On April 15, 2025, the ACLU of Pennsylvania sued the University of Pittsburgh on behalf of Students for Justice in Palestine at Pitt (SJP-Pitt), a university-affiliated organization that the school placed on an indefinite, interim-suspension in March. With no obvious violation of Pitt’s policies, the university’s action was in apparent retaliation for a letter that SJP-Pitt organized with more than 70 other university-affiliated clubs and community organizations protesting the school’s repeated harassment of the club. The university also initiated disciplinary proceedings against the club in response to a silent “study-in” that club members attended in the university library.
By suspending the club in retaliation for its speech, Pitt officials have violated the students’ right to free speech. The lawsuit accuses the university of violating the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
SJP-Pitt has been a registered student organization since at least 2009 and became more active after October 7, 2023, when Hamas fighters led an attack in southern Israel and the Israeli government subsequently began its military assault against Palestinians living in Gaza. Since then, the club has organized, co-sponsored, promoted, and advertised numerous demonstrations and educational events on and off campus to raise awareness of Palestinian people's suffering. But its suspension is severely limiting SJP-Pitt’s on-campus activism.
The ACLU of Pa. is asking the court to order the university to lift SJP-Pitt’s suspension and to cease further disciplinary proceedings against the club over the library study group and the open advocacy letter criticizing the university.
