Tribute for Dr. Henry Morgentaler

To:  Dr. Paul Davenport, President, University of Western Ontario

Dear friends and advocates of human rights,

Dr. Henry Morgentaler - physician, Holocaust survivor, civil rights activist, and tireless champion for women’s reproductive rights and choices - has been chosen by the University of Western Ontario (UWO) to receive an Honourary Doctor of Laws degree. This degree is to be awarded at their convocation on June 16, 2005.

Unfortunately, the noble attempt on the part of this prominent Ontario university to bestow an honour on Dr. Morgentaler is being vigorously opposed by anti-choice elements. A petition to this effect, authored by William Vandoodewaard and endorsed by “Catholics for Life”, has been posted on the Internet. Currently, this protest petition has collected over 5000 signatures opposing the pending honour.

The genuine website for the University of Western Ontario (UWO) is http://www.uwo.ca. There you will find a press release issued by the Canadian Association of University Teachers in support of honouring Dr. Morgentaler.

The university's President, Dr. Paul Davenport, favours offering the tribute to Dr. Morgentaler. The Chair of the Board of Governors, however, Don McDougall, does not.

As there is a good possibility that the university may, in the face of mounting opposition, decide not to proceed with the honour for Dr. Morgentaler, the Humanist Association of Canada is requesting the assistance of members of any community to sign this new petition (in support of UWO’s decision to honour Dr. Morgentaler) as quickly as possible.

You may also send letters of support to the officials at UWO, particularly to its president, Dr. Paul Davenport, who may be under siege. His email is pdavenpo@uwo.ca.

The postal address for the University is:
University of Western Ontario, 1151 Richmond Street, Suite 2, London, ON N6A 5B8.

Please pass this message on right away to others who are willing to help.

We thank you very much for any assistance you can give at this critical time.

Katherine Meidell
2nd Vice President
Humanist Association of Canada

William Broderick
Editor, Canadian Humanist News
Humanist Association of Canada

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

The Tribute for Dr. Henry Morgentaler Petition to Dr. Paul Davenport, President, University of Western Ontario was created by Katherine Meidell & William Broderick - Board members of the Humanist Association of Canada and written by Katherine Meidell (kwcg.humanists@sympatico.ca).  This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public service. There is no endorsement of this petition, express or implied, by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. For technical support please use our simple Petition Help form.