Another student barred from Harper event

Joanna MacDonald is pictured in this undated handout photo. MacDonald, a fourth-year environmental sciences student at Guelph University, says she pre-registered for Harper's election campaign event at the school Monday April 5, 2011, and she was barred from the event with Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

The Canadian Press:

Drummondville, Quebec - Another university student says she was barred from a Conservative event with Prime Minister Stephen Harper — this time because of her environmental activism.

Joanna MacDonald, a fourth-year environmental sciences student at Guelph University, says she pre-registered for Harper's election campaign event at the school Monday.

But after arriving with a friend, MacDonald says she was directed to a desk where she was told her name had been flagged and she was asked to leave.

"It was very bizarre to be on the flagged list but have no one there to tell you why you were on the list," MacDonald, 21, told The Canadian Press in an interview.

She and a friend had both pre-registered and her friend was allowed in.

"I was just really curious about what Stephen Harper has to say," said MacDonald. "He's the prime minister of Canada, so I'd like to ask questions."

MacDonald was told the RCMP was doing the screening for the Conservative party event and since she has no criminal record — nor any political party affiliation for that matter — she demanded to know why she was being flagged.

An unidentified official eventually told her it was likely because she had participated with the Sierra youth coalition on climate change at the Cancun conference last December.

"The only reason I could think of not to get in was my activism on the environmental front .... It was really disgusting."

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