Judge rules UCLA cannot allow protesters to block Jewish students from campus

LOS ANGELES | A federal judge ruled Tuesday that the University of California, Los Angeles, cannot allow pro-Palestinian protesters to block Jewish students from accessing classes and other parts of the campus.

The injunction marks the first time a U.S. judge has ruled against a university over protests against the war between Israel and Hamas on college campuses earlier this year.

U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi ruled in a lawsuit filed in June by three Jewish UCLA students. The students alleged they faced discrimination on campus during the protest because of their faith and that UCLA failed to ensure campus access to all Jewish students.

“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 parts of the UCLA campus because they refused to renounce their faith,” Scarsi wrote.

UCLA argued that it bears no legal responsibility over the matter because it was protesters, not the university, that blocked Jewish students’ access to the school. The university also collaborated with law enforcement to thwart attempts to set up new protest camps.

Scarsi ruled that the university is prohibited from offering classes and accessing campus buildings if Jewish students are prevented from entering.

Yitzchok Frankel, a UCLA law student who filed the suit, welcomed the order.

“No student should have to fear being barred from their campus for being Jewish,” Frankel said in a statement. “I am grateful that the court has ordered UCLA to stop this shameful anti-Jewish conduct.”

UCLA spokeswoman Mary Osako said the ruling “would unduly limit our ability to respond to events on the ground and meet the needs of the Bruin community.”

The university is also considering all available options for moving forward, he said.

“UCLA is committed to fostering a campus culture where everyone feels welcome and free from bullying, discrimination and harassment,” Osako said in a statement to The Associated Press.

The ruling came after Scarsi ordered UCLA last month to create a plan to protect Jewish students. The University of California, one of the nation’s largest public university systems, is also working on campus-wide guidelines on protests.

The UCLA demonstrations became part of a movement on campuses across the country against the war between Israel and Hamas. At UCLA, law enforcement ordered more than a thousand protesters to dismantle their camp in May as tensions on campus rose. Counterprotesters had attacked the camp overnight, and at least 15 protesters were injured. In June, dozens of protesters on campus were arrested after they tried to set up a new camp.

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