The group’s existence as an officially recognized university club now hangs in the balance after the Student Activities Commission decided to adjourn the meeting without a vote. As of early Tuesday morning, the committee had not decided on a date to reconvene for a final decision.

AD

Love Saxa advocates for marriage as “a monogamous and permanent union between a man and a woman,” the group states in its constitution. That definition of marriage, coincidentally, aligns with that espoused by the Catholic Church, raising the question of how administrators at Georgetown, the United States’ oldest Catholic and Jesuit institution of higher learning, will handle the controversy if it eventually comes before them.

In their complaint, Jasmin Ouseph, a junior from Fort Lauderdale, and Chad Gasman, a sophomore from Los Angeles, argued that Love Saxa’s definition of marriage excludes and dehumanizes people in the LGBTQ community. They charge that Love Saxa violates university standards governing sanctioned student groups and demand that it be defunded and removed as an officially sanctioned student group.

AD

Both Ouseph and Gasman declined to comment on Monday evening.

AD

At Monday night’s hearing, the complainants and Love Saxa made their cases before the panel of student commissioners.

The complainants repeated much of what they had spelled out in a ten-page document filed last month. Quoting directly from Love Saxa’s constitution, they charged that the group’s definition of same-sex marriage is homophobic and hateful.

They also argued that defunding and withdrawing official recognition from Love Saxa would not violate free speech, because the group would still be allowed to exist and remain active in an unofficial capacity. They cited the student group H*yas for Choice, which describes itself as “pro-choice, pro-reproductive justice,” that has an active campus presence despite not being officially recognized by the university.

AD

AD

Love Saxa, in response, argued that its events this semester have focused on sexualized campus cultures and the prevalence of pornography in society, and have not actively fostered hate or intolerance.

The group raised the larger question of what the complainant’s demands would mean for the university. Love Saxa, the group argued, shares the same Catholic and Jesuit values with Georgetown, and to say that the group is intolerant would amount to accusing the university of intolerance.

The fundamental question, the group said, is whether Georgetown recognizes the traditional Catholic version of marriage — and if not, then can Georgetown still call itself a Catholic university?

AD

For now, these questions remain unanswered.

Amelia Irvine, a junior from Phoenix and the president of Love Saxa, said she had been expecting a decision and was disappointed that the hearing had ended without a vote. She added that she was “not feeling confident” about the fate of her group after hearing the commission’s deliberations.

AD

The student-run activities commission allocates about $350,000 to more than 110 student organizations annually, according to its website. Love Saxa receives about $250 annually in funding, according to the Hoya, and would stand to lose access to this money and other university benefits if it is no longer an officially recognized student group.

AD

In the run-up to the hearing, prominent Catholic scholars had voiced support for Love Saxa. The Rev. James Martin, author of a book on promoting dialogue between the Catholic church and the LGBT community, told the Catholic News Agency that for “a true dialogue to happen around LGBT issues, especially at Catholic universities,” all participants should engage in open dialogue and treat one another “respectfully and lovingly.”

Robert George, a professor of jurisprudence at Princeton University and a leading conservative Christian intellectual, called the effort to defund Love Saxa “illiberal — even authoritarian,” which is a “matter of grave concern for honorable people across the ideological spectrum.”

AD

Irvine’s boyfriend, Michael Khan, is a senior from Buffalo, N.Y., and a member of Love Saxa. He said Monday that while he thinks the majority of Georgetown students disagree with the group’s stance on marriage, there is also a “good portion” of the student body that supports Love Saxa’s right to speak as a recognized student group.