Current:Home > StocksTrendPulse Quantitative Think Tank Center-Florida orders state universities to disband pro-Palestinian student group, saying it backs Hamas -NextFrontier Finance
TrendPulse Quantitative Think Tank Center-Florida orders state universities to disband pro-Palestinian student group, saying it backs Hamas
Chainkeen Exchange View
Date:2025-04-06 21:24:35
TALLAHASSEE,TrendPulse Quantitative Think Tank Center Fla. (AP) — Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s administration is linking a pro-Palestinian student organization to terrorism and is ordering state universities to ban the group from campuses, saying it illegally backs Hamas militants who attacked Israel earlier this month.
As Israel’s attacks on Gaza have intensified, some college students have expressed solidarity with Palestinians, resulting in swift censure from some Jewish academics and even some prospective employers. But Florida has gone further, taking the extraordinary step of saying Students for Justice in Palestine is supporting a “terrorist organization.”
State university system Chancellor Ray Rodrigues wrote to university presidents Tuesday at Gov. Ron DeSantis’ urging, directing them to disband chapters of SJP after the national group took the position that “Palestinian students in exile are PART of this movement, not in solidarity with this movement.”
“It is a felony under Florida law to ‘knowingly provide material support ... to a designated foreign terrorist organization,’” Rodrigues said in the letter.
The U.S. State Department designated Hamas a terrorist group in 1997.
DeSantis has ramped up his pro-Israel stance since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks in southern Israel, which led to pro- and anti-Israel demonstrations around the world and prompted Israel to respond with airstrikes. The governor has sent planes to Israel to provide supplies and return Floridians there who want to come back.
He also is supporting a special legislative session to impose new sanctions on Iran, which supports Hamas, and to express support for Israel. So far, no government has presented evidence that Iran was directly involved in carrying out the attacks.
Students for Justice in Palestine has been on U.S. campuses for decades, with frequent protests calling for the liberation of Palestinians and boycotts against Israel. The loosely connected network says it has more than 200 chapters across the United States.
Palestine Legal, a group that provides legal support for pro-Palestinian groups, said the ban on SJP is part of a broader effort by DeSantis to suppress freedom of speech on campuses.
“Florida, particularly under the leadership of Governor Ron DeSantis, has been actively undermining education, freedom of speech and social justice movements, including by banning anti-racist courses and trying to criminalize protests. It is not surprising that this egregious move to silence the student movement for Palestinian rights is being pursued under DeSantis,” it said Wednesday in a statement.
SJP has played a central role in a campus movement known as BDS, calling for the boycott, divestment and sanction of Israel over its treatment of Palestinians. The national group didn’t immediately reply to an email seeking comment.
The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, a free speech group, called Florida’s directive unconstitutional and dangerous and said the government does not have the legal authority to force colleges to ban SJP chapters.
“If it goes unchallenged, no one’s political beliefs will be safe from government suppression,” the group said in a statement.
The ban came after the only Jewish Republican in the state Legislature switched his support in the presidential election from DeSantis to former President Donald Trump, saying DeSantis doesn’t back up his pro-Israel words with action.
Rep. Randy Fine, who has advised DeSantis on Israel and Jewish policy, said he had called on the administration to take action against the student group but there was none until he released a strongly worded op-ed explaining his decision to switch his endorsement.
“It shouldn’t have taken me endorsing Trump to make it happen. I was begging them for two weeks and was just getting the Heisman at every turn,” Fine said, referring to the college football trophy depicting a player holding his arm out to fend off opponents.
The governor’s office said the ban was in the works for more than a week, however.
“The action, taken by the administration had nothing to do with Representative Fine. Any implication otherwise is nothing more than political grandstanding. Randy Fine is not the center of our universe,” DeSantis spokesman Jeremy Redfern said via email.
Students for Justice in Palestine and several other groups called for a national student walkout on college campuses Wednesday to demand an end to Israeli attacks on Gaza and to U.S. financial backing for Israel. Walkouts were planned campuses from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, to the University of California, Los Angeles.
___
Binkley reported from Washington, D.C.
veryGood! (89)
Related
- FACT FOCUS: Inspector general’s Jan. 6 report misrepresented as proof of FBI setup
- 'Dr. Google' meets its match in Dr. ChatGPT
- Ohio man suspected of murder shot by Georgia man defending family during home invasion
- Record-high summer temps give a 'sneak peek' into future warming
- Alex Murdaugh’s murder appeal cites biased clerk and prejudicial evidence
- See Sofía Vergara's transformation into Griselda Blanco for new Netflix series: Photos
- Looking for the new COVID vaccine booster? Here's where to get the shot.
- Bus with migrants crashes as Italy transfers new arrivals to relieve pressure on Lampedusa island
- Bill Belichick's salary at North Carolina: School releases football coach's contract details
- Another Nipah outbreak in India: What do we know about this virus and how to stop it?
Ranking
- Small twin
- Person dies of rare brain-eating amoeba traced to splash pad at Arkansas country club
- Family sues police after man was fatally shot by officers responding to wrong house
- Ole Miss player DeSanto Rollins files lawsuit against football coach Lane Kiffin, university
- At site of suspected mass killings, Syrians recall horrors, hope for answers
- Us or change: World Cup champions give ultimatum to Spain's soccer federation
- Artifacts found in Israel were used by professional sorcerers in magical rituals 4 centuries ago
- Happy birthday, Prince Harry! Duchess Meghan, fans celebrate at Invictus Games: Watch
Recommendation
Travis Hunter, the 2
Sisters of YouTube mom Ruby Franke speak out about child abuse charges: I had no idea what was happening
UN calls for more fairness for developing nations at a G77 summit in Cuba
How much does an average UAW autoworker make—and how much do Big Three CEOs get paid?
Could your smelly farts help science?
2023 Maui Invitational will be moved to Honolulu, keeping tournament in Hawaii
Vikings' Alexander Mattison reveals racial abuse from fans after fumble in loss to Eagles
Sisters of YouTube mom Ruby Franke speak out about child abuse charges: I had no idea what was happening