MAY 31, 2024 THINK ABOUT IT MOTHERS page 7 Andrew A young father named Andrew was there with his wife and six-month-old son. When asked about his connection to the gathering, he replied that his wife was a member of the hosting organization, Michigan General Defense Committee. Andrew is a big fan of GDC’s advocacy and outreach to the homeless in our county. That work drew him to this event. I asked him how he felt about abolition. “It needs to be done,” he said, “it needs to be done immediately. The conditions that are in our prisons are inhumane to say the least. There’s got to be another way.” I asked, “How do you think we should go about abolishing prisons?” and Andrew replied, “It is going to take something big, some cataclysmic style of events, that turns public opinion against prisons. Because I think right now the general popular opinion is that prisons are something that can be reformed and changed and kind of shifted when in reality it’s the idea of prison that has to go.” Lark As I meandered through the crowd, I saw a sign that contained a piece of the abolition puzzle. Lark from Lansing General Defense Committee had a beautifully made cardboard sign. An artist who tried cardboard as canvas for the first time, Lark usually does collages and other styles of art for personal fulfillment. They are a member of GDC and came out to support the GDC abolitionist working group. According to abolitionists, prisons and incarceration are harmful to the community. If incarceration happens because there is a breakdown of community, then the alternative to incarceration is to build stronger communities. To end the prison system, humans must have a safe, stable and supportive environment where ALL of their needs are met. Basic needs of food and shelter are essential, but do not end there. Humans need opportunities to grow, to express themselves, to be heard, to be important to the community, and be accountable to their peers. Making sure those needs are met, the entire spectrum, may be the way to end the need for incarceration. To get a picture of the Women's Huron Valley Correctional Facility’s sign, I had to walk across Bemis Rd to get closer. As soon as my foot met the lawn, the guard challenged me. “Get off the property!” the guard yelled. It reminded me of when I was a kid; the angry old man next door shouting “Get off my lawn.” I asked if he would answer some questions. He said no. On my way home, I thought about my own mother. I imagined her getting arrested and sentenced to 14 plus years in prison. In 1972 I was five years old. My dad was in the Army and we had to move across the country. Even at five years I knew this meant never seeing my friends again. A five-yearold is capable of understanding that GROUNDCOVER NEWS 11 their mother will be locked up such that they will never see her again. To a child, fourteen years isn’t just forever, it’s unfathomable. I remember wailing and sobbing for hours as we drove from Michigan to New York. I remember feeling homesick for my grandmother for weeks. What if the thing that was taken from me wasn’t just a childhood home but my mother? I would wail and sob. My development as a human being would suffer. It is well-known that physical contact between mother and child is essential for life. If my mother had been imprisoned, I would never know her touch or affection as a child. I would never have her soft body to soothe my wounds, her hugs and kisses to celebrate my successes, or her hand to show me tough love. Then I realized that is exactly what is happening to Krystal Clark’s children, and to every other son and daughter whose mother is incarcerated. I leave the task of drawing personal connections to the reader. TAHRIR from page 4 one percent of the endowment is invested indirectly in Israeli companies. That is $17.9 million. Since 2017, Michigan is one of 38 states that have a law that is interpreted to forbid state contracts with anyone who supports divestment from Israel. The word “Israel” doesn’t appear in Act 526 of 2016 as published. However, according to the Brandeis Center, these measures condemn national origin discrimination by the anti-Israel boycott, divestment and sanctions movement (BDS). According to the Act, the provisions don't apply if the boycott is based on bona fide business or economic reasons, or to a boycott "against a public entity of a foreign state when the boycott is applied in a nondiscriminatory manner." According to the Act, the provisions don't apply if the boycott is based on bona fide business or economic reasons, or to a boycott "against a public entity of a foreign state when the boycott is applied in a nondiscriminatory manner." U-M has 501(c)(3) non-profit tax exempt status. U-M can turn down donations. In 1978, the Regents created a policy to create an ad hoc committee of the University Senate, students, administration and alumni when issues involving serious moral or ethical questions might require deviation from the normal investment policy. All Regents meetings include time for public comment. There are five Regents meetings remaining in 2024: June 20, July 18, Sept. 19 and Dec 5 in Ann Arbor and Oct. 17 in Flint. There is also an email option. Many students, faculty, employees and staff have asked for oversight of the endowment at least since 2014 as reported by the Detroit Free Press. The Encampment calls it "a people's audit.” U-M Finance posts a Consolidated Annual Report. There is no individual endowment investment listing. TAHRIR obtained part of the endowment investment listing through a Freedom of Information Act. An oversight of the Investment Advisory Committee was created because of the Free Press investigation. The Encampment also demands a boycott of Israeli academic institutions and abolishing campus policing. President Ono and the Regents have endorsed an unarmed, non-police emergency response. After May 15, the Regents said they would "not defund the police." Both can exist. TAHRIR adds: conduct a formal inquiry into anti-Palestinian, antiArab and Islamophobic racism and harassment and release a formal statement that clearly defines the massacre in Gaza as a genocidal ethnic cleansing campaign led by Israel and aided by the United States. “This struggle is not just solely and entirely a struggle to achieve something for Palestine, although it very much is,” Tachna-Fram said. “It is also a struggle that brings all of us together in Southeast Michigan and a much broader area in the globe that really care about justice.” PUZZLE SOLUTIONS K 1 14 17 M S 22 27 30 L 38 45 49 54 57 62 T 65 Y O M A D C I F I 2 L A P 23 I D O 39 A R S E N I 3 I C E 20 T R A Y 40 T E L L I N G Peter A Collins 4 M A C E S 31 O 36 T I S 50 55 I T S A K A I 5 T W I S T 32 L I N 18 A L A 33 A M E 46 R I 63 66 C A N S 37 H E A T 58 L E A 6 B 15 E L A I 28 R 7 O R O 24 D E 34 P O S I T 59 R A G 8 O I L 25 K E R R 47 N Y 56 M E T S 51 L E S 52 I 64 67 M P E I 53 T O O L S 9 10 S K Y 21 P I 41 L O T S L 16 19 M E T 35 C O W A P D 29 T U N E 11 A V I A 26 T O R 42 L 48 E T S N O T 12 D E C L A R E 43 L E E 60 S A O 13 D O S S I E R 44 S L R 61 E N O
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