When the sit-in at Bendetson last week ended with University President John DiBiaggio reaffirming Tufts' nondiscrimination policy, protesters were quick to celebrate their victory. But despite their claims, the applicability of the DiBiaggio interpretation to Tufts Christian Fellowship (TCF) - the original source of the controversy - remains unclear, as the president's clarification did not address the fundamental issue of a group's right to set criteria for its leaders based on beliefs.
The TCF's constitution will be reviewed tonight by the Tufts Community Union Judiciary (TCUJ) to determine whether it complies with the University's nondiscrimination policy. The group was placed on probation pending a constitutional rewrite after the TCUJ ruled that it discriminated against Julie Catalano on the basis of sexual orientation.
The TCF itself was never referred to directly in DiBiaggio's e-mail to the community, and he never addressed the collision of religious beliefs and freedom from discrimination.
"I don't feel that the TCF situation changes at all as a result of President DiBiaggio's statement," said TCUJ Chair Robyn Herzog.
Although TCF's new constitution contains a reaffirmation of the nondiscrimination policy, the group maintains that it was never discriminatory and that the protest was an assault on Christian beliefs.
"The statement itself reaffirms a policy we already agree with. I think the protesters had a certain vision of what TCF stands for that does not comport with reality. I see it as a demonstration trying to kick Christians off campus," TCF lawyer David French said.
After a two day sit-in at Bendetson by students in TSAD, the group formerly known as Tufts Students Against Discrimination, DiBiaggio acquiesced in demands for a clarification of the University's nondiscrimination policy to include self-acceptance of identity. Protesters interpreted a TCUJ ruling from October to imply that Catalano's acceptance of her own homosexuality was grounds for her disqualification from election as a senior leader of TCF. However, TCF maintains that they never discriminated based on self-acceptance. Rather, they believe that God does not want people to act on every impulse they feel.
"We are by our nature many things, and not all of those things are things God wants us to act on," senior leader Jonathan Crowe said. "Whatever we are by nature should be submitted under the identities God wants for us."
The TCUJ ruled that Catalano was discriminated against because it found inconsistencies in the practices that TCF used to choose its leaders through appointment by a small group of senior leaders. The newer constitution will provide for a more democratic process wherein all members participate in an election of leaders, and the group is less susceptible to the influence of outside advisors from the InterVarsity Christian fellowship, the national organization with which TCF is affiliated.
"We made sure the procedure followed more closely the nondiscrimination policy, so an advisor or a small amount of students can't go forward and say you can't be a leader. Due to the new constitution, each person has the right to run for whatever position they want, and it will be voted on by the entire organization, not just a few key people," Herzog said.
The TCF needs recognition by the TCUJ in order to perform many of the activities that it does on campus. It would not be able to use University facilities for its prayer services or other activities, use the University's name, or receive University funding without authorization from the TCUJ.
Despite the constitutional changes, TCF leaders say that they have the right to make beliefs and practice the criteria for its leaders. "Recognizing that people are born with certain pre-dispositions and orientations, TCF has always affirmed individuals' acceptance of their identity. The issue for us is one of the implications of this acceptance on beliefs and practice," Crowe said in a press release on Sunday.
TSAD members, however, feel that DiBiaggio's statement made it clear that TCF cannot exclude someone from a leadership position because of their sexual orientation.
"Along with every other group on campus, TCF needs to keep in mind that self-acceptance of homosexuality is protected," senior Courtney Young said. "It could cause a difficult situation for them if they wanted to exclude someone from leadership. It makes it impossible for them to do that now."
"They essentially now have to treat a lesbian who is running, or any other sexuality, with the same cadence that they would a heterosexual," sophomore Dan Barry said. "Essentially, they have to adhere to the nondiscrimination policy."
Tufts is not the only school in the area struggling to deal with the clash of sexual orientation rights with religious rights in nondiscrimination politics. Students at Boston University held a protest on Thursday to push their administration to include homosexuality in their nondiscrimination policy. BU remains one of two private schools in the area who do not include a clause on homosexuality.
While no single case of homosexual discrimination has arisen at BU, students believe that a statement from the University would make the school a safer place.
"We don't have anything in our nondiscrimination policy about sexual orientation. That is the focus of what is going on now. For the most part, it is a statement," said Dan Feder, vice president of BU's student senate.
