United States – UCLA cannot permit pro-Palestinian protesters to push Jewish students off from accessing buildings, classes, and services on the University of California in Los Angeles campus, a federal judge has concluded, as reported by Reuters.
U. S. District Judge Mark Scarsi’s order seems to be the first decision against a U. S. university related to the protests regarding the Israel-Gaza conflict that started at hundreds of colleges this year.
Legal Complaint and Court Ruling
The temporary restraining order of the reputed university was signed on Tuesday as part of the legal complaint filed in June by three Jewish students, who claimed pro-Palestinian demonstrators prevented them from accessing campus because of their religion.
“In the year 2024, in the United States of America, in the State of California, in the City of Los Angeles, Jewish students were excluded from portions of the UCLA campus because they refused to denounce their faith,” Scarsi wrote, calling it “unimaginable” and “abhorrent.”
He prohibited the school from providing any programs, activities, and facility access if it knew any of them did not extend to Jewish students.
The school had insisted in the papers on the grounds that it cannot be vicariously liable for discrimination by third parties. The university also stated that it coordinated with police to remove the encampments and noted that the institution had taken measures to better address protests in the future, such as developing a new campus safety office and thwarting three other attempts to take over parts of the campus.
The school vice chancellor for strategic communications, Mary Osako, said through the statement that UCLA was thinking “All our options” regarding the ruling.
“UCLA is committed to fostering a campus culture where everyone feels welcome and free from intimidation, discrimination, and harassment,” she said. “The district court’s ruling would improperly hamstring our ability to respond to events on the ground and to meet the needs of the Bruin community.”
Student Advocacy
Yitzchok Frankel, a law student who helped to launch the lawsuit, stated, “No student should ever have to fear being blocked from their campus because they are Jewish. ”
UCLA came under the national media when armed and masked thugs went to attack an anti-Israel demonstration camp on April 30 wielding clubs and poles in an exchange that saw the use of pepper spray and other forms of physical force.
Controversial Campus Incident
The next night, they stormed the camp and cleared away protesters, along with arresting more than 200 individuals, as reported by Reuters.
Leaders and activists condemned police for their slow reaction to the attack incident and also for being overly assertive in dismantling the tent camp the next day. The head of the campus police was replaced for the position pending review by the external personnel.