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Christian Student Group Sues to Challenge University Speech Code

By Howard M. Friedman

On Wednesday, a student group, the Christian Fellowship, filed suit in federal court against Pennsylvania's Shippensburg University challenging university rules that plaintiff claims chills free speech and infringes its free exercise of religion. The complaint (full text) in Christian Fellowship of Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania v. Rudd, (MD PA, filed 5/7/08) alleges that "Christian Fellowship is a religious expressive student organization whose members hold and seek to advance Biblically-based opinions and beliefs regarding issues of race, gender, politics, and religion that may be objectionable or offensive to other students and sanctionable under applicable University speech codes." According to a release by the Alliance Defense Fund, a similar 2004 lawsuit was settled when the University agreed to revoke challenged provision in its speech code, but since then it has re-enacted many of the same policies. Today's Hagerstown (MD) Herald-Mail reports on the lawsuit.

Full post as published by Religion Clause on May 08, 2008 (boomark / email).