University of Wisconsin Stevens Points Responds to Vandalism With Inaction

State   |   Steven Ertelt   |   May 8, 2008   |   9:00AM   |   WASHINGTON, DC

University of Wisconsin Stevens Points Responds to Vandalism With Inaction

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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
May 8
, 2008

Stevens Point, WI (LifeNews.com) — The administration at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point has issued an official response to the vandalism that recently took place there. However, UWSP officials responded to a student government leader trashing the display with no promise of action.

As LifeNews.com first reported, student senator Roderick King vandalized a display featuring crosses erected by the campus pro-life group to memorialize those babies killed in abortions.

Late Wednesday, UWSP responded but Students for Life of America director Kristan Hawkins complained it wouldn’t disclose whether it would take any disciplinary action against King.

The statement referenced the "disruption" of the display "by an opposing student."

"The university values free expression and the open exchange of ideas. Pointers for Life is a recognized student organization that followed university procedure in staging its event," the administration said.

"The student who disrupted the display not only exhibited poor judgment, but demonstrated intolerance that is unacceptable on the UWSP campus," it added.

College officials would only say that "University disciplinary procedures are being followed" and cited school policy preventing making details of the disciplinary actions public.

The UWSP pro-life group Pointers for Life put up the Cemetery of the Innocents display and spent the morning last Thursday repairing the damage someone caused in an apparent vandalism.

That’s when they were trashed a second time.

As students repaired the earlier damage, King led a group of angry students by walking through the rows of small crosses and plucking them from the ground and throwing them.

King began to voice his complaints and said that Pointers for Life had "no right" to display the crosses.

King said it was "his duty as a paying student" to take down the pro-life display.

The students recorded a video of the incident and posted it on YouTube.

Hawkins said SFLA is calling on pro-life advocates to contact University of Wisconsin -Stevens Point Chancellor of Student Affairs Linda Bunnell asking for Roderick King to be removed from the Student Senate. Contact Bunnell at 715-346-2123 or email her at [email protected].

Related web sites:
Students for Life of America – https://www.studentsforlife.org