The very conservative Supreme Court of the United States granted Friday, September 9 a first victory to a Jewish university which refuses to give the status of student association to a group of young homosexuals, bisexuals and transgenders.
The Yeshiva University of New York had seized the High Court urgently after a judge had ordered it to register the student club “Yeshiva Pride alliance” at the beginning of the 2022 school year, in order to give it access to certain rooms and services. . “As a deeply religious Jewish university, Yeshiva cannot comply with this order because it violates its sincere religious beliefs on Torah values to be passed on to students”, she pleaded in her appeal. The Yeshiva University offers many non-religious teachings and welcomes non-Jewish students, the promoters of the association had retorted. “She cannot deny some students access to non-religious resources because of their sexual orientation”they argued.
Friday evening, the Supreme Court, which has six conservative judges out of nine, granted a stage victory to the leaders of the establishment, by suspending the decision of the New York judge pending a more detailed examination of the case. . As is required for decisions taken urgently, it does not justify its decision and does not specify which magistrates support it.
Religious freedom versus principle of non-discrimination
Yeshiva University, founded in the late 19th century “to promote the study of the Talmud”, welcomes around 5,000 students and offers diplomas in subjects as varied as biology, psychology or accounting. In 2018, LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) students formed the YU Pride Alliance group and sought to become a school-approved association so that they could, among other things, organize conferences or meetings.
Their confrontation is part of a broad debate in the United States on the balance between respect for religious freedoms and the principles of non-discrimination. The Supreme Court, deeply overhauled by former President Donald Trump, has rendered several decisions in recent months that lean in favor of the religious.