Guolong Li withdrew his
candidacy for the presidency of Cambridge University's student
union a day before the polls opened after staff and students
condemned him for making a homophobic statement.
When asked of his
stance on LGBT policies and platforms during a debate, Li
answered, "I think it's more important that we provide
help for them to persuade them to be normal, to no longer be
LBGT, to change them," according to the
Telegraph.
Li's comment sparked
angry response from students and staff, and hundreds rallied on
the Internet, demanding that he withdraw from
the election.
Li announced his
withdrawal from the election on Facebook, with the statement,
"I have withdrawn my candidacy now and, therefore, I can
say what I really think And as I have said so many times, if
you don't think that I can persuade LBGT people to change,
then it is on them to decide not to change. So simple is
it."
Richard Partington,
senior tutor at Churchill College, said that the comments did
not fit with the university's ethos and that it was right
that the candidate stepped down. "The college regards
Guolong Li's comments about LBGT students as unacceptable
and repudiates them. We know that Guolong has withdrawn from
the presidential election and would regard that withdrawal as
appropriate."
