University Of Waterloo Closes Gay And Lesbian Centre And Women’s Centre After Anonymous Hateful Threatening Anti-Female Messages Materialize

Disturbing news from the University of Waterloo, the Ontario school taking the unusual step of closing both the gay and lesbian centre and the women’s centre until further notice because student leaders are concerned they may be the target of the anonymous author of hateful, threatening attacks on women, reports the Waterloo Record. Students say they are fearful, knowing that this person — who uses Facebook, e-mail and campus election posters to make the attacks — is likely somewhere on campus. The attacker covered up election posters of female candidates for the Federation of Students elections last week, and he or she also sent out a mass-e-mail, purportedly from the university president that said, in part “Expose the defective moral intelligence of womankind.” A Facebook page has been created that says, in part “Over-educated women are truly dangerous.” At a university-wide meeting Friday meant to discuss the issue, an audience estimated at 150 heard Dan Anderson, the director of the University of Waterloo’s police force say that while ethnicity, religion, and sexual orientation are covered in federal hate crimes legislation, gender is not a category included. He added while the comments themselves are “inappropriate” and “wrong-headed,” they “do not reach the standard of a criminal offence.” Student leaders of the campus women’s centre and GLOW, the support centre for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered students, said they will continue to function online but are closing their physical offices until further notice to ensure the safety of volunteers and visitors. Next week, which is the traditional reading week, the on-campus population of the University of Waterloo will decrease with most classes cancelled.