- Abilene Christian University apologized after a staff member called a pro-life group’s “Abortion is murder” sign “hate speech” and told students to remove or change it, saying that they would otherwise face consequences.
- The students, members of campus pro-life organization ACU for Life, initially refused to remove or change the sign but later modified the wording to “Abortion Kills Innocent Human Life.”
- The university clarified the sign was not hate speech and said the employee who used the term had apologized.
- ACU said no disciplinary action was taken. Meanwhile, one of the students involved in the incident has stressed the importance of protecting free debate on campus.
Texas’ Abilene Christian University (ACU) has apologized after a staff member recently designated a pro-life student group’s sign that read “Abortion is murder” as “hate speech.”
The Dallas Express reported that two pro-life students from the ACU for Life organization, Madelyne Arrowood and Lillee Dent, were offering conversations about abortion to their fellow students Oct. 14 with a sign that read “Abortion is Murder. Disagree? Let’s talk.”
Their pro-life witness was interrupted when ACU Assistant Director of Student Services John Mark Moudy told the two students they needed to remove the sign or they would face consequences. Moudy was backed up by Lyndi Felan, ACU’s dean of retention and student success, who reportedly said the sign contained “inappropriate language” and ordered them to change the sign or leave, according to The Dallas Express.
The College Fix reported that video footage shows Arrowood refusing to remove the sign, saying, “Abortion is murder. And they are killing someone. This is a Christian campus. We say that we are believers and a baby is a life.”
She eventually compromised with Moudy and Felan, changing the sign to read “Abortion Kills Innocent Human Life.”
According to The Dallas Express, Arrowood said ACU for Life has used similarly worded signs in the past. She and Dent were offering pro-life conversation in honor of the birthday of Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated in September while hosting one of his frequent events held on college campuses to encourage free speech and open debate on hot-button issues.
In response to a request for comment on the controversy, ACU sent The Dallas Express a statement to clarify the situation and apologize for its employees’ actions.
“During the interaction, the Student Life staff member unfortunately used the phrase ‘hate speech’ in a broader conversation to describe the sign,” ACU said. “The employee has since apologized for the choice of words and acknowledged that the sign is not an example of hate speech. To be clear, the university does not believe the sign represented hate speech.”
The university later added, “Open discussion of ideas, challenging topics and areas of disagreement is welcomed and encouraged at ACU, and opportunities for such activities are provided at appropriate times and settings.”
According to its statement, the university did not take disciplinary action. However, Arrowood and Dent, ACU for Life’s faculty sponsors, and the university’s Student Life staff reportedly have held “productive conversations” about the incident.
In a statement to LifeNews, Arrowood explained that protecting opportunities for students to have conversations with each other about difficult topics is vital.
“Student conversation and open debate is an important part of college,” Arrowood said. “Conversation moderated by faculty is often canned, as students are worried for their grades and unlikely to correct faculty that they may disagree with.”
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