A federal judge ruled Tuesday that pro-Palestinian protesters cannot prevent Jewish students from accessing the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) following a lawsuit alleging students were “excluded from portions” of campus.
The case was brought by three Jewish students who argued that the pro-Palestinian protests that occupied the UCLA campus in April purposely excluded Jewish students, infringing on their religious freedom and “directly interfered with instruction by blocking students’ pathways to classrooms.” Trump-appointed Judge Mark C. Scarsi granted a preliminary injunction prohibiting the university from “knowingly allowing or facilitating the exclusion of Jewish students from ordinarily available portions of UCLA’s programs, activities, and campus areas.”
“This fact is so unimaginable and so abhorrent to our constitutional guarantee of religious freedom that it bears repeating, Jewish students were excluded from portions of the UCLA campus because they refused to denounce their faith. UCLA does not dispute this,” the judge wrote in the court decision.
The students also claimed they were prevented from attending or “evacuated” from exams. (Americans Mostly Agree Democracy Is On The Ballot In November, But Disagree On The Threat)
Pro-Palestinian students stand their ground after police breached their encampment the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in Los Angeles, California, early on May 2, 2024. (Photo by ETIENNE LAURENT/AFP via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MAY 02: A California Highway Patrol (CHP) officer detains a protestor while clearing a pro-Palestinian encampment after dispersal orders were given at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) campus, on May 2, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
The university argued that it is not responsible for the actions of the “third-party protesters” and that the case is moot as it relies on past actions that the university believes have been resolved. Scarsi rejected the argument saying the university has a responsibility to protect the students and has not proven it will not allow similar incidences to occur in the future.
“UCLA claims that it has no responsibility to protect the religious freedom of its Jewish students … but under constitutional principles, UCLA may not allow services to some students when UCLA knows that other students are excluded on religious grounds, regardless of who engineered the exclusion,” Scarsi wrote.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MAY 23: People wearing keffiyehs pose for a photo as LAPD officers keep watch after police cleared a new encampment of pro-Palestinian protestors on the UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) campus on May 23, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. The protest coincided with today’s congressional hearing on campus protests where UCLA Chancellor Gene Block testified. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MAY 01: California Highway Patrol (CHP) officers patrol at a pro-Palestinian encampment, the morning after it was attacked by counter-protestors at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) campus, on May 1, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. A group of counter-protestors attacked the camp overnight leaving some demonstrators wounded. The camp was declared ‘unlawful’ by the university yesterday and classes have been cancelled today due to the violence. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MAY 2: Pro-Palestine Protestors stand with shields across from members of law enforcement in an encampment at UCLA on May 2, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. The camp was declared ‘unlawful’ by the university and many protestors have been detained. Pro-Palestinian encampments have sprung up at college campuses around the country with some protestors calling for schools to divest from Israeli interests amid the ongoing war in Gaza. (Photo by Eric Thayer/Getty Images)
Pro-Palestinian students and activists gather at an encampment as they demonstrate at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 25, 2024, in Los Angeles, California. College campuses across the US braced for fresh protests by pro-Palestinian students, extending a week of increasingly confrontational standoffs with police, mass arrests and accusations of anti-Semitism. (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
Protesters in April set up a “Jew Exclusion Zone” on campus and required students to denounce Israel and wear wristbands to identify their support for the cause. Over 100 demonstrators were arrested in May after turning violent, resulting in several injuries and a trashed campus.
Since the original week-long encampment was taken down by police the university has allowed three additional infractions to protest rules, once again allowing for university grounds to be occupied and campus events to be disrupted, court documents allege.
UCLA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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