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For more than seven months, UCLA fought in federal courts with allegations by Jewish students and faculty members that allowed anti-Semitic behavior at pro-Palestinian campus campus camps last spring.
In the court application, lawyers on both sides discussed whether actions at the camp, including Jewish student leaders, were anti-Semitic against Israeli or Zionist individuals blocking the use of aisles in the camp. Both sides point their fingers at who is responsible for the camp. Was it a university that didn’t immediately take it down and who staff helped strengthen it with metal barriers? Or a protester who took over a small slice of campus?
On Monday, the Trump administration got caught up in the conflict when the Justice Department filed court documents supporting the rights of students and faculty to sue discrimination, and UCLA accused UCLA of “averting responsibility” for anti-Semitism allegations.
The Justice Department said the action is the job of a new multidisciplinary federal task force on the fight against anti-Semitism. The group previously said it plans to visit UCLA, USC and eight other US campuses. No dates have been announced.
“The President, Attorney General Pam Bondy and the Task Force know that all students must attend school freely without discrimination based on race, religion or national origin,” said Leo Terrell, senior attorney for Civil Rights Advisor. “The Department of Justice is working to fight anti-Semitism using all the tools we have at our disposal.”
Mark Lienzi, chairman of the Beckett Fund, a nonprofit representing UCLA Jewish plaintiffs, said in a statement that the Trump administration “threw away the gauntlet.”
In response to the Department of Justice, a UCLA spokesperson said the university is “committed to eradicating anti-Semitism.”
“Prime Minister Julio Frenck, who joined UCLA in January, has a strong track record of fighting anti-Semitism and is working actively to help UCLA achieve its goal of allowing all members of the community to live, work, and learn freely and peacefully.” The university has launched an “Initiative to Fight Anti-Semitism” to address “our shared, unwavering goal of eliminating anti-Semitism.”
The Trump administration’s move comes as the University of California, California State University, USC and other universities face onslaught of federal investigations or warnings from the Department of Justice, Department of Education and other agencies over allegations that they abused Jewish students and employees.
The administration threatened to cancel federal funds, including major health science research grants, from universities that do not comply with federal anti-discrimination laws. This month, federal authorities cancelled a $400 million grant to Columbia University, accusing them of mistreating Palestinian protests and ignoring alleged anti-Semitism incidents.
Trump is also calling for the deportation of foreign student protesters who accused him of being “Hamas sympathizers.” Federal authorities have arrested at least two foreign Columbia students and attempted to arrest another person who fled to Canada.
Critics attack campus’ freedom of speech and denounce the White House for weapons concerns against anti-Semitism as they say the administration portrays pro-Palestinian protests as anti-Semitism. They point out that while the White House has deep attention to Jewish campus communities, Hamas reported attacks on Israel that sparked the Israeli war in Gaza on other religious and racial groups, including Muslims and Arab Americans, who reported an increase in incidents of campus hatred on October 7, 2023.
On Tuesday, dozens of Jewish UCLA faculty members wrote to the university’s management, urging leaders to resist “an attempt by government officials to injure pro-Palestinian students, staff or faculty members who violate current McCarthytean instructions in the Trump administration.”
“We are vehemently opposed to efforts made by the federal government to discipline UCLA students, staff or faculty, or to discipline students, staff or faculty at universities that are deemed politically unacceptable by the support of Palestinian freedom,” the letter states. “We resist all calls to help us compile a list of people subject to arrest, deportation, or discipline, and reject any attempt to call names to members of campus communities for harassment, exile, arrest or deportation. These actions are not a protection of Jews, but a direct attack on democracy and freedom of speech.”
The letter was released as the UC Regent began a three-day meeting at UCLA. There, the agenda is the response to the various federal actions of the UC system (including anti-Semitism, diversity initiatives, and health and science research).
More than 100 students also protested outside the Regent Conference on Tuesday, calling on the system to sell arms companies and Israel-related investment holdings. A graduate student speaker for Palestinian Justice accused the regent of “using Trump’s threat as an excuse” to crack down on his right to free speech and anti-war measures.
Speaking of events in Colombia, students later added: “Is UCLA next?”
The ongoing UCLA court is centered around the pro-Palestinian camp of Royce Quad, which rose until April 25th. It was one of the largest and most controversial things built on a US university campus when the mob attacked the camp on April 30th. Police destroyed the camp on May 1st and arrested more than 200 people.
From the camp there were duel pro-Israel and anti-Israel gatherings, and a handful of videos circulated that said Jewish students were denied access to walk the camp on their way to the university building.
Protesters and their supporters said they did not prevent Jews from roaming, but instead attempted to redirect Israeli and Zionist individuals to reduce conflict and conflict.
UCLA opposed the lawsuit, saying its camp action focused on safety and escalating tensions rather than discriminating against Jews. The attorney points to the major changes the UC system has made to ensure everything is safe during the protests. The UC system also adopted a zero-tolerance policy to protest that breaks the campus code.
At UCLA, authorities quickly closed several campuses after the original campsites were cleared and the establishment of a new campus safety office. New protest rules at UCLA limit campus areas where demonstrations may take place.
In August, a federal judge issued a provisional injunction against UCLA, ordering the university to ensure equal campus access for everyone.
“Under constitutional principles, UCLA may not allow services to some students if UCLA knows that other students are excluded on religious grounds, regardless of who designed the exclusion.”
The students and faculty who sued asked the judge to issue a permanent injunction on the same matter.
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