| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | AA | AB | |
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1 | Title VI Antisemitism Investigations and Lawsuits Against Colleges and Universities | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2 | Visual by Visualizing Palestine and Middle East Studies Association | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3 | This visual is based on the 2025 report Discriminating Against Dissent: The Weaponization of Civil Rights Law to Repress Campus Speech on Palestine by the Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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5 | STATEMENT | DESCRIPTION/EXCERPT | SOURCE | PUBLISHED | SOURCE URL | LAST ACCESSED | ||||||||||||||||||||||
6 | Chart data - title VI antisemitism investigations and lawsuits against colleges and universities since 2004 | Data published in 2025 report Discriminating Against Dissent: The Weaponization of Civil Rights Law to Repress Campus Speech on Palestine by the Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors. Updates after the November 2025 publication, as well as a breakdown of lawsuits per year, are on file with VP. | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
7 | Title VI antisemitism investigations v. lawsuits | Pg. 4-5 - "There are two primary ways of enforcing Title VI: Government agencies can investigate institutions that they fund for violating Title VI. Such investigations in the education context are primarily carried out by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR), which is also responsible for enforcement of other civil rights provisions, such as those pertaining to sex discrimination (including sexual harassment) under Title IX of the 1972 Education Amendments Act. Private parties can also file lawsuits in federal court against institutions that discriminate or show deliberate indifference to discriminatory harassment. | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
8 | Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits federally funded institutions from discriminating on the basis of "race, color, or national origin." | See pg. 1 and 4 | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
9 | For the past two decades, right-wing forces have sought to redefine Title Vl protections to repress criticism of Israel, erode freedom of expression, and undermine the legal basis for racial and gender equity in higher education. | See pg. 5 - "Early Efforts to Weaponize Civil Rights Law Against Critics of Israel Foreshadow Today’s Crisis" | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
10 | In 2004, Department of Education official and pro-Israel advocate Kenneth L. Marcus broadened the quidelines for Title VI enforcement, laying the groundwork for treating solidarity with Palestine as a form of anti-Jewish discrimination. | Pg. 6 - "A key figure in this story is Kenneth L. Marcus, a conservative movement lawyer and pro-Israel activist...When George W. Bush was elected president, Marcus was among the young neoconservative lawyers appointed to federal government positions. He joined the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) and then moved to the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, where he served as deputy head before taking over in 2004. In September 2004, Marcus issued a DCL proclaiming that OCR could exercise its jurisdiction to enforce Title VI to protect religious groups when they face discrimination “on the basis of shared ethnic characteristics,” such as “Arab Muslim, Sikh and Jewish students.” This was a significant departure from the text of Title VI, which specifically outlawed discrimination on the basis of “race, color, or national origin.”..the main effect of the letter was to bring antisemitism claims under the purview of Title VI." | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
11 | Within weeks. the Zionist Organization of America filed the first Title VI antisemitism complaint against a university in response to student protests. | Pg. 6 - "Zionist activists were quick to exploit this opportunity. Within weeks of the Marcus DCL, the right-wing Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) filed a Title VI complaint with OCR alleging that pro Palestine protests created a hostile antisemitic environment at the University of California Irvine. Marcus personally reviewed the complaint and ordered the opening of an investigation, bypassing standard procedure." | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
12 | TIMELINE | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
13 | 2004: Department of Education official Kenneth L. Marcus revises Title VI guidelines with the goal of protecting Zionist political opinion. First Title Vl antisemitism complaint focuses on campus Palestine solidarity protests. | See pg. 6 | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
14 | 2010: Obama administration reinforces the 2004 expansion of Title Vl in response to a letter from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and a dozen other Zionist organizations. | See pg. 6-7 | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
15 | 2011: Marcus founds the Brandeis Center, a Zionist lawfare group. First Title VI antisemitism lawsuit responds to mock Israeli checkpoint on campus | "The Brandeis Center was founded in 2011 by Kenneth L. Marcus..." | The Brandeis Center | - | https://brandeiscenter.com/our-history/ | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
