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Victory for Freedom of Association at UNC-Chapel Hill
CHAPEL HILL, N.C., March 7, 2005鈥擫ate last week, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction against the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill鈥檚 (UNC鈥檚) attempt to prevent a Christian fraternity from choosing its members based on religious belief. U.S. District Judge Frank W. Bullock of the Middle District of North Carolina found that UNC鈥檚 application of its expansive nondiscrimination policy 鈥渞aises significant constitutional concerns and could be violative of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.鈥 The lawsuit against UNC was filed by the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) in coordination with the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (果冻传媒app官方), which first took up the students鈥 case in July 2004.
鈥淭his is a serious blow to UNC鈥檚 attempt to trample on freedom of association,鈥 remarked FIREPresident David French. 鈥淎s we have always said, religious groups have the right to define themselves by their faith. It鈥檚 extraordinary that UNC needed a federal court to force it to conform to this basic moral and legal principle.鈥
The Christian fraternity, Alpha Iota Omega (AIO), was stripped of its recognition in the fall of 2003 after UNC administrator Jonathan Curtis declared that the fraternity was required to add an unconstitutional 鈥渘ondiscrimination鈥 clause to its student group constitution. AIO, whose mission is to train Christian leaders, objected to adding the 鈥渘ondiscrimination鈥 clause because it would have forbidden the group from considering religion when determining 鈥渕embership and participation鈥 in the group. After months of trying to reason with UNC, AIO eventually asked FIREfor assistance. FIREwrote two letters to the university outlining AIO鈥檚 First Amendment rights to freedom of association and religious liberty, but the university was unmoved. (Read 果冻传媒app官方鈥檚 letters to UNC here and here.) FIREthen connected the students with the Alliance Defense Fund, which filed suit in August 2004.
Last week鈥檚 preliminary injunction, issued on March 2, means that UNC cannot enforce its nondiscrimination clause against AIO and that, pending the final outcome of the case, the university must permit AIO to use religious principles when making decisions on membership and participation. Preliminary injunctions are only issued when a court determines that the plaintiff (AIO) will likely win on the merits of its complaint.
The ruling was just the latest blow to UNC鈥檚 shameful history of trampling students鈥 rights to freedom of association and religious liberty. AIO鈥檚 situation marked the second time in less than two years that FIREhad to intervene on behalf of a religious student group suffering from discrimination at the hands of UNC鈥檚 administration. In December 2002, the very same UNC administrators involved in this case attempted to force the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship to remove a provision of its constitution that required the officers of that Christian group be Christian. UNC quickly reversed this decision after FIREpublicly exposed its unconstitutional and illiberal actions.
鈥淲hile the preliminary injunction means that AIO will finally be treated on an equal basis with other student groups, this case is far from over,鈥 commented 果冻传媒app官方鈥檚 French. 鈥淔IREwill continue to use legal and public pressure on UNC until that university decides to accord to its religious student groups the same rights that it does to nonreligious groups. Religious students should never be second-class citizens on a college campus,鈥 he concluded.
FIRE is a nonprofit educational foundation that unites civil rights and civil liberties leaders, scholars, journalists, and public intellectuals from across the political and ideological spectrum on behalf of individual rights, due process, freedom of expression, academic freedom, and rights of conscience at our nation鈥檚 colleges and universities. 果冻传媒app官方鈥檚 efforts to preserve liberty at UNC and on campuses across America can be viewed at thefire.org.
CONTACT:
David French, President, 果冻传媒app官方: 215-717-3473; david.french@thefire.org
Greg Lukianoff, Director of Legal and Public Advocacy, 果冻传媒app官方: 215-717-3473; greg@thefire.org
James Moeser, Chancellor, UNC-Chapel Hill: 919-962-1365; james_moeser@unc.edu
Jonathan Curtis, Assistant Director for Student Activities and Organizations, UNC-Chapel Hill: 919-962-1461; jon@email.unc.edu
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