Posted on 05/20/2021 9:12:30 PM PDT by MarvinStinson
Judge: Biden's co-ed dorm mandate trumps religious freedom
A district judge rejected a challenge to the Biden administration's order to force co-ed bathrooms and dorms on a Christian college over the school's religious objections.
In February, the Department of Housing and Urban Development directed colleges to eliminate single-sex facilities. The directive came after President Joe Biden issued an executive order in January directing federal agencies "to combat discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity," which would mean targeting religious institutions that maintain single-sex accommodations. The College of the Ozarks, a small Missouri Christian college, challenged the Biden administration for violating its religious rights in April.
On Wednesday, Western District of Missouri judge Roseann Ketchmark declined to temporarily halt the policy's implementation in the face of the school's religious objections. Alliance Defending Freedom, the religious liberty law firm arguing the case on behalf of the school, expressed dismay at the ruling and said the decision is likely to be appealed.
"Following the whims of special interest groups, lobbyists, and politicians, the administration is attempting to redefine the word ‘sex' in federal law to mean sexual orientation and gender identity, rather than biological sex as that word has always been understood," ADF senior counsel Ryan Bangert said. "As this case demonstrates, the administration's twisting of words is threatening foundational liberties."
Attorneys for the Biden administration argued that the mandate is not directed specifically at the college or its policies on single-sex facilities. They also argued that the college did not face an immediate threat of legal action if it did not comply with the mandate. The college pushed back by arguing it would face financial penalties if it maintains single-sex facilities and that it did not need to wait for a legal threat to challenge the law's constitutionality.
Ketchmark ruled that stopping the directive from going into effect would not protect the college from allegations of mistreatment under the Fair Housing Act.
The administration did not respond to a request for comment on the decision.
Biden's directive cites the Supreme Court's decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, which expanded anti-discrimination law to include gender identity and sexual orientation. The college says such an interpretation threatens its First Amendment rights.
"Our long-standing Christian beliefs have been threatened by the Biden administration," said Valorie Coleman, chief communications officer for the College of the Ozarks. "The Biden administration touts this change as freedom from discrimination, but it does not feel or look like freedom. Instead, our small private Christian college nestled in America's heartland faces discrimination from the government simply because of the biblical view on marriage and biological sex."
Don’t take government money.
Problem solved.
L
My Alma Mater, Christendom College, like Hillsdale, takes none. Simplifies much.
The problem is they will also cut off all federal loans to your students.
“ My Alma Mater, Christendom College, like Hillsdale, takes none. Simplifies much.”
Indeed. But one must remember that simple and easy are not synonymous.
L
“ The problem is they will also cut off all federal loans to your students.”
And?
L
Ok...
So, going forward - one of the first executive orders a GOP President should make is that all college dorms must allow concealed carry for the safety of their citizens or lose funding.
This includes all public housing as well.
Looks like John "CuckBoy" Roberts called it straight again - there are no ideological judges.
Well, except this one, and a few hundred more Rapin Bill and Clownbammy "judges"...
“The problem is they will also cut off all federal loans to your students.”
Do you really think that is a problem? The kids can work their way through college like many generations before them and graduate debt-free. As a result, they will value their education a lot more, be more serious about their studies, focus on an education that will prepare them for a real career making real money, and take great pride in what they accomplished. This is the way it used to be done when the country worked as it should.
All of that strikes me as win-win-win-win all the way around.
Why do liberals have a hard on to make sure that every higher institution has unisex bathrooms?
When I interviewed for pen in the 80s that was one of the selling points allegedly. The bathrooms were unisex and that the men and women use the same showers and toilets. They explain this was a voluntary policy and if anyone objected they wouldn’t do it but the people pretty much we’re fearful to object.
All the rest are Bush judges and Trump judges.
“All the rest are Bush judges and Trump judges.”
woo hoo
Color me not holding my breath.
Color me the same.
You just have to watch for the knife in the back...
I shudder to think what the courts would look like infested with Cankles judges...
What makes you think they do? This is a small, private, no tuition Christian college. This is government persecution pure and simple.
I see you are a realist about the Trump years.
Hoodwinked, or screwed by the reality of the political process?
My Alma Mater, Christendom College, like Hillsdale, takes none. Simplifies much.
......................................................
Illinois Baptist Children’s Home has never taken government money, as a result, they adopt only to heterosexual Christian couples.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.