c. 2007 Religion News Service
R.I. College Settles With Students Over Abortion-Rights Signs
(RNS) Rhode Island College and a campus group have reached a settlement after the college ordered the removal of signs with messages such as “Keep your rosaries off our ovaries.”
The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island announced Tuesday (Sept. 25) the college will pay the Women’s Studies Organization $5,000.
In December 2005, members of the group placed abortion-rights signs near the entrance road to the college in Providence, R.I. A priest visiting the campus saw the signs and mentioned them to security guards, who alerted college President John Nazarian. The president ordered the signs removed. The students filed suit, claiming their free speech rights had been violated.
The settlement agreement notes that the public college, which has not admitted liability, has clarified its policy about sign placement.
“College is a place for the free exchange of ideas and I can now be proud to say I attend a school which allows the free speech rights that are essential to a learning community,” said Jennifer Magaw, president of the Women’s Studies Organization, in a statement released by the ACLU.
The settlement also called for the college to pay $6,350 in attorney’s fees.
College spokeswoman Jane Fusco said the school has always supported First Amendment rights.
“The signs did not come down because of the message,” she said. “The signs were removed because they were erected inappropriately. They were erected in an area of the campus that typically was not used for signage.”
_ Adelle M. Banks
Stem Cell Research Question To Remain on New Jersey Ballot
(RNS) A New Jersey judge Tuesday rejected an effort by conservative groups to derail November’s vote on a $450 million stem cell research program, saying the ballot question appears “fair, balanced and neutral.”
Chancery Court Judge Neil Shuster denied claims by New Jersey Right to Life and others that the wording of the ballot question was misleading.
Shuster also rejected the groups’ request to postpone the printing of ballots for the Nov. 6 election.
“The public has an interest in voting on Election Day,” Shuster said in his ruling.
Bertram P. Goltz, attorney for Right to Life, said he had not yet decided whether to appeal.
The Stem Cell Research Bond Issue will appear as Public Question No. 2 on the ballot. It calls for borrowing up to $450 million to pay for grants for universities and other entities to conduct medical research involving stem cells, which can develop into a variety of tissues.
Proponents of the research say it holds the promise of producing cures for ailments like Alzheimer’s, Lou Gehrig’s disease and spinal cord injuries.
Opponents say the research is unproven and will result in the creation and destruction of human embryos. They argued the ballot should be rewritten to tell voters approval could open the door to human cloning.
Shuster rejected that claim, saying the legislation authorizing the borrowing specifically bans human cloning.
Marie Tasy, executive director of New Jersey Right to Life, said she disagrees with Shuster’s conclusions and said voters deserve a full accounting of the implications of the stem cell proposal. “This is a matter that affects the future of humanity,” she said. “It’s much too important a matter to be ignored.”
_ Dunstan McNichol
Phil Keaggy, The Winans, Among GMA Gospel Hall of Fame Inductees
(RNS) Christian musicians Phil Keaggy and The Winans are among this year’s inductees to the Gospel Music Association’s Gospel Music Hall of Fame.
They will be joined by the Statler Brothers, Larnelle Harris and association board member and author Joe Moscheo at an Oct. 29 induction ceremony in Nashville, Tenn.
Phil Keaggy, who has recorded more than 45 albums, began his musical career in the late ’60s when he and a friend founded Glass Harp. Keaggy recorded his first solo album, “What a Day,” in 1973, followed by his first instrumental album, “The Master and the Musician,” in 1978. He is known for his songwriting and guitar-playing abilities.
The Statler Brothers _ Harold Reid, Phil Balsley, Jimmy Fortune and Don Reid _ released their first record, “Flowers on the Wall,” in 1975. The prominent country music group won Grammy Awards, Country Music Association awards, and earned gold and platinum records. After retiring, they recorded “Amen,” a gospel album.
The Winans _ brothers Marvin, Carvin, Ronald and Michael _ released “Introducing The Winans,” their first record, in 1981. They then recorded two R&B albums before returning to gospel music with “Heart & Soul.” In 2002, they released “The Very Best of the Winans” with their siblings, BeBe and CeCe.
Over his four-decade career, Joe Moscheo has gained recognition as a singer, musician, manager and executive and has won Grammy and Dove Awards. He is a permanent board member of the GMA. This year he published a book, “The Gospel Side of Elvis.”
Larnelle Harris, a tenor who has received five Grammys and 11 Dove Awards, has recorded modern classics like “How Excellent is Thy Name” and “Amen.” After the fall of the Soviet Union, Harris performed in the Kremlin. Currently he performs 75 to 100 concerts for churches and Christian organizations every year.
_ Heather Donckels
Quote of the Day: Sheikh Hamza Yusef, founder of the Zaytuna Institute
(RNS) “It takes just one deranged person with a cousin back home who died in a suicide bombing to create trouble here.”
_ Sheik Hamza Yusuf, the U.S.-born co-founder of Zaytuna Institute, a Muslim seminary in Berkeley, Calif. He was quoted by USA Today.
DSB/LF END RNS
