The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a civil lawsuit against the University of California, Los Angeles, accusing the institution of failing to protect Jewish and Israeli faculty and staff from harassment following campus demonstrations related to the war in Gaza.
In the complaint submitted Tuesday, federal lawyers allege UCLA violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act by not adequately addressing discriminatory conduct that emerged after the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent military campaign in Gaza.
The government argues university administrators did not take sufficient steps to prevent or correct behavior that created what it described as a hostile work environment.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement that federal investigators concluded antisemitic conduct had been allowed to persist on campus. “Based on our investigation, UCLA administrators allegedly allowed virulent anti-Semitism to flourish on campus, harming students and staff alike,” she said.
UCLA did not immediately comment publicly on the lawsuit.
The legal action forms part of a broader federal campaign directed at universities over campus climate issues since President Donald Trump returned to office last year.
The administration has launched inquiries, cut funding and brought cases involving campus policies on protests, diversity initiatives and student protections. The UCLA case also adds to an ongoing dispute between the federal government and California’s Democratic led state administration.
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Campus tensions intensified nationwide after the Gaza war began, with demonstrations, counter protests and encampments appearing at multiple universities. UCLA experienced large scale protests in April 2024 that drew police intervention and led to arrests and injuries. The university now faces separate litigation from pro Palestinian protesters who allege excessive force and unlawful detentions by law enforcement and counter demonstrators.
The Justice Department case is not the first legal challenge connected to the campus unrest. In July, UCLA agreed to pay $6.5 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Jewish students and a faculty member who alleged the university failed to prevent antisemitic discrimination.
In the settlement, the institution acknowledged shortcomings in its response.
Federal action against the university has previously extended beyond litigation. Last year the administration sought to impose a $1 billion penalty linked to a pro Palestinian encampment and threatened to withhold more than $500 million in grant funding.
A judge blocked the move, writing that the government appeared to be using civil rights investigations as leverage to influence campus policies.
Internal dissent within the Justice Department also surfaced. In December, nine department attorneys told the Los Angeles Times they felt pressured to conclude the university discriminated against Jewish students and faculty before the investigation was complete. One former lawyer involved in the case said political leadership appeared to have predetermined the outcome.
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Harmeet Dhillon, assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division, said the allegations, if proven, would represent serious institutional failure. She said the incidents described in the complaint were incompatible with federal workplace protections.
The lawsuit seeks court ordered remedies requiring UCLA to change policies, strengthen reporting procedures and implement corrective measures to address workplace harassment. Title VII prohibits employment discrimination based on religion, among other protected categories, and applies to faculty and staff rather than student conduct alone.
The case arrives amid wider national debate over how universities balance free expression with safety and anti discrimination obligations.
Colleges across the United States have struggled to manage demonstrations related to the Gaza conflict while protecting students and employees from intimidation or harassment.
UCLA’s legal response and the court’s early rulings will determine whether the dispute proceeds to trial or moves toward settlement.
Federal officials indicated further enforcement actions against universities remain under consideration as investigations into campus conditions continue.