16 | Pg. 7 - "Lawyers serving on the Brandeis Center board also launched the first Title VI antisemitism lawsuit against UC Berkeley in 2011, alleging that a 'mock checkpoint' held by student protesters (an attempt to draw attention to the treatment of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation) constituted an act of 'terrorist incitement.' The court dismissed the suit, holding that these acts were 'pure political speech and expressive conduct, in a public setting, regarding matters of public concern, which is entitled to special protection under the First Amendment.' The same complainants then asked for an OCR investigation, which was also unsuccessful. OCR confirmed that the complaint “describe[d] events that constituted expression on matters of public concern directed to the University community." | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
17 | 2019: Trump executive order directs the executive branch to apply the IHRA definition of antisemitism, criticized by its own author as a "blunt instrument to label anyone an antisemite." | Pg. 8 - "In 2019, Trump applied Marcus’ approach throughout the executive branch, issuing an executive order purporting to prohibit antisemitism as a form of discrimination under Title VI and requiring all agencies to “consider” the IHRA definition in Title VI enforcement." | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
18 | White House Archives | 2019 | https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-combating-anti-semitism/ | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
19 | In 2025, Kenneth Stern, the author of the IHRA definition of antisemitism, lamented abuse of the IHRA definition of antisemitism to repress academic freedom, noting he hadn't intended "to create a blunt instrument to label anyone an antisemite, and certainly not to create a campus hate speech code" and argues that "the adoption of the IHRA definition (or any such definition) is not only bad policy, but it also can constitute illegal viewpoint discrimination when used by state institutions." | Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University | 2025 | https://knightcolumbia.org/content/a-bad-deal-why-using-the-ihra-definition-of-antisemitism-on-campus-is-incompatible-with-academic-freedom-and-students-right-to-open-inquiry | June 8, 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
20 | 2020: NYU adopts IHRA definition, eroding freedom of expression to settle a Title VI investigation. | Pg. 20 - "Seven antisemitism lawsuits have resulted in settlements favorable to plaintiffs, in some cases producing even more far-reaching policy changes than OCR resolution agreements. The NYU and Harvard settlements both included adoption of the IHRA definition of antisemitism into their policies. Moreover, both schools added virtually identical language to their anti-discrimination policies that treat Zionism as a protected identity on the grounds that '[ f]or many Jewish people, Zionism is a part of their Jewish identity.' Under these policies, excluding individuals from activities or events on the basis of commitment to Zionism – a political ideology – or 'disseminating tropes, stereotypes, and conspiracies about Zionists' could constitute discrimination. It is highly significant that these universities have voluntarily accepted this definition of antisemitism – and that NYU settled relatively early in the litigation, even before a preliminary hearing on the lawsuit’s plausibility" | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
21 | 2023: Campus protests against Israeli genocide in Gaza spur surge of Title VI lawfare. 99% of complaints target speech critical of Israel. | Pg. 2 - "All but one of the 102 antisemitism complaint letters we have analyzed focus on speech critical of Israel; of these, 79% contain allegations of antisemitism that simply describe criticisms of Israel or Zionism with no reference to Jews or Judaism; at least 50% of complaints consist solely of such criticism." | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
22 | 2024: Antisemitism probes outpace probes for all other types of racial harassment combined. | Pg. 2 - "Between October 7, 2023 and the end of 2024, the Biden administration opened more antisemitism probes against colleges and universities (65) than for all other types of racial harassment combined." | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
23 | 2025: Trump admin uses Title VI antisemitism investigations to pressure universities to comply with its agenda. | See pg. 24 - "The Trump Administration’s Agreements with Universities Use Repression of Palestine Speech as a Wedge to Further Right-Wing Agendas on Racial and Gender Equity" | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
24 | WHO'S BEHIND THIS? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
25 | Groups and numbers of complaints/lawsuits | See pg. 13 - Pro-Israel and Right-Wing Organization Involvement in Title VI Complaints | Middle East Studies Association and American Association of University Professors | 2025 | https://www.aaup.org/sites/default/files/2025-11/Discriminating-Against-Dissent_0.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
26 | The Brandeis Center Founder says Title VI antisemitism complaints aim to “expose administrators to bad publicity.” | 2013 article by Brandeis founder Kenneth L. Marcus: "These cases – even when rejected – expose administrators to bad publicity. Just last week, I heard from a university chancellor who is eager to work with the Schusterman Center for Israel studies at Brandeis University to avert the possibility of a civil rights complaint." | Marcus, Kenneth in the Jerusalem Post | 2013 | https://www.jpost.com/opinion/op-ed-contributors/standing-up-for-jewish-students-325648 | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
