Student activists have sued the University of Maryland after it restricted campus demonstrations for the anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel. School President Dr. Darryll Pines announced the cancellation of any student-led events due to safety concerns earlier this month.
The group UMD Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) filed the lawsuit at the Maryland U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, claiming that the student groups’ First Amendment rights have been violated. Attorneys from the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and Palestine Legal drafted the 19-page suit. It specifically targets Pines, the university and the University System of Maryland Board of Regents.
“The First Amendment does not allow campus officials to establish free-expression-black-out days, even on occasions that may be emotional or politically polarizing,” says the lawsuit.
A previous Sept. 4 letter from CAIR warned that the university should “avoid a legal clash with the First Amendment it will lose.”
Jewish student organizations first raised safety concerns after the university permitted the SJP to hold a vigil for lost Palestinian lives. The SJP would have held the vigil on McKeldin Mall, the largest open space on campus. Following the ensuing cancellation and restriction of further events, Pines shared the announcement with UMD staff and students.
In the letter, Pines noted that while there was “no immediate or active threat,” it was a necessary preventative measure. The lawsuit claims this contradicts what SJP was previously told. In earlier correspondence, the university cited “student safety” as the reason for cancellation.
On social media, the university’s Jewish Student Union thanked UMD leadership for ensuring the SJP could no longer “appropriate the suffering” of the Jewish community. However, the university’s Jewish Voice for Peace organization condemned the decision, calling it an “unlawful viewpoint and content-based discrimination.”
Besides seeking to repeal the university’s restriction of scheduled events, the lawsuit also wants Pines’ act declared unconstitutional. Additionally, it seeks reimbursement of attorney fees from the university, unspecified damages for the violation of First Amendment rights; and “additional relief as the interests of justice may require.”
Photo courtesy of the University of Maryland Students for Justice in Palestine. 15,000 flags set up on McKeldin Mall by the UMD SJP in honor of Palestinian lives lost in Gaza. Since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, protests have erupted on college campuses across the country.
