A federal judge said pro-Palestinian student groups have a right to sue top officials at several public universities in Texas for allegedly violating their First Amendment rights, as first reported by the Austin American-Statesman. However, in his order this week, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman, who is based in Austin, said the groups could not sue Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who earlier this year ordered universities to change their free speech policies.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations first filed the lawsuit back in May against Abbott, university leaders and the Board of Regents for the University of Texas System as well as the University of Houston System. Pitman said this week the plaintiffs have standing to sue board members in their official capacities.
The Muslim civil rights group is representing student groups such as the Palestine Solidarity Committee at UT Austin as well as Students for Justice in Palestine at UT Dallas and the University of Houston. Law enforcement arrested students on all three campuses during the spring 2024 semester while they were protesting against Israel's war in Gaza.
Abbott ordered universities to crack down on antisemitism
Gadeir Abbas, a senior litigation attorney for CAIR, said public universities in Texas cracked down on pro-Palestinian protests in response to an executive order Abbott issued in March.
The Republican governor told public colleges and universities to update their free speech policies to include a definition of antisemitism and create punishments for “antisemitic rhetoric.”
Abbott’s order also singled out the student groups that are plaintiffs in the lawsuit. He directed universities to ensure the new free speech policies “are being enforced on campuses and that groups such as the Palestine Solidarity Committee and Students for Justice in Palestine are disciplined for violating these policies.”
Abbas said Abbott’s order incorrectly conflates antisemitism and criticism of Israel.
“It’s very clear here that Gov. Abbott directed his subordinates to disregard the First Amendment, to suppress pro-Palestine speech and the court is just about to reject it,” he said.
U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman wrote in his order that the plaintiffs would likely succeed in proving that the university policies developed to comply with Abbott’s order "impose impermissible viewpoint discrimination that chills speech in violation of the First Amendment."
Pitman dismissed Abbott as a defendant in the case because of “sovereign immunity” which protects states from lawsuits.
However, Pitman said the lawsuit could proceed against several university presidents including UT Austin President Jay Hartzell and University of Houston President Renu Khator because of their role in ensuring Abbott's order was implemented at their institutions.
Pitman denied the student groups' request to block Abbott's executive order or the university policies developed to comply with it, while the case proceeds.
Judge considers alleged free speech violations at UT Austin
One part of the lawsuit Pitman is allowing to move forward involves the Palestine Solidarity Committee at UT Austin, which alleges the university violated the First Amendment by prohibiting the group from protesting last April and subsequently placing it on an interim suspension.
UT officials told the Palestine Solidarity Committee the night before and the morning of a protest on April 24 that the group could not hold a demonstration.
"The group that led this protest stated it was going to violate Institutional Rules. Our rules matter, and they will be enforced. Our University will not be occupied," President Hartzell wrote in an April 24 email to the UT community.
Law enforcement, who Hartzell called into respond, ended up arresting more than 130 people during demonstrations on April 24 and April 29.
Judge Pitman said in the order that the the Palestine Solidarity Committee has "plead facts sufficient, if believed, to show President Hartzell suspended PSC-UT because of the group’s expressed viewpoint."
While UT Austin spokesperson Mike Rosen said the university’s response to the judge’s decision will be outlined in a future court filing, he told KUT News on Monday that the university does not restrict demonstrations based on viewpoint. Rather, if the university believes an event will violate the university's rules or be disruptive to the campus, “we can lawfully decide that activity can’t proceed as planned.”
Rosen shared that statement in regard to another case Pitman is presiding over. UT Austin last week suspended a student for violating a university rule while participating in the April 24 pro-Palestinian protest. Ammer Qaddumi, a member of the Palestine Solidarity Committee, asked Pitman to block the university from enforcing his suspension, but Pitman denied Qaddumi's request for a temporary restraining order.
