An abortion rights group defies school policy in a classic case of the ends justify the means.
Administrators at Boston College, a Jesuit school, cancelled a panel discussion organized by a pro-choice group after learning the students intentionally mislead college officials.
The Boston Globe reports that "on Monday, students had permission from the school to host the discussion entitled 'The Future of Women's Rights.' But on Tuesday, the day of the event, the college canceled it, saying that the sponsoring student group misled the university into thinking it was a College Democrats function. In fact, the event was sponsored by the Women's Health Initiative, which is not formally recognized by the university."
''The students from the Women's Health Initiative, in essence, were being duplicitous in trying to sponsor a prochoice event at a Catholic institution," said Jack Dunn, the school spokesman.
The Boston Globe notes that Boston College - a religious institution - does not recognize abortion rights groups.
Knowing full-well their group would not be recognized by the college, organizers of the event admit they intentionally identified themselves as College Democrats in order to gain campus space for the panel discussion. The story goes on to say, despite school officials canceling the event, the panel discussion was held on campus after a sociology professor requested a campus meeting space for the sociology department.
Although the professor who assisted the group did not attend the event, he told the Boston Globe he supported the group in the name of academic freedom. ''The university's fundamental mission is to have an open and free expression," he said.
But the managing editor of the school's conservative student paper says the panel discussion was flawed since it consisted solely of abortion rights supporters. He tells the Globe, ''I think dialogue is important. But I think balanced discussion is more important. This was merely a preaching to the choir."
School officials say they will now re-examine rules governing sponsorship of campus events.
This story is a classic case where strident liberals wholeheartedly believe the ends justify the means. The abortion rights group deliberately lied to school officials in order to achieve their goals. Not to mention, the sociology professor who abused his authority by requesting campus space for the group in the name of his department but then didn't attend the event.
It's nice to see that morality and virtue are being emphasized on campus.
