts.“I think this is the greatest thing in the world,” he said. “It’s one of the greatest events of our campus. It’s bringing students together who will work together, eat together and spend time together. They’re going to thrive.”He said the efforts they’ve put in will benefit everyone — the participants and those who did not attend the event.“We’ll see the results tomorrow when we see how clean the campus is,” he said. “We’ll know how much effort they put in. We’ll see the impact throughout the semester as they’ve created networks from coming together today. Friendships will grow across organizations and it will make Indiana even stronger.”
(10/26/12 3:38am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Members of Young Americans for Liberty are asking administrators to examine IU’s current speech policies, which they believe unfairly limit students’ freedom of speech.YAL Indiana State Chair and senior Nate O’Connor said this is a critical issue not just for the organization he is part of, but for all students.“Students need an avenue to voice their opinions and get change done,” he said. “If we don’t have the necessary environment, place and forum to talk about these issues, very little awareness will be raised and students won’t be involved.”Such an attempt to revise speech policy has been made before. “It’s been an on-going battle for a few years,” O’Connor said.In 2010, Nicholas Perrino, who was the IU Student Association executive director of legal affairs at the time, voiced his concerns about IU’s speech policies. He worked with Samantha Harris, director of Speech Code Research at Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, to identify key issues.IU-Bloomington’s Policy on Free Speech in the Student Organization Handbook restricts any expressive activities, such as protests, rallies and demonstrations, to Dunn Meadow and Sample Gates.Those wishing to engage in such activities must notify the Student Activities Office at least 24 hours in advance, and only Dunn Meadow can be used for “spontaneous” expression, according to the policy.IU’s Code of Student Rights requires all student speech to be “civil” and prohibits “verbal abuse” as well as “expressed or implied threats,” while IU’s Residence Hall Rules and Regulations policy restricts speech on “areas frequented by the public” that can be construed as being “offensive” or “inappropriate.”Harris noted in a memo that these policies served to produce a “chilling effect” on free speech.“While I think there were good intentions by the bureaucrats who wrote these policies, they didn’t really understand that some of these policies aren’t constitutional,” O’Connor said. “That’s not good.”Perrino attempted to work with administrators on his findings but was told to wait.This semester, YAL decided to follow up on the issue. During Constitution week, the organization encountered its own problems with the speech policies at IU. “We wanted to put up a free speech wall and keep it going all week,” O’Connor said. “Then we read in the Student Organization Handout that no student organizations can hold an event more than twice a week.”While the YAL members spoke with administrators and were allowed to go ahead with their initial plan, O’Connor was concerned with IU’s inconsistency in applying the policies. “Things are really only enforced if you ask permission. If you go ahead and just do it, they don’t care,” he said. “The administrators are good about it and support free speech, but the policies don’t support their practices.”O’Connor worked with FIRE to brainstorm a new potential policy, and approached IUSA Director of the Department of Student Rights and IDS opinion columnist Daniel O’Connell.O’Connell found that his concerns with the “contradictory and overlapping” speech policies mirrored theirs.“I think it’s necessary to make absolutely clear what rights students have on campus,” O’Connell said.He helped O’Connor arrange a meeting with Assistant Dean of Students and Director of Student Life Learning Stevan Veldkamp, who is in charge of the student handbook containing the Policy on Free Speech, as well as IUSA President Kyle Straub.“Kyle was receptive and encouraged him to continue pursuing the issue,” O’Connell said. “The rest of the administrators were encouraging and pleased that students were getting involved.”O’Connor wasn’t as satisfied after his meetings with the administrators.“We’ve been met with weak support from the university,” he said. “I spoke with Dean Veldkamp and he dodged the question.”Veldkamp was unavailable for comment.O’Connell, who was present at the meeting, said Veldkamp encouraged YAL to get more input from students, organizational leaders and advisers.“I think the next step is to synthesize what they have developed with student input and the current policies as they stand now to develop a comprehensive policy,” O’Connell said.O’Connor also met with Dean of Students Harold “Pete” Goldsmith, who he said did not read the memos that he had sent regarding the policies and potential changes.“If these policies remain in place, IU administrators could be sued for damages because of their continued lack of cooperation,” O’Connor said. “For students, the inability to express themselves is unjust and unacceptable.”Goldsmith doesn’t believe there have been any real issues with free speech at IU.“The policies have some language that appears to be contradictory, but the business practice promotes students’ free speech,” he said. “As they have pointed out, there exists some confusion and we’re going to take a look at them to try and eliminate it.”O’Connor said this concerns him.“I don’t think it makes sense to wait until there’s actually an incident to address the problem,” he said. “Students are reaching out, and the ball is in the University’s court.”He attended a meeting with faculty members Wednesday to raise the speech policy issue.“Those who attended were warm to the idea to revise these codes now,” he said in an email.He is aiming for changes to take place by next fall.“Free speech is something that is necessary to voice and express political opinions and ideas,” he said. “It’s the foundation on which our other rights exist.”
