Yeshiva University (YU) has officially recognized “Hareni,” a toeiva student club, after years of legal wrangling. The decision, finalized following a contentious battle that reached the U.S. Supreme Court, perhaps puts the final stroke on the school’s surrender to secular ideology—and a blatant rejection of the Torah principles that YU once claimed to champion.
For decades, YU positioned itself as a stalwart defender of Orthodox Judaism, proudly resisting pressures to conform to progressive societal trends. It steadfastly opposed recognizing the YU Pride Alliance, arguing that such a move would violate its deeply held religious convictions. Yet, after exhausting its legal options, the university has caved, granting official status to “Hareni.” The administration’s feeble justification—that the club will function under the oversight of senior rabbis—does little to mask the reality: YU has abandoned its moral backbone to appease external forces.
In a stunning capitulation, Yeshiva University (YU) has officially recognized an LGBTQ+ student club, bringing an end to a protracted legal battle but solidifying its descent into a Torah-compromised institution. The newly sanctioned club, now called “Hareni”, will operate under the university’s banner, an unthinkable development for an institution that once prided itself on maintaining a Torah-observant identity.
The legal battle, which began in 2021, saw YU embroiled in a lawsuit filed by four students and alumni who claimed the university had illegally discriminated against them by rejecting their club’s application multiple times. The case escalated to the New York Supreme Court, where YU was ordered to recognize the Pride Alliance in a ruling that was upheld on appeal. After failing to secure intervention from the U.S. Supreme Court, YU finally surrendered—choosing not to uphold Torah values, but instead to bow before the altar of progressive ideology.
YU’s joint statement with the plaintiffs framed the settlement as a “collaborative” step, stating that the Hareni club would operate under the “approved guidelines” of the university’s senior rabbis. However, arguing that the very existence of such a club violates the eternal values of Torah and halacha – whether it’s under “approved guidelines” or not.
The decision represents more than just an isolated incident at YU—it sets a dangerous precedent for other Orthodox institutions. If the flagship Modern Orthodox university can be forced to abandon Torah principles, it could have devastating downstream consequences.
Over the years, YU’s stance on the toeiva issue has been riddled with contradictions. In 2022, the administration attempted to create “Kol Yisrael Areivim”, an LGBTQ club “grounded in halacha,” but it failed to materialize. Later, a separate club called “Anachnu” was negotiated but was ultimately shelved following October 7th. Now, Hareni has emerged as the culmination of this ideological erosion.
YU’s surrender has been met with celebration from progressive activists, with plaintiffs in the lawsuit hailing the settlement as “proof that Torah and LGBTQ identity are not in conflict.” But for those who actually live by Torah, the conflict is obvious, and this latest move confirms YU’s departure from its claim of being a Torah-based institution.
WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW OF RAV MORDECHAI GIFTER TALKING ABOUT THE TOEIVA IN YU BACK IN 1988
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50 Responses
No words. I was at that speech that the Rosh Yeshivah ZTL gave. So sad there is no one today that can stand up for our values who people will listen to. Listen to the words “we must do something” “we can’t just brush it off”. All those years later the same words apply.
Would you say the same thing about anyone who voted in the WZO elections?
I hope and pray that every single person that went through that tuma, renounces it .
They need to realize, something they’re not going to see, that this is not acceptable!
As someone in the mental health…
Before everyone starts screaming I beg of you to a moment to think.
Parents: Create a safe space for your children at home. I’m personally aware of many situations where older Bochurim have been holding in this painful secret their entire lives. Why?? Because this is a topic they hear their own parents laughing about. Leading to depression and anxiety that is currently difficult to deal with.
I’m in no way condoning anything against the Torah, but the Metzius of a person is part of who they are. So much suffering is involved here.
I know someone will mention conversion therapy, that has been proven to be a traumatic experience and a total lie. Anyone going through it is lead is lead to believe they aren’t trying hard enough because it just isn’t working.
All I’m asking is for the compassion the people I know of so badly want. It can be your own child too.
It might even save a life…
If this gets posted then thank you YWN.
