UT-San Antonio Reconsiders; Reverses Decision on Pro-Life Display
by Jim Brown
March 8, 2005
(AgapePress) - In a dramatic about-face, the University of Texas at San Antonio has agreed to no longer censor the expression of a student pro-life group on campus.University officials had previously ignored a request from the group "Students for Life" to reserve facilities for an outdoor exhibit. The "Justice for All" exhibit features graphic photos of aborted children, as well as pictures showing the development of the unborn child from conception through birth and afterwards.
After the Alliance Defense Fund threatened to sue UTSA over it discrimination, the university had a change of heart. ADF chief counsel Ben Bull says the pro-life group was being treated unfairly because of its message.
"If the students had engaged in a politically correct message that the liberal university supported or liked, [permission for the exhibit] would have been granted in a second," Bull contends. "But the fact that it was a pro-life exhibit, especially an effective pro-life exhibit, the university just turned a blind ear to it."
According to Bull, the Texas school was following a troubling trend being seen across the U.S.
"Far-left activists have shanghaied American campuses and universities and, frankly, will do anything in their power to prevent Christian expression, pro-life expression or traditional Christian [family-values] expression on campus," he says, adding that those activists use a variety of means. "Sometimes it's inaction in refusing to grant a permit. Sometimes it's charging disparate fees for Christian students to speak on campus."
In addition to allowing the exhibit, UTSA has also dropped its requirement that the Students for Life club pay for policy security at the exhibit. The exhibit will be on display at UTSA March 21-24.
Jim Brown, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
