UBCO stage for debate on abortion

Pro-life, pro-choice demonstrations planned today at university campus

Pro-life and pro-choice demonstrations will be held simultaneously today at UBC Okanagan. Last week, an anti-abortion group called Expose the Reality announced it would be displaying large, graphic images of aborted babies in the main courtyard at the university from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. today and Wednesday.

This week, the UBCO Women’s Resource Centre decided to hold a pro-choice counter-demonstration today at the same time, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., also in the courtyard, including a barbecue and booth with sexual-health information from the resource centre and Sexual Assault and Rape Awareness campaign.

A note from the women’s resource centre called on those “who really want to go out and disrupt with compassion. Make some noise and show support.”

The women’s resource centre is also setting up a safe space in the Student Union boardroom from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. for those who need a breather from the events in the courtyard.

The same note said supporters, snacks, counsellors and colouring books will be available in the boardroom.

The women’s resource centre is also holding an open discussion on past, present and future demonstrations at UBC Okanagan, with some university staff on hand.

The resource centre expects students have questions about how UBC Okanagan is dealing with external groups on campus.

“While Kelowna Right to Life demonstrations sparked this conversation, we will be focusing this discussion on how UBC handles all external groups demonstrating on campus,” said the note from the women’s resource centre.

What wasn’t mentioned was that the UBCO Women’s Resource Centre is an on-campus group, but Kelowna Right to Life is not part of the university.

“We are very grateful to UBCO for allowing these presentations to take place on campus,” said Expose the Reality organizer Marlon Bartram.

“They have gone above and beyond to accommodate and allow free expression of ideas on campus, even unpopular and controversial ones such as this.”

Expose the Reality is not the same as Kelowna Right to Life, but it does have some crossover members.

Bartram is a member of Kelowna Right to Life, but said Expose the Reality was set up as an ad hoc group.

Expose the Reality can have members from outside the Central Okanagan, whereas Kelowna Right to Life’s members are from Kelowna and the surrounding area.

Expose the Reality originally scheduled its UBC Okanagan demonstration and displays for last month.

However, in consideration of concerns about stress levels of students at final exam time, the group decided to postpone them until now.

“The purpose of the displays is to expose the reality of abortion and dispel the myth that it is just the removal of a mass of tissue,” said Bartram.

“We believe the location and the nature of these displays are a perfect fit for each other. Universityaged students are the demographic most likely to choose abortion, and the university campus is just the place where the free exchange of ideas and truth-seeking ought to take place.”

The UBCO Debate Society had also organized a panel discussion for this evening, but it was cancelled after the students and faculty slated to represent the pro-abortion side pulled out earlier this week, according to Bartram.

“The fact Canada currently has no legal restriction on abortion on demand throughout all nine months of pregnancy, paid for by the taxpayer, may be one reason for their reluctance to risk publicly exposing the flaws of the pro-abortion arguments,” said Bartram.

Expose the Reality hopes to conduct its campaign at least once each semester.