Club Freeze to YUPA Stay

Posted on June 1, 2023 by yupridealliance

On September 16, 2022, Yeshiva University announced a freeze of all undergraduate club activities in an email sent to the undergraduate student body. In response, JQY offered to sponsor club activities until the end of the shutdown. To prevent all students from facing the consequences of YU’s decision, the Pride Alliance agreed to grant Yeshiva University a stay on September 21 until the resolution of all appeals on the case.

Club Freeze + JQY Funding

Yeshiva University Temporarily Freezes All Undergraduate Club Activities
Jonothan Levin | September 16, 2022
YU Commentator

Yeshiva University Provides Statement About Future of Clubs to The Commentator
Commentator Staff | September 17, 2022
YU Commentator

Jewish Queer Youth to Financially Support Undergraduate Club Costs While Freeze Lasts
Jonothan Levin | September 16, 2022
YU Commentator

Yeshiva University cancels all clubs after it was ordered to allow an LGBTQ group
Joe Hernandez | September 17, 2022
NPR

Club Freeze + JQY Funding

YU Pride Alliance Gives Yeshiva University Stay to End Club Freeze
Jonothan Levin | September 21, 2022
YU Commentator

Amid Court Fight, L.G.B.T.Q. Club Proposes a Compromise to Yeshiva
Liam Stack | September 21, 2022
New York Times

YU Pride Alliance statement on the stay
YU Pride Alliance | September 21, 2022

Yeshiva University Granted Permanent Stay After Agreement with Pride Alliance; Clubs Confirmed to Restart After Sukkot
Ariel Kahan and Jonothan Levin | September 30, 2022
YU Commentator

Clubs Return

Yeshiva University Student Councils Host Club Fairs
Rina Shamilov | November 14, 2022
YU Commentator

Appeal to Stay

Posted on May 23, 2023 by yupridealliance

After Kotler’s ruling, Yeshiva University filed for a stay from the court, which they were refused. The next week, they applied for a stay form the U.S. Supreme Court, which, after initially being granted by Sonia Sotomayor, was denied in a 5-4 decision.

YU Must Allow LGBTQ Club to Form Immediately as Court Denies Motion to Stay
Ariel Kahan and Elishama Marmon | August 23, 2022
YU Commentator

Yeshiva University Requests Stay on Order to Recognize LGBTQ Club from Supreme Court
Jonothan Levin | August 29, 2022
YU Commentator

U.S. Supreme Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor Grants Yeshiva University’s Request for Stay on Order to Recognize LGBTQ Club
Ariel Kahan and Elishama Marmon | September 9, 2022
YU Commentator

Supreme Court Denies Stay in 5-4 Decision, Vacating Sotomayor’s Order
Jonothan Levin | September 14, 2022
YU Commentator

Twelve Days of Debate: What Happened Between YU’s Supreme Court Filing and Justice Sotomayer’s Decision?
Jonothan Levin | September 13, 2022
YU Commentator

Fostering an Inclusive Community Letter

Posted on May 9, 2023 by yupridealliance

In the aftermath of two quasi-rejected applications, YU appointed a committee, headed by then Vice-President of the university, Josh Joseph, to look into the idea of an LGBTQ club. On September 3rd 2020, a letter was released which included nods to greater LGBTQ inclusion, but claimed that having a club under university auspices would cloud the Torah’s nuanced message.

Documents and News Articles

Interview with President Berman
Commentator Staff | September 8, 2019
YU Commentator

YU Announces New LGBTQ Inclusivity Policies, Denies LGBTQ Club Formation
Sruli Fruchter | September 3, 2020
YU Commentator

New Strides Promised By The YU Administration For The Inclusion Of LGBTQ+ Students In The YU Community
Rachel Jacobi | September 4, 2020
YU Observer

Student Response

A Letter to the Josh Joseph Committee
Jacob Stone | December 22, 2019
YU Commentator
Jacob Stone requests the Josh Joseph committee to consider the hypocrisy that would be inherent to denying an LGBTQ club.

In Response to an LGBT Club Denial
Fruma Landa | September 30, 2020
YU Observer
Fruma Landa asks how an LGBTQ club violates “Torah nuances” and criticizes what she believes the Fostering an Inclusive Community letter implies for broader queer inclusion in the Orthodox world.

