OTTAWA, Ontario, April 13, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Carleton Lifeline has called for a judicial review of the student unions’ actions after their club status was denied in the fall.
“Lifeline deserves to be treated the same way as other clubs,” said Ruth Lobo, Carleton Lifeline president. “For this reason, we are asking a panel of judges to review CUSA’s decisions and policies. We hoped that we could not have had to proceed this way, but we feel very strongly that we have been treated unjustly.”
The Carleton University Students Association (CUSA) revoked the club’s status on November 15th based on their ‘Discrimination on Campus Policy’ which prohibits actions seeking to “limit or remove a woman’s right to choose.”
The club maintains that this policy in direct contravention of CUSA’s Constitution, which declares that CUSA will “promote and assist in maintaining an academic environment free from prejudice, exploitation, abuse or violence on the basis of… political affiliation or belief.”
The club made international headlines in October when four of its members were arrested on campus while putting up a pro-life display. They say they have faced special restrictions on their activities that have not been applied to other campus groups. The university proposed, for example, to set up a designated low-traffic “zone” on campus where the students could stand with their signs, dictating that they must cover their posters when traveling to and from this zone.
As a result, the club announced in February that they are suing Carleton University and its administration for discrimination.
Regarding their battle with the student union, Carleton Lifeline says they are going to court because they have exhausted their options for internal appeal. The appeal process culminated in a challenge of the student unions’ actions in a December hearing before the CUSA Constitutional Board, which unanimously upheld the ban on the club. Lifeline says that meeting failed even to follow CUSA’s own protocol and policies.
The club sought to have the appeal reheard, but CUSA refused. The have now filed a Notice of Application for Judicial Review.
“This is overt discrimination. After our club was banned on the basis of our political beliefs we’re then banned from a fair hearing,” said John Mcleod. “The fact that CUSA cannot respect their own policies shows its inability to function as a voice for the student body.”