(10/18/12 3:39am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>On Sept. 16, 1968, a young black woman set out to sell a stack of encyclopedias in Martinsville, Ind.She never came home. That night, Carol Jenkins was murdered with a screwdriver at 21 years old. Although the Jenkins family was desperate to find out what had happened to their daughter, more than three decades passed without any answers.By the time reporter Sandra Chapman took her post at WISH-TV, Jenkins was nothing but a “cold case” — one among many unsolved crimes collecting dust in a forgotten corner. Refusing to accept the silence, Chapman launched an investigation in 2001 that eventually cracked the case. At an IU Themester event on Wednesday she spoke of her experience and discussed “The Girl with the Yellow Scarf,” her nonfiction book detailing the case.“It was one of Indiana’s most notorious cold case murders,” she said. “This story captivated me and became the passion of my heart.”Chapman first became interested in the story when she was warned by fellow reporters to never go to Martinsville alone — especially after dark. It was then she learned of Jenkins.“I wanted to know more. I wanted to dig,” Chapman said. “In a small town, everyone knows everybody and everyone’s business. How did no one know what happened?” As she began working on the story, Chapman faced resistance from the Martinsville residents, who resented her intrusion, and from the state police, who were concerned about their reputation. In November 2001 she discovered that the original primary suspect for the case, supposedly killed in a shooting in another state, was actually alive. “No one ever really checked or verified it,” she said. After this story was released, Chapman received a voicemail that completely changed the investigation’s direction.“The voicemail said, ‘If the girl had a yellow scarf and was killed with a screwdriver, my father could be the killer,’” Chapman said. “It gave me shivers. It still does now, thinking about it.”The woman who left the voicemail knew something only a witness could know. Jenkins’ scarf had never been included in any information released to the public. “Shirley McQueen was trying to unburden herself from a devastating secret,” Chapman said. McQueen was just 7 years old when she witnessed the murder from the backseat of her father’s car. Afterwards, Kenneth Richmond gave her $7 and told her to “keep her mouth shut.”Richmond was an alcoholic who regularly abused his wife and children, Chapman said. He was also deeply troubled and so tormented by his failures that he castrated himself. Above all, Richmond was open about his hatred of blacks. He told his daughters he would kill them if they ever brought home black men. “Shirley had two choices,” Chapman said. “She could either muster up the courage to go against her father, or she could tell herself that it wasn’t her place to get involved.”Instead of condemning McQueen for her prolonged silence, Chapman said it was important to realize how much turmoil and suffering McQueen had gone through. She faced rejection from her family and father, and she was terrified of how her life might change if she revealed the truth. The two women began a correspondence that would last for years. As Chapman continued her investigations, the state police demanded she present all her notes and records. They eventually took her to court. She refused to comply, stating that sources would refuse to talk to her if she gave her notes to anyone. “This was during the time when journalists were beginning to get arrested for not giving information,” she said. “My friend asked me, ‘Are you ready to go to jail for this?’ And I guess I was.”The court sided with her, and the investigation plunged on. Thanks to the information McQueen revealed to Chapman, the police were able to arrest and charge Richmond with murder. He died of cancer before trial, but he allegedly admitted to the killing while in custody. After his arrest, McQueen became an instant celebrity when shows and stations such as CBS, “Dateline” and “60 Minutes” reached out.“It was her life, and she didn’t want to have anything to do with them,” Chapman said. “She eventually came forward and asked me to write the story because she felt that she could trust me.”It took Chapman eight years to write the book. She said it was a project that stirred up many emotions and consumed her thoughts. “I knew Carol’s family’s frustration and their desire for answers, but I also knew Shirley was in real pain,” she said. “I wanted to help her, too.”
