Gonzaga University: Refusal to Recognize Christian Pro-Life Club

In September 2003, Gonzaga Law School’s Student Bar Association refused to grant recognition to the Christian Pro-Life Caucus, saying its requirement that leadership be Christian was “discriminatory.” FIRE wrote to Gonzaga on November 23, asking its president to respect the freedom of religion and voluntary association of its students, and pointing out that Gonzaga itself had similar requirements. Instead, the law school sided with the SBA, calling the pro-life group “biased.” In 2004, Gonzaga’s SBA again failed to recognize a Christian student organization — the Christian Legal Society — for requiring its leadership to be Christian. The administration once again failed to intervene on behalf of students’ associational and religious rights.