SHEmazing!
follow us
more
 
HomeTagsPosts tagged with "Katie Ascough"

Katie Ascough

by

Katie Ascough, the former president of the UCD Student Union, elaborated on her pro-life stance while speaking with Marian Finucane on RTÉ Radio 1 this weekend.

Katie, who was impeached after making the decision to remove information pertaining to abortion from the university's Fresher handbook, told the host that her pro-life stance also applies to cases of rape.

The 20-year-old, whose pro-life opinion intensified after her mother suffered a miscarriage in recent years, explained that while she considers rape 'an abhorrent crime', she feels a termination is an unwise response.

"Rape is one of the most abhorrent crimes towards women and I completely condemn it. In fact I think we need to look at having more serious sentences for rapists in Ireland," she said.

“But at the same time, I do not think that abortion is the answer to this," Katie added.

Arguing that women who terminate a pregnancy following rape essentially punish the foetus as opposed to the father, Katie suggested that increased support would reduce the number of women who opt to abort in these cases.

"The child should not have to bear the brunt of their father’s crime. The child should not be essentially sentenced to death for what their father has done."

"I think we need to support them in as many ways as we can but at the same time, when it comes to bodily autonomy, there are two people involved in a pregnancy," Katie said. 

"A child’s heart starts beating at 21 days. And I don’t think we can ignore that."

Katie was voted out of office by 69 per cent of voters last month.

Trending

by

UCD students have voted to impeach their Students' Union president Katie Ascough.

Overall, 69pc of students voted in favour of impeaching Ascough, while 31% voting against the move.

Overall, 6,611 students cast their vote.

According to The University Observer, the former president made this statement following the announcement of the results:

'I have respected the law.'

'I feel confident that I have done all that I could for the students that I am grateful to have been elected to represent.'

'This is a sad day for me but it is also a sad day for our university.'

'Universities should be a place of freedom of speech, freedom of thought and freedom of association, fairness, respect for those who do not wish to break the law and respect for others with different beliefs,' she finished, according to the campus publication.

Trending

by

With more than 1,000 UCD students having petitioned for her impeachment, UCD SU President, Katie Ascough, has released an open letter via the Fight4Katie Faceook page.

Katie was the subject of intense criticism in August when she made the decision to remove information pertaining to abortions in the university's Fresher handbook Winging It.

Ahead of today's referendum, which was set in motion by the petition and will ultimately decide Katie's fate as SU President, she chose to issue a letter to the student body.

"I have put my whole heart and soul into being your SU President for the last four months. UCD is an incredible place, and I am so grateful to be elected to represent the 30,000+ amazing students of UCD. You have my commitment, you have my all," she began.

"The Impeachment referendum was initiated because of my decision not to distribute the Winging It books. Doing so would have been illegal. The advice I received on the issue was clear. It said that the prudent action was to redesign the books or, if it was too late – and it was – to cancel them."


"Some have referred to the SU’s “proud history” of breaking the law, especially in the 80s and 90s, but the question is this: Is it fair to demand that I break the law, too?" she asked.

"I ran on a platform of things like cutting the cost of college and improving mental health supports. I did not agree to break the law and run the risk of a criminal record for the rest of my life."

In the lengthy message, Katie was keen to clarify the issues at the heart of the controversy.

"Regarding the Winging It books – I ask you to please place yourself in my shoes. I kept my election promise and delegated tasks to my team; I trusted my team. In trying to respect the pro-choice mandate of the Union, as I had promised, I allowed another officer to sign off on the content of the books."

"I realised the book contained abortion information. Never for one moment did it look illegal to me, it just looked like abortion information. No one on the team told me that I was signing off on something illegal, despite the fact that they admit they knew."

Looking to the future, Katie insists she prioritises the needs of the student body, writing "I am willing, ready, and determined – if UCD students Vote No – to return to my job on Friday morning and begin to mend what has been broken."

"Please Vote No to see your representation restored. Please Vote No for fair treatment of someone who chose to not break the law. And please Vote No to stand up for a President who is committed to you."

Those championing Katie have been vocal in their support of the post, but a number of students have dismissed Katie's protestations.

"Liar, Bigot, and Coward, removing comments and blocking those who go against you on this page," wrote one Facebook user. "Dont let the door hit you on the way out."

Trending

by

UCD Student Union President, Katie Ascough, was the subject of intense criticism last month following her decision to remove information pertaining to abortion services from the university's magazine.

Katie, who is pro-life but pledged to facilitate the SU's pro-choice stance upon election, argued that providing the information was illegal, and her decision to remove it was based solely on legal advice.

Katie's decision was not supported by other members of the Student's Union, and as press attention around the issue intensified, a petition was created to call for her impeachment.

However, it has been confirmed that despite amassing more than 1,600 signatures, the petition has been rejected by Returning Officer Stephen Devine because it did not contain a section which allowed students to provide their signatures.

As the number of people who petitioned for her impeachment exceeded the number who elected her, those calling for her impeachment have stated they will address the omitted signature section, and re-submit.
 

Trending
© Copyright 2012-2024 - Shemazing.net. Déanta in Éirinn - Sheology.