Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily’s editorial board.
All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
LAURA SCHINAGLE
EDITOR IN CHIEF
MELISSA SCHOLKE
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR
DEREK WOLFE
MANAGING EDITOR
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
tothedaily@umich.edu
Edited and managed by students at
the University of Michigan since 1890.
4
Thursday, June 18, 2015
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
OPINION
“W
hat did you say?”
“Nothing, sorry I
— uh, was just talk-
ing to myself.”
When I’m in a
crowd, I often tell
people this after
quietly mumbling
something
they
may
not
hear,
when
in
reality
I’ve made a joke
or said something
that’s been on my
mind. Being soft-
spoken can make
me doubt what I say.
I am an introvert.
I would much rather spend a day
at the bookstore with my friends or
spend time with my family than go to
a party surrounded by new people.
I’m terrible at small talk. Often, I
leave conversations realizing I forgot
to ask how the other person was doing.
I can spend hours in my room
alone just contemplating about the
universe, and that’s when some of my
best ideas are born. Sometimes they
even creep up on me at night when
everyone else is sleeping, amidst the
silence of my house.
Recognizing that introversion is a
personality trait that can manifest itself
in various ways and is different from
being shy or having social anxieties is
important when interacting with peo-
ple on diverse sides of the spectrum.
People often think that introverts
dislike talking to people and always
need to be by themselves, but the
reality is much more complex.
Extroverts feel most energized
through interactions with other peo-
ple. Introverts, on the other hand,
can get exhausted from too much
social interaction and use time alone
to rejuvenate. Ambiverts are some-
where in the middle of the spectrum
between introverts and extroverts.
These descriptions, however, don’t
necessarily
manifest
themselves
in ways that are exactly the same.
Someone who’s introverted may seem
like an extrovert because they’re out-
going, but really, they may find these
interactions tiring.
The term introvert can come with a
lot of baggage and misconceptions, as
it is often misconstrued as being unso-
ciable or boring. Introverts may be
told to “break out of their shell” and to
act like extroverts — though it may go
against their nature — simply because
extroversion is seen as the norm.
When I was younger, people would
often dismiss me because I am quiet,
but being introverted empowers me to
do spoken word poetry and speak out
against human rights violations. Often,
I find inspiration from seeing people
with their stories left unheard because
I can understand the feeling. I may find
writing easier than speaking, but that
can help make my spoken word better
because the process starts on paper.
I can perform in front of thousands
of people without stuttering because
when I perform, I focus on the impor-
tance of the words on paper and why I
think they need to be heard.
In the age of technology, introverts
are given more chances to express
themselves. People can use plat-
forms, such as vlogging, to get their
opinions across to viewers or use
social media to connect with people
who have similar interests. They can
The induction of this package
of bills into law only furthers a
trend of legalized discrimina-
tion in Michigan. In addition to
the statewide ban on gay mar-
riage — the legality of which
is currently being deliberated
in a case pending before the
Supreme Court — Michigan’s
legislature has yet to revise
the severely outdated Elliot
Larsen Civil Rights Act. As a
result, protections for mem-
bers of the LGBTQ community
continue to remain absent from
the state’s anti-discrimination
law. While the new adoption
legislation certainly highlights
the state’s inadequacies in pre-
venting discrimination against
the
LGBTQ
community,
a
myriad of prospective parents
— in addition to same-sex cou-
ples — can now be prohibited
from adopting from certain
agencies. Single individuals,
unmarried couples and couples
of different faiths may now be
more easily rejected under the
new statutes due to unfounded
misconceptions
surrounding
children’s quality of life in non-
traditional homes.
According
to
Michigan’s
Department of Health and
Human Services, “approxi-
mately 3,000 Michigan fos-
ter children are available for
adoption at any given time.”
Denying these children the
security and stability that
could be provided to them by
many capable parents who
happen to be gay or unmar-
ried is counter to what these
services are supposed to be
for the children—to look out
for them. Instead of evaluat-
ing prospective parents by the
safety of their homes or their
ability to care for children,
these agencies have decided
that extraneous factors, such
as sexual orientation, should
prohibit people from adop-
tive and foster parenthood,
and even worse, the state has
endorsed these practices. This
is especially damaging to chil-
dren in light of a study that
shows same-sex couples are
four times more likely to raise
adopted children and six times
more likely to raise foster chil-
dren. Simply put, these laws
don’t serve the best interest
of the children the legislation
pretends to protect.
The intent of the legislation
is to protect religious free-
dom. The law seeks to pre-
vent “adverse action,” such
as the removal of funding,
against any adoption agency
that could reject potential
foster parents on religious
grounds. However, anxieties
about compromising beliefs
don’t provide a viable excuse
for legalized discrimination.
Currently, similar legislation
permitting denial of adoption
services exists only in Virgin-
ia and North Dakota. Govern-
Introspections of an introvert
ments must seek to ensure citizens’
religious freedom, but it must not
do so at the expense of those groups
whose beliefs may differ. Therefore,
a clear delineation must be drawn
between the church and the state.
Two religious institutions, Beth-
any Christian Services and The
Michigan Catholic Conference, who
account for approximately 25 per-
cent of Michigan’s foster-care adop-
tions, advocated the passage of the
bills by writing to Snyder and urging
him to sign. The letters referenced
scenarios in other states, such as
Massachusetts and Illinois, where
faith-based adoption agencies shut
down in response to being forced
to allow gay parents to adopt. They,
likewise, strongly insinuated that
scenario would repeat in Michigan
if the legislation was not passed. Any
law advocating discrimination must
be repealed, especially when $10
million of state and federal funding
was allocated last year to faith-based
adoption agencies who may cite this
law in their future proceedings and
parental candidate denials.
The passage of these laws high-
lights inherent flaws that must be
reexamined in Michigan’s current
adoption system, and by following
these practices, the adoption agen-
cies are inhibiting their own sup-
posed institutional goals. If the newly
passed laws continue to dictate adop-
tion proceedings, a sizable population
of responsible parents who are eager
and willing to provide good homes
to Michigan’s foster children will be
denied the opportunity to do so.
RABAB
JAFRI
FROM THE DAILY
Fostering discrimination
New legislation is discriminatory and damaging
L
ast Thursday, Gov. Rick Snyder (R) signed into law three bills
that codify existing adoption practices of the Department of
Health and Human Services in Michigan. The newly instated
legislation ensures private faith-based adoption agencies, even those
that receive state funding, can lawfully deny service to those seeking
to adopt based on the agencies’ religious or moral beliefs. Although the
agencies are required to refer clients denied for religious reasons to
other adoption agencies, this does little to mitigate the damage caused
by state-sponsored discrimination. These new adoption laws should
be repealed, and the underlying framework for adoption in the state of
Michigan should be reexamined. Michigan shouldn’t rely on the ser-
vices of agencies that are more concerned about conflicting religious
ideologies than the overall welfare of the children in their care.