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GEORGE MULLINIX/KANSAN
A masked man is arrested following in-class protests concerning the University's handling of sexual assault allegations. The man entered classrooms in Budig and Wescoe halls around 1 p.m. Wednesday.
FAUX FAWKES
A masked man speaks to students on Wescoe Beach Wednesday afternoon. He said he wants victims of sexual assault to know that they are not alone. He also threatened members of the Kappa Sigma fraternity.
GEORGE MULLINIX/KANSAN
KANSAN STAFF
@KansanNews
One man wearing a military uniform and Guy Fawkes masks, recognizable from the movie and novel "V for Vendetta," entered University lecture halls during classes around 1 p.m. Wednesday in Budig and Wescoe halls to protest the University's handling of sexual assault.
"I am here on behalf of the victims of the sexual assault and rape cases that have been happening on campus," the masked man said. "I am here to let them know that they are not alone."
He was arrested on campus around 2 p.m. by the Office of Public Safety, said Captain James Anguiano.
PSO has not confirmed the exact number of individuals associated with the protest, but sent a campus-wide alert at 2:30 p.m. saying two individuals were in custody after "disrupting classes wearing
Nick Benetti, a sophomore from St. Charles, Ill., said the man visited Wescoe 3140 and relayed his message.
PSO sent officers to perform a safety sweep of Wescoe Hall, according to an alert updated at 3:32 p.m. Anguiano said an investigation of the individuals' connections to the protest is ongoing.
masks."
One of the individuals, who did not give his name, said his message was a peaceful demonstration and "the only way to be heard." He said most students laughed and pulled out their cell phones, but the only physical interaction he had was with a professor who tried to grab him and remove his mask.
He said the professor, Brian Staihr, started walking toward the man, which prompted him to leave the classroom.
where we all started ducking down and me and my friends next to me all grabbed each other's arms."
"The people all around me said we all thought he was going to shoot everyone," Voorhees said. "It got to the point
Jade Hall, a senior from Derby, was in Budig when the man came in. She said she thought little of it until others around her started wondering if he had a gun.
Courtney Voorhees, a sophomore from Shawnee, said she was in the Budig 110 lecture hall when one of the masked men entered her classroom. She said students and professors had mixed emotions about the visit.
"After that it started getting kind of scary because I hadn't really been thinking about that and then people brought it up." Hall said. "I was kind of like, 'Wow, this could be really bad.'"
"Everyone got quiet, and we didn't really know what was going on." Benetti said.
with the masked man's approach.
One of the masked individuals threatened the Kappa Sigma fraternity, saying to a class in Wescoe, "all members
"People were terrified," Gadd-Nelson said. "Maybe hang out on Wescoe Beach and talk about it, but go to into the classrooms like that I think was definitely overstepping some boundaries."
Jamie Gadd-Nelson, a junior from Kansas City, said she supports justice for victims of sexual assault, but didn't agree
SEE MASK PAGE 3A
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Provisional ballots given out to voters who didn't qualify
More than 1,700 Douglas County ballots were not counted in last night's election.
An estimated 1,705 provisional ballots were given out to voters who did not meet requirements to vote in the election, according to Ben Lampe, deputy of elections for the county. The election office has yet to begin sorting the provisional-but will begin this week.
Provisionals can be given out for a number of reasons including incomplete registration, lacking proof of citizenship or attempting to vote at the wrong polling location.
Wil Kenney, a junior from Leawood, said he had to ask for a provisional ballot when poll workers said he was not on the rolls. Kenney said he tried to change his address after the 2012 presidential election, but the Douglas County election website still reflects a dorm address from his freshman year.
"The thing that I thought was interesting about the book was that it only covered the precinct that we were in," he said. "They just had to guess that we were in the wrong precinct."
Provisional ballots will be counted before the official canvas, Nov 13.
Student Senator Will Admussen speaks to the assembled Student Senate about a bill he is sponsoring
Student Senate discusses KU alert system
Allison Kite
MIRANDA DAVIS
@MirandaDavisUDK
Wednesday night's Student Senate meeting saw the passage of two resolutions and addressed concern about bus driver treatment and the KU Alert system.
JAMES HOYT/KANSAN
In her officer report, Student Body President Morgan Said discussed concern over the amount of time it took for a KU Alert to be sent out to students after masked individuals came into classrooms in Budig and Wescoe halls.
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"I commend the Public Safety Office and the administration for moving quickly and swiftly today to get these individuals off of campus, however, Garrett Farlow, the Student Safety Advisory Board chair and I have spoken extensively about the lag time between these students arriving on campus and the notification that the rest of the student body received," Said said.
She also discussed ongoing complaints that Senate Transportation Coordinator Jenny Erice has received from
Said said she and Farlow will look into what happened and report back to Senate.
bus drivers on the Daisy Hill route. The bus drivers have reported being kicked and spit on by students. Said said she was enraged by the these reports.
Along with several other pieces of legislation, Senate passed two key resolutions. The first was a resolution to have the Student Survey Board poll the student body on whether it prefers a wet or dry campus. The University currently has a dry campus but makes many exceptions to this rule for certain parties and events. The resolution would not force Senate to take a stance on the issue, but would allow for more student opinion to be included in the decision-making process should this issue be brought up with University administration.
"I find that to be completely inappropriate, and I hope if any of you see this, you put an end to it, because we are in college and, quite frankly, if you are kicking and spitting on people to solve your problems, you belong elsewhere," Said said. "That is not something that KU should tolerate."
Senate has been in contact with resident assistants on Daisy Hill and is exploring ways to fix the problem.
The second resolution that passed was brought to the floor by the Senate's government relations director, Will Admussen. It is a resolution to oppose the Kansas Board of Regents amendment KSA 76-742. The amendment, which the regents will have
The University's Senate is one of the multiple Board of Regents schools pushing through similar resolutions. The student body presidents of all of the KBOR schools decided they didn't agree with the amendment and had to create a united front.
"Students strongly believe that referendums are necessary," Admussen said. "When you're talking about student fees and student dollars, the student voice can never be diminished. More input is always better when you're talking about something that every single student pays."
the opportunity to vote on during the November meeting, would allow a University's administration to "consult" student government officials to make a fee change, instead of conducting a referendum of the entire student body.
Index
Don't Forget
The resolution passed unanimously in two committees last week and in full senate, which Admussen said shows how crucial these referendums are to students.
CLASSIFIEDS 3B
CROSSWORD 6A
SPORTS 1B
SUDOKU 6A
Edited by Kelsey Phillips
CRYPTOQUIPS 5A
OPINION 4A
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