I am not sure about whether to condone abortion or condemn it.

However, I do not believe that money garnered from student fees should be appropriated to support an anti-abortion organization, which is a polarized viewpoint that does not represent the entire student body.

This is exactly what the Student Government Association has done. They took $1,000 of student money and are using it to donate supplies to the New Hope Center. The supplies would probably include cribs, diapers and car seats, according to SGA Senator Heather Gilmore.

I spoke with some employees from the New Hope Center, and they claimed that the center has no political agenda and that it is not an anti-abortion organization. They say that their purpose is to help struggling young mothers.

But if you pick up a brochure, it calls the center a “Christian…life-affirming ministry,” and its mission is to “strengthen families.” Another flier associates the New Hope Center with Walk for Life and states “Choose Life.”

Doesn’t this sound like a pro-life, anti-abortion organization?

Don’t get me wrong, the center sounds like a helpful, caring institution. But that is not where my objection stands.

SGA is supposed to represent the student body as a whole. It is unfair to support one political viewpoint over another, especially when the support is coming from fees contributed by the whole student body, which is not entirely composed of anti-abortion sentiments.

This sends students the wrong message – that SGA supports anti-abortion groups and is making legislation with a biased mindset. It tells students with alternative viewpoints that their opinions don’t matter.

This is just like taxation without representation, a problem that led this country to fight for its independence. Students who support abortion are not represented, yet their money is being contributed to an organization they may not agree with.

All but one of the SGA senators voted in favor of contributing the supplies to the center. Sen. Jesse McDonald voted against the spending, saying he “voted for the students.”

Even if the center does not have a political agenda, distributing student money to a non-university organization is ridiculous, especially with NKU’s tight budget. Other organizations on campus donated funds to the center, but the money was collected through charitable donation, not drawn directly from university student funds.

The bottom line is irresponsible spending. And we can’t afford it.