The problem is not so much the gays cause everybody with a human mind understands that it is nothing but beastiality, doesn’t take a “Gemara head” for that, the real problem is the issue of kedusha and “spilling seed in vain” we know that kids don’t understand that and also the elders with them, but the Rabbi of the modern Orthodox community, don’t seem to speak about the sin of “spilling seed in vain”and kedusha, it’s not just a gifilte fish, but it definitely isn’t something to be proud about
This is worthy of tearing kriah. It is better for the entire institution to shut down than “rabbinically approve” such an abomination. Shame on them. This is only opening the door to allow this horrible destruction into the Jewish world. We must fight against this with every last bit of energy!
Sad but not surprised in the least. A public university getting government funds is not free to operate how they wish. It’s not a secret that half of the students are from any walks of life and not exactly Yeshiva material, this is the conclusion of what happens when you accept everyone. I don’t see them coming knocking on TOURO or Mirrer yeshivas door trying to open Abomination clubs. You are who you accept
This is very scary.
`We all know that Manhattan has a lot of bad people ( a lot of scary bullies) on the streets.
I am 100% convinced that the reason why YU till now we did not hear any major stories because our dear Father in heaven, the Almighty He was protecting the students from harm, He was watching over the Yeshiva and He made sure that the evil people won’t come close to the campus.
This is pure common sense.
Now we are asking Hashem to please take a hike and leave this campus ASAP.
אם השם לא ישמור עיר שוא שקד שומר
It’s not a matter of accepting govt. funds or not – they had no other choice. When the Supreme Court decided that they had to accept these miscreants, what could YU have done? Shut down the university? Maybe they should have indeed made that sacrifice.
By the way. How is YU get able to only accept males? If they can do that why can’t they upgrade to only accept heterosexual males?
The problem of this issue, is the very title of this article “nail in the coffin “.
The nail in YUs coffin has been knocked in long ago. If only it had been treated so by the WHOLE of Orthodox Jewry. Many (coolheaded) Rabbanim, Roshei Yeshiva held that all those affiliated with this Makom Tomei in any way should be ostracised being that they’re part of the Chillul Hashem by choosing to remain there.
Instead, people still continued to go to “his” Shiur because he’s a Talmudic genius. “He” (another one) was/is an accepted Rov in Flatbush because he’s a “Talmud Chochom”. Fanatical Yeshivish people may do a Shidduchim with him because he has money to support…
וכהנא וכהנא
This coffin has long been buried.
The judge who initially forced them to recognize the Toieva was called Judge Kotler (Lynn)… talk about Yad Hashem. In her ruling, she said it best:
“Yeshiva University’s religious character is secondary to it’s primary educational purpose…the court finds that the defendant Yeshiva University is not a ‘religious corporation’ “.
It helps you understand the wisdom of the Gedolim, like Reb Elchonon HYD, who forbade even entering YU for a minyan.
I couldn’t care was being tolerant thinks:- I ONLY care what קריאת-התורה ליום-הכיפורים למנחה states:- תועבה TAU’EIVO!!!!! Here the buck ends.
The article says ‘The decision represents more than just an isolated incident at YU—it sets a dangerous precedent for other Orthodox institutions.’
This is what they want you to believe, but it’s false. Religious freedoms protect all institutions, YU is simply too far gone to be called religious!
It’s not only the modern orthodox caved in to this evil immoral issue, it’s the Chareidim as well. In Israel they allow the Jerusalem gay parade each year even though the Chareidi population is one third and Arabs one third. And when Rabbi chayim kanefsky ztl asked twenty years ago to bring out a hundred thousand protesters they ignored him. Only a few thousand came out and at that time the police chief said had there been a hundred thousand protesters they would not have allowed the gays to march. It would have been a security risk. In New York we elect pro immoral candidates whoever can give us more money. We saw it even in past elections upstate. So don’t scream at the modern orthodox when you yourself are guilty.
I think the tone of this article is a tad unfair. The toeiva activists relentlessly targeted YU and backed them into a corner. Unfortunately, American courts sided against YU, backing them into that ever-tightening corner even further. YU fought hard, but they reached the end of the rope.
Indeed, the precedent is catastrophic. But, can someone tell me what choices they had at this point? What should they have done?
If your answer is that they should have shuttered their doors – then you must then grapple with the question that follows: Is it really worth condemning thousands of sincere and frum jewish students to the dangerous world of non-Jewish colleges, over the insincere recognition of 1 pathetic club consisting of a handful of losers?
