Christine Odwesso
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A University of Texas at Dallas student group dedicated to raising support and awareness for Palestine has been suspended for a year, organizers said Monday.
The students claim that the punitive action, which prevents the university’s Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter from assembling on campus or accessing university resources until February 2027, follows a pattern of “systemic repression” against students who voice outspoken support for the Palestinian people. The university did not respond to the Observer’s request for comment.
Leaders of the SJP chapter say university officials notified them on Sept. 2 that the club was under investigation for violating the university’s code of conduct. The issue at the heart of the complaint is a demonstration that took place in May 2025, in which former university President Richard Benson’s graduation commencement speech was interrupted by students brandishing flags and yelling phrases in support of Palestine.
A spokesperson for the student group told the Observer on Monday that the demonstration, while in line with the message promoted by the SJP chapter, was not officially planned by the group. The SJP chapter did repost videos of the protest to Instagram after it took place, something the university has pointed to as evidence that the organization endorsed the action. The representative added that the interruption of Benson’s speech lasted only 28 seconds, which the organization argues is not sufficient to qualify as the type of disruption that can be punished under the university’s standards.
In February of this year, student leaders attempted to appeal the disciplinary decision, but the effort was unsuccessful. Investigation documents show that UTD officials and SJP members have disagreed over whether the individuals involved in the graduation protest were members of SJP.
“This suspension comes after years … of attempts to sanction SJP and its members, changing university policy to silence us, and surveilling our work to find ways to shut us down,” said Mariam Lafi, a UTD student and SJP member, during a press conference Monday. “Our humanity requires us to stand with immigrants and with the people of Palestine, Iran, Lebanon, Cuba and all oppressed people around the world, no matter the price. And today, the small price paid is the suspension of our organization status with UTD.”
The SJP organization has been in conflict with university leaders since May 2024, when law enforcement officers broke up a campus encampment erected in support of Palestine after 12 hours. Twenty-one students, professors and community members were arrested, including the president of SJP at that time.
Emma Ruby
Since that event, students involved with the encampment — some of whom also identified themselves as members of SJP — have faced bans from campus and withheld degrees. Members of the university newspaper, The Mercury, went on strike and ultimately launched a new publication, The Retrograde, independent of the university, after experiencing what they called retaliation for publishing coverage of pro-Palestine activism. Professors who were arrested during the 2024 demonstration have sued the university, alleging their access to campus was restricted after their wrongful detainments.
Marwa Elbially, a civil rights attorney who assisted the SJP students during disciplinary proceedings, said the decision to remove the organization from campus constitutes a clear violation of the members’ First Amendment rights, which protect the right to assemble and guard against viewpoint discrimination. A document in which the university outlines its findings of the investigation argues that the graduation display is not protected by free speech because it disrupted a university event, a conclusion that Elbially challenged.
She added that suspension is a measure typically reserved for conduct violations that result in harm, such as fraternity hazing.
“The Students for Justice in Palestine UT Dallas chapter was not suspended because they harmed anyone, attempted to harm anyone, or even because they harmed property,” Elbially said. “If UT Dallas does not respect the sanctity and dignity of Palestinian lives, we certainly can’t expect them to respect the [First Amendment].”
In response to the suspension, student organizers are rebranding the group to serve the broader Dallas community. They said they are unaware if continued involvement in the group could result in further sanctions from the university. In an interview with The Retrograde, leaders of the SJP chapter at the University of North Texas expressed concern that their university may attempt to replicate the sanctions imposed on the UTD group.
A spokesperson for the Dallas group said the organization will continue to demand the university divest from weapons manufacturers that have contributed to the war between Israel and Hamas. They are also calling for UTD to suspend courses or senior thesis projects that are sponsored by the organizations and end the contractors’ access to career fairs.
The university has declined to meet those demands. Students claim that it is those ties to Israel that have ultimately caused the university to punish Pro-Palestine activism.
“If SJP was SJ-anything else, we wouldn’t be having this conversation,” said Omar Suleiman, an imam and leader in the North Texas muslim community, on Monday. “It’s ‘for Palestine’ that is the problem.”
