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HUD complaint alleges student has been forced to wait in freezing cold to access dorm
A legal group advocating for the rights of Jewish people recently filed a “first-of-its-kind” federal complaint alleging Williams College’s on-campus housing situation has led to discrimination against an Orthodox Jewish student.
The complaint, which the Brandeis Center filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, alleges the student has faced trouble with the administration over requested housing and meal accommodations.
Rachel Balaban, senior litigation counsel at the Brandeis Center, told The College Fix in a recent interview that Title VIII “requires colleges to provide students with full and equal access to housing and the terms, privileges, and services, in connection with housing, and not discriminate on the basis of religion as well as other protected identities.”
Title VIII, or the Fair Housing Act of 1968, makes it illegal to discriminate based on race, sex, nationality, familial situation, disability, and religion with issues in the housing market.
Although Williams College is private, Balaban said the law still applies.
“The Brandeis Center urges Williams College to institute robust policies, both on paper and in practice, that provide all Jewish students with full and equal access to campus housing and housing-related services, including providing adequate kosher dining options as part of the College’s on-campus meal plan,” Balaban told The Fix.
Meanwhile, college spokesperson Meike Kaan referred The Fix to its initial statement in response to the complaint, which welcomes discussions with the student and lawyers representing him.
“Williams has no tolerance for antisemitism or discrimination. We are devoted to ensuring that all students have access to appropriate living spaces, dining options, and our full range of learning opportunities,” the statement read.
The college welcomes “the opportunity to continue that dialogue with the student and the Brandeis Center in order to ensure a welcoming and inclusive educational environment,” Kaan said via email.
The Brandeis complaint cites several specific instances of alleged discrimination against the student—a freshman whose name is redacted.
For example, he allegedly has not been permitted to carry a physical key to get into his residence hall. Rather, he has been told he must use an electric key card — despite his faith prohibiting the use of any form of electricity on the Jewish Sabbath, according to the complaint, filed April 23.
Although the student asked for a physical key, security denied him the request for ambiguous “safety” concerns, the complaint alleges.
This has resulted in the student being locked out of the building on numerous occasions, forcing him to wait outside until another student lets him in, according to the complaint
During the winter months, the student sometimes had to wait outside “for over an hour” in the frigid Northeast temperatures of Williamstown, Massachusetts, where the college is located, according to a news release.
Because of this, as well as the embarrassment that has come along with it, he has sometimes reluctantly remained in his dorm room the entirety of Saturday, according to the complaint.
The kosher meal options in the campus dining hall are also very limited, the complaint alleges.
“Because Williams requires first-year students to reside on campus, and dorm rooms do not have kitchens, the College also requires students to purchase a campus meal plan,” the complaint states.
When the student and his father met with the college to ask for kosher meals, the college “refused” and offered him vegan dinners and the use of the Jewish Religious Center kitchen, according to the complaint.
“At this meeting, [redacted] told [the student] that if he could not ‘deal with’ the available food options, he ‘should not come to Williams College,'” the complaint alleges.
The complaint asks that the student be reimbursed for the “pre-paid mandatory meal plan which he was not able to fully use or enjoy,” as well as attorneys’ fees, and other expenses related to the case, according to a Brandeis news release.
It also requests that the college recognize the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism and establish antisemitism training for the campus community.
The legal group has described the case as the “first-of-its-kind.” Balaban said that this is the first time “the Brandeis Center has filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under the Fair Housing Act.”
Balaban hopes this case will set a precedent for future Title VIII issues involving Jewish students.
“We hope that this case raises awareness of the protections afforded under the Fair Housing Act against religious discrimination and that Jewish students across college campuses understand that their right to freely exercise their religion should not be incompatible with their ability to fully participate in residential life at their school,” she told The Fix.
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