Judge: Reach agreement

GREENSBORO — Members of Alpha Iota Omega fraternity walked out of a federal courthouse Wednesday and declared the lawsuit they have filed against the University a victory.

Just moments before, U.S. District Court Judge Frank Bullock Jr. urged lawyers representing UNC and those representing members of the Christian fraternity to come to a compromise in the dispute regarding the group’s official recognition and the University’s nondiscrimination policy.

“You are on the same page,” Bullock said during the hearing. “I don’t need to declare the policy unconstitutional at this point.”

By Feb. 28, both parties must submit a consent decree that would clarify UNC’s nondiscrimination policy and prevent the case from going to trial. If neither side can reach an agreement, Bullock said, he will issue a ruling in the case.

Lawyers representing the three-member fraternity came to the courthouse in Greensboro seeking an injunction that would restore the group’s official status. UNC’s lawyers were asking the judge to dismiss the case.

But the fraternity’s lawyers said they are confident that a resolution will produce a policy members of the fraternity can sign — a move that would allow the group to be recognized as an official University organization once again.

“I feel like their motivation is a noble one,” AIO president Trevor Hamm said of the University’s nondiscrimination policy. “I just feel in our particular case … it was misapplied.”

The policy now requires that participation in all campus groups be open to all students without regard to age, race, color, national origin, religion, disability, veteran status or sexual orientation.

Groups can require members to have an interest in their subject matter and to pass an objective test. They also are permitted to make their leaders subscribe to their tenets.

“This policy prevents assigning content to a label,” said Joyce Rutledge, assistant attorney general with the N.C. Department of Justice, which is representing UNC in the case. “The University has no intentions of being thought or religion police.”

But lawyers representing the fraternity said AIO must be able to discriminate on the basis of religious beliefs so that members can uphold their mission, to support the “Great Commission of Jesus Christ” through evangelism and mentorship.

They pointed to campus groups, such as College Republicans and Young Democrats, that can require students to agree with their beliefs as a condition for membership.

AIO members said they base membership on “Christian” values, such as views on premarital sex and homosexuality.

UNC has stood by its policy since AIO’s crusade for recognition has been in the limelight.

But Jordan Lorence, a lawyer with Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian legal group representing the fraternity, said that there is a discrepancy between the written policy and UNC’s actions.

“The University made for the first time a major concession today,” Lorence said. “It will be much easier dealing with UNC with a consent agreement signed by a judge.”

In what many have called a landmark case for First Amendment rights on college campuses, Bullock’s interpretation adds fuel to the fire for groups such as the Alliance Defense Fund, a group dedicated to advocating for Christian rights.

ADF has settled several similar cases out of court, but Wednesday’s hearing marks its first court appearance for this type of case.

“I think it is a great victory for freedom of speech,” Lorence said. “This is going to be a precedent that universities are going to have to follow.”

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.