Student op-ed calls silent pro-life demonstration 'violent'

A Syracuse University (SU) student called a pro-life activism event a “violent demonstration of power” in an op-ed for the student newspaper The Daily Orange last week.

The piece, authored by Ana S. Aponte González, was titled “The silent pro-life protestors on campus need to be aware of the reality of abortion.” It targeted four pro-life individuals who participated in the national Day of Silent Solidarity, which commemorates the lives of the unborn.

“Oct. 18, thousands of young people in high schools and on college campuses will make a commitment to be silent for all or part of the day, with many taping their mouths shut with red tape, the word LIFE emblazoned across it,” according to Priests for Life. 

[RELATED: Pro-life students told to ‘kill themselves’ during campus event]

Despite the event’s being silent and peaceful, González argued that the pro-life protesters were being “violent.”

“There is nothing ‘silent’ about this. This is a violent demonstration of power,” González wrote. 

She cited what she learned as a Women’s and Gender Studies major to justify her argument.

“We talk about issues surrounding reproductive justice and modes of protest that are effective in bringing forth justice and reparations for those that are oppressed by systems of power,” she wrote. “These systems have been upheld by white supremacy and patriarchal values that were established in this country when the first white settlers arrived.”

She continued, “I am aware that not many people know how these systems work, but it’s important to be aware of where you stand within them.”

Doubling down on her accusation, González said that the pro-life protesters “used their privilege and given power as white people in a Predominantly White Institution to ‘silently’ protest about an issue that is not actually their business.”

[RELATED: Women’s March attendee arrested for harassing pro-life students]

González concluded that students “need to be aware of these dangers to our wellbeing” rather than accept silent demonstrations.

Elianna Geertgens, who was one of the protesters, fired back at González by stating she “was mourning the millions of babies killed every year due to abortion.”

Geertgens is a Field Representative for the Leadership Institute, which is the parent organization of Campus Reform.

“[González] quite literally wants opinions that she doesn’t agree with to be deemed dangerous and to be banned,” she said. “If she truly believes that we were dangerous individuals because of the signs we were holding up then the only logical end [w]ould be that she wants speech she doesn’t like to be banned.”

Campus Reform reached out to Syracuse University and The Daily Orange for comment. Best effort was made to contact González. This article will be updated accordingly.

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