Everyone is entitled to their opinions, and university campuses are the prime location to debate opposing views. But the tactics of Carleton’s pro-life group are inappropriate.
On Sept. 27, about half-a-dozen group members stood at the steps of the atrium by Starbucks handing out pamphlets against abortion. The pamphlets featured incredibly graphic photos of aborted babies, and group members wore shirts that said, “choice?” with a large photo of an aborted baby printed on the front.
What bothered me the most wasn’t just that they were there, but that they located themselves in such a position that every single student walking through the Unicentre was greeted by a photo of an aborted fetus. What if a student walking through the atrium recently underwent an abortion? Would they deserve to be greeted by these images?
Students should be able to walk around their campus feeling safe. They shouldn’t be attacked for their personal reproductive decisions. The pro-life group could’ve at least sat in a location where students could make the decision to approach them or not.
Furthermore, I understand these images help attract attention to what this group feels is a horrible injustice. But their point could have been made without the photos.
Abortions will happen whether they are legal or not. When they aren’t legal, they are often incredibly dangerous and can result in death. But you don’t see pro-life advocates on campus displaying graphic photos of women who died because of illegal abortions.
If this group really wants to be heard, they should respect students and stop shoving photos of aborted babies in our faces.