April 3rd, 2017

KINGSTON, ON – Today, the current Executive Team LWT and incoming Executive Team JBP issued the following joint statement:

Sunday evening the incoming AMS Assembly elected Alexander Prescott as Assembly Speaker for 2017-18. We have heard concerns from the student body about the election, and we want to address them.

In 2012-13, Prescott was reprimanded by ASUS Assembly for comments he made that belittle and disrespect the experiences of survivors and victims of sexual assault. AMS Assembly needs to be a place where students can voice their concerns honestly and openly. It is up to the Speaker to ensure Assembly is that open and respectful environment. Having a Speaker who has made comments that contravene these values challenges Assembly’s ability to be an open forum for all students.

Over the past few years, Queen’s students have joined together to address sexual violence on our campus. This year, Team LWT has made sexual violence prevention a priority and addressing this important issue will remain a priority for Team JBP. We do not condone jokes, comments, or apathy about the experiences of survivors and victims. We will continue to support the victims and survivors of sexual violence.

The incoming Executive is calling an Emergency Assembly Meeting on Tuesday, April 4th at 10pm in Wallace Hall to reconsider the Speaker election and we encourage all students to attend.

Please direct all media inquiries to Bianca Balazic, AMS Director of Communications, at communications@ams.queensu.ca or (613) 533-6000 x 75850.

BACKGROUNDER

Alma Mater Society (AMS) – https://www.myams.org

The central undergraduate student government at Queen’s University, the AMS represents over 17,000 students and is the oldest student government in Canada. There are over 1000 student volunteers and 600 paid staff.