Club Application

Posted on May 9, 2023 by yupridealliance

In the aftermath of the “We, Too, Are YU” protest, and in conjunction with concurrent administrative discussions, YUPA was launched as an unofficial club. A few times YUPA applied to be recognized as a club under the name “YU Alliance.” The general assembly elected not to vote on the matter, leaving it to the administration. It is alleged in YUPA’s lawsuit that the administration instructed the GA to do this. The case was brought to the Beren Student Council, due to their constitution having a non-discrimination clause, but they refrained from taking a position.

Articles

Former Student Leaders Detail Past Efforts for LGBTQ Inclusion
Jacob Stone | November 24, 2019
YU Commentator

Students Discuss LGBTQ Issues at YCSA ‘Meet & Greet’
Sruli Fruchter | December 12, 2019
YU Commentator

Petition Supporting Formation of LGBTQ+ Club Signed by Over 50 Student Leaders
Yitzchak Carrol and Yosef Lemel | Feburary 3, 2020
YU Commentator

Student Council Abstains from LGBTQ Club Vote, Leaving Decision to YU Administration
Yitzchak Carrol and Elisheva Cohn | Feburary 9, 2020
YU Commentator

Student Council Presidents Abstain from Voting on LGBTQ+ Club
Observer Staff | Feburary 9, 2020
YU Observer

Beren Lawsuit

Citing Human Rights Investigation, Beren Student Court Declines LGBTQ Club Case
Avi Hirsch | Feburary 24, 2020
YU Commentator

The Constitutional Council Rejects the YU Alliance’s Request for a Hearing
Rachel Jacobi | March 2, 2020
YU Observer

Open Letter to President Berman from Cardozo Students
Undersigned | Feburary 3, 2020
YU Observer

A Message to the Student Council Presidents
Anonymous | May 12, 2020
YU Observer

Pre-YUPA

Posted on May 9, 2023 by yupridealliance

Before YUPA was founded, there was the controversy about an LGBTQ club in Cardozo in the 90’s. More recently, there have been several clubs founded which made part of their mission to provide a safe place for queer students, including the Tolerance Club, Diversity Club, and Jewish Activism Club.

Articles

History Revisited: Controversy Over LGBT Clubs at YU Graduate Schools
Doniel Weinreich | December 22, 2019
YU Commentator

Didn’t Think Tolerance Could Be Controversial? Welcome To Yeshiva University
Simeon Botwinick | May 5, 2009
New Voices

Diversity Club Seeks to Break Down Borders Between YU Students
Elana Lubin | November 12, 2017
YU Commentator

Jewish Activism Club’s LGBTQ+ Event Approved by OSL, Cancelled Due to COVID-19
Mollie Meisels | March 31, 2020
YU Observer

Club Profile: Jewish Activism Club
Bina Davidson | March 24, 2021
YU Observer

Initial Case

Posted on May 9, 2023 by yupridealliance

In the aftermath of the lawsuit filing, various reactions were put forth by the broader community. Eventually, on June 14, 2022, Justice Kotler of the New York Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Pride Alliance.

Case Overviews

The Ghosts Have Become Alive: Yeshiva University and the Future of Religiously Affiliated Higher Education in America
Michael J. Broyde | May 10, 2021
YU Commentator
Michael J. Broyde lays out various possible strategies YU could use to not be forced to allow the Pride Alliance to become an official club.

Letter to the Editor: A Clarification
Michael J. Broyde | May 12, 2021
YU Commentator
Broyde clarifies that his giving strategies YU could use is only for the case where they think they can’t allow one, it does not necessarily reflect his personal views about letting the Pride Alliance exist.

Everything You Need to Know (So Far) About The LGBTQ Discrimination Case Against YU
Natan Ehrenreich | October 24, 2021
YU Commentator
Ehrenreich provides the legal and factual background relevant to the lawsuit against YU.

