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Marred Display Inflames Free Speech Debate

Harvard Right to Life says incident latest in series of recent infractions

Maria E. Troein

A Harvard Right to Life (HRL) display of 440 flags outside the Science Center lies at the center of a free speech controversy. HRL alleges that the flags, which are meant to represent 10 abortions each, have been torn down.

Just three weeks after the controversial defacement of roughly 200 of its posters, Harvard Right to Life (HRL) fears that its campaign may have been targeted again.

A display of American flags outside the Science Center was torn down at approximately 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday morning, the work of a single “college-aged male,” nearby Facilities Maintenance Operations (FMO) workers told HRL President Daniel R. Tapia ’05.

HRL’s campaign involved the systematic planting of 440 miniature American flags in the grass to the left of the Science Center entrance to represent a graveyard for the 4,400 abortions that occur daily within the United States.

In front of the arrangement hung a large, black poster that advertised the group’s cause and presented a few statistics about abortion.

HRL representatives said the group had applied for and received permission from the College to display the flags every day this week.

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But on Wednesday morning, Tapia discovered that the arrangement had been upset.

“I went by at 9 a.m. and they were up and they looked great,” he said. “Then I went into Cabot [Science Library] to study, and came out at 10, and [the flags] were all thrown in a pile underneath the sign.”

Tapia asked nearby FMO workers if they had seen what had transpired, and they provided a description of the individual responsible.

Those FMO workers were unavailable for comment yesterday.

Paul C. Schultz ’04, an HRL member and a Crimson editor, noted that there is a chance that the flags may have been removed by a patriotic student who felt the need to save them from the falling rain.

But given the historical tension between Harvard students and HRL, there may be a case to assume otherwise.

Two replica flags bearing swastikas were also placed in the display this past week to disparage the pro-life movement’s treatment of women, according to HRL members.

“It’s a recurring issue,” Tapia said. “Anything we do is going to get torn down or defaced. From our perspective, all we’re doing is revealing the facts about abortion, and letting people’s consciences decide. But some people who disagree just get angry, and react like this.”

Abigail L. Fee ’05, president of Harvard Students for Choice, said the group had made no efforts to alter the HRL display, and that she has actively instructed members against vandalism.

But some students have said that individuals have a right to act against displays they find offensive.

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