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Carleton University Pro-Life Group to Host Silent No More Campaign after Two Years of Opposition from Student Association

By Hilary White

OTTAWA, January 7, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Students who have undergone abortions will be encouraged to share their experiences at an event sponsored by Carleton University’s pro-life group this week. The event, which will take place tomorrow (Jan. 8) at 11:30 am, will feature speakers from the Silent No More Awareness Campaign (SNMAC), the project that encourages women who have been hurt by abortion to speak out about their experiences.

The group says that the purpose of the event is “to provide women with an opportunity to share the difficulties that they faced after having an abortion, to reach out to those who may be suffering and let people know there is help available.”

Carleton LifeLine students made headlines in 2006 when they fought back after being refused club status by the university. The group continues to face opposition. Two months ago, SNMAC speakers were unable to present their testimonies at the campus after a complaint from a student led to the speakers being ordered to leave University grounds.

Ruth Lobo, president of LifeLine, said, “We expect this event to proceed without incident after booking and confirming with our student union.”

Carleton LifeLine only received permission to form an officially recognized campus club in January 2007, after months of legal wrangling. But even when permission was granted, the Carleton University Student’s Association issued a policy statement that said that “actions such as campaigns, distributions, solicitations, lobbying efforts, displays, events, etc. that seek to limit or remove a woman's options in the event of pregnancy will not be supported.”

Pro-life student groups in Canada routinely experience opposition from the student government and administrations at their universities. The Canadian Federation of Students, the country’s largest student organization, has declared itself to be officially in support of abortion and has worked on various campuses to suppress opposition to abortion.

In February last year, the Toronto-based Catholic Civil Rights League (CCRL), which advocates for freedom of speech for pro-life student groups, said that students who are being denied the right to participate fully in campus life should be allowed to opt out of compulsory dues payment to student organizations.

In a media release, the CCRL said, “Student organizations that do not allow modest recognition or support to students who may wish to pursue pro-life initiatives should at least allow those students refunds of the fees that are collected from them,” said a League release. “As it stands, these student groups generate fees from students, who are then told that their views need to be excluded from campus life.”

Read related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:

Carleton University Pro-Life Group Granted Club Status by CUSA
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/jan/07011004.html

If a University Forbids a Pro-Life Club, Pro-Life Students Should Not be Forced to Pay
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/feb/08021106.html

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