Falls Church, VA — A national Catholic organization has called on American Catholics to protest inappropriate commencement speakers and awardees at More than a dozen Catholic colleges and universities.
“Despite the U.S. bishops' clear call for reform of Catholic higher education, it seems that a significant minority of Catholic college leaders simply aren't listening,” complained Patrick Reilly, president of the Cardinal Newman Society, a national organization seeking the renewal of Catholic identity at Catholic colleges and universities. “Several of this year's speakers and awardees are inappropriate and their presence at Catholic institutions is scandalous.”
Some of the speakers and awardees opposed by the Cardinal Newman Society include:
BOSTON COLLEGE (MA): Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, Chairwoman of the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, will receive an honorary degree on May 20. The MacArthur Foundation's Population and Reproductive Health grant program is a leading contributor to radical and anti-Catholic organizations advocating abortion, contraception and population control. (Protest: Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J. President or call 617-552-3250.)
BOSTON COLLEGE LAW SCHOOL (MA): Ambassador to Canada and former Massachusetts Governor Paul Cellucci will speak on May 24. While governor, Cellucci was a determined advocate of abortion rights. (Protest: Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J. President or call 617-552-3250.)
COLLEGE OF NEW ROCHELLE (NY): Mary O'Connor Donohue, pro-abortion Lieutenant Governor of New York, will speak on May 23. (Protest: Dr. Stephen J. Sweeny, President, College of New Rochelle, 914-654-5000.)
COLLEGE OF ST. CATHERINE (MN): Pro-abortion U.S. Rep. Betty McCullom (D-MN), who has opposed legislation to ban cloning of human embryos, will speak on May 19. (Protest:Sr. Andrea H. Lee, IHM, President or call 651-690-6525.)
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF FOREIGN SERVICE (DC): U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) will speak on May 18. Pelosi is a dissident Catholic politician with a pro-abortion voting record, including her vote against a ban on partial-birth abortion. (Protest: Dr. John DiGioia, President or call 202-687-4134.)
LE MOYNE COLLEGE (NY): Chief Judge Judith Kaye of the New York State Court of Appeals will speak on May 19. In 1998, Kaye wrote the court's ruling that individuals and not the state have the right to determine the fate of frozen embryos, which are not “persons”. The ruling prevented a woman from impregnating herself against her divorced husband's wishes and
thereby saving her offspring from being destroyed. (Protest: Rev. Charles J. Beirne, S.J., President or call 315-445-4100.)
LOURDES COLLEGE (OH): U.S. Rep. Nancy Kaptur (D-OH) will speak and receive
and honorary degree on May 18. Kaptur's voting record on abortion is mixed, often earning about a 50 percent rating from the National Right to Life Committee and including many votes in support of abortion rights. (Protest: Dr. George C. Matthews, President or call 419-824-3809.)
LOYOLA COLLEGE (MD): Former U.S. Senator George Mitchell will speak on May
18. Mitchell authored the Freedom of Choice Act and consistently voted the pro-abortion position. (Protest: Rev. Harold Ridley, S.J., President or call 410-617-2201.)
MOUNT ST. MARY'S COLLEGE (CA): Leon Panetta, former chief of staff to President Bill Clinton, spoke on May 11. Panetta publicly supported Clinton's position on abortion, including partial-birth abortion. During his previous tenure as a U.S. Congressman from California, Panetta had a pro-abortion voting record and co-sponsored the Freedom of Choice Act in 1990. (Protest: Dr. Jacqueline Powers Doud, President, 310-954-4011.) Panetta also serves on the board of trustees of Santa Clara University (CA), a Jesuit university. The SCU Law Alumni Association will confer its Achievement Award on Panetta on May 17. (Protest: Rev. Paul L. Locatelli, S.J., President or call 408-554-4023.)
NOTRE DAME COLLEGE (OH): Pro-abortion U.S. Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-OH) spoke on May 11. (Protest: Dr. Anne L. Deming, President, 216-373-5200.)
SAINT MICHAEL'S COLLEGE (VT): Barbara Snelling received an honorary degree
on May 12. The pro-abortion politician is a former Lieutenant Governor of Vermont and state senator. (Protest: Dr. Marc A. Vander Heyden, President, 802-654-2000.)
STONEHILL COLLEGE (MA): Paul G. Kirk, Jr., former Democratic National Chairman and abortion-rights advocate, will speak on May 19. (Protest: Rev. Mark T. Cregan, C.S.C., President or call 508-565-1000.)
WHEELING JESUIT UNIVERSITY (WV): Robert Wise, pro-abortion Governor of West Virginia, will speak on May 18. While a U.S. Congressman from West Virginia, Wise helped defeat a ban on partial-birth abortion. (Protest: Rev. George F. Lundy, S.J., President, 800-624-6992.)
For the complete list of colleges, go to the Cardinal Newman Society website.
(This article courtesy of Steven Ertelt and the Pro-Life Infonet email newsletter. For more information or to subscribe go to www.prolifeinfo.org or email infonet@prolifeinfo.org.)
