The two Palestinian advocacy groups named in Gov. Greg Abbott’s latest executive order addressing antisemitism on college campus have accused the state of censorship.
Abbott’s order named the Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC) and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and said the organizations should be disciplined for violating the established policies related to antisemitism.
The March 27 order directed all state universities and colleges to update free speech policies to address antisemitism.
A statement on the governor’s website read in part, “The State of Texas stands with Israel and the Jewish community, and we must escalate our efforts to protect against antisemitism at Texas colleges and universities and across our state.”
The order did not mention any anti-Palestinian or anti-Muslim acts, and critics have accused the governor of ignoring Islamophobic acts since the outbreak of the war on Oct. 7.
The student organizations pushed back at the order in a joint statement, calling it “arbitrary censorship of our just movement.”
“We condemn the racist campaign being launched in violation of our state and federal constitutions and reaffirm our commitment to fight for the liberation of Palestine on our campuses and communities,” the groups said.
The executive order requires institutions to revise their free speech policies by including the definition of antisemitism, establish appropriate consequences for antisemitic rhetoric–including expulsion–and ensure that the established consequences are enforced.
In the order, Abbott said while he supports free speech on university campuses, there should be limitations if the speech disrupts “the core educational purpose of a university.”
“Many Texas colleges and universities also acted quickly to condemn antisemitism, but some radical organizations on our campuses engaged in acts that have no place in Texas,” Abbott said.
Within the next 85 days, a report from each public Texas university system must report to the Office of the Governor with verification that the revisions have been established, and with evidence that the new revisions are being enforced, according to the executive order.