(10/16/12 5:55am)
An artist uses night to find light in the darkness
(10/15/12 3:57am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A former Vietnamese soldier who rescued and saved the life of the last American prisoner of the Vietnam War spoke at a Themester event Thursday. Nguyen Duc Toan was 17 years old when he joined the military in 1969. He lived in terrible conditions with little food and water in constant fear of the bombs that ceaselessly dropped from the skies. Then came the day that changed his life. At 5:15 p.m. Jan. 27, 1973, Toan’s unit shot down a jet circling overhead in Quang Tri Province. He watched as two pilots jumped from their equipment. The first was killed by a shot to the head. U.S. Navy pilot Philip Kientzler was wounded in the leg.Hai Toan, acting as translator for her father, said Kientzler began to panic as Nguyen Toan approached. “He was feeling hopeless because he had just seen his friend get shot down, so he told my dad that he has a family that he has to return to in the United States,” she said. “My dad didn’t really know much English, but he saw the wedding ring on the soldier’s finger.”As he looked into Kientzler’s face, Nguyen Toan recalled the many U.S. Marines that had been stationed in the villas where he grew up. They had always been kind to him. They would come to his house, play with him, give him candy and talk to him. He knew that, like himself, this man probably didn’t have any choice about being in this war. He knew that, like himself, this man had left everything behind to be here, including a family. At that moment, Nguyen Toan decided all he wanted was to keep this soldier alive. Nothing else mattered. Nguyen brought Kientzler back to his bunker and cleaned his wound, wrapping a cloth over his hand so his ring wouldn’t be taken from him in prison. Afraid that his fellow soldiers might kill Kientzler, Nguyen Toan decided to hide him on a boat and take him back to the North. That night, Nguyen Toan risked his life to save his enemy’s as they wobbled along the coast of the East Sea on a broken riverboat intended for one person. While they shared a small cake, Kientzler spoke of his four-year-old daughter and four-month pregnant wife back in the U.S. “He was nervous and scared and wanted to keep talking to my dad because he had no idea if he would ever have another chance to talk to anyone else,” Hai said. “He wouldn’t stop, even though my dad was really tired after carrying him around because he was so big and heavy.”Handing his jacket to the shivering American, Nguyen Toan reassured him in limited English, “Don’t worry, I take care of you.”Nguyen Toan took Kientzler to Hoa Lo Prison in Hanoi, Vietnam, where he would be safer. Before they parted, he expressed hope that they might meet again in a time of peace so they could sit down together and exchange stories and laughter as friends.For years afterward, Nguyen Toan and his family tried to find out what happened to the American soldier. More than 30 years after they met, a letter he sent finally arrived in the hands of the Kientzler family. They wrote back to tell him Kientzler had died from a heart attack about 30 years after safely returning to the U.S., but they still had the photo albums he had made for Nguyen Toan, as well as his hat and medal. In 2007, the two families met in Vietnam and spent time together as friends. “My dad says that even though the war was a terrible thing, some good did come out of it,” Hai Toan said. “If it weren’t for the war, we wouldn’t be here right now.”Ron Osgood, a former U.S. Marine and current professor in telecommunications who first met Nguyen Toan as a source for a documentary on the Vietnam War, said he was pleased with the results of this event that he had organized.“Nguyen was great,” he said. “He showed a great deal of humanity. It’s amazing that we can fight against each other but still be able to hug and kick back with a beer and laugh together.” Among those in the audience was Vietnam veteran Patrick Murray, who said he was touched by Nguyen Toan’s story.“I was drafted into the military in 1969 when I was young, naive and innocent,” Murray said. “I didn’t know what to expect. It’s great knowing that people can grow beyond that and think about each other not as enemies, but as fellow human beings.”Carol O’Dey, whose late husband fought in the Vietnam War, was also struck by Nguyen Toan’s humanity.“He risked his own life to save a complete stranger,” she said. “I always hated war, and it gives me great hope in humanity and human nature that they can overcome something so traumatic and still have some good come out of it. It’s remarkable.”
