Donations meant for Georgetown conservative student group rerouted to LGBT group

A conservative student group at Georgetown University has recently learned that some of the donations that it had received had either gone missing or passed on to pro-LGBT groups on the campus.

Love Saxa, a student organization promoting Catholic teaching on marriage and sexuality, had informed the university about the alleged misdirection of the funds on Thursday in a letter sent by the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) to Georgetown President John DeGioia.

According to the letter, at least $400 in donations were deposited with the Center for Student Engagement between November and December 2017, but the amount never appeared in Love Saxa's account.

One donor reportedly received a receipt indicating that his $50 donation had been allocated to the "LGBTQ Resource Center Reserve," while another receipt for $100 has been tagged for the Saxatones a cappella group, which the ADF says, "partnered with the Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League."

"Georgetown officials have misappropriated its donations, either funneling them to different groups or just losing them completely," the letter read.

"We insist that you investigate this matter fully, restore the donations to Love Saxa immediately, and hold accountable the individuals responsible for this misconduct," it continued.

In addition, Love Saxa President Amelia Irvine was reportedly informed that her organization did well during the campus fundraiser, the Georgetown Phonathon, but the group "has not received any funds from that event whatsoever," the ADF noted.

The university has explained that the mysterious misappropriation of funds was due to the lack of proper funding mechanism.

In an emailed statement on Friday, a Georgetown spokesperson said that all donations made to Love Saxa have already been identified and are now being deposited to the group's account.

"When the university receives a gift designated by donor for a student group with access to benefits, the gifts are allocated with a designated worktag that ensures they reach the intended recipient. Because a Fall 2017 gift was the first donation of its kind to Love Saxa, no established path existed," the email read, according to Washington Free Beacon.

The university stated that it has already developed a way to ensure that funds are routed properly in the future, and have informed the student group and the donors that the gifts have been properly allocated.

Travis Barham, Love Saxa's ADF legal counsel, said that he could not confirm if the student group had received the money. He said that even after the funds were returned, questions still remain about how the gifts were ever misplaced, as Love Saxa's members had followed the university's established fundraising protocols.

The lawyer went on to note that the university's statement did nothing to clarify how it was that the club's "ideological opponent" was the recipient of the gifts.

Love Saxa has drawn the ire of pro-LGBT advocates last year after Irvine penned a letter in Georgetown student paper The Hoya highlighting the conservative group's opposition to same-sex marriage.

Jasmin Ouseph, a junior from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Chad Gasman, a sophomore from Los Angeles, had asked the university to defund the student group, alleging that it "excludes and dehumanizes" members of the LGBT community.

The leaders of the conservative group were later called before a tribunal of the Student Activities Commission, where they had to defend their stance for nearly four hours. In November, the commission voted 8-4 to impose no sanctions on Love Saxa, saying the group's stance reflects Catholic teaching and therefore does not "foster hatred" of homosexuals.