The Biden Justice Department recently updated its court filing in a case where it is attempting to defend the rights of religious schools to discriminate against LGBTQ students. This has come after significant backlash from critics.
The Justice Department attorneys amended their case filing to stress that while they will be defending the law in court, the policy that surrounds the federal law will be reviewed by the Department of Education. The federal law at issue prohibits discrimination against students on the basis of their sex in federally-assisted education programs but permits a religious exemption for organizations that have religious objections.
This filing came in a federal lawsuit from Oregon students in religious schools, who are looking to sue the present government for offering funding to schools with discriminatory policies. On June 8, the DOJ said it would continue to defend it.
However, in the amended filing, the attorneys stated, “The Department of Education is conducting a comprehensive review of its regulations implementing [the law], which sets forth the current administration’s policy on guaranteeing an educational environment free from discrimination on the basis of sex. But until that process is complete, it would be premature to conclude that the government is an inadequate representative.”
The Justice Department Attorneys are arguing against intervention in this case from three religious schools, namely, William Jessup University, Western Baptist University, and Phoenix Seminary, saying the administration, in fact, shares pretty much the “same ultimate objective” as the religious institutions.
This has received flak because the initial filing appeared to conflict with the White House’s March memo stating that “all persons should receive equal treatment under the law, no matter their gender identity or sexual orientation.”