(12/08/11 4:29am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Fifteen minutes before the doors open, Josh Wolf briefly runs through the script with a coworker and discusses tactics for holding the children’s attention.“I’m going to roll around on the floor and goof around,” he tells her. “Great,” she says. “I’ll probably trip on my dress and fall down.”Wolf is the children’s services manager at the Monroe County Public Library. During that night’s event, a program celebrating the popular Olivia series, he was dressed as Olivia the Pig. “Oh man, I’m going to be a 6-foot-tall pig,” Wolf says as he glances at a giant pink suit laid out backstage. “It’s really hard to see and hear when I’ve got this head on. I better run to the restroom before I put this on.”He dashes away.There are 9,225 libraries and 48,015 paid librarians who work in public libraries in the United States, according to the American Library Association. In a world where technology is constantly changing the ways we gather information, these librarians strive to remain relevant. In MCPL, the librarians of the children’s department struggle to adapt. They see people reach for their Kindles instead of paperbacks. They worry about books becoming obsolete in the future. To fight back, they have a sizeable DVD collection. They offer free music and eBook downloads. They have self-check-out machines stationed throughout the library. They sponsor children’s events and programs where they dress as 6-foot-tall pigs. They have meetings in which they discuss the future and determine what changes they should make accordingly.And they’re always there to help — to answer every question with a smile, to share their love for books with others. They are currently experiencing a $600,000 budget shortfall and they are applying for a bond from the Monroe County Council. If it is not approved, they will have to cut services and programs.But they’ll do anything to remain relevant to kids — the next generation of potential readers.* * *It’s a busy day at the MCPL. The first floor is home to the children’s department. Pat Firenze, library assistant, stares at a computer screen at the circulation desk. A little boy approaches her cautiously, one hand firmly clutching his mother’s.“Do you know the book with the owls?” He gives a brief summary of the plot.“I think I do,” Firenze says. “Are you talking about ‘Owl City?’”The boy gasps, delighted. “I think that’s the one,” he says. “Let me just look it up and find where it is,” Firenze says. She grasps the mouse and pulls up the Internet. Her fingers fly over the keyboard, pounding each key with precision. After a few seconds, she beckons the boy to follow. “I’ve got it,” she tells him. He smiles up at her. All his former caution lost, he goes with her. In just a few minutes, he has the coveted book in his arms. “What do you say?” his mother asks.“Thank you,” the boy tells Firenze before dragging his mother away to the check-out machine. Firenze chuckles. “I love kids, and I love books. I love to read,” she says. “I have a job that allows me to combine those things. I don’t know how it could get any better than this.”Firenze has been working in MCPL’s children’s department for 39 years. “There have been a lot of changes here over the years,” she says. “So much has happened.”The building has doubled in size, computers were added and books on tape were introduced — followed by CDs, DVDs, eBooks and more. Back at her desk, Firenze closes the browser and thinks back to the first time she used the web more than 15 years ago.“Wow, that was so long ago,” she says. The computers then were much more cumbersome than the monitors there are today. Firenze learned to use the computer to check in and check out books, as well as search for titles and authors.She had to learn how to use a mouse. “It was terrifying. It was a challenge,” she says. “Kids today have grown up with it, so they’re really comfortable using it. But for me, I remember it took a lot of concentration.”That’s no longer a problem for her. She navigates through the different search engines with ease.