Three Jewish students filed a civil rights lawsuit against the University of California Board of Regents and university officials, claiming UCLA allowed “antisemitic activists” to prevent Jewish students from accessing the heart of the campus during anti-Israel demonstrations in April and May. The students allege that UCLA allowed a group of students and outside demonstrators to set up an encampment that created a “Jew Exclusion Zone,” blocking Jewish students and faculty from passing through unless they disavowed Israel’s right to exist. This comes amidst the ongoing conflict in the Middle East between Hamas terrorists and Israeli forces, leading to anti-Israel demonstrations on college campuses across the U.S. and worldwide.
Similar lawsuits have been filed against other universities over their handling of anti-Israel campus protests, including Rutgers University and Columbia University, which recently settled with a Jewish student over an “unsafe educational environment.” The complaint against UCLA accuses the university of failing to take action to address the blockades set up by activists, despite being aware of the situation for a week. Activists at the encampment used checkpoints, wristbands, barriers, and locked arms to prevent Jewish students and faculty from accessing various parts of the campus.
The lawsuit, filed by Becket on behalf of the three Jewish students, highlights the alleged failures of UCLA’s administration to address the situation. According to the complaint, UCLA instructed security staff to discourage unapproved students from trying to cross through the areas blocked by activists instead of clearing the encampment. The president and CEO of Becket, Mark Rienzi, criticized UCLA for caving to antisemitic activists and allowing Jewish students to be segregated from their own campus, calling it a profound and illegal failure of leadership. The plaintiffs are seeking accountability from the university to ensure that Jews will never again face this kind of treatment on campus.
UCLA responded to the lawsuit by stating that it is aware of the legal action and will review and respond appropriately. The university emphasized its commitment to supporting the safety and well-being of the entire campus community. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit described how they were targeted and harassed by activists within the encampment, with one student being forced to abandon his regular routes through campus due to the blockades. Another student reported being repeatedly blocked from accessing public spaces on campus and hearing chants that included “death to Jews.”
The students involved in the lawsuit shared their experiences of facing antisemitic harassment and being restricted from accessing essential parts of the campus during the demonstrations. One law student mentioned that her final exam studies were significantly compromised as she had to navigate around the encampment and subject herself to antisemitic chants and signs to reach the law school’s library. Eventually, the police cleared the UCLA encampment and made over 200 arrests after a delayed law enforcement response. The plaintiffs are hoping that their legal action will ensure that incidents of antisemitism like this will not occur again on UCLA’s campus or any other educational institution.