27 | Zachary Marschall Editor-in-chief of right-wing news site, opposes Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). | "In May 2021 he took a job at Campus Reform, becoming its editor-in-chief a year later. The news site is funded by an institute associated with longtime Republican activist Morton Blackwell." "Marschall is the most prolific filer of antisemitism complaints filed under Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act since Oct. 7...He is particularly galled by diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, known as DEI...Marschall told the right-wing news outlet Just the News last month that he believed revelations about antisemitism in higher education would bring about 'the beginning of the end of DEI.'" | Lapin, Andrew in the Times of Israel | 2024 | https://www.timesofisrael.com/meet-the-jewish-conservative-leading-campus-antisemitism-investigations-in-the-us/ | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
28 | StandWithUs Receives Israeli government funding to “spread government-backed advocacy messages.” | "The Prime Minister’s Office is to provide American pro-Israel group StandWithUs over NIS 1 million ($250,000) to help spread government-backed advocacy messages...The group’s efforts are focused mainly on US college campuses." | The Times of Israel | 2015 | https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-to-bankroll-nis-1m-standwithus-venture/ | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
29 | Zionist Organization of America Engages in anti-Muslim extremism; calls Trump "the best friend Israel ever had." | The Southern Poverty Law Center says of the Zionist Organiation of America "much of its activism in recent years has leaned heavily toward anti-Muslim extremism," noting that its director, Morton Klein "was one of the speakers at the annual convention of the anti-Muslim hate group ACT! for America earlier this year, joining a who’s who roster of the anti-Muslim movement. He also spoke at the rabidly anti-Muslim American Freedom Alliance’s gathering in Los Angeles this summer." | Southern Poverty Law Center | 2016 | https://www.splcenter.org/resources/hatewatch/stephen-bannons-inclusion-zoa-dinner-opens-rift-among-american-jewish-groups/ | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
30 | "The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) on Friday announced that it will honor former President Donald Trump with its Theodor Herzl Medallion. Trump will receive the honor, which ZOA said it “rarely gives,” at the organization’s national award dinner in New York City on Nov. 13. ZOA stated in an email that it is honoring Trump 'for being the best friend Israel ever had in the White House.'" | Jewish News Service | 2022 | https://www.jns.org/zoa-to-honor-trump-calling-him-best-friend-israel-ever-had-in-the-white-house | June 8, 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
31 | The Anti-Defamation League CEO compared student protesters to ISIS and Al-Qaeda. | "Greenblatt compared campus protesters to Middle Eastern terrorists at multiple points in his remarks, which were part of a panel discussion at the Republican attorneys general annual summer conference. 'You have people hiding their faces behind scarves and keffiyehs like they’re in ISIS, storming libraries, vandalizing buildings and literally – I’m not exaggerating – terrorizing their classmates,' he said. At another point he said the state officials should support laws that ban people from wearing masks at protests because 'the founding fathers didn’t want al-Qaida right running rampant on our streets.'" | The Forward | 2025 | https://forward.com/news/726133/greenblatt-adl-protesters-terrorists/ | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
32 | American Center for Law & Justice Advisor on Project 2025. | See page xi | The Heritage Foundation | 2023 | https://static.heritage.org/project2025/2025_MandateForLeadership_FULL.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
33 | The Lawfare Project Founder said “there’s no such thing as a Palestinian person.” | Brooke Goldstein is director of the Lawfare Proejct. "Goldstein also has a history of right-wing activism and controversial statements. She has made appearances on conservative news networks such as Fox News, One America News and Newsmax. She once said that “there’s no such thing as a Palestinian person,” and on Election Day in 2016, tweeted, “Can I run the anti-anti-islamophobia department in the Trump administration?” | Henry, Jacob in the Times of Israel | 2023 | https://www.timesofisrael.com/growing-end-jew-hatred-movement-sparks-controversy-amid-right-wing-links/ | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
34 | Defense of Freedom Institute Advisor on Project 2025. Led by former Trump admin officials. | See page xi | The Heritage Foundation | 2023 | https://static.heritage.org/project2025/2025_MandateForLeadership_FULL.pdf | June 8, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
35 | Robert S. Eitel: "Bob is a co-founder and President of DFI. He previously served as Senior Counselor to the Secretary of Education from 2017 through 2020 and Deputy General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Education from 2005 until 2009. " Jim Blew: "Jim is a co-founder of DFI. Before his Senate confirmation as the Assistant Secretary for Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development at the U.S. Department of Education under Secretary Betsy DeVos..." | Defense of Freedom Institute | - | https://dfipolicy.org/about/ | June 8, 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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