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In a great victory for human rights on this campus, Life Support was denied club status in our first board meeting this year.  Sadly, a contingent of board members has continued to openly meet with Life Support members and is attempting to have that decision overturned.  It is believed that these members are acting in the interest of an interest group and not in the interests of the student body as a whole.  I believe that Lakehead University is a campus that values human rights.

As your Vice President Finance, I met with members of Life Support in early October and suggested to them that if they truly wanted to represent “pro-life” values that they would perhaps be better served advocating for increased programs for expectant mothers on this campus or increased funding for child care services on campus rather than simply maintain an anti-choice stance by denigrating those who believe in a woman’s right to choose.  The group turned down my proposal. Almost immediately.

I find it interesting that while Life Support refuses to change its aggressive and exclusive focus, not a single group that favours the pro choice option ever advocates exclusively for women to have abortions.  This statement might seem somewhat ridiculous in that I’m simply pointing out the obvious, but it is very telling in terms of the tactics that Life Support continues to employ. In fact, the neutral stance is simply one that allows the individual woman herself to choose.  This stance is the one that I believe LUSU should advocate and certainly the one that I believe that you as a student body would advocate for as well.

As your elected representative, I believe that you as a student body agree that a woman has a right to make decisions regarding her body.  I believe that we as a student body agree with the BC Supreme Court that the existence of groups such as Life Support violate the rights of students on campus.  It was once said in this country that the state has no place in the bedrooms of this nation.  I also contend that the state has no place within a woman’s body.  Neither does a student union club.

I would ask all of you who support a woman’s right to choose to come to our next board meeting and - as the Life Support group has done – give a deputation to the board as to why a woman’s right to choose is important to you. 

I implore you to help restore democracy and the spirit of human rights to the Lakehead University Student Union.

Join us at the next LUSU board of directors meeting at 7:00pm in the Senate Chambers.  If you cannot attend the meeting please submit a written deputation to me via e-mail at vpfin@lusu.ca.

In solidarity,

Josh Kolic
Vice President Finance