Equal Protection: Judge Rules Human Rights Must Be Evenly Applied

Judge Stephanie Rose ruled that Business Leaders in Christ, the Christian student group that the University of Iowa banned from campus, was incorrectly barred because the UI allowed other student groups to discriminate on the basis of race, sex, and gender identity and did not have their status revoked. So if enforcement is uneven, then a ban on one discriminatory student group and not others is disallowed.

The University of Iowa must consistently enforce its human rights policy to stay on the right side of free speech and equal protection.

I knew the UI's selective enforcement would be a problem. For example, some religious groups do not allow gender mixing in religious worship. Men are separated from women and women are not allowed to lead prayer. This is true of Catholics, orthodox Jews, and Muslims. The UI decided not to tangle with some groups but was perfectly willing to follow progressive orthodoxy and go after a homophobic religious group in which an openly gay male was not allowed to lead the group.

Selective enforcement of disciplinary rules is something the Iowa City Community School District needs to be aware of as well. It's illegal.