A Jewish student at the State University of New York (SUNY), with the help of the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), secured a victory in an attack on free speech.
The student, confronted by students across campus with pro-Hamas slogans on their clothing, wore an Israel Defense Forces shirt.
A complaint was lodged against her, and she was ordered to meet with a school dean.
The students wearing shirts in support of Hamas or Gaza, however, were not called in.
The student reached out to the ACLJ for assistance, who shared,
After hearing the details of her case, we took immediate action on her behalf. Via phone, we attended the meeting with our client and the dean of the school, and we explained our client’s right to equal treatment, including the ability to wear expressive material in the classroom – especially since the school had no dress code requirements pertaining to symbols, flags, or political speech.
The school quickly understood our position and agreed that our client was free to wear her IDF T-shirt to class and that she should not have been singled out by the school and reprimanded. Subsequently, the dean met with the other students our client identified to the school as having worn expressive apparel in support of Hamas and Gaza, as well as the entire first-year class. The dean ensured that every student was aware of the school’s desire to keep politics out of the classroom as much as possible, but also that no dress code existed, nor would one be adopted.
We are pleased the school acted so swiftly to remedy the situation and that it agreed there had been no wrongdoing on the part of our client. As a result, our client is free to continue expressing her viewpoints, including her support of Israel, and attend classes without issue.
