During the week of October 20-27, Tradition Family Property Student Action members toured the southern state of Louisiana to meet like-minded students and oppose abortion and moral relativism on college campuses.
While many students reject the sin of abortion, their liberal professors intimidate and stifle students’ moral convictions. TFP Student Action strives to give these students the arguments and encouragement to defend traditional morality on campus.
In the Heart of Cajun Country
“Cajuns,” as many Louisianans are known, is a nickname for “Acadian.” The Acadians were French Catholics who, for refusing to deny their faith, were forcibly removed and exiled by the Protestant English from their homeland in Nova Scotia, Canada, in the 1750’s. Families were broken up and dispersed all over the world. Many of the survivors eventually settled in what is now Louisiana.
The memory of Le Grand Dérangement, or “The Great Upheaval,” as the exile is known, and the subsequent death, enslavement, and fight for survival of the Acadians, still lives on in the hearts of their descendants, some half a million of them.
But although the bloody persecution of Catholics in North America no longer continues, another, more sinister, and far bloodier persecution goes on unabated: the daily slaughter of the unborn by abortion.
First stop: University of Louisiana – Lafayette
The first campus of the tour was the University of Louisiana in Lafayette, in the heart of the Cajun country.
After the raising of the TFP standard, the campaign began with the customary three Hail Marys, asking the Virgin Mary to bless the day’s activities. As Saint Louis de Montfort teaches, just as God chose the Blessed Mother to come to us, we should choose her to go to Him.
This time, Student Action had help from several UL and local high school students, eager to impact the campus. In a few hours, thousands of flyers titled “10 Reasons Why Abortion is Wrong” were passed out. And a six-question opinion poll was taken.
Unlike other universities, the student body was surprisingly conservative and Catholic. “I can give you more than 10 reasons why abortion is wrong,” was a common response. “O, I’m Catholic. I don’t need 10 reasons,” one young man told TFP member Cesar Franco.
Pro-abortionists also came out of the woodwork. “Abortion is great!” yelled one woman.
TFP volunteer John Miller replied: “But it’s brutal murder!”
“I don’t care. It’s great! It’s great…” continued the woman.
A while later, a sorry counter-demonstration formed. They made an impromptu flyer replete with vulgarity and immorality; without any intellectual substance. A pro-abortion activist insisted with TFP volunteer James Bascom that: “All truth is relative. To you, abortion’s wrong, but to me there’s no problem.”
TFP member: “Do you exist?”
Pro-abortionist: “To you I may exist, but to others I might not.”
TFP member: “Is that absolutely true? So what in the world are you doing here studying at a university? Isn’t the idea of a university to learn truth? The fact that you exist is self-evident. To deny self-evident truth is insanity.”
Pro-abortionist: “Absolutely.” At this point, the relativist’s hands started shaking.
TFP member: “But don’t you deny absolute truth?”
Pro-abortionist: “Absolutely.”
TFP member: “So would you consider yourself insane.”
Pro-abortionist: “Absolutely. We’re all insane.”
Defending the Unborn at LSU
The next stop was Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, the state capitol. Here, students remembered the TFP for its campaign in support of the Traditional Marriage Amendment in 2004. “You’re the traditional marriage guys, right?” several students asked.
As at UL, it was common to hear, “I’m Catholic,” “I don’t need ten reasons to be against abortion,” or “Thank you for being here!”
Thanks to the conservative grassroots and anti-abortion activists in the Baton Rouge area, the number of abortion clinics in the city has been reduced to just one.
Again, students came out and joined the campaign. There is a big myth today that youth are overwhelmingly liberal, and have no interest in tradition or morality; that conservative ideas are passé, and have no real influence in the public square. The presence of several students actively promoting moral values on campus, as well as the massive number of students showing their support, shattered this false myth. In fact, a group of LSU students gather on the quad every evening to recite the Rosary.
With students like these, there is hope. May God give them strength, perseverance, heroism, conviction, and increase their number all over America.