In Separation of Hinduism From Our Schools v. Chicago Public Schools, (ND IL, Aug. 17, 2021), an Illinois federal district court granted in part plaintiffs' motion to amend their complaint in a suit challenging Chicago Public Schools' "Quiet Time" program which was led by a Transcendental Meditation instructor. In a previous opinion, the court dismissed claims against a private foundation and the University of Chicago which helped implement the program. (See prior posting.) Now the court holds that plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged that the private foundation and the University were joint participants with the state to be state actors who can violate constitutional rights. However the court accepts the University's defense that its participation was not part of an official policy or custom-- a necessary component of liability under 42 USC §1983. The court also held that the complaint adequately states claims against the University, the foundation and the public schools under the Illinois Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