“It’s like second nature now. I can’t imagine not using it,” she says. She had to learn how to use email and other forms of social media as well. Recently, she had to learn how to check out books using radio frequency identification. “I’m always a little bit apprehensive whenever I have to learn to use a new technology, but it usually doesn’t take very long for me to get used to it,” she says. Nonetheless, she hopes things won’t change much more. “I’m a paper person,” she says. “I love books, so I hope we don’t go too far away from that.”She says she would be disappointed if books become obsolete.“I like everything about a book. I like the smell and the texture of the paper. I can pick it up and read it wherever I am,” she says. “I’m planning on trying a Kindle soon, but I can’t picture myself choosing that and totally giving up books.”Wolf feels the same way. “With kids, they’re never going to get over books. There’s something magical about picture books when parents and kids read them together,” he says. “When these kids grow up, they’re going to read picture books with their kids because that’s what their parents did, and that’s what they’re used to.”He puts a large stack of DVDs on hold for a woman who will be coming by later to pick them up. “Times have definitely changed. Fifty percent of the materials checked out of the library are audio-visual materials now,” he says. In a world full of constant technological developments, Wolf says libraries must keep up.“The biggest danger of a library is becoming irrelevant. I’ve worked at libraries where nothing ever changes, and then when there’s a recession, it closes,” he says. In order to prevent that from happening here, Wolf says the librarians always think of ways to remain appealing. “We need to cater to people’s wants. We need to find a new niche that we’re good at,” he says. “Our mission here is to surprise and delight people. We want to defy their expectations.”That means being ready for any sort of change.“Remember when the DVDs first came out in the ’80s, and everyone thought they were going to last forever and threw away all their records?” he asks Firenze. “Oh yes. I remember that. Everyone was so excited,” she says.“The thing is, they get scratched really easily,” he says. “Soon, there’s going to be something new that takes the place of DVDs. Nothing lasts forever nowadays.”Wolf is part of the Library Futures Committee, which anticipates future changes. Projects under consideration include the establishment of a media lab, which Wolf says could become a place for teenagers to create web content. By offering services like this, he says he believes the library and librarians will always remain pertinent. “Besides, we offer a lot of programs that you can’t get anywhere else,” he says.Lisa Champelli, children’s services coordinator, says she believes as much as he does in the importance of librarians. “They’re irreplaceable. Some people get the perception that volunteers can be librarians because they think all we do is put books back on the shelves, but we do so much more than that,” she says. “We have the background knowledge in all types of different books. We can match a child with the right book for them at the right age. We help these kids find information.”* * *Music flows from the program room. The lights are dimmed. Dozens of picture books are set up on tables, and a cozy carpet is rolled out on the floor. In the center of the room is Wolf. As children pile into the room, holding hands with their parents, he begins to juggle. “I’m just goofing around here until we get started,” he tells them. The kids shriek with laughter as Wolf drops a ball and bumps his head on a table on his way to retrieve it. He flashes them a sheepish grin. “You think we should start?” he asks them.“Yeah, start. Let’s start,” they shout, clapping their hands together. Wolf tells the dozen kids gathered in the room that because it’s International Education Week, he will be reading them bedtime stories from various different countries. He pulls out a giant globe and places his finger in the middle of the U.S. “This is where we are. Now, we’re going to take a little trip around the world,” he tells them. “Let’s go to India.”He pulls out a picture book. “Caps for Sale.”As he flips through each page, using different voices for each character and waving his hands about, the kids lean against their parents and listen, their eyes fixed upon his face.“This is why I love my job,” he says later. “We just try to find books that make kids happy. We try to find that moment when they forget they’re decoding words on a page and nothing else matters.”
