The Saint

Story by: Anastasia Benstead, Culture Editor

Wednesday September 20th, Protect Life AQ hosted an event outside the Chapel where students were invited to write and decorate pro-life messages on the cement. There were no less than 20 different messages, some of them downright gorgeous in their artistry.

As I was walking across campus the next day from the library to AB, I was affronted by the messages. I initially felt overwhelmed and then I felt unsafe. I was angry and I honestly wanted them removed. However, very soon after seeing the chalk, logic set in. I began to appreciate that our community on campus is strong enough that we can freely express our beliefs.

Of course, to scare and intimidate was not the goal of the text outside the Chapel.

“The goal is to save people, not hurt them” said Anna Comden, president of Protect Life AQ. 

Photography Credit: Anna Comden + Protect Life AQ Instagram account

The next day, around 2:00pm, two students from Grand Rapids Community College made edits to the messages outside the Chapel. Three messages were erased and the large “pro-life” drawing in the center was edited to say “pro-choice”. An Aquinas student called campus security on the two students, and they were promptly escorted off of campus.

“The goal was not to destroy any art, only to make sure women out there knew they had support on both sides of the debate” Said one of the CC students, anonymously.

“It was worth it,” the other, anonymous, student noted, especially since, “someone walking by [an AQ student] appreciated what we were doing.”

They even went on to describe a moment when they received support from Aquinas faculty. 

As it turns out, that was not the only student who appreciated the additional messages. Thursday evening more AQ students began adding their own pro-choice messages on the west side of the Chapel, a new area entirely, extending the discussion. Understandably, not every student was in agreement, as the new messages were erased with water that very evening. The CC students commented that a few people from Aquinas were quite unhappy with their actions. One instance they described that made me the most proud was a description of a student who was dissatisfied with the alteration of the pro-life messages, but respected the students for standing up for what they believed in and let them continue. I think this interaction says a lot about who we are as an Aquinas community. 

Photography Credit: The editor

Rooted in the pillars of Community, Prayer, Study, and Service, this interaction outside the chapel embodied several of our beliefs.  When Protect Life AQ wrote those messages originally, it had been in search of community outreach and service. They even provided a Christian helpline for women seeking information on religion, medical care, and adoption services should they decide to not terminate their pregnancy.  

I had the honor of getting to sit down with Anna Comden and openly discuss the events that unfolded. We both agreed that the discussion should be happening out in the open in a safe space. Hopefully, by starting a conversation in the newspaper we can begin an open discourse on campus.

“I am happy to talk about this anytime!” Anna remarked. “Reach out! I would love to buy you a cup of coffee and have a conversation.” 

When asked if she was happy about how the events unfolded, Anna said, “I am happy with the outcome, because we got the conversation started, but I am saddened by how we got here.”

She commented that people must be really upset if they were willing to go out and buy more chalk. She was right, of course, so I asked students how they felt. Senior Maggie Palnau made it clear that the messaging did not upset her, rather it was the location that caused her the most distress.

She said, “I feel that in order to respect everyone’s views while having a place of welcome, such as a chapel, we should respect the separation between church and politics. I’m not saying people can’t write their views for everyone to see, but maybe have the Chapel’s sidewalk/driveway be a non-political zone.”

Zoebelle Bean, Editor of the Opinion column took a different approach, commenting, “The need to make women feel like they have allies is good to have. However, that doesn’t stand to reason against the fact that this was vandalism and frankly a little bit of trespassing.” 

What are we going to do, Aquinas? 

Now that this conversation has started, let’s keep it going in a safe and respectful way. There is never going to be one homogenous opinion of the campus student body, nor should there be. However, we can all rest assured that everyone not only has allies, but also that there are people willing to discuss and communicate.

Maya Angelou once said, “At the end of the day people won’t remember what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel.”

The actions last week were capable of both hurting and empowering students. My one request is that we all continue to stand up for what we believe in and do it in a way that is considerate and respectful to all.

“The first part of any conversation is to build rapport and empathy,” claims Anna Comden. 

One thing to note is that Protect Life AQ is not associated with Campus Ministry, as is a common misconception. It is also not a group with a political affiliation. The club specifically states that their goal is to change hearts and minds through the lens of education. Protect Life AQ meets every Thursday at 7:15pm in the Loutit room. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend, regardless of beliefs surrounding abortion and women’s reproductive rights. Their next event will be on Wednesday, October 4, outside of Wege from 12-2pm.