About 200 Azusa Pacific University students gathered in prayer and song Monday in response to the university board’s decision to reinstate a ban on LGBTQ relationships on campus.
Senior Autumn North led the students in song — “No Longer Slaves” by Bethel Music — to end the hourlong demonstration. While she said she does not identify as a member of the LGBTQ community, it was important to her to help show her peers that they are loved by the broader campus community.
The group repeated the song’s chorus several times: “I’m no longer a slave to fear. I am a child of God.”
In time for the Aug. 27 start of the fall semester and following months of discussions between students and university leaders, Azusa Pacific had removed a section from its student conduct policy that outlawed LGBTQ relationships on campus. The altered language referenced a standing ban on pre-marital sex but dropped any mention to orientation.
When the APU student newspaper published an article on Sept. 18 about the move, the 119-year-old university received some kudos but significantly more criticism, especially from Christian media outlets and pundits.
Headlines claimed the university had “caved,” “surrendered” and was “Losing ‘God First.’”
In response, the university announced Friday afternoon that because the policy change was never approved by its Board of Trustees, it was reinstating the ban.
Read more here...
https://www.sgvtribune.com/2018/10/01/azusa-pacific-university-students-protest-after-reinstatement-of-lgbtq-relationship-ban/
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