DOJ sues UCLA over alleged Title VI antisemitism violations

The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a federal lawsuit against the University of California, Los Angeles, alleging the university failed to protect Jewish and Israeli students from a hostile educational environment following the October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in the Central District of California, accuses UCLA of violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The Justice Department contends that UCLA demonstrated deliberate indifference to pervasive on-campus antisemitism. The complaint alleges that Jewish and Israeli students faced physical assaults, injuries, exclusion from campus spaces, and a loss of educational opportunities because of their perceived heritage. The lawsuit also claims UCLA breached its federal funding contracts by certifying compliance with Title VI while allegedly allowing discrimination to continue.

A central focus of the complaint is a pro-Palestinian encampment erected on the UCLA campus in April 2024. The Justice Department described the encampment as illegal and alleged that masked demonstrators physically attacked Jewish and Israeli students outside Royce Hall. The complaint states that occupiers slapped,...