A federal judge on Tuesday raised alarm over UCLA’s handling of a pro-Palestinian encampment and ordered the university to ensure equal opportunity for Jewish students, three of whom claimed in a lawsuit that the university allowed protesters to be blocked because of their Jewish beliefs Jews entered parts of campus.
In issuing the preliminary injunction, U.S. District Judge Mark C. Scarsi sided with the students, whose lawsuit filed in June said UCLA had Bike rack barriers were erected around the camp, helping to create a “Jewish no-go” on campus. Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that security hired by UCLA allowed protesters into the camp but not Jewish students.
“In 2024, in the United States of America, in California, in the city of Los Angeles, Jewish students are excluded from parts of the UCLA campus because they refuse to denounce their faith. This fact is so unimaginable and contrary to our Constitution “Guarantees of religious freedom bear reiterating that Jewish students are excluded from parts of UCLA’s campus because they refuse to denounce their faith,” Scaci wrote.
“UCLA does not dispute this. Instead, UCLA claims that it has no responsibility to protect the religious freedom of Jewish students because the exclusion was orchestrated by third-party protesters,” Scaci wrote. “But under constitutional principles, UCLA may not be permitted to provide services to certain students when it knows that other students have been excluded on religious grounds, regardless of who orchestrated the exclusion.”
The judge’s order gives UCLA two days until Thursday, instructing UCLA police, security and student affairs departments “that they shall not assist or engage in any effort to impede Jewish students’ access to normally available programs, activities and campus areas.” ACT. This coincides with orientation for the fall semester of the Law School, which begins in September.
Scaci’s decision is not the final word on the merits of the case. Instead, it said the students suing could suffer irreparable harm if he does not issue a preliminary injunction while the case proceeds.
Yitzchok Frankel, one of the plaintiffs, celebrated in a statement.
“No student should have to worry about being banned from campus because they are Jewish,” said Frankel, who will be a third-year law student this fall semester. “I am grateful that the court ordered UCLA to cease this disgraceful anti-Semitic conduct.”
Frankel and two other students are represented by the nonprofit Beckett Religious Liberty Foundation and the law firm Clement Murphy.
A UCLA official said in a statement that the order would “unduly restrict” how the university responds to incidents on campus.
“UCLA is committed to cultivating a campus culture where everyone feels welcome and free from intimidation, discrimination and harassment,” said Mary Osako, vice chancellor for strategic communications. “The district court’s ruling will unduly diminish our ability to respond to local incidents and meet the needs of the brown bear community. We are carefully reviewing the judge’s ruling and considering all of our options going forward.”
UCLA said in court filings ahead of Tuesday that it would appeal the ban.
The case centers on the establishment of a pro-Palestinian camp in Royce Quad on April 25. Economic ties. When a mob descended on the camp on April 30, law enforcement’s response was delayed by several hours. On May 1, police broke into the camp and arrested more than 200 people.
UCLA opposed the lawsuit, saying its actions related to the camp were intended to ensure safety and de-escalate tensions, not to discriminate against Jews.
University lawyers also argue that significant changes have occurred since the April encampment that make concerns about future protests less relevant. The changes include closing multiple new camps on the same day they were established, creating a new campus safety office, hiring a new police chief and strictly enforcing UCLA rules, including a ban on overnight camping.
There is also considerable controversy over whether the camp discriminated against Jews. Pro-Palestinian student and faculty activists at UCLA, including the group the Academy for Justice in Palestine, which filed an amicus brief, have drawn the distinction. They said the protests were anti-Zionist but not anti-Semitic and that many of the protesters were Jewish.
But for many Jews, Zionism — the belief in a Jewish state in the homeland of Jewish ancestors — is the key to Jewish identity. In his order, Skasi endorsed that view, saying the plaintiffs “insist that support for the Jewish State of Israel is their sincerely held religious belief.”
Tuesday’s court order increases pressure on UC’s Board of Regents and campus leaders, who say they will no longer tolerate encampments and will enforce protest rules.
Chancellor Michael V. Drake is working with UC leadership on a system-wide plan for how campuses will respond to possible incidents arising from the Israel-Hamas war and violations of free speech guidelines Autumn protests. State lawmakers will withhold $25 million in state funds until Drake submits a report on those efforts by Oct. 1.