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NEWS
Students turn cooking oil from dining halls into biodiesel fuel
ARTS & CULTURE
Lawrence baker named national award semifinalist
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SPORTS
Kansas suspends Josh Jackson for one game
THURSDAY, MARCH 9, 2017 | VOLUME 133 ISSUE 16
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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
KU, Lawrence join Women's Strike solidarity event
Miranda Clark-Ullrich/KANSAN Ellie and Brooke Tourtellt browse buttons at the International Women's Day Strike while Brianne Grimmer waits in line at Watson Park on March 8.
▶ HAILEY DIXON
@_hailey_dixon
Lara Korte/KANSAN Nebula Child and Ian attend the International Women's Strike Day in Watson Park on Wednesday.
Buford M. Watson Jr. Park was abuzz on Wednesday as the Lawrence community came together for the LFK International Women's Strike Solidarity event and International Women's Day.
While at the event, the audience was able to hear various speakers and performers focusing on women's issues and energizing one another. Tables from community partners and food booths were also present.
The event, which drew over 100 people, was organized by Meghan July and Melissa Johnson, Lawrence residents, and Paulette Blanchard, a University graduate teaching assistant in the geography department.
"We decided to come together for this project to continue the momentum from the Women's March," Blanchard said. "And also to be very conscientious of the intersectionalities of different women and femmes."
For July, who comes from an activist family, she said she hoped this event allowed everyone to hear and support one another, from all walks of life.
"We all deserve to be treated with respect and dignity," July said. "And I just want to hear one another and share a positive experience."
"We can't turn our back on one another, and we have to make sure and prioritize those people who have the
In addition to bringing the community together for a positive experience, July said a goal of the event was to garner the needs of Lawrence residents.
I feel really fortunate to live in a community with these fierce warriors."
Meghan Juty Activist
most intersections where people are not treating them with respect and dignity that they deserve," she said.
"Giving my students an hour off to reflect on/participate in the empowerment and protection of their gender seemed like an acceptable reason to cancel class,"
University Director of News and Media Relations Erinn Barcomb-Peterson said in an email she was unaware of any professors or faculty members striking on Wednesday. However, Randy Laggart, a lecturer in the Health, Sport and Exercise Science department, cancelled his women's self-defense class so students could attend the event if they
Laggart said in an email.
wished to do so.
At the event, there were speakers and performers alike. Micha Cox, a University student from Augusta, performed by singing and playing the guitar. She also
read a poem to the audience. Frank Angel, a junior from Garden City, spoke at the event on his Native American background.
"I came out to speak because I was invited by one of
the organizers of the event, Meghan July, to speak about being two spirit and Native American culture," he said.
Angel said that he thinks it is important to keep in mind that everybody is different.
"Whenever I say that, I mean that you need to support all women, not just a very particular type of women," he said. "You need to include disabled women, you need to include trans women, you need to include non-binary people who are femme."
Angel said though he is a male-identifying person who does not want to speak about what women need best, he thinks keeping it intersectional at all times is a good starting place.
In addition to University individuals being involved at the event, members of the Lawrence community were active as well.
"I think really coming to events like this and showing support for women and for trans folks is really important, because we know of the high rates of folks who have experienced sexual trauma and abuse," said Rachel Gadd-Nelson, director of Community Engagement at the Lawrence Sexual Trauma and Abuse Care Center.
Overall, July said that she is thankful for all the support for this event from the town of Lawrence.
"I'm just so grateful to the women and femmes in this town, to the support of allies and the organizations, the performers and the speakers, they've been amazing," July said. "I feel really fortunate to live in a community with these fierce warriors."
- Edited by Allison Crist
Ashley Hocking/KANSAN Hannah Kinmonth-Schultz, a postdoctoral researcher at the University, leads a Jayhawks Breaking Barriers workshop on March 6.
STEM group takes on gender gap
▶ ANGIE BALDELOMAR @AngieBaldelomar
In the male-dominated science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields, women often have difficulty breaking into leadership positions. A new University program hopes to help bridge the gender gap.
Jayhawks Breaking Barriers, a semester-long project aiming to increase awareness of the gender leadership gap in STEM fields, is focusing on empowering female STEM students, after receiving a $4,800 Campus Action Project (CAP) grant from the American Association
Alex Erwin, CAP grant writer and doctoral student in ecology and evolutionary biology, said that since the project is a pilot, they decided to start small, re-
of University Women.
cruiting 18 undergraduate students.
"We tried to recruit from underrepresented
SEE STEM
PAGE 2
City reaffirms 'welcoming' status
The commission adopted all six suggestions, which included proclaiming Lawrence a welcoming city.
At the meeting, the commission heard testimony from citizens regarding six suggestions for additional protections for minority students and citizens.
NOLAN BREY
@NolanBrey
drafting a letter to encourage the University to expand legal resources for undocumented students and sponsoring a community presentation on immigration in conjunction with the University.
The Lawrence City Commission unanimously voted to proclaim Lawrence a "welcoming city" at a commission meeting Tuesday night. Despite requests from several groups in the community, the city decided not to become a sanctuary city.
The commission also heard testimony in support of making Lawrence a sanctuary city. However, the city would lose $42.7 million in federal and state funding — almost 42 percent of the general operating fund revenue — for adopting such
The suggestions came from multiple sources, including the University's Student Senate, Lawrence High School students, city staff members and the City Attorney's Office.
a policy, said Casey Toomay assistant city manager in a presentation to the commission.
Toomay said this money is used to fund a plethora of programs and departments around the city.
"I think when we talk about the jeopardizing of funds, we need to make sure that what we're really jeopardizing is the programs that we use those funds to pay for," Vice Mayor Stuart Boley said during the meeting. "It's not that we would not just jeopardize the funds. We would jeopardize our citizens."
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