UF wrong to discriminate against BUX

The University of Florida is trying to deny a Christian fraternity recognition as an official student organization because its admissions policy is exclusionary. Beta Upsilon Chi --also known as Brothers Under Christ -- filed a federal lawsuit last week, having been refused recognition by the university since May. Administrators must welcome BUX as an official organization for the fraternity to gain access to facilities at the University of Florida. Without this privilege, even the strongest groups would tend to wither over time.

The problem, as the university sees it, is BUX, of which I was a member at TCU, will not admit women. Imagine that -- a fraternity that wants to remain exclusively male. I guess it has to be pointed out to Florida that at most American colleges and universities, any group of women may assemble a sorority, even one requiring its members to profess a certain belief. Christian sororities are also quite common.


Even if BUX prevails in its battle for recognition, it still must fight for membership in the university's social-fraternity council, which prohibits religious discrimination. Obviously, a fraternity requiring its members be Christians does not comply.


So a Christian fraternity is denied membership because it insists on remaining true to its purpose. Try to wrap your brain around that. It's OK if you can't. If the architects of the non-discrimination policy cleared their heads long enough to think about how ridiculous it sounds to force a religious group to deny its bedrock principle, they'd be scratching their heads to the point of embarrassment.