(12/07/11 2:55am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Indiana Student Coalition for Immigrant Rights Bloomington, a new student organization on campus that promotes equality for immigrants, held its call-out meeting Nov. 29.ISCIR is a statewide network of campus-based student groups that was founded in response to SEA590, which allows police officers to ask for proof of citizenship if they have reasonable suspicion that a person is not a legal immigrant, and HEA1402, which prohibits in-state tuition and scholarships for undocumented students. “There are youths who feel that they can’t have a future, even though they’ve been living here their whole lives, because they can’t afford their education,” ISCIR member Ronak Shah said. “Nobody should ever feel like they have no hope for themselves. If the barrier is the legal system, then there’s something wrong with that system.”Shah is one of the founders of ISCIR Bloomington, along with Cari Morales and Fred Diego.“A few of us were passionate about this issue, and we decided to get together to work collaboratively with other campuses,” Morales said. “People were interested, and they wanted to do something about it. That’s why we’re here.”Morales said he is involved in this group because she wants to make a difference.“I want everyone to have the same rights as I do,” she said. “I want to see communities working together instead of targeting each other.”She said she hopes ISCIR Bloomington will help facilitate such change.The group recently received a grant from Campus Progress through the Center for American Progress after its members sent a proposal to the organization and is now focusing on recruiting new members. The group will be holding another call-out meeting in January to establish a larger body of student members interested in working for the cause.“I’m hoping that a lot of people from a wide range of backgrounds will see how their interests align with that of the group,” Shah said.While the group does not have a set agenda yet, he said possible plans for the future include holding events that raise awareness about immigration issues, fundraising for scholarships, proposing amendments to HEA1402 and pressuring state representatives to pass the Development, Relief and Education or Alien Minors Act that would give illegal immigrants a chance to obtain citizenship. Shah said the organization will be able to give voice to a community that has previously been ignored.“Immigrants are usually kept invisible from the public,” he said. “We want to lift up that veil of invisibility.”Diego said the fruition of such goals will lead to an improvement in the lives of thousands of people.“We will have reopened doors to opportunities and removed obstacles that had barred them from achieving their dreams,” he said. “An undocumented student wouldn’t have to pick crops or wash dishes for the rest of his life. He would have the opportunity to become a doctor.”Diego said immigration affects him personally. Not only are his parents immigrants, but he has close friends whose lives have been turned upside-down by laws like HEA1402.“They feel that they’re being forced into an ugly, dusty corner because they don’t have access to education,” Diego said. “It wasn’t their choice to come here, but now that they are here, they’re being denied the very opportunities that their parents sacrificed everything for.”Because he has had many opportunities, Diego said it is his duty to make sure others have the same rights.“These laws oppress people, and if no one stands up to them, they’ll continue,” he said. “They will eventually oppress larger groups that didn’t do anything before because they themselves weren’t affected. It won’t be good.”
(11/02/11 4:08am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Located across from Kilroy’s on Kirkwood, Peoples Park is home to Occupy Bloomington, a movement in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations in New York City. What started as a march through downtown Bloomington on Oct. 10 has turned into a more than 20-day occupation of the park. Participants have made clear their intentions of sticking around — through rain, cold and eventually snow — until they see a change. Until then, they’re adjusting to life in the park. Here’s 24 hours in the movement from Oct. 18 to 19.5:30 p.m. The young woman clutched her blue jumper close to her body as she stepped out of a small blue tent. She walked slowly, dragging her right foot forward with each step. Her toes pointed to the right. Twenty-year-old Amber Richardson paid no attention to the drizzling rain that soaked her brown hair as she looked around Peoples Park. In addition to about 40 tents filled with people who have had enough, the park holds two large pole tents and a kitchen tent. The pole tents provide shelter for those wanting to engage in discussions without getting drenched by the rain. The kitchen tent provides free food for all. There are cardboard signs everywhere, hung from a clothesline looped around a tree. The smudged letters declare, “We the people occupy this space to collectively reaffirm our right to determine our own destinies.” Richardson said she is fighting for the disabled. “The government needs to realize there are people here who need help and can’t afford it,” she said.Richardson was born with spina bifida, a birth defect in which the bones around the spinal cord aren’t properly formed. “I’m 30 percent paralyzed from the waist down,” she said. “I have crooked legs, and it’s hard to walk.”After graduating high school, Richardson worked at Arby’s for three months. She made about $700 before she left.