The Trump administration will soon target the University of California as part of its broader federal push to address antisemitism on college campuses, according to Leo Terrell, senior counsel to the assistant attorney general for civil rights in the Department of Justice.
On Tuesday, May 27, Terrell, who leads the DOJ’s antisemitism task force, said on Fox News’ The Faulkner Focus that the Trump administration is preparing legal action against the UC system and other universities across the country.
“Massive lawsuits against [the] UC system are coming,” Terrell said. “Expect hate crime charges filed by the federal government. Expect Title VII lawsuits.”
Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of “race, color, religion, sex, and national origin.” Terell likely meant Title VIwhich prohibits discrimination
in federally funded programs, including public education. The DOJ has previously used Title VI to claim that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies are potentially unlawful. Terrell did not specify which UC campuses or incidents the DOJ is planning to investigate.
This follows the March 10 U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights letter to over 60 universities warning of violations of Title VI.
Terrell’s announcement to combat antisemitism at UC campuses follows a string of similarly-motivated Trump administration actions against private universities such as Columbia University and Harvard University in response to student pro-Palestine protests.
In his Fox appearance, Terrell did not provide a timeline for when lawsuits may be filed or what specific actions the DOJ plans to take. However, he emphasized that the administration intends to pursue what it views as necessary action to ensure university compliance with federal civil rights laws.
“We have to bring these universities to their knees,” Terrell said.
Rachel Zaentz, a UC spokesperson, said the UC system is working with the Trump administration to “root out antisemitism and all forms of discrimination.”
According to Zaentz, the UC system “abhors antisemitism and is diligently working to address, counter and eradicate it in all its forms across the system,” she said. “We have been, and plan to continue, cooperating with the Administration. Antisemitism has no place at UC or anywhere else in society.”
As of June 1, no formal complaints or lawsuits against the UC system have been announced by the DOJ.
