More 
than 
70 
Michigan 
dispensaries 
operating 
under 
temporary licenses were forced to 
shut their doors at the beginning 
of 2019. In compliance with a set 
of bills passed in 2016, reforming 
the way the state regulates the 
production and sale of medical 
marijuana. The result was a 
shortage in medical marijuana, 
plaguing many areas in Michigan 
including much of Ann Arbor.
Ann Arbor is home to 20 
dispensaries, only seven of which 
have official licenses. Kinesiology 
junior L.J. Horowitz, a member 
of Green Wolverine’s founding 
executive 
board, 
estimated 
Ann Arbor has one of the 
highest 
densities 
of 
official 

and total medical marijuana 
provisioning centers in the state. 
Green Wolverine is a student 
organization focusing on the 
cannabis industry. 
“It’s great for students and 
great for people who live in Ann 
Arbor, but that’s by far the most 
besides Detroit in any city in 
Michigan,” Horowitz said.
When the shortage hit, Ann 
Arbor residents and business 
owners were disproportionately 
affected. 
Lisa 
Conine, 
community outreach coordinator 
at provisioning center Om of 
Medicine, described the scarcity 
as frustrating, saying patients 
were ridden with fear over what 
was to come.

Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans, 
Scholar-in-Residence 
at 
the 
American Learning Institute 
for Muslims, opened the Sacred 
Time Project 2019 — an annual 
weekend conference sponsored 
by 
the 
Muslim 
Students 
Association — Friday afternoon 
in the Rackham Amphitheatre 
with a session called “The 
Faithful 
Servant: 
Rooting 
Service in Tradition.” 
“I embraced Islam about 
20 years ago,” Evans said. “I 
converted when I was 16 … so 
when I encountered Islam, it 
was 
this...uncompromising 
monotheism that really drew 
me to the faith.”
Evans’s talk was one part of 
the Sacred Time Project, which 
ran Jan. 25-27. The conference 
included two main speakers — 
Evans and associate professor 
Su’ad Abdul Khabeer — as well 
as full-group sessions and other 
workshops and activities.
LSA 
sophomore 
Areesha 
Shahab, who was a Sacred Time 
Project chair and took part in 
organizing the conference, said 
she hoped participants left the 
conference feeling empowered 
to be a servant within the 
community 
and 
feel 
more 
involved in the Islamic faith or 
spirituality.
“This year, we were super 
heavily focused on student 
initiative and the aspect of 
being a faithful servant to the 
community and just being a 

good servant,” Shahab said. “I 
just want people to leave feeling 
like, ‘Oh, I need to do more’ or 
‘Oh, I just need to get myself 
more involved in something.’”
During his session, Evans 
discussed his discovery of Islam 
and experience with his faith. 
He also talked about similarities 
with other faiths, but the 
uniqueness of Islam comes from 
recognizing Muhammad’s place 
as a messenger for God.

He said in the past, Islam 
used to debate the place of God. 
In the present day, however, 
Evans said negotiations focus 
around understanding religion 
in real time. He specifically 
noted the conference’s focus 
on 
examining 
Islam 
and 
the 
understanding 
of 
the 
religion in the present day, 
which he characterized as a 
commendable quality of the 
program.

Evans then looked at the 
meaning of the term “servant” 
and what hierarchy entails. 
He said the Islamic model, 
as he understands it, is not 
about avoiding or disavowing 
privilege- rather, it is about 
helping those who are not as 
privileged 
and 
supporting 
equity.

On Friday morning, President 
Donald Trump signed a bill to 
reopen the government for three 
weeks, until Feb. 15. During the 
three-week period, Trump is 
attempting to negotiate with 
lawmakers for the Southern 
Border Wall. Ann Arbor and 
neighboring local governments 
took proactive measures to aid 
federal workers with payments 
and expenses accumulated if the 
federal government shutdown 
were to continue.
On Jan. 22, Ann Arbor City 
Council 
passed 
a 
resolution 
allowing federal workers to defer 
payments to the city for 60 days 
after the government shutdown 
ends.
Councilmembers 
voted 
unanimously 
to 
pass 
the 
resolution. Mayor Christopher 
Taylor introduced this resolution 
because he deemed it necessary to 
counteract the fiscal harm being 
inflicted by the government.
“As everybody knows, the 
federal 
government 
is 
shut 
down and that is a condition 
that reflects terribly upon good 

michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Monday, January 28, 2019

ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-EIGHT YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM

Temporary 
licenses are 
given to A2
dispensaries

Detroit Conference talks equality, 
justice in the LGBTQ community

BUSINESS

Over 70 medical marijuana facilities 
can continue operation until March 31

MELANIE TAYLOR
Daily Staff Reporter

3,000 attendees come together to discuss reproductive rights, #MeToo movement

The 31st annual Creating Change 
Conference, the nation’s largest 
LGBTQ 
conference, 
held 
Jan. 
23-27, brought activists together 
from across the country to discuss 
freedom, justice and equality for 
the LGBTQ community. The event, 

hosted by the National LGBTQ 
Task Force, was held in the Detroit 
Marriott 
at 
the 
Renaissance 
Center with about 3,000 people in 
attendance. 
About 200 workshops and 50 
events were offered at Creating 
Change. Participants could also 
attend day-long institutes, visit 
hospitality 
suites 
and 
utilize 

complementary wellness services. 
While the conference primarily 
focused on LGBTQ issues and 
recognizing individuals who are 
working to make a difference in 
the community, topics such as the 
#MeToo movement, reproductive 
rights 
and 
immigration 
were 
integrated into discussion as well.
Business senior Chandra Sahu, 

a Ross representative for Central 
Student Government, said she 
heard about the conference through 
CSG and the Spectrum Center, 
and attended the conference as a 
representative of both. Sahu said 
she looked forward to learning more 

BARBARA COLLINS
Daily Staff Reporter

Panel views 
postcards, 
activism in 
art world

ACADEMICS

Brooklyn-based artist 
Opdyke displays new 
environmental installation 

EMMA STEIN 
Daily Staff Reporter

CARTER FOX/Daily
Ustadh Ubaydullah Evans, Scholar-in-Residence at the American Learning Institute for Muslims, speaks about his 
relationship with Islam in Rackham Auditorium.

Annual MSA Sacred Time Project 
looks at modern-day Islam, service

Student initiative focuses on being a faithful servant in the community, spirituality

ALEX HARRING
Daily Staff Reporter

Back to Dominance 
Thanks to Charles Matthews’ 
performance on both ends of 
the court, Michigan regained 
its dominant form in a 69-46 
win over Indiana.

» Page 1B

On 
Friday 
afternoon, 
the 
University of Michigan’s Institute 
for the Humanities hosted a panel 
featuring Brooklyn-based artist 
David Opdyke, journalist Lauren 
Sandler, historian Tara Ward, and 
arts curator Amanda Krugliak 
to discuss the effectiveness of 
art as activism. The conversation 
centered 
on 
Opdyke’s 
new 
installation, titled “Paved with 
Good Intentions.”
The piece is a collection of 
vintage 
postcards 
of 
popular 
American sights that Opdyke 
painted over. The postcards are 
assembled together, forming a 
scenic landscape riddled with 
environmental catastrophes and 
chaos. 
Opdyke said he has always 
made his art for himself and about 
his passions, but he has recently 
started being more purposeful 
in his creation. He said art is his 
form of activism and he has chosen 
to use his talent to try to make an 
impact.
“I 
make 
it 
because 
I’m 
compelled to make it,” Opdyke said. 

Ann Arbor 
proactively 
designs aid 
for workers

CAMPUS LIFE

Federal government 
shutdown prompts 
local financial relief 

CATHERINE NOUHAN
Daily Staff Reporter

GOT A NEWS TIP?
Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail 
news@michigandaily.com and let us know.

INDEX
Vol. CXXVIII, No. 61
©2019 The Michigan Daily

N E WS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

O PI N I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

S U D O K U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

CL A S S I F I E DS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 

S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 B
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ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily
Johnathan Jayes-Green, recipient of the 2019 Has, Jr. Award for Outstanding LGBTQ Leadership for Immigrant Rights speaks at the Creating Change Conference 
at the Detroit Mariott Renaissance Center Saturday afternoon.

Read more at 
MichiganDaily.com

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