Notre Dame can and should serve as a model for supporting life on campus to other colleges and universities.
Students at a Catholic university deserve support and clarity on the issue of abortion.
F ew Catholic colleges in the United States remain formally committed to upholding the sanctity of human life. The University of Notre Dame, where I serve as president of Right to Life, is one such institution. However, following a timid statement on the reversal of Roe v. Wade and no subsequent university action or acknowledgment of the Indiana abortion ban, the University’s commitment to supporting a culture of life on campus has been disappointing.
Meanwhile, unofficial resources promoting access to abortion have emerged in stalls and classrooms around campus. Campus publications cite non-university-recognized organizations to refer students to abortion providers. Faculty members not only openly dissent from the university, but some have been using their positions of authority at Notre Dame to publicly promise material assistance to students seeking abortion, as Alexandra DeSanctis reported last week. Activity of this sort contradicts both university policy and Church teaching.
Notre Dame can and should serve as a model for supporting life on campus to other colleges and universities. To be this example and cultivate a culture of life within its student body requires more than empty statements and fruitless “calls for dialogue.” Indeed, an institution that claims to lead the Catholic intellectual sphere in its commitment to life must do more.
As a student on the front lines, fighting for what college campuses need in the aftermath of a culture decimated by Roe, here are some concrete steps that Notre Dame — and every other college that claims to oppose abortion — can take to ensure a strong culture of life on campus:
- In a new era of the pro-life movement, in which the “question of abortion is returned to voters,” the University must formally reaffirm its commitment to life and strongly oppose the life-taking procedure of abortion.
- Notre Dame news sites and campus centers must cease publishing and sharing pro-abortion pieces and hosting pro-abortion events without sufficient elucidation of Church teaching regarding the grave sin of abortion. Notre Dame must enforce the existing guidelines in the President’s Common Proposal to ensure “an appropriate balance among viewpoints is maintained, and, when a significant issue in the Catholic tradition is touched upon, that tradition should be presented.”
- With the rapid onset of chemical abortion companies discovering how to circumvent abortion laws, and the threat of chemical abortion on college campuses, Notre Dame must reignite its promotion of the systems of pregnant and parenting resources available to students on campus. The University should fund and place QR code stickers in every bathroom stall on campus that link updated pregnancy resources connecting students to medical professionals and authentic support.
- The University must clarify in its official policy that it is unacceptable for any faculty or staff member to materially assist students in obtaining access to abortion or abortion pills. Further, the protocol response for pregnant students must be formalized and promoted.
- Residential staff must be trained by medical professionals on the necessary steps to take if a student is found experiencing one of the side effects of the abortion pill or the after-effects of a chemical abortion. Furthermore, staff members should be trained in Project Rachel ministry to be equipped to help post-abortive students heal from the trauma of abortion.
This call-to-action is not meant to merely identify what the university is lacking, but also to give Notre Dame the opportunity and directive to be the model for Catholic institutions committed to protecting students and the sanctity of life post-Roe. Supporting life means concrete action which actually maintains Catholic Church teaching, both in statements and policy.
This also requires recognizing the new threat to life on campus: abortion pills by mail. Chemical abortion is coming to college campuses, and students need to be directed to university-trusted sources that direct women to real sources of help and support. Too often, dangerous programs in our local communities provide misleading resources, make it easy to travel across state-lines for a procedure, and put individuals in touch with those pushing for abortion access outside of the law. Such threats make it clear that a comprehensive response is necessary to best protect women and their children.
Our vision of a culture of life will require prudent decision-making, a commitment to collaboration, and an abundance of hard work. Notre Dame is more than capable of rising to the challenge, and if it intends to continue leading the country in its commitment to life, we should expect nothing less.