How a campus interfaith center fell to Florida's anti-DEI legislation

(RNS) — At what point does censorship make a democracy less of a democracy?

That question haunted me last month as I watched how a higher education measure passed last year by the Florida Legislature was turned into regulations by the state university’s system and finally implemented last month.

SB 266, signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in May 2023, stipulates that Florida’s public university courses “may not distort significant historical events or teach identity politics and specified concepts related to discrimination.” It also prevents universities from spending funds on programs or activities that “advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion; or promote or engage in political or social activism.”

In its regulations written to comply with the law, the State Board of Governors went further, forbidding universities from funding “any activity intended to achieve a desired result related to social issues.” It then defined social issues as any “topics that polarize or divide society among political, ideological, moral, or religious beliefs.”

Responding to the new regulations, the University of North Florida in Jacksonville closed its Office of Diversity earlier this year, along with the office’s four separate centers: the LGBTQ+, Women’s, Intercultural and Interfaith Centers.

Yes, the Interfaith Center. 

The UNF Interfaith Center’s mission, according to its former website, was to “build relationships across differences, and develop the next generation of Interfaith leaders.” It promoted “Religious Pluralism, Interfaith Literacy, Community Engagement, Social Cohesion, Ideological Freedom, Mutual Respect and Civility and Environmental Stewardship.”

The Interfaith Center at UNF, like many campus interfaith centers across the country, worked to build community between people from different religious traditions. It offered sacred spaces where people could practice their beliefs, organized against antisemitism, hosted open dialogues for learning more about other faith traditions and established religious pluralism as a cornerstone of diversity on campus. 

In the nine months after it opened in September 2022, the new interfaith space on campus saw over 550 instances of use by both religious and secular students seeking solace for prayer and meditation. 

Apparently, the services and resources that UNF’s Interfaith Center offered are elements that “polarize or divide society among religious beliefs” and cannot be supported by Florida universities.

Non-Floridians may say, “Well, that’s Florida, not us.” Except that eight states now have such laws on the books. Twenty-six more states have proposed similar bills that are before their legislatures. Four more have policies or executive orders in place, having not first sought legislative approval. At this point, it’s easier to count those states that have not adopted or proposed such laws: Nevada, Vermont, Massachusetts and Delaware.

Those who send their children to private universities might say, “Well, that affects public universities, not us.” Except that recent efforts have sought to broaden such regulations to include any and all universities that accept state funding, including any form of state financial aid for the poor.

The state-by-state spread of “gag orders” is shocking when seen as a whole. And it’s not finished. 

The question for each of us individually is this: At what point do we say this has gone too far? 

Will it have crossed a line when a campus shuts down a student organization that helps LGBTQ students share their struggles? Or when discussing slavery is banned in a college history class on the Civil War? Is it a generalized prohibition on discussing women’s issues?

What about exploring cultural differences between Jews and Palestinians, or Sunni and Shia? Will it be when all training programs to understand the needs of minority groups are banned? 

Or, as in this most recent case, is it when campus interfaith centers are closed under broad prohibitions against discussing “topics that polarize or divide society among political, ideological, moral or religious beliefs”?

These sweeping and vague prohibitions across the various states impose penalties that can fine or fire individuals, shutter programs and defund universities.

These laws now exist in America. The steady loss of free speech raises questions about the preservation of our democracy. The escalating legislative assault on campus free expression raises concerns about its impact on religious liberty.

At what point should we say, “This has gone far enough”? 

(The Rev. Dennis Holtschneider is president of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities. He is a signatory of PEN America’s Champions of Higher Education Initiative. The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect those of Religion News Service.)