Discipline justified ‘given the multiple alleged violations of rules and policies’
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit by the University of Vermont chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, saying the group’s suspension for violating several school policies was “merited.”
Judge William Sessions issued the ruling on December 20. The UVM SJP had filed suit back in September, alleging school officials violated its First Amendment rights via a temporary suspension for setting up an encampment on campus.
On its Instagram page regarding the suit, the SJP claimed the university’s “suppression” wasn’t just targeting pro-Palestinian student activists, but “anyone who stands up to [its] rogue administration.”
Activists at the encampment had demanded UVM divest from “all weapons manufacturers, Israeli companies, and companies involved in the occupation of historic Palestine,” a boycott of Israeli educational institutions, and a guarantee that anti-Israel activists would face no discipline, VTDigger reported.
At the time, UVM spokesperson Adam White said the university “values free expression” and that those in the campus community are “encouraged to speak out”; however, all must “do so within the law and university policy.”
Judge Sessions agreed.
“The Court finds the University’s concerns reasonable. The policy in question addressed two well-established institutional interests: safety and security,” Sessions wrote. “Allowing students to sleep outside on University property gives rise to vulnerabilities that are not present when students are housed in secure dormitories.”
Further, the judge noted “the interim suspension of UVMSJP meets the University’s burden given the multiple alleged violations of rules and policies, and the reasonable and viewpoint-neutral responses to those allegations [… the] defendants’ actions, and the underlying policies giving rise to those actions, did not violate UVMSJP’s constitutional rights.”
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Other alleged violations in the university’s suspension notice to the group, including the disruption of normal student engagement or work patterns, “also fit within those same legitimate and reasonable University goals,” Sessions wrote.
[SJP attorney John] Franco declined to comment on the ruling, and did not say whether the group would appeal.
Just days after the court decision, the student group’s interim suspension expired, eight months after it was first issued, according to Franco.
The group is now recognized on campus but is under probation — which will last through the end of the 2025 spring semester, he said.
In an emailed statement, the Students for Justice in Palestine group said it was “disappointed” by the lawsuit’s dismissal but it “will return to campus with resilience and strength.”
“We look forward to rejoining the campus community as we march forward together in solidarity with the Palestinian people,” the group said.
The UVM Students for Justice in Palestine will be on disciplinary probation through May of this year, according to the school’s Student Organization Misconduct page.
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IMAGE: New England First Amendment Coalition/Facebook
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