If UF student organizations follow the lead of Tennessee, they might be allowed to discriminate based on religious beliefs.
A proposed law in Tennessee wants to allow student organizations at public colleges to forbid people from joining based solely on their religious beliefs. The bill is an updated version of a similar one vetoed last year in the Tennessee Senate.
David Hackett, a UF assistant professor of religion, said student organizations governed and funded by the university shouldn’t be allowed to discriminate because they have agreed to the university’s policies and make use of its resources.
According to UF’s nondiscrimination policy, the university is committed to nondiscrimination with respect to religion. It intends to demonstrate the university’s value of broad diversity within its community and its commitment to eliminating discrimination.
Sameer Saboungi, vice president of external affairs of Islam on Campus at UF, said he finds the proposition of legislation like this to be disturbing.
“Plain and simple, it’s religious discrimination,” said the 18-year-old international studies freshman.
Saboungi doesn’t think discrimination like this could ever happen at UF because of the university’s commitment to diversity. He said Tennessee is probably more conservative, while UF is more liberal and heterogeneous. He said even if it did happen at UF, Islam on Campus would not conform to it.
“There’s a spirit of cooperation and working together in dialogue,” he said.
Saboungi said Islam on Campus is not as homogenous as people think it is. The group encourages non-Muslims to attend its events.
“We don’t ban them from coming,” Saboungi said.
Allen Williams, campus director of UF Campus Crusade for Christ, also doesn’t understand why religious student organizations would want to discriminate.
“I don’t know why they would want to reject someone who’s coming to learn about their faith,” he said.
Although he said the organization welcomes everyone, Williams doesn’t understand what someone of a different religion would seek to gain by joining Campus Crusade.
“Some of this seems silly to me,” he said. “I doubt someone who’s opposed to what we’re doing is going to want to join.”
