FREDERICTON, New Brunswick, January 10, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The pro-life club at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton was granted club status and funding by their student union Sunday after months of wrangling.
When UNB Students for Life applied for status in October, the Student Union criticized the group’s “controversial” nature, and suggested it would be “single issue” and spread “misinformation.” In November the union delayed their decision on the basis that they needed more information, and then, after the group complied, denied them status in December.
“We’re excited to finally get the group off the ground, having passed this first hurdle,” said Shane Westin, the club’s vice-president. “It’s unfortunate that our club status was delayed so long, but now that we have it we can move forward and start planning events.”
Rebecca Richmond, executive director of the National Campus Life Network, told LifeSiteNews the vote was decidedly in the club’s favour, and the reasons for the reversal are unclear.
“The previous application had been rejected due to a supposed ‘lack of information’,” she said. “The club had re-submitted their application and responded to questions posed, providing, for example, the names and websites of the local resources and organizations they had planned on referring students to.”
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Richmond joined club president Amanda Magee and other club members at Sunday’s meeting, where Magee delivered a presentation.
Magee had said previously that part of their frustration over the denial of their status resulted from a lack of communication on the part of the Student Union. She and her group had to rely on the student’s newspaper and the minutes of the Student Union’s meetings to piece together where their group stood.
“All we want is the same rights as other clubs so we can do these things on campus,” she said.
Westin said after the meeting Magee requested a letter of apology over the miscommunication. “A Council member agreed to send that signed apology letter to her soon, which was, in a way, an acceptance of responsibility,” he said.
“We’re pleased that the Student Union finally granted the club the rights they were due and we look forward to working with UNB Students for Life as they plan and host events this winter,” said Richmond.