Wow, it looks like naive YWN editors have unwittingly become propagandists for the pride alliance. What actually happened is the exact opposite of the headline. The pride alliance caved completely, accepted YU’s offer from years ago, and presented it as if YU caved, hoping the left wing media would take the bait. Dunno about the left wing media, but they sure they hooked YWN. 1) Get the facts. 2) Delete this editorial. 3) Beg mechila.
What you likely know and did not mention is that the arrangement going forward will be guided by two senior RY. I assume you did not speak to either of them but gave us a lecture from 35+ years ago. When will find out the complete story and publish based on that?
Please take the loshon hara off this site.
Why is YWN blocking comments on this article?
i am no yu boy , but to be fair and honest, they made a supreme effort & spent tons of money on lawyers for 4 years trying to avoid this recognition and went all the way up the court system. at some point they basicly lost the battle & had to weigh sechoroh keneged hefsaida
in practical terms it doesnt really mean much, the avg bochur in yu will not see or feel any difference based on this ruling…ay you ask what about the principal of the matter?
so the rambam & raaved argue if ” TOCHACHAH” is principal oriented or goal oriented, as in all of shulchan aruch there is only one paragraph on giving mussar ,by hil yom kipur keshem shemitzva lomar…as in shitas harambam , the raavad holds its principal oriented regardless of the end tachlis a few examples…lubavitch rebbe never got involved in any toeva polotics… when aguda honored joe lieberman rav miller zatzl called rav pam … agudah honoring joe he is pro…this & that ..rav shlomo zalmen zatzl held that the shabbos protests & street closures in yerushalayim just made the frye cars drive more by being detoured….
an expalanation of rav miller zatzl hashkofoh on toeyva was that it effects us in 2 ways
1. hashem is a sonei zimah and therefore it blocks the shefa from coming down and secondly compared it to pollution that its in the air we breathe and has a hashpoh like asthma on kedushas yisroel he also felt that it was a a kitrug if the catholics are mocheh and we are silent keshitas haravad that we stand up for principal regardless of how much an effect it has in the end
the tayanas against YU of the previous dor are not todays battle,
YU has been chazer-treif all along. HaGaon HaRav Elchonon Wasserman ztvk’l why’d wrote already back in 1940, with the Ksav Yad of his letter readily available today, that it is better to die at the hands of the Nazis than to be physically “saved” by YU which will then kill you spiritually.
Rav Ahron Kotler ztvk’l refused to ever even enter the YU building. When one of his to talmid’s levaya was in YU, Rav Ahron remained standing outside on the street.
As you hear from Rav Mordechai Gifter ztvk’l, YU was kissing up with the homosexuals at least as early as the 1980s, already. In the 1990s they also had a major scandal when they already then allowed a homosexual club on their campus be officially recognized. And again around 2000.
These are only a tiny sample of YU’s consistent, constant and repeated anti-Torah stances, and outright apikorsus, over the last 90 years.
Every decade their decadence gets worse and worse.
Ujm
You are a pitiful example of someone that thinks they’re standing up for hashems honor when in truth you’re degrading it
Rav elyashiv boruch finkel the first time he went to the states asked rav Schach if he can go there to hear a shiur from rabbi soloveitzick, he told him not to go into the building. He ended up attending the shiur on Thursday night in the moriah shul.
Based on what I can see online, the case never got higher than the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court (which is the “lower” court” – the Court of Appeals is the highest New York Court). YU tried to skip a few steps by appealing to the US Supreme Court and lost on the grounds they had to appeal to the highest New York court before they could appeal to the Federal Supreme Court. The Supreme Court never ruled on the First Amendment issues.
Given the current Supreme Court’s rightward tilt, I suspect something else caused the decision to “cave”. Perhaps it dealt with a donor, or some threats for city or state authorities (suggesting YU might be advised to sell its campus and move to a “red” state). One might ask what happens if some students want to set up a “cheeseburger” club or a club advocating conversion to Christianity?
Sad confused world we live in today
It’s brought down how hazy things will be before mashiach, how the people won’t know who to follow or who they’re following, the line between good and evil will be blurred. And institutions will betray hashem for money or popularity. Woe is to those who cave in with this apikorses!
this is not a “nail in the coffin of YU”, rather this is the body itself of YU alive and well!
