Yeshiva University Will Recognize LGBTQ Club, Ending Long Court Battle
After years of litigation, Yeshiva University has agreed to settle with YU Pride Alliance, officially recognizing the LGBTQ student group with a new name, “Hareni.”
The flagship Modern Orthodox Jewish school announced its settlement agreemement with the Pride Alliance in a joint statement yesterday: “The parties have reached an agreement and the litigation is ending,” they said. “Current students will be implementing a club, to be known as Hareni, that will seek to support LGBTQ students and their allies and will operate in accordance with the approved guidelines of Yeshiva University’s senior rabbis.”
“The club will be run like other clubs on campus, all in the spirit of a collaborative and mutually supportive campus culture,” they announced.
YU objected to recognizing the LGBTQ group on religious grounds. We covered the long-running court battle between the Orthodox Jewish university and the student Pride Alliance here:
- NYC Comptroller to Yeshiva University: Recognize LGBTQ Club or Risk Public Funding
- Yeshiva University Inches Its Way Back To SCOTUS By Appealing LGBTQ Club Ruling To NY’s Highest Court
- Yeshiva University Must Recognize LGBTQ Club, Appeals Court Rules
- Yeshiva University and ‘Pride Alliance’ Agree To Stay Of State Court Order That Forced School To Officially Recognize LGBT Group
- Pending Return to SCOTUS, Yeshiva University Freezes All Student Group Activities Rather Than Recognize LGBT Alliance
- Yeshiva University Must Recognize LGBTQ Student Group For Now, After SCOTUS Vacates Stay As Premature
- Justice Sotomayor Stays NY State Court Order Forcing Yeshiva University To Recognize “Pride Alliance” Club
- Yeshiva U Fight Against Order It Recognize Student Pride Alliance Suffers Blow When Denied “Leave To Appeal” to NY High Ct
The parties’ announcement came after nearly four years of court fighting that began in 2021 when a group of students sued the school, arguing it had discriminated against them when it refused to formally recognize an official “Pride Alliance” club.
In June of 2022, the New York County Supreme Court (in New York, the trial court) ordered YU to recognize the LGBTQ club, against its religious convictions.
Notwithstanding its Orthodox Jewish character, the trial court found that YU’s charter precluded its claim for a religious exemption under New York antidiscrimination law. YU had amended its charter in 1967 to change its status from a religious to an educational corporation, “organized and operated exclusively for educational purposes” under state law. The Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court later affirmed the trial court’s ruling.
YU then appealed to the United States Supreme Court to stay the ruling, but in a 5-4 ruling the Court denied its request, sending it back to exhaust the appeals process in state court.
The YU Commentator reports that the litigation stalled for nearly two years over pre-trial discovery disputes between the parties’ lawyers, with no significant developments in the case until yesterday.
The Commentator has more on the developing story:
Minutes after the agreement was announced, the Pride Alliance’s student WhatsApp group name was changed from “YU Pride Alliance” to “Hareni.”“It is with great pleasure and excitement that we announce to everyone that we are now an official club at YU!” Former Pride Alliance co-presidents Schneur Friedman (YC ‘25) and Hayley Goldberg (SCW ‘27) told the WhatsApp group. “We will go forward using the club name Hareni coming from the phrase … “I hereby undertake to fulfill the positive commandment, Love your fellow as yourself” … We are honored to begin this official club as your co-presidents and will continue to foster a strong community within YU! Stay tuned for upcoming meetings, social events, and initiatives—we can’t wait to share this journey with you!”“This agreement affirms that there has never been a genuine conflict between Torah values and open LGBTQ+ identity,” Doniel Weinreich (YC ‘20), one of the plaintiffs, told The Commentator. “It demonstrates that fully committed Orthodox Jewish environments can also be affirming of LGBTQ+ constituents. This is a great moment for the entire Modern Orthodox community. It is a testament that uncompromising commitment to Torah and halacha can exist without the homophobia and cowardice that has previously hindered our community and institutions.”
Not everyone is celebrating YU’s capitulation, however. Conservative scholar Yoram Hazony lamented that freedom to practice Orthodox Judaism had ended in New York State:
Others saw the decision as a betrayal of Torah values and YU’s mission:
In its exclusive report, The New York Times said the agreement was “a notable reversal” for YU and that the school has not explained why it changed its position.
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