“I couldn’t stand on my feet for nine hours a day,” she said. “I was in too much pain. I had to quit.”She then applied for Supplemental Security Income, a federal income supplement designed to help the disabled, but was denied. “They said I’m capable of working,” she said. “I’d love to know how.” Since then, Richardson has been homeless. MidnightIt was far from a silent night. Students gathered in a long line outside Kilroy’s, which blasted loud music. Street lamps and nearby businesses were sources of unwanted light. Then there was the rain. It gathered in small pools on the roofs of the tents and had to be shaken off by the inhabitants.Richardson’s tent was zipped shut, but small groups of people scattered about the park were talking. They had just returned from a general assembly that ended minutes ago. Participants discuss their long-term goals for the movement at the GA meetings, as well as any problems they need to address to ensure the movement continues with strength. One participant expressed his disgust with “the institution.”His companions smiled.8 a.m.It was a gloomy morning full of gray clouds and rain drops. Richardson sat in her tent, surrounded by 10 blankets. “I do couch surfing, which means I stay at friends’ houses when I can and I go to shelters when they’re open,” she said. “I was staying with a friend for a while, but she kicked me out because we had some disagreements. Now, I have nowhere to go.”She vividly remembered the first day she was homeless. She went to the Shalom Community Center for a meal.“That’s when I met my fiancé,” she said. They’ve been together since.“He taught me everything I know about camping,” Richardson said. Two years ago, they had a daughter.“I go to my parents’ every weekend to see my baby,” she said. “I can’t be there to tuck her in at night. My parents and I don’t have a very good relationship.”Last year, Richardson’s fiancé was arrested. She declined to comment further on the issue.While it was stressful and lonely for her to be without him for 14 months, she said she’s looking forward to seeing him.“I wouldn’t trade him for the world,” she said. Richardson said she is full of plans for the future.“We’re going to be a happy family,” she said. She has reapplied to SSI. “If I’m approved, it would put a roof over our head and (get us) a car,” she said. “I could raise my daughter better. I want to go to college and study to be a paralegal some day.”She said it would be devastating if she were denied again.“I would probably cry,” she said. “I’d be really upset. And I’d try again. And again, and again. I’m not going to give up.”1 p.m.The pole tents were moved to the center of the park. “We moved them around and reoriented them to face forward, so it’s more inviting to people,” 34-year-old Nicole Johnson said. She wore a thick winter coat, a hat and rain boots.“It’s starting to get pretty cold,” she said.Johnson said she is thrilled to be part of Occupy Bloomington.“It creates a space for conversations that wouldn’t happen otherwise,” she said. “And it’s really happening. We’re the change we’ve been waiting for.”Her personal reasons for involvement are based on the idea of “corporate personhood.”“I don’t believe corporations should be allowed to contribute to political campaigns,” she said. “They don’t vote for us. They don’t represent us.”Johnson has attended all the assembly meetings so far. There are two every day at 1:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. “At a GA meeting, we have discussions about things we want to do and what we want to change,” she said. Those with conflicting opinions or ideas are encouraged to speak up.“If you don’t agree, we ask why and make changes to our proposals accordingly,” she said. “We address everyone’s dissent because even if 90 percent consent, the remaining 10 percent are marginalized.”She has also camped several times at Peoples Park with her husband and three kids.“It killed all of us,” she said. “My husband has to work at 6 a.m., and everyone got tired or sick. With the weather getting colder, I think it would be irresponsible for me to bring my kids out here.”Johnson is part of Process, a “working group” at Occupy Bloomington that focuses on enhancing the organization’s operational and organizational methods. She is also involved in the Health and Wellness group, which ensures medics, first-aid kits and dry clothes are available for participants. They’re planning on having daily yoga or exercise sessions, as well.“It’s to de-stress the activists,” she said.Johnson is excited to see how it’s all coming together.“At first, it was really hard to leave,” she said. “I was afraid that if you walked away and looked back, it would be gone. But it’s real. And it’s amazing.”6 p.m. Sophomore Michael Lukens scraped the guacamole from his paper plate with a tortilla chip — all provided by the kitchen tent. “I’m here because I feel that this movement is very significant,” he said. “It’s trying to create a social change toward equality.” Lukens said Occupy Bloomington has accomplished a lot.“Gathering in this one space has been a huge catalyst for exchanging ideas about changes we want to see in the world,” he said. “This sort of communication is essential to achieve the change.”He has participated in as many discussions and assemblies as possible. “They’re very helpful because I learn new ways to express old ideas and new ideas that I haven’t thought about before,” he said.Lukens said corporations shouldn’t be granted rights as if they’re people. He is in favor of “a voluntarily associated direct democracy.”“I believe only individuals can legislate the laws they live by,” he said. “Another person can’t impose laws upon other people.”Brushing a strand of his shoulder-length brown hair away from his face, Lukens went back to the kitchen for more. Richardson said she will continue to call for change alongside Johnson and Lukens. “As long as they’re here, I’m going to be fighting with them,” she said. “I want my daughter to have a better life. I want her to grow up in a better place.”
