What Does Christian Legal Society v. Martinez Tell Us about University Nondiscrimination Policies?

In Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the right of public universities to require student clubs seeking official recognition and funding to be open to all registered students. In so doing, they rejected the group’s claim that it had a religious right to discriminate against lesbian and gay students.

With increasing frequency, we are seeing individuals and institutions claim that they have a religious right to violate laws designed to end discrimination. From students studying to be high school counselors who refuse to treat LGBT teens to inn keepers who refuse to hold wedding receptions for same-sex couples despite laws that require businesses that serve the public to be open to everyone, regardless of race, sex, sexual orientation, age, or religion. We all have a right to our religious beliefs, but it does not give us a right to discriminate.

In this document, we discuss the Supreme Court’s decision in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez and what it tells us about the ability of public universities to enforce their nondiscrimination policies in the face of religious objections.