The lawsuit was filed on Nov. 20 challenging the deactivation order signed by State University System of Florida chancellor Raymond Rodrigues.
Photo by Alisha Durosier | The Crow’s Nest
By Alisha Durosier
In response to an order calling for its deactivation, the University of South Florida chapter of the Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) has filed a lawsuit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, USF officials, and the State University System of Florida.
The lawsuit, filed on Nov. 20, states that the Oct. 24 letter ordering the deactivation of all Florida public university chapters of SJP written by Florida university system chancellor Ray Rodrigues in consultation with Gov. DeSantis, is a violation of students’ first amendment rights.
“Defendants may not restrict speech, assembly, or association for any group, under any circumstances, simply because they disagree with (or even if they are repulsed by) that group’s actual (or imputed) views. Restrictions on speech must always be viewpoint neutral. But a viewpoint based restriction is being imposed here,” the lawsuit states.
SJP is a student organization that advocates for Palestinian liberation in the occupied West Bank and Gaza. In the wake of the Israel-Hamas war, their pro-Palestinian advocacy has not been received well by many government officials.
In the letter, Rodrigues referenced the National SJP’s “toolkit” for the Oct. 12 “Day of Resistance” that referred to Hamas and their Oct. 7 attack on Israel as “the resistance” and stated “Palestinian students in exile are PART of this movement [resistance], not in solidarity with this movement.”
Rodrigues cited this as a violation of state law that to “knowingly provide material support . . . to a designated foreign terrorist organization. . .” is a felony.
The lawsuit states that USF SJP has no formal or financial relationship with National SJP and that they are “fully autonomous” from National SJP.
The Council of American Islamic relations (CAIR), a Muslim civil rights and advocacy group, alongside Mehri and Skalet, PLLC, and the Erchid Law Firm will represent USF SJP.
“Let it resonate with Governor DeSantis and others far and wide that this is a constitutional matter,” CAIR Executive Director Imam Abdullah Jaber said in a press conference held on Nov. 21. “The attempt to brand American students who are pro-Palestinian, who come from every background…to brand them as terrorist sympathizers is dangerous and it will not deter us or them for standing for what’s right.”
Represented by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the University of Florida chapter of SJP similarly filed a lawsuit, challenging the deactivation order earlier this month.
“It is extremely dangerous not just for stopping what the students might be able to do but it also makes them a target across the nation,” CAIR lead attorney Omar Saleh said.
Attorneys describe the state of USF SJP as being in limbo.
Despite the deactivation order, Florida chapters of SJP have not been deactivated. In a State University System Board of Governors meeting on Nov. 9, Rodrigues stated that upon legal consultation “…they raise concerns about potential personal liability for university actors who deactivate the student-registered organization.”
“The freedom of speech is the freedom to speak without the threat, or the looming threat that prevents or inhibits that freedom, chilling speech is the same thing as preventing speech,” said Echrid Law attorney Roza Tawil.
USF officials being sued by USF SJP include President Rhea Law and the USF Board of Trustees (BOT).
USF leaders made their first public statements since the Rodrigues’s deactivation order during a BOT meeting on Dec. 5. They did not discuss Rodrigues’s deactivation order or the status of USF SJP, but expressed their support for students’ rights to free speech.
“We are committed to safeguarding the First Amendment rights of all of the members of our community, while at the same time making clear that the groups and the individuals exercising those rights do not speak for our university and USF does not endorse the content of their speech,” President Law said.
Discussions regarding the order are being held between USF and Rodrigues’s office.
“When you talk about SJP, that club is not only made of Palestinians. It is also other American youth whether they be white black Jew Christian, or non-faith,” Jaber said. “That is what SJP is, they’re Americans who believe in the ideals of our nation.”