(11/01/11 4:04am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>At the intersection of Madison Street and Kirkwood Avenue, there is a store that stands out from the white-washed, brown-roofed houses all around.It’s The Garret Antiques store. At the door of this castle-like building is a sign that reads, “Parents, now would be the time to take your child’s hand.” Upon entering, a bell rings loudly, and Nancy Garrett steps out of a room labeled “private.”“Come right on in,” she says. “Take a look around.”There are cabinets, shelves and tables holding everything from rocks and minerals to baby dolls stuffed in bear suits to little trinkets of china and pottery. There’s even more upstairs, which shelters bigger items such as antique furniture and lamps.Resident Mary Yearington stopped by the store to explore and was surprised to see how much there was. “There’s a ton of stuff in here,” she said. “You could come over and over again and still not see everything.”Yearington said she likes to go to stores like The Garret because she enjoys looking at all the different things from the past.“I like to go to antique stores because my parents are deceased, and it brings back memories,” she said. Nancy and Dennis Garrett came to Bloomington in 1956 to study at IU.After graduating with an anthropology major, Dennis realized he didn’t know what he wanted to do. He worked several odd jobs until he found a small antique store at North Walnut Street that was up for sale. Fueled by Dennis’ enthusiasm, the couple opened their first antique store in 1964. “I was never a collector myself until my husband (was), and it rubs off on you,” Nancy said. “You just get involved.”After being in business for nine years, they saw a unique building on Kirkwood Avenue was up for sale. “We thought that place would be ideal for an antiques store,” Nancy said. “We figured we could live there, too.”Dennis named the store “The Garret” to play off of the idea that an attic — or garret — is often where one finds interesting, old things. It is also very similar to Garrett — their last name.“I think it’s pretty clever, myself,” Nancy said.The Garretts were interested in older things because antiques represented quality to them.“So much is mass produced now, and everyone ends up with the same stuff, but we have love for our merchandise,” she said.Nancy soon learned that keeping an antiques store was a full-time job. There would be no backing out.“We got stuck,” she said. Nancy and her husband kept the shop running with the help of their four daughters and son. Dara Garrett, their eldest daughter, said she was expected to help out at a very young age. “We were a close-knit family, and from the time we could walk or hold a duster, we all had to work and help out at the store,” Dara Garrett said. When her husband passed away in July 2006, Nancy found herself struggling. She received support and help in her eldest daughter, who came to live and work with her at the store.“I like being with my mom. I love doing things together with her,” Dara said. “I like feeling needed.”She said she also enjoys seeing a variety of different people every day.“You get to meet all sorts of interesting people at this job,” she said. “It’s very educational.”Nancy recalled a man who, as a little boy, visited the store with his father. Thirty years later, he came back holding the hand of his son. He wanted his son to be able to experience this “cool” place that he himself had known. “That’s when you know you’re doing something right,” she said. “I enjoy what I’m doing.”After Dennis passed away, friends asked Nancy if she planned to give up the shop.“I told them I had no intention of doing that,” she said. “As long as I have my health, I’m going to keep running this store. I can’t give it up.”