In a decision of significance for campuses across the country, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit upheld a trial court ruling overturning the University of Iowa’s “deregistration” of a campus Christian group, calling the action by the institution “clearly unconstitutional.” In InterVarsity v. University of Iowa , the court reasoned that a campus “Policy on Human Rights” was unequally applied toward the named plaintiff, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA (InterVarsity), and other religious organizations, leading to their deregistration. At issue in the matter was a long-standing requirement by InterVarsity that individuals seeking leadership positions in the organization affirm their acceptance of a statement of faith. University officials deemed the InterVarsity’s affirmation requirement to be inconsistent with its policy prohibiting “differences in the treatment of persons because of race, creed, color, religion…or any other classification that deprives the person of consideration as an individual…” with respect to the institution’s programs (Policy on Human Rights). Though the court reasoned that the university’s Policy on Human Rights was “reasonable and viewpoint neutral” as written, it had not been uniformly applied by the university in its review of InterVarsity and 37 other deregistered student groups. Specifically, the court voiced concern that fraternities […]
