South Bend, IN (LifeNews.com) -- Over the weekend, hundreds of students at the University of Notre Dame staged a successful rally in opposition to the college's decision to invite pro-abortion President Barack Obama to give its commencement address. On the steps of Notre Dame's famed Golden Dome, the students made their views known.

Harold Cassidy, a respected pro-life attorney, and UNF professor Alfred Freddoso, gave keynote speeches to a crowd of over 400.

Cassidy gave a stirring speech in which he spoke to women’s liberties, President Obama’s actions, the example of Mother Teresa, and he highlighted the misleading speech by Mario Cuomo given at Notre Dame in September of 1984.

The speech has been recognized as giving abortion advocates a way out of criticism by claiming they are personally opposed to abortion while resisting any efforts to stop or limit them.

Cassidy said Cuomo “created the blueprint for Catholic lawmakers everywhere to justify their participation in what is a grave human rights injustice, not just for the child, but for pregnant mothers themselves.”

“Can you conceive of an elected official ever arguing that he himself would not own a person as a slave, because it is immoral to do so; but he must support a law that protects his neighbor’s right to own slaves?” he asked.

Alfred Freddoso said the protest of UND's decision was meant to highlight Obama's pro-abortion decisions and record.

“Make no mistake, this protest has to do with President Obama’s actions and with his intentions regarding future actions, and not merely with his beliefs," he said.

Later in his talk, Freddoso reflected on the decision of the leadership of Notre Dame.

“And despite their protestations to the contrary, the administrators of the university have made themselves complicit in the culture of comfort and convenience over and against the culture of sacrifice and self-giving," he said of their decision to invite a prominent abortion advocate.

ND Response, the coalition of students groups opposing the Notre Dame decision to invite Obama, informed LifeNews.com that it "will be holding more demonstrations and educational forums to help the student body and public further understand President Obama’s public record."

The students said they are opposed to Obama's "record of consistently violating fundamental moral principles and the University of Notre Dame’s failure to uphold its mission as a Catholic institution in honoring Obama."

ACTION: Contact Fr. John Jenkins, President of Notre Dame, at 574-631-5000, fax 574-631-2770, email president@nd.edu, or mail to 317 Main Building, Notre Dame, IN 46556. You can call Notre Dame at (574) 631-5000 or use the email form at http://president.nd.edu/contact-us

Related web sites:
ND Response - http://www.ndresponse.com
Petition - http://www.NotreDameScandal.com

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