It’s the age old story: girl meets boy, boy hands girl pamphlet, girl changes entire belief because of it.

This must be how religious groups, companies and causes view their literature. Why else would they spend so much time and money harassing our student body on a daily basis?

Petitioners plague the campus like buzzards on a corpse. They swarm around students, picking off the ones that are alone and vulnerable.

I never sign anything I haven’t researched, and I am uncomfortable writing down my address on a stranger’s piece of paper. I usually duck them or straight up pretend they don’t exist, even as they yell at me.

The petitioners are nothing compared to the religious zealots. They are impossible to ignore. Donning offensive signs and posters of fetuses should be considered assault.

There is never going to be a giant religious revival if this is how they choose to spread the message. These demonstrations don’t persuade, they stratify. For someone who agrees that abortion is wrong, a gory picture of an aborted fetus simply reaffirms their beliefs. That same picture only convinces pro-choice people that their pro-life opponents are sensationalist and insensitive.

I am all for information tables for sororities and clubs; they help me get to know about things on campus. But I throw away every pamphlet ever forced on me, and try not to give the religious zealots the satisfaction of my attention. They are a nuisance and an unnecessary source of anxiety for many students.

I will never change my mind because of an aggressive petitioner with a pamphlet. Most people won’t. I am at school to learn and think for myself, not to be harassed and told what to believe.

Alyssa Dunning can be reached at [email protected] or @alyssadunning3 on Twitter.