The Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against the University of California, Los Angeles, accusing the school of failing to protect Jewish and Israeli employees from antisemitic harassment during pro-Palestinian protests in 2023 and 2024. The lawsuit alleges that university leaders did not take adequate action to address misconduct tied to campus demonstrations, including a 2024 encampment where dozens of protesters were arrested after refusing to leave.

According to the complaint, Jewish employees were blocked from parts of campus and subjected to antisemitic signs and chants. Federal officials argue that the university violated its own anti-discrimination policies by allowing the encampment to continue and by failing to discipline students, faculty, or staff involved in antisemitic behavior.

The legal action follows a previous six million dollar settlement the university reached with three Jewish students and a Jewish professor who sued over similar allegations. The new lawsuit contends that the harm extended beyond that case and seeks a court order requiring stronger enforcement of anti-discrimination rules, along with damages for affected employees.

The case marks an escalation in the administration’s broader effort to hold universities accountable for what it describes as inadequate responses to antisemitism on campus. The University of California, Los Angeles, is one of the few public institutions targeted in this campaign.