Lawsuit Filed by Christian Group Against University Succeeds
Lawsuit Filed by Christian Group Against University Succeeds
Ratio Christi is a student Christian group that seeks to “advance, teach, and defend Christian beliefs.” In October 2021, Ratio Christi filed a lawsuit against the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) after the school refused to grant the group’s request of $1,500 in student activity funding to bring in Notre Dame professor Robert Audi for a lecture on whether it's rational to believe in God. The school said it could not promote “speakers of a political and ideological nature” and said the Christian organization that it would need to invite a speaker to represent the opposite views of Audi to get the funding.
On Dec. 15, the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) announced two university officials agreed to accept a court judgment against them in the amount of $1,500 for denying the club’s funding request. The university paid $25,000 in attorneys' fees and costs and changed its policy on how it distributes student fees to student organizations “to promote the availability of diverse viewpoints to UNL students” and ensure allocation of funding is done in a “viewpoint neutral manner.”
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The lawsuit drew the attention of Gov. Pete Ricketts, who urged the university to support “speakers from a wide variety of viewpoints on campus, including Christian speakers.” He said, “UNL has previously brought in much more controversial speakers, and Dr. Robert Audi and Ratio Christi should be given the same respect. I urge University of Nebraska Chancellor Ronnie Green to step in and define policies to end this kind of discrimination and to send a message that all viewpoints, including Christian values, are welcome.”
In response to the favorable settlement, ADF Senior Counsel Gregg Walters said, “Today’s college students are the future leaders of our country, which is why it is critical that universities model our First Amendment values.” ADF also filed a lawsuit against The University of Houston-Clear Lake, arguing that the school denied official recognition of Ratio Christi, prompting the university to officially register the Christian group as a student organization.
Last year in 2021, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeal ruled in favor of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship after they were deregistered by the University of Iowa due to their requirement of leadership roles to affirm a statement of faith. The court determined this to be "viewpoint discrimination" as other organizations were allowed to choose criteria such as sex, race and ideology when selecting club leadership.
The ruling served as a warning to university officials that they can be held personally responsible for enacting or enforcing unconstitutional policies. The ADF then recommended student groups to write constitutions and bylaws, which would specifically define who can participate, who can be a member and who can be a leader.
As of this time, Ratio Christi has been successful in advocating for Christian beliefs on college campuses and has been successful in obtaining sympathetic court rulings in their favor. These recent rulings indicate that universities must ensure that student organizations are treated fairly and objectively. To avoid similar lawsuits, the schools must not discriminate against any particular religious or ideological viewpoint.
Sources:
Christian group wins lawsuit against university that denied funding of philosopher's lecture on God
Christian Student Clubs Triumph Against Religious Discrimination
About Sara E. Teller
Sara is a credited freelance writer, editor, contributor, and essayist, as well as a novelist and poet with nearly twenty years of experience. A seasoned publishing professional, she's worked for newspapers, magazines and book publishers in content digitization, editorial, acquisitions and intellectual property. Sara has been an invited speaker at a Careers in Publishing & Authorship event at Michigan State University and a Reading and Writing Instructor at Sylvan Learning Center. She has an MBA degree with a concentration in Marketing and an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, graduating with a 4.2/4.0 GPA. She is also a member of Chi Sigma Iota and a 2020 recipient of the Donald D. Davis scholarship recognizing social responsibility. Sara is certified in children's book writing, HTML coding and social media marketing. Her fifth book, PTSD: Healing from the Inside Out, was released in September 2019 and is available on Amazon. You can find her others books there, too, including Narcissistic Abuse: A Survival Guide, released in December 2017.