The College Fix

Calls speaker radical, not reflective of campus community

The University of Northwestern — St. Paul blocked the appearance of pro-life speaker Star Parker on campus, according to a press release from the Young America’s Foundation.

In an email published by the foundation, a university administrator claimed Parker holds radical views that the campus community would not agree with, and that she would be too “sensationalized” a speaker.

The university did not respond to inquiries from The College Fix concerning the exact rationale for blocking the appearance, or how the university’s Christian identity related to the decision.

According to the release, the YAF chapter at the university was having trouble obtaining approval and reserving a space to host Parker, a conservative political activist, Christian, and founder of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education.

The administration told the YAF founding chair, Hayley Tschetter, that the university was concerned about Parker appearing at an “open event.”

“UNW really only does events for our community, not ones open to the larger community,” an administrator wrote to Tschetter, according to a copy of the email included in the release.

“Therefore, it would be different if you were having a speaker just come speak to your club. Speakers open to all UNW students would have more strictness…”

Then, the email suggests that the motivation for not allowing Parker’s appearance is because of her political views. The email describes her as “radically” holding beliefs that the university community would not agree with:

Second, there were quite a few concerns about Star. Our staff has been very adamant about bringing speakers to campus who educate and expand worldviews, but we really don’t bring speakers who radically hold beliefs that UNW as a whole would not agree with. Again, it may be if we were able to bring a panel and provide a variety of thought, but in the past UNW has stayed away from sensationalized speakers.

“I accepted UNW YAF’s gracious invitation to defend life and traditional Christian principles,” Parker said, according to the release. “Abortion has devastated the black community and is the moral crisis of our time. Christian universities are precisely where this urgent discussion should be happening.”

UNW advertises itself as offering “Minnesota’s finest Christian education,” and is a private evangelical college.

Read the full release here.

MORE: Pro-life students start club at historically black university

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