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Pro-life club banned at Carleton University

Carleton University Students Association (CUSA) is facing legal action after it denied club status to the pro-life club Carleton Lifeline.

The Charlatan, Carleton’s campus paper, reported that Carleton Lifeline’s status was revoked on the grounds that it violates CUSA’s Discrimination on Campus Policy, which states that will “respect and affirm a woman’s right to choose her options in case of pregnancy.”

The Policy also states that “actions such as any campaign, distribution, solicitation, lobbying, effort, display, event, etc. that seeks to limit or remove a woman’s right to choose her options in the case of pregnancy will not be supported,” and that “no CUSA resources, space, recognition or funding will be allocated for the purpose of promoting these actions.”

In a letter dated Nov. 11, CUSA’s Khaldoon Bushnaq, vice-president (internal affairs), invited Carleton Lifeline to amend their club constitution to respect CUSA’s policy by Nov. 18 in order to regain their certification. Without certification, Carleton Lifeline cannot book student space nor receive funding from the school.

Carleton Lifeline has been a certified club on campus since 2007. It has been re-certified every year since 2007 and has never changed its constitution or pro-life stance.

Jessica Fishbein

UVic increases Aboriginal student enrollment

Due to high rates of graduation and academic success, an initiative designed to help Aboriginal students is set to continue at the University of Victoria.

The Times Colonist reported on Nov. 28 that the project will be funded by the University as well as the provincial government and private donors.

The Le,nonet Project has contributed to a 20 per cent increase in Aboriginal student graduation rates at UVic in the four years since the project began. The project’s name comes from a Straits Salish word meaning “success after many hardships.”

The project supports Aboriginal students by offering scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $5,000, providing emergency relief for students undergoing temporary financial hardships, organizing peer-mentoring programs and coordinating community and research apprenticeships.

The pilot for the project was completed by 200 Aboriginal Students in 2009. The data from these students was compared to all other Aboriginal students not registered in the program and Aboriginal students studying at the University of Victoria from 2000 to 2005, before the program began.

There are currently about 700 Aboriginal students studying at both graduate and undergraduate levels at UVic.

Over 90 per cent of the 144 First Nations students who participated in the program’s interviews and surveys said Le,nonet helped them succeed at university, while over 73 percent said it helped them identify with being Aboriginal.

Jessica Fishbein

York discusses anti-semetic allegations

Rabbi Aaron Hoch and York University President Mamdouh Shoukri will meet this month to discuss accusations made by Hoch that Shoukri supports anti-Semitism on campus.

York’s campus newspaper the Excaliber reported that this meeting comes in light of a recent speech given by British MP George Galloway at York University.

According to a Nov. 16 National Post article, Hoch sent an email to 700 people regarding George Galloway’s speech at the Keele campus of York University. His email stated “Mr. Shoukri has again showed his amazing tolerance for anti-Semitism and lack of vigilance regarding the feeling of safety for Jewish students on campus.”

George Galloway was not allowed to enter Canada in 2008 due to reports that he donated money to Hamas, an organization that Canada considers a terrorist group.

According to the National Post, York University asked for an apology from Hoch for associating its president with anti-Semitism. Instead, Hoch sent a copy of his email correspondence with York to all of his contacts.

Jessica Fishbein

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