SIU CHILLS EXPRESSIVE ACTIVITY

Southern Illinois University-Carbondale has de-recognized[1] the Christian Legal Society ("CLS") student organization that I am part of. What is the effect of being de-recognized? According to The Torch:

At most schools, you can only reserve space for meetings on campus, advertise on campus, receive funding from the student activity fee, and conduct other basic associational or expressive activities if you are "recognized" by the university's student life department. "Recognized" student organizations are the organizations that function on campus, and to be "de-recognized" is to be destroyed, banned, expelled (choose your term).

So, if you ever hear an administrator say, "Sure, they can form a group, but we don't have to recognize it," you know you are being spun. In reality, the administrator is saying, "Sure, they can form a group, but we don't have to let it exist."

In a letter, the Dean of SIU Law School informed us of the following:

• We are no longer a recognized student organization;
• We can no longer have a bulletin board in the law school;
• Our name and information will be removed from the school's website and all future publications where student organizations are listed;
• We can no longer be referred to as the "SIUC Chapter of" the Christian Legal Society;
• We will be treated like outside organizations which must request the use of classrooms in advance;
• We will have to pay to use the auditorium since we are now an outside organization; and
  
• Our faculty advisor will no longer be regarded as our faculty advisor.

So, we can't communicate to new students next year via a bulletin board and they won't be able to see we exist via the website or any other publication. If we are lucky, we will get a classroom to meet in. If we want to bring in a speaker, which other organizations frequently do, we will have to pay to use the auditorium. Oh yes, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale is such a welcoming place -- unless you are an orthodox Christian who wishes to share your voice. In that case, you might find your speech chilled.

The CLS chapter at Arizona State is in a legal battle similar to ours. Click here to view the memorandum in support of their motion for preliminary injunction. It will give you a feel for the legal issues involved.

Related Posts:

• SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY DENIES CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS
• ARE CONSERVATIVE CHRISTIANS WELCOME AT SIU?
  

Footnotes:

[1]The Dean's letter gave the following reasons for taking away our recognized status: the CLS "tenets . . . violate the Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Policy." ("Policy"). The Policy provides: "It is the policy of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale to provide equal employment and education opportunities for all qualified persons without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, status as a disabled veteran or a veteran of the Vietnam era, sexual orientation, or marital status." Of course, our CLS chapter doesn't hire anyone.

The Dean further cited the policies of the Board of Trustees which provide, "No . . . recognized student organization shall be authorized unless it adheres to all appropriate federal or state laws concerning nondiscrimination and equal opportunity...." Interestingly, the letter fails to mention one single law we have violated.