Mezuzah Not Protected Under Fair Housing Act, Federal Appeals Court Rules

In Chicago, Illinois, the ABA Journal reports:

• A federal appeals court has ruled that the Fair Housing Act does not protect the right of condominium owners to display mezuzot on their doorframes. The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the federal law requires accommodation for the handicapped but not for religion, the New York Sun reports. Content-neutral regulations that have the effect of banning religious displays are permitted, the court said in a 2-1 opinion (PDF).

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• The majority opinion by Judge Frank Easterbrook said the regulation was content-neutral. "It bans photos of family vacations, political placards, for-sale notices and Chicago Bears pennants."

• Dissenting Judge Diane Wood said the rule operated as a constructive eviction of observant Jewish residents.

Source: Housing Law Doesn’t Protect Right to Mezuzah, Appeals Court Rules.

For the decision, see Bloch v. Frischolz (7th Cir., July 10, 2008).

Go here for other posts on condo association problems with mezuzot.

Postscript:

In disagreeing with her colleagues in the majority, Circuit Judge Wood made her feelings known by issuing a 17-page dissenting opinion in response to the 6-page majority opinion. A few of her comments are included in this excerpt from the New York Sun article:

• In dissent, Judge Diane Wood said enforcement of the rule amounted to a "constructive eviction" of observant Jewish residents, as well as an effective bar on Jews moving into the housing complex. "Hallway Rule 1 operates exactly as a redlining rule does with respect to the ability of the owner to sell to observant Jews. No such person could buy a unit at Shoreline Towers," she wrote. "The Association might as well hang a sign outside saying 'No observant Jews allowed.'"