Housing Denied to Homosexual Couples

Gay Einstein Students and ACLU File Suit Against YU for Alleged Discrimination

On June 24, the American Civil Liberties Union and its Lesbian and Gay Rights Project filed suit against Yeshiva University and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine for denying shared campus housing to the gay and lesbian partners of students. The lawsuit, which the ACLU claims is the first of its kind in the nation, was filed in New York State Supreme Court on behalf of medical students Sara Levin and Maggie Jones as well as Gila Wildfire in her capacity as Secretary of the Einstein Association of Gays, Lesbians and Bisexuals (EAGLB).

Housing policy at AECOM's Bronx campus is administered by YU. Low cost apartments across the street from the primary educational facilities are offered only to students of the medical school and their spouses and children. AECOM housing includes studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom apartments. There is a waiting list for each type of apartment and requests are filled on a first-come, first-serve basis. However, the policy provides that "married couples, regardless of their position on the waiting list, receive priority for studio apartments, after providing acceptable proof of marriage." Market rates for comparable housing off-campus are about twice as expensive as those offered in AECOM's "Low Housing," as the complex is referred to by students.

Sara Levin, 26, is a fourth-year medical student who first applied for shared housing on behalf of herself and her domestic partner of six years, Carla Richmond, when she entered AECOM in 1996. Levin was told at that time that the school would not honor domestic partnerships. Since New York State law does not presently recognize same-sex marriages, Levin was not able to satisfy the requirement for shared housing. She claims, however, that she initially believed the school would change its policy if she made a reasonable appeal.

Maggie Jones, 23, is beginning her second year at AECOM. Jones first requested shared housing for herself and her partner, Joslyn Hidalgo, last year. At Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, Jones and Hidalgo were registered under its domestic partner program which allowed them to qualify for Stanford's housing and health benefits. Both Jones and Levin eventually resorted to the rental of apartments with their respective partners in Brooklyn where they claim the rent is more affordable.

After having been denied the right to shared housing, Levin and Jones and EAGLB, which represents other students with similar requests, contacted the ACLU. Lawyers for the ACLU and the plaintiffs tried unsuccessfully to convince the University to reverse its policy. Finally, they filed a complaint with the New York state Supreme Court charging discrimination based on sexual orientation and marital status. The plaintiffs are seeking reversal of the policy, as well as unspecified damages for emotional distress and extra housing and commuting costs.

In a statement released to the public, Levin claimed that her decision to pursue legal action against YU and AECOM was "not one I easily made." However, she felt that if she allowed herself to be "relegated to the closet, which has been one of the most powerful weapons of homophobia and is certainly one of the intentions of this policy, then I am compromising my integrity." She added that there have been "many gay and lesbian students before me who [have] confronted the ugly faces of homophobia while at Yeshiva University and the medical school. These students made the same appeals and received the same denials, that I have." According to Levin, the message of the policy is clear: "Neither I nor my family are welcome at this institution."

In Jones' statement, she stressed that because of the denial of shared housing "Joslyn and I had to contend with considerable financial and emotional expenses that other married couples are not asked to endure." She contended that "queer students' disproportionate lack of access denies us many valuable opportunities to establish ties to other young physicians and to benefit significantly from interactions with older students to the same degree as our classmates."

EAGLB is a club which advocates gay and lesbian rights at AECOM and offers activities and lectures that might interest gay and lesbian students. It is funded by the student council budget which is supported by the University itself. Wildfire, the secretary of EAGLB, believes that the University must offer shared housing equally to married couples and domestic partners. Wildfire could not cite any other administrative policies which she would characterize as discriminatory toward homosexual students. Recalling resolutions passed by the student/faculty senate which unsuccessfully called for housing and other benefits for gay couples at AECOM, Wildfire referred to Einstein as "a pretty progressive institution." Yet, she distinguishes between the medical school and the University saying that "it's Yeshiva that is not in favor" of making a "legal and fair policy."

Opinion on campus is guarded. A number of medical students wondered why the plaintiffs' complaint has been directed against the University, which requires proof of a committed relationship in the form of a marriage license, and not with the state which prevents gay and lesbian couples from obtaining that license.

A statement released by AECOM, explained that "It is the policy of Yeshiva University and its Albert Einstein College of Medicine to comply with all laws including anti-discrimination laws applicable to student housing. Our housing policy is applied equally to all applicants for student housing without regard to their sexual orientation." It added that "on the advice of our attorneys we will have no further comment at this time." Attorneys for the University also declined to comment.