ORTHODOX UNION CRITICIZES A.C.L.U. FOR SUING YESHIVA OVER
CAMPUS HOUSING FOR HOMOSEXUALS
June 25, 1998 -- Today, the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, the nation’s largest Orthodox Jewish umbrella organization, through its Institute for Public Affairs, criticized the American Civil Liberties Union for filing a lawsuit against Yeshiva University, the nation’s largest university under Orthodox Jewish auspices.
The suit relates to the university’s campus
housing policy at its Albert Einstein Medical School campus. At the medical school
campus, married students together with their non-married family members are offered on
campus housing.
The school does not offer such housing to non-married couples, whether heterosexual or
homosexual.
The ACLU has sued Yeshiva University, claiming that the fact that it offers campus housing
to married heterosexuals but not to homosexuals who have entered into a
"partnership" arrangement, constitutes illegal discrimination upon the basis of
sexual orientation.
Richard Stone, chairman of the Institute for Public Affairs, stated that "the lawsuit
brought by the A.C.L.U. is inappropriate because it is disrespectful of a
religiously affiliated educational institution. By demanding that Yeshiva University
provide housing for homosexual partners, the A.C.L.U. is asking the school to sacrifice
its religious
values – values protected by the U.S. Constitution – that preclude offering
housing to unmarried couples irrespective of their sexual orientation. This is
wrongheaded and the lawsuit should be withdrawn."
Nathan Diament, director of the Institute for Public Affairs, stated that the
"Orthodox Union is prepared to assist Yeshiva in defending its right to conduct its
affairs in consonance with its religious values."
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