LANSING — Today, the House of Representatives voted on House Resolution 234 calling on Michigan State University President Lou Anna K. Simon to resign or be removed by the Board of Trustees. In response to her no-vote, state Rep. Sherry Gay-Dagnogo (D-Detroit) issued the following response:
“While I stand in full support of the courageous women and teens who came forward to ensure that Dr. Larry Nassar was held accountable today at the conclusion of the six-day sentencing hearing, by Circuit Judge Rosemarie Aquilina, who sentenced Nassar to 40-175 years in prison for first-degree criminal sexual conduct — and I believe the trauma he caused deserves the death sentence — I believe that it is the responsibility of the elected Board of Trustees to carry out the duties of fully determining the president’s knowledge of the victims.
“While our resolution was symbolic and would have no legal standing, the challenge I faced today in voting for a resolution HR 234, to call for the resignation of MSU president, highlights the continued misuse of our legislative body, picking and choosing when we should invoke justice. We have yet to vote on whether to call for Gov. Rick Snyder’s resignation for the atrocities caused in Flint: the thousands of children that will have cognitive damage impeding their ability to learn — and worse, those that died from Legionnaire’s disease. We have not called on the resignation of President Donald Trump for his misogynistic practices, sexual harassment or rape. While it is very difficult to stand in a minority, I stand on principles that are consistent with my vote to not expel former Rep. Cindy Gamrat vote, my position on not calling on the resignation of Col. Kriste Kibbey Etue, and my dismay with members of my party that called on the resignation of Congressman John Conyers Jr., circumventing due process, principles and protections which exist in our Constitution.
“I urge the Board of Trustees to fully execute their powers in exercising due diligence, to examine all available testimony to learn what the president knew, and what she did not know, and if that evidence reveals that she is guilty of obstruction of justices, the Board of Trustees should determine to fire her effectively immediately, and legal protocols should be followed to prosecute her to the fullest extent of the law.”
###