The Freedom From Religion Foundation is asking the Three Rivers Community College (located in Norwich, Conn.) to stop violating the law and treat secular-minded students the same as it treats religious students.
A student recently attempted to form a local chapter of the Secular Student Alliance on the Three Rivers campus but despite fulfilling each of the Student Government Association’s requirements for student organization recognition, the group’s application was not approved. On the other hand, Three Rivers, which is a public institution, recognizes a Christian student organization, the Alpha Omega Christian Club.
No explicit reason was given for the denial of the Secular Student Alliance’s student organization application. Given that the club met all of the requirements for recognition and that the Student Government Association recognizes other clubs, such as the Alpha Omega Christian Club, the denial appears to be based upon the Secular Student Alliance’s viewpoint.
The constitutional rights of those involved with the Secular Student Alliance must be upheld, FFRF emphasizes. Three Rivers cannot deny the FFRF complainant’s club the same treatment as other student clubs.
“The First Amendment provides protection from discrimination based on a student group’s nonreligious viewpoint,” FFRF Legal Director Patrick Elliott writes to Three Rivers Campus Dean of Students and Faculty Kem Barfield. “Discrimination against speech based on viewpoint ‘is presumed impermissible when directed at speech otherwise within the forum’s limitations,’” to quote the U.S. Supreme Court.
FFRF adds that preventing its complainant’s group from forming not only violates the law, it is also bad policy. Too often, students who identify as nonreligious or as a member of a religious minority encounter resistance, harassment and hate — and allowing this group to form will allow these students to connect with like-minded students and work to dispel this prejudice.
FFRF is requesting an immediate reconsideration of the Secular Student Alliance club’s denial and for Three Rivers to extend recognition to the chapter as soon as possible.
“It’s shocking that a public institution would engage in such flagrant discrimination against nonreligious students,” says FFRF Co-President Dan Barker. “Freethinking students can’t be treated like second-class citizens or sidelined from campus activities.”
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national nonprofit organization with about 40,000 members across the country, including more than 400 members in Connecticut. Our purposes are to protect the constitutional principle of separation between state and church, and to educate the public on matters relating to nontheism.
