(LifeSiteNews) — The University of Notre Dame has defended its appointment of a vehement abortion supporter to a prominent position despite backlash over the professor’s anti-Catholic stance on human life. The self-proclaimed Catholic university issued a statement on Wednesday defending the elevation of Susan Ostermann – an associate professor of global affairs at Notre Dame who has described abortion bans as “violence” and “sexual abuse” – to director of the university’s Liu Institute of Asia and Asian Studies. Ostermann is a particularly harsh critic of pro-life laws, having claimed that abortion access “prioritizes and values women’s freedom from experiencing violence,...