As Colleges and Universities Begin a New Academic Year, AG Moody Advises Higher Education Officials About Legal Protections and Shared Commitment to Jewish Students in Florida

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.-As colleges and universities begin a new academic year, Attorney General Ashley Moody today sent a reminder to higher education officials in Florida about their duty to protect Florida's Jewish students from harassment, intimidation and other incidents of antisemitism. The reminder comes in the wake of radical antisemitic protests continuing around the nation and following the destructive protests witnessed at colleges and universities in the previous academic year.

Attorney General Ashley Moody said, "Last year, my office circulated a memo advising higher education officials of the zero-tolerance policy for antisemitism in our state. Florida offered an example to the rest of the country with swift action while other states witnessed their colleges and universities overtaken by chaos and, in some instances, crime. Let this serve as a reminder, there is no room in our state for lawlessness or antisemitism. As a new school year begins, we are renewing our commitment to making Florida a safe state for Jewish students."

The letter states, "In the days and months following the horrific October 7 attacks on Israel, America saw university administrators across the country utterly fail to protect Jewish students and maintain law and order. Many schools allowed encampments and demonstrations to disrupt student life and school operations...Some of these schools even tolerated overt acts of antisemitic harassment and violence. And because school administrators allowed this unconscionable conduct to continue throughout the entire school year, some universities were forced to cancel graduation ceremonies."

The letter points out that in Florida, schools stood by Jewish students and ensured that Florida's campuses remained institutions of education, "instead of cesspools of lawlessness and hate."

Attorney General Moody goes on to remind school officials that there are legal risks for colleges and universities if they fail to uphold protections for Jewish students. "I also want to advise you that failing to protect Jewish students would create significant legal risk for Florida colleges and universities. For example, a federal court in California recently entered an injunction against UCLA after the court found that 'Jewish students were excluded from portions of the UCLA campus because they refused to denounce their faith,' a fact the court called 'unimaginable' and 'abhorrent to our constitutional guarantee of religious freedom.' Such failures may also put federal funding at risk."

The letter calls for a renewed commitment to making Florida the "best state in the nation for education and the safest state for Jewish students."

Read the full letter here.

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