Earlier this year, a legal foundation supporting religious freedom contacted Ohio University concerning “unconstitutional” aspects of the university’s policy for student organizations.
OU chose not to change the policy, but the organization isn’t giving up the fight quite yet.
The Speak Up Movement, a division of Alliance Defending Freedom, aims to confront illegal discrimination against Christians at public universities, according to their website.
They take issue with OU’s nondiscrimination clause for student organizations, which states, “No Ohio University student may be denied membership into a student organization on the basis of race, national origin, color, religion, gender, age, veteran status, sexual orientation and/or ability status unless exempt under Title IX, gender.”
Speak Up argues that religious organizations should be permitted to restrict their membership to those who share their values — namely their faith, said Matt Sharp, attorney with Alliance Defending Freedom.
“We were just concerned about (the nondiscrimination policy) because it’s got language ... where it limits the ability of student organizations to select members and leaders that conform to the values of the group,” Sharp said.
Recent cases, including Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, support his argument, Sharp said. In their ruling on Hosanna-Tabor v. EEOC, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that in some cases, due to “ministerial exception,” antidiscrimination clauses do not apply to religious organizations.
“There’s been several cases … that kind of dealt with the right of organizations, and specifically religious organizations, to have control and authority over who their leaders are,” he said. “The courts have recognized that it’s part of the right of free religion and freedom of association.”
But OU disagrees with Speak Up and informed them that the administration believes the policy is in accordance with the U.S. Constitution, according to a letter sent to the organization by John Biancamano, director of OU’s Office of Legal Affairs.
No students have come forward with complaints on the policy, said Jenny Hall-Jones, interim dean of students.
“I’ve never heard of anybody complaining about (the policy),” she said. “I don’t think it’s O.K. for groups to not allow students into their group.”
Speak Up says they’ve dealt with specific issues caused by the policy at other institutions, such as Vanderbilt University, but OU student organizations said they saw no problem with the language.
“Hillel is a welcoming and pluralistic space for students on campus for all faiths,” said Danielle Leshaw, rabbi and executive director of Hillel. “Of course, predominantly, we’re serving the Jewish students on campus, but very regularly we’re interacting with non-Jewish students.”
Neither Biancamano nor a representative from Campus Crusade for Christ were available for comment.
bv111010@ohiou.edu
