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.

