User:Theleekycauldron/Menora v. Illinois High School Association

Theleekycauldron/Menora v. Illinois High School Association
Theleekycauldron/Menora v. Illinois High School Association
Court	United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
Full case name	Moshe Menora et al. v. Illinois High School Association
Decided	June 30, 1982
Court membership
Judges sitting	Richard Posner; Jesse E. Eschbach; Richard Dickson Cudahy;
Case opinions
Majority	Posner, joined by Eschbach
Dissent	Cudahy

Menora v. Illinois High School Association, 683 F.2d 1030 (7th Cir. 1982), is a case decided by the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit blah blah blah

Background

Case

The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) is a private organization that governs sporting competition between high schools in the U.S. state of Illinois. Nearly all high schools in the state, public or private, are members. Two of the IHSA's members are the Ida Crown Jewish Academy and Yeshiva High School.^[a] As Orthodox Jewish institutions, its male students wear a kippah (pl. kippot), a head covering, nearly all the time. In 1981, the schools were slated to compete in the state's regional men's basketball tournament.

Kippot were not common among young Orthodox men in Chicago in the early 20th century – they would only be worn for prayer or eating, and usually not in public. But through the mid-20th century, as Orthodox Jews began to

The IHSA announced in February 1981 that it would not permit students to compete in the tournament if they wore a kippah, citing a rule banning headgear from being worn on the court. Students from the two schools, claiming that the IHSA was violating their right to practice their religion under the Free Exercise Clause, sued in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. They were represented by the American Jewish Congress.

^[3]; also Feuerschwenger

Free Exercise Clause

The Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the freedom of religion, providing that "Congress shall make no law ... prohibiting the free exercise [of religion]". In Cantwell v. Connecticut (1940), the Supreme Court ruled that the text applies to the state governments as well under the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.^[4]^[5]

For much of the Supreme Court's history, it held that the government's interests justified restricting the freedom of religion, but that a freedom of religion claim could still be valid if paired with a freedom of speech claim. That changed with Sherbert v. Verner (1963), in which the Court laid out a balancing test based solely on the Free Exercise Clause. To justify impeding the freedom of religion, the government would have to show that it had a compelling reason to do so, that the law it was enforcing was concretely connected to that reason, and that there was no less intrusive way to achieve its interests.^[6]

Sherbert marked a significant expansion of the Free Exercise Clause's scope and power, and a turning point that was followed by several more decisions expanding religious liberty. In Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972), the Court held that "only [government] interests of the highest order ... can over-balance legitimate claims to the free exercise of religion", and applied the Free Exercise Clause to government-run schools. In Thomas v. Review Board (1981), the Court reiterated the balancing test created in Sherbert and held that a person's interpretation of their own religious obligations is protected under the Free Exercise Clause even if that interpretation is not widely shared by other adherents to the same religion.^[7]

Court proceedings

District court

The case was heard by Judge Milton Shadur in the District Court for Northern Illinois, who granted a temporary injunction allowing the students to compete in the upcoming tournament on February 23. There was some pressure to quickly arrive at a permanent ruling, but that was relieved with Ida Crown's loss to St. Gregory the Great later in the month. (evansville press and chicago tribune)

In November 1981,

Despite the IHSA's status as a private organization, Judge Shadur ruled that because the majority of its members were public schools, it could be treated as a public entity bound by the First Amendment.^[8]

Appeals court

On January 17, 1983, the Supreme Court voted 7–2 against hearing the case, with Justices Harry Blackmun and Thurgood Marshall dissenting.^[9] By July, Judge Shadur declared the case resolved; the IHSA agreed to allow players to wear kippot with sewn-in metal clips that attach to their heads.^[10]

Reaction, analysis, and impact

As of 2013^[update], Menora v. Illinois High School Association is the only case heard in a federal appellate court on the topic of religious headwear in schools.^[11]

Notes and references

Notes

^ Yeshiva High School was renamed "Fasman Yeshiva High School" in 1981 after Rabbi Oscar Z. Fasman; it is a division of Hebrew Theological College,^[1] the named plaintiff along with Ida Crown.^[2] Chicago Tribune 1981 and Eleff 2020 both refer to the school as "Yeshiva High School"; this article retains that usage for consistency throughout.

Citations

^ Hebrew Theological College.
^ Menora v. Illinois High School Association, 683 F.2d 1030 (1982).
^ Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle 1982.
^ Mills 1983, pp. 1489, fn. 16. Quoting U.S. Const. amend. I.
^ Cantwell v. Connecticut, 310 U.S. 296 (1940).
^ Feuerschwenger 1983, p. 437–438, fn. 22.
^ Feuerschwenger 1983, pp. 438–439; Mills 1983, pp. 1940–1491. Quoting Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205, 215 (1972).
^ Nemani 2013, p. 67.
^ The Dispatch 1983.
^ Los Angeles Times 1983.
^ Nemani 2013, fn. 101.

External links

Text of Menora v. Illinois High School Association, 527 F. Supp. 637 (N.D. Ill. 1981) is available from: Justia
Text of Menora v. Illinois High School Association, 683 F.2d 1030 (7th Cir. 1982) is available from: casetext.com

Category:United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit cases Category:1982 in United States case law Category:United States free exercise of religion case law Category:Sports in Illinois

[3] Yeshiva High School was renamed "Fasman Yeshiva High School" in 1981 after Rabbi Oscar Z. Fasman; it is a division of Hebrew Theological College,^[1] the named plaintiff along with Ida Crown.^[2] Chicago Tribune 1981 and Eleff 2020 both refer to the school as "Yeshiva High School"; this article retains that usage for consistency throughout.

[FOOTNOTEHebrew_Theological_College-1] Hebrew Theological College.

[Menora_1982-2] Menora v. Illinois High School Association, 683 F.2d 1030 (1982).

[FOOTNOTE''Wisconsin_Jewish_Chronicle''1982-4] Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle 1982.

[FOOTNOTEMills19831489,_fn._16-5] Mills 1983, pp. 1489, fn. 16. Quoting U.S. Const. amend. I.

[6] Cantwell v. Connecticut, 310 U.S. 296 (1940).

[FOOTNOTEFeuerschwenger1983437–438,_fn._22-7] Feuerschwenger 1983, p. 437–438, fn. 22.

[8] Feuerschwenger 1983, pp. 438–439; Mills 1983, pp. 1940–1491. Quoting Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205, 215 (1972).

[FOOTNOTENemani201367-9] Nemani 2013, p. 67.

[FOOTNOTE''The_Dispatch''1983-10] The Dispatch 1983.

[FOOTNOTE''Los_Angeles_Times''1983-11] Los Angeles Times 1983.

[FOOTNOTENemani2013fn._101-12] Nemani 2013, fn. 101.

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