GTCR Pro-life display missing
Courtesy of the College Republicans
The College Republicans set up a Pro-Life display marking the anniversary of the controversial Roe v. Wade decision. The display was stolen from its place next to Skiles Walkway Monday.
The College Republican Pro-Life display was stolen Monday night. The display "Cemetery of the Innocent" was set up by the College Republicans in recognition of the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion.
"Our entire display was stolen and all the crosses and signs are still missing. After informing the appropriate campus departments and administrators of the situation, I filed a police report on behalf of the organization. We are obviously very perplexed and in search of answers as to what transpired," said David Holte, College Republican Campus Activism Director.
"We are looking for any clues that would help explain what happened to our display," said Ashley Johnson, College Republican Chairman.
Put up Monday and set to run through Wednesday, the display intended to raise abortion awareness. The "Cemetery of the Innocent" was a grouping of 48 white crosses planted on Skiles Lawn, each one representing 1 million abortions since 1973.
Accompanying the crosses, several signs around the display explained the College Republican position.
"College Republicans put a tremendous amount of time, money, and energy into this project," Johnson said.
For years, the College Republicans have held various campus activities to bring attention to pro-life issues.
"Abortion is a controversial issue, but rather than engage in debate and dialogue, someone chose to steal our display and deprive other students of the opportunity to see and experience the display's message.... The theft of our Pro-Life display is clearly an attack on free speech and expression," Holte said.
According to Holte, despite the theft, the College Republicans will continue to engage in dialogue around prominent issues and concerns.
"I hope that this incident also causes people to consider the extreme intolerance of those who seek to eradicate views they do not agree with, and exposes those who resort to cowardly and even unlawful actions such as this rather than engaging in a thoughtful discussion on the issue at hand," Holte said.
A police report has been filed and the Tech police department is investigating the incident.
