Last night, we received an email from the WKU art student, Elaina Smith, (pasted below) who vandalized the Hilltoppers for Life cross display last Friday morning stating that she has not apologized and has no intention of apologizing for her actions. This is in clear contradiction with what the WKU Administration is claiming, as they have publicly stated that she has apologized.
While we continue to ask pro-lifers across the nation to contact WKU President, Dr. Gary Ransdell, and the University Police Captain for Professional Standards, Joe Harbaugh, and to sign our national petition, it has become clear that further legal action has to be explored.
This morning, our friends at the Alliance Defense Fund faxed a letter to WKU President Ransdell requesting that they respond to our four requests. (View the ADF letter here.)
Friends, thank so you much for your ongoing support. We are more motivated than ever to keep the pressure on the WKU Administration, as now is not the time to stand down. We must remain strong and make sure that the rights of the pro-lifers on campus are up-held. Our student pro-life groups across the nation face this situation and others similar to it daily. It is very important for pro-life students to know that they have constitutionally protected rights of freedom of expression and to make sure that universities, especially public universities, understand that they can’t silence or unfairly treat pro-life students.
If we don’t stand up for our rights, who is to say that they won’t take them away. What has been happening in Canada for the past few years should serve as a warning to us all. There, we know of student pro-lifers who have been threatened with expulsion and arrest for simply daring to speak the truth about abortion. We cannot allow our nation to slip to that point of intolerance, as it is our mission to continue to educate our peers, friends, and family about the grim reality of abortion and offer real hope and support to women and men in need, so that we can abolish abortion in our lifetime.
For Life,
Kristan Hawkins
Executive Director
April 25th Email from the Student Vandal:
—– Forwarded Message —–
From: “Smith, Elaina, C” <[email protected]>
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2012 3:11 PM
Subject: Elaina Smith
During the week of April 16th, the Hilltoppers for Life’s pro-life display remained un-interrupted. The student body tolerated this intrusion without major incident. The voice of the pro-life community was heard. On the last day of this event, I attempted to add to the visual dialogue with my own voice and was met with strong resistance. I take this subject very seriously, and had hoped to remind people of the effectiveness of condoms and other forms of contraception in preventing unwanted pregnancies. I do not ask that everyone agree with my point of view or the way in which I tried to express it. However, I stand by my actions. I do not believe that I impeded anyone else’s freedom of expression. I did not break any laws. I did not damage any property. I voluntarily removed the condoms even though I was not required to do so. At the time, I thought that the matter had ended there. I do not feel that I should apologize for attempting to exercise the freedoms that we all are entitled to.
Elaina Smith