What conflict is this for a movement that claims to “blend” (read “pick and choose”) Torah with – lehavdil – goyish culture and values.
The leaders of this crooked path are not trying to be “straight”!
Reb Chaim Voloshin closed the yeshivah due being forced to teach (kosher) secular studies – YU should have closed due to being forced to recognise toevoh!
The only “fault” of yu is that they accept a lot of students, so some of them happen to have problems and that they are so visible that they were attacked.
I doubt that yu students will be affected by this club. They see worse in the streets nearby. I am more concerned about neshomos of supposedly frum people here who use this occasion to demonstrate their hate towards other frum jews who happen to have a different shitah. As R Akiva said: when I was am Haaretz, I wanted to bite talmidei chachamim as a horse.
Between the article’s misleading description of what’s happened, its horrendous tone, and the disgusting comments that moderators let through, YWN should know that this longtime daily reader will not visit this website again. You have blown way past my tolerance.
@Mapquest
WZO everyone agrees it’s טמא, the question is what to do about it?
The answer is to clean it up! By taking it over!
BMG took over a conservative Shul and converted it to a makom Torah. So will we do iyh with WZO and all places of טומאה.
That was the שיטת ר חיים זצ״ל and many other Gedolim. YU however started off good but later dirtied themselves with rotten ideas.
Why was the rest of the yeshivish world silent when this controversy was happening?
Did they show that they cared?
We were silent. Did we offer to help YU financially so they doesn’t have to take government money?
If they didn’t take money and declare themselves a religious instittution, they wouldn’t have had this problem.
What did volozhin do when the govt tried to impose on them they closed down
You should not of been in an position no other yeshiva is. they placed themselves in this position and they are responsible for the results.
It us now ossur al pi din torah for any frum person to go there or to work there.
Krotzkee don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
Here’s a few facts:
1) none of you here have walked into YU ever. I grew up in Monsey and lived there for almost 3 decades. I graduated from Yeshiva University while learning 3 sedarim a day. You criticize YU from afar, standing outside your Bais Medrash smoking a cigarette, pretending to run an Amazon business or a Nursing Home and you have no idea what YU is.
2) YU didn’t make this decision. The Supreme Court did. Let’s hope that no other Jewish institutions have to deal with this. U wanna bash someone? Go protest the Supreme Court.
3) 99% of the people in YU will not be affected or even realize this exists. A very small group that wants some money to run their events will do so while being ignored by 99% of the guys in YU.
4) I don’t understand why so many in the more Yeshiva community enjoy bashing YU. Most of you would be surprised that http://www.YuTorah.com gets a massive amount of listeners from…. Lakewood. So don’t pretend otherwise.
5) you don’t need to agree with everything YU does but look around the world today. We need YU even more than ever before. I’d still rather be in YU than Columbia, Harvard or NYU.
6) I imagine that most of you reading this visit doctors. Some frum, some not. Those same doctors have to treat gay and trans patients. But you still go to them. Why? Should that be assur too?
We all have aveiras but we don’t have clubs or parades for them.
From an outsider perspective what I’ve seen over the years is Reform adopts some culturally avant-garde stance regarding for example homosexuality, feminism, intermarriage, etc. Then once that view has “progressed” to broad acceptance within mainstream American society a decade or two later Conservative Judaism jumps on board with the same changes.
While slower to change & really struggling to reconcile modern social views with halacha, I didn’t realize until recently MO is infected by this same progressive cancer that’s consumed other streams of American Judaism.
In my opinion there is too much modern & not enough orthodox in MO. Among the youth in America LGBT ideology has caught hold incredibly strongly. This club is a symptom not a cause of a bigger issue.
American values are not consistent with Torah & bigger picture we know moral values don’t “evolve.”
MO not just YU will continue to erode it’s Torah core over time.
LGBT ideology is a dangerous cultlike pseudoscience. Somewhere between a religion & communism. While some people are born with certain inclinations, celebrating & promoting these things has caused mass brainwashing among the youth.
