FOR PUBLICATION UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN No. 22-15827 ATHLETES, an Oklahoma corporation; FELLOWSHIP OF D.C. No. CHRISTIAN ATHLETES OF PIONEER 4:20-cv-02798- HIGH SCHOOL, an unincorporated HSG association; CHARLOTTE KLARKE; ELIZABETH SINCLAIR, Plaintiffs-Appellants, OPINION v. SAN JOSE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF EDUCATION; NANCY ALBARRAN, in her official and personal capacity; HERB ESPIRITU, in his official and personal capacity; PETER GLASSER, in his official and personal capacity; STEPHEN MCMAHON, in his official and personal capacity, Defendants-Appellees. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr., District Judge, Presiding Argued and Submitted August 9, 2022 Seattle, Washington 2 FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES V. SJUSD BOE Filed August 29, 2022 Before: Morgan Christen, Kenneth K. Lee, and Danielle J. Forrest, Circuit Judges. Opinion by Judge Lee; Concurrence by Judge Lee; Dissent by Judge Christen SUMMARY * Civil Rights The panel reversed the district court’s denial of a motion for a preliminary injunction sought by a derecognized student club, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and directed the district court to enter an order reinstating the Fellowship as a student club within the San Jose Unified School District. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes (“FCA”) requires students serving in leadership roles to abide by a Statement of Faith, which includes the belief that sexual relations should be limited within the context of a marriage between a man and a woman. The San Jose Unified School District (the “School District”) revoked FCA’s status as an official student club at its high schools, claiming that FCA’s religious pledge requirement violated the School District’s non-discrimination policy. * This summary constitutes no part of the opinion of the court. It has been prepared by court staff for the convenience of the reader. FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES V. SJUSD BOE 3 The panel first held that FCA National had direct organizational standing and Pioneer High School FCA had representational organizational standing to seek prospective injunctive relief. The School District’s denial of Associated Student Body (“ASB”) recognition hampered FCA National’s ability to further student-engagement with the Christian faith and required it to expend significant time and resources to assist its student members. Pioneer High School FCA had standing to pursue injunctive relief on behalf of its student members given that defendants admitted that submitting an ASB application would be futile under the current policy and plaintiffs submitted declarations showing that Pioneer High School students intended to apply for recognition in the coming year. Addressing the merits, the panel first held that plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction sought to maintain the status quo that existed before the School District’s novel scrutiny of FCA—a prohibitory injunction—so the district court erred in applying the heightened standard for mandatory injunctions. The panel held that plaintiffs would likely prevail on the merits of its selective enforcement claim under the Free Exercise Clause. The panel stated that this case pitted two competing values that we cherish as a nation: the principle …
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