Judge Denies Plaintiffs’ Request Requiring YU to Allow LGBTQ Club While Discrimination Case Continues in Court
Sruli Fruchter | June 19, 2021
YU Commentator

YU Defends Decision to Reject LGBTQ Club and Receive Government Funding in New Court Documents
Sruli Fruchter and Daniel Melool | June 13, 2021
YU Commentator

‘Second class citizens’: LGBTQ students allege culture of alienation and fear at Yeshiva University
Marie-Rose Sheinerman | May 4, 2021
Forward

Pride Alliance Lawsuit Against Yeshiva University Continues in Court Hearing
Bluma Gross and Marcela Homsany | February 11, 2022
YU Observer

YU Must Allow LGBTQ Club to Form on Campus, Court Rules
Chaim Book, Seffi Jonas, Nava Katz, and Jonathan Levin | June 14, 2022
YU Commentator

Yeshiva University Must Recognize L.G.B.T.Q. Club, Judge Says
Liam Stack | June 13, 2021
New York Times

Filing

Posted on May 9, 2023 by yupridealliance

On April 26, 2021, a group of students and the Yeshiva University Pride Alliancesued Yeshiva University. Below are the documents and articles from around thefiling of the lawsuit.

YUPA Filings

YU Filings

YU Pride Alliance Files Groundbreaking Lawsuit Against Yeshiva University on Grounds of Discriminatory Club Refusal
Erica Rachel Sultan, Rachel Jacobi and Sara Verschleisser | April 27, 2021
YU Observer

YU and Administrators Sued for LGBTQ Discrimination by YU Pride Alliance, Students and Alumni
Sruli Fruchter | April 27, 2021
YU Commentator

LGBTQ students sue Yeshiva University for discrimination
Simone Somekh | April 27, 2021
Forward

Westboro Baptist Church Protest and Counter-Protest

Posted on January 11, 2023 by yupridealliance

In 2017, the Westboro Baptist Church announced their intent to, and later held a protest against YU on March 27th. Part of the announced reason for the protest was, they claimed, Judaism’s role in promoting acceptance of Homosexuality. A counter-protest centered on defending YU’s queer students was organized by Asher Lovy, who described the purpose as being “to make sure that the LGBTQ students of Yeshiva University wouldn’t walk out and see a message of hate that wasn’t countered by a message of love”

News Articles

Westboro Baptist Church Countered with Protest and Fundraiser, “Happy to See” Pushback
Yardena Katz | March 30, 2017
YU Observer

Group of LGBTQ Allies Responds to Westboro Protest with Counter-Protest
Yitzchak Fried | March 28, 2017
YU Observer

Westboro Baptist Church Protests Near YU, Community Responds with Counter-Protest and Charity Campaign,
Doron Levine | Date
YU Commentator

Westboro Baptist Church to Protest Yeshiva University
Judah Stiefel | Date
YU Commentator

Opinions Articles about the protest and counter protest

Why We Must Protest The Westboro Baptist Church
Doniel Weinreich | March 24, 2017
YU Commentator

The Sad State of LGBTQ Inclusion at YU Needs to Change
Masha Shollar | March 9, 2017
YU Observer

Don’t Protest the Westboro Baptist Church
Doron Levine | Date
YU Commentator

Counseling Center

Posted on January 8, 2023 by yupridealliance

The counseling center, and broader LGBTQ sensitivity issues, had been a center of critique for a while, with students encouraging the administration to allow more clear support for queer students to be expressed. In the aftermath of the Fostering an Inclusive Community letter, YU started a counseling center support group, but this group alone is insufficient, and more is to be done.

Westboro Baptist Church Protests Near YU, Community Responds with Counter-Potest and Charity Campaign
Doron Levine | March 27, 2017
YU Commentator

LGBTQ+ Safe Zone Petition Challenges YU’s Comfort Zone
Channa Buxbaum | February 20, 2020
YU Observer

No LGBTQ+ Representatives at First RA LGBTQ+ Sensitivity Training
Mollie Meisels | August 7, 2019
YU Observer

YU Counseling Center Launches Continuation of Support Groups for the LGBTQ+ Community and Functional Psychology for Living Well
Sammy Intrator | October 25, 2021
YU Observer

YU Counseling Center Announces Three New Student Support Groups
Mili Chizhik | February 16, 2021
YU Observer

2020 Panel

Posted on January 8, 2023 by yupridealliance

In 2020, Yeshiva University held a panel speaking with past and present queer students over zoom, moderated by Dr. Jenny Issacs, about being queer in the orthodox world, which brought over 600 attendees.