When I was growing up in the 1980s in secular America & Reform Judaism I was never exposed to homosexuality & gender ideology. Divorce & intermarriage were rare & I never saw a female rabbi. American culture itself was more traditional & in line with halacha even if one wasn’t from a frum family.
Now I eventually need to navigate explaining to my children their MO friends who come from households with two mommies or what the ubiquitous rainbow flags mean. I fear for the young generation growing up in an environment where all of this is now normal. They will only continue on this path of moral decline.
“Hareni, that will seek to support LGBTQ students and their allies.”
One of the most insidious parts of LGBT & progressive ideology is this idea of allyship. Its the idea that people who don’t identify as LGBT come to support those that do, learn more, become empathetic, possibly dabble in the ideology….it’s a dangerous tool of recruitment for impressionable youth disguised as a moral good like supporting a friend.
“According to the release, Hareni will be allowed the same resources as all other clubs including the ability to sponsor events, access to university resources such as student fairs and event spaces…..Additionally, Hareni will be allowed to use LGBTQ+ terminology on flyers and other communications.”
YU has fallen. It represents the MO youth & therefore where that denomination will be headed in the future.
However what @TruthSayer32 wrote is also very important.
We need to be supportive of individual struggles without endorsement or unnecessarily cruel judgement which is an incredibly difficult balance.
But still we need to make sure our organizations are not actively endorsing or promoting forbidden behavior.
Based on the comment explosion on this article you can see it is a major controversial topic that isn’t going away & the pressure for “inclusivity” will only increase over time.
The American court system will make things that much harder now that gay marriage has been legal for some time & each instance of “discrimination” will further villify the orthodox community.
You linked to Rav Gifter, zt’l but you made no reference to Rav Soloveitchik, zt’l who spoke against taking federal funds in 1970 (i think) at a CHag Hasemicha. Some people commenting here are still showing the old Agudah hatred of Rav Soloveitchik. It’s a shame
If you think that YU should close, do you really think there will be thousands more people in Mirrer or Bais Yaakov seminaries?
Is Touro accepting governemt funds?
I seriously doubt the Department of Education, especially under current management was threatening YU. I also doubt they were afraid of an adverse ruling from the Federal Supreme Court (which is comfortably un-WOKE) when the case reached there on the merits (substantive legal issues, as opposed to procedural issues). This suggests that perhaps the New York State government was threatening to seize control of the school (which they can under New York’s unique 18th century statute) or revocation of state tax exempt status – which is something that would affect the whole frum community (since the WOKE Democrats would love to close down the shuls and especially the yeshivos).
jsjcbs, your krumer lomdus (comparing YU to a doctor) after ‘learning 3 Sedarim a day at YU’ is not helping them prove their ‘Yeshiva’ case lol
R Chaim Volozhin didn’t close the yeshiva, Netziv did many decades later. I presume your knowledge of yu is as great as of Volozhin.
If the issue is that if you have any clubs in the school, the courts ban discrimination based on orientation etc. So why not get rid of all clubs. If there are no clubs there can’t be any discrimination.
I am saddened by some of the comments here.
The judgements about certain communities and YU certainly have no place in Yiddishkite or any Torah learning that I have ever been part of.
YU for the most part is an outstanding institution and the amount of Torah learning coming from there and the amount of people that leave with smichah who have contributed greatly to our communities if off the charts. While it is valid to have an opinion about what happened here, the bad mouthing of YU here by some shows they are just clueless about YU and its Torah contribution to our society.
And then there is the criticism of the Modern Orthodox communities. The MO certainly have their struggles, but the vast majority are wonderful shommer shabbos people who we should be proud of that they are part of our world. I wonder if those that criticize them equally condemn the many Hassidic Jews or other frummies that have a culture of doing things in cash and lying to the US government to get benefits. The chillul hashem that they make with that behavior is off the charts and perhaps we should have a debate about how much their Torah is worth because since much of they do is built on stealing and lies, perhaps what they do is really worthless because it is a mitzva haba b’aveira? People should stop being so judgemental and leave these communities alone. Every community sturggles with different issues. Who are you to judge?
In my opinion LGBT issues are one of the greatest stuggles to Torah Jews today because this behavior has become normalized in our society and we are struggling with how to keep it from getting normalized in the Torah world.
