Yeshiva University Agrees to Recognize LGBTQ Student Club

metroweekly.com:

refused to recognize as an official campus organization.In the surprise move, the Orthodox Jewish educational institution said that it would end litigation related to its refusal to recognize the group, which it initially claimed was due to religious objections.As part of the settlement, the club — formerly known as the Yeshiva University Pride Alliance — would be renamed “Hareni” and would be allowed to operate with the same rights and privileges guaranteed to other student groups.

Hareni will be allowed to publicly use the term “LGBTQ+” in communications and promotional materials, access university resources, and hold events on campus, such as charitable projects, movie and discussion nights, panel discussions, and networking events.

The club will be allowed to select its leadership independently without interference from the university.The Pride Alliance had previously sued the university in 2021, demanding to be recognized as an official campus student group.

The university balked at the idea, arguing that granting an LGBTQ student group official recognition violated its right to religious freedom and that it should be exempt from New York’s civil rights laws due to being a religious institution.Critics argued that Yeshiva University has more in common with religiously-affiliated colleges and universities like Fordham University or Notre Dame University than with Christian seminaries that are exempt from nondiscrimination laws because they train priests.A lower court sided with the Pride Alliance, as did a Manhattan Supreme Court judge.The university appealed to the U.S.