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YU Rejects Official Recognition of LGBTQ+ Campus Group; Says New Policies Will Make Students Feel Safe

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As the coronavirus and its devastating affects continue to take center stage in the media as it pertains to growing concerns over safety in the nation’s schools, it appears that one New York City institution of higher learning is struggling with another issue as the 2020 school year begins.

According to a JTA report, Yeshiva University which is the iconic flagship college for the modern Orthodox branch of Judaism has announced that it has nixed the official college recognition of a campus group that advocates for the rights of LGBTQ students.   The school did say that new policies were being implemented to help these students feel safe on campus.

On Thursday, the school sent out a statement to its student body saying that they have come to a resolution of the issue that they have been grappling with for the last year.  The decision to allow such a group on campus had been handed over to the administration in February of this years, as the governing student body was not able to reach a decision that would satisfy everyone on the campus.

According to an article on the YU Commentator’s web site, the statement was e-mailed by Vice Provost of Student Affairs Dr. Chaim Nissel to undergraduate students on Thursday, September 3rd.

Among the newly announced policies, the university plans to update its “diversity, inclusion and sensitivity training” to focus on “diverse student groups, including sexual orientation and gender identity.” Administrators will receive initial training in the coming semester, and one for faculty, staff and students will be developed. The Counseling Center will also ensure that its staff includes a clinician with “specific LGBTQ+ experience.” Additionally, a “warm line” will be created in the coming semester for YU students to discuss or report concerns about “non-inclusive” harassment or bullying.

YU President Ari Berman told The Commentator in a statement that, “This is a highly charged, highly emotional subject. We are the bearers of a 3000-year-old Torah tradition. Our LBGTQ+ students are our sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, family and friends. At the heart of our Jewish values is love – love for G-d and love for each of His children.”

The YU Commentator added that those who signed this statement also included Rabbi Yaakov Neuberger, the Rosh Yeshiva of RIETS as well as Dr. Rona Novick, of the Azrieli School of Education, Dr. Yael Muskat, the Director of the Counseling Center and Dr. David Pelcovitz, the chair of Azrieli Psychology and Jewish Education. The student newspaper reported that they were assembled by Senior Vice President Josh Joseph last year to form a committee to decide this matter at the request of Rabbi Berman.

The Times of Israel reported that LGBTQ issues present a dilemma for the Modern Orthodox world, which is defined by its strict adherence to traditional Jewish law as well as embrace of the secular world.

TOI also reported that “as LGBTQ people and issues have gained increasing acceptance in wider American society, the movement has had to grapple with how to reconcile a traditional interpretation of Jewish law, which does not allow sexual relations with the same gender or same-sex marriage.”

Chana Weiss, the vice-president of the YU Pride Alliance told the YU Commentator that the group was  “disappointed by the decision” not to give the club official recognition. She added that, “The administration has failed to be transparent about which halachic ‘nuances’ are at odds with the club and, on the contrary, we stand firm in our belief that pikuach nefesh necessitates the creation of our club.” She was referring to the Jewish principle that saving a life overrides other religious rules.

As with the majority of youth who struggle each day to reconcile their sexual orientation or gender identity, many YU students who identify as LGBTQIA also experience depression, drug and alcohol addiction, anxiety and suicidal ideations because of both familial and societal disapproval of this lifestyle.

 

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