I don’t have all the answers but somethings I can say. Long gone are the days where we basically banish people from our society (or basically excommunicate them) because they made a lifestyle choice that was not consistent with Torah. It used to be that if someone was not shommer shabbos, they were not allowed into your home or shul or family event. We have learned that they are part of our world and we need to continue to engage them. and not turn them away. I am convinced that we should deal with people who identify as LGBT the same way. This seems to be what the MO community is doing instead of a more harsh treatment. Normalize? NO but not demonization either. The Torah community needs to continue to have discussion on how to deal with this issue in a sensitive way. This is a long way from being resolved. Let’s hope that Trumps disolution of the Department of Education might give YU another chance to evaluate this issue.
אין לנו להישען אלא על אבינו שבשמים :
No, actually, there is no question with the WZO. It always has been the universal opinion of the Torah sages for over a century absolutely forbidding joining the WZO. Lots of lies and slick marketing have claimed otherwise, but it’s simply sheker.
The absolute least YU could do is change its name, and drop the word “Yeshiva”. They could switch to Yankee University; this way they can still keep their initials of YU.
At least that might somewhat lesson the chillul Hashem that YU keeps making, when people mistakenly assume they’re a Jewish school, and even think they’re religious since they misleadingly call themselves “Yeshiva”.
What would Touro do if it had a similar lawsuit? The realities of being university and accepting all kinds of Jews are different than a Yeshiva.
Yeshiva News is leveling accusations against YU without first speaking to the rabbanim who are directly involved in navigating this complex and sensitive issue. The article does not seek to understand YU’s mission, its responsibilities to the broader Jewish community, or the immense weight of its decisions—it seeks only to criticize.
Take a moment to revisit the story in Gemara Gittin about Kamtza and Bar Kamtza. The Gemara holds Rabbi Zechariah ben Avkolas responsible for the destruction of the Beis HaMikdash—not out of malice, but due to his lack of vision and failure to act. He stood by in silence while Bar Kamtza was humiliated and cast out, and we are warned of the consequences of such silence.
We are seeing a modern parallel. Minister Goldknopf—and many who remained silent at that wedding—were more focused on protecting an abstract concept of “God’s house” than on acknowledging the pain and suffering of widows, orphans, and the wounded who have surrounded us for the past 18 months.
You fail to recognize that being gay is not a choice. If this is how HaKadosh Baruch Hu created some people, then perhaps the appropriate response is compassion. God is big enough to handle each person’s relationship with Him. Our responsibility is to focus on how we treat one another.
YU was faced with a deeply difficult and painful decision. It is not for Yeshiva News or its author to pass judgment without first seeking to understand those grappling with these challenges from within—with Torah, with compassion, and with responsibility.
does this include Stern college for women? what a tremendous CHILLUL HASHEM
G-d Bless Bernard Madoff ז”ל for his foresight to have financially hurt this filthy dirty infested yu institution
Interesting how YWN blocks comments criticizing them or their nasty language but allows comments about Madoff imach shemo by yeshiving lunatics.
DG0000, you say ‘the amount of people that leave [YU] with smichah who have contributed greatly to our communities is off the charts’.
Unfortunately, it’s the exact opposite. There is actually a major undercover tragedy occurring now in which ignoramus Rabbis with perverted Hashkofos are rampant in the MO world.
I personally know tens of YU Rabbis, and the majority are extreme Kulah hunters without any sense of how to actually pasken (forget מדמה מילתא למילתא), and 95% know less Halocha than any frum Avreich in Lakewood. Most of them even listen to non-Jewish music themselves (inc. Kol Isha) – yup these are their ‘Rabbis’!
[I once heard two MO ‘Rabbis’ discussing the songs they heard on the radio en route to an event we were at. The kicker? It was during the undisputed part of the Sefira – I guess אין איסור חל על איסור 🙂 ]
The REITS Semicha is a joke, a quick fix, a tick-the-box, bare minimum endeavor. I even know some pink-shirt-ring-wearing ‘Rabbis’ who did it entirely online remotely in less than two years of part-time learning without even opening a Gemora (only Shu”A).
So no, they haven’t contributed greatly. Tragically, in most cases, they and their community are becoming less and less observant as Tznius and so many other Torah values evaporate.