A federal civil rights complaint was filed against UC Santa Barbara on behalf of Associated Students President Tessa Veksler, who claimed that the university was complicit in anti-Semitic harassment and threats due to her Jewish identity.
“This was always the final resort,” said Veksler. “The administration didn’t have to personally participate in anti-Semitism to be liable — but they allowed it.”
This complaint comes on the heels of the Department of Education’s existing investigation into UCSB’s potential violations of Title VI rights, which include “National Origin Discrimination Involving Religion,” according to the Office for Civil Rights.
The “kickstarter” to this complaint, explained Veksler, was a February incident in which a plethora of anti-Zionist signs were posted at the MultiCultural Center, where Veksler’s office is. Some of the signs, like the one reading “You can run but you can’t hide, Tessa Veksler,” targeted her directly. Others said, “Zionists NOT allowed” and “F*** a neutral AS President.”
The signage resulted in the suspension of the MultiCultural Center (MCC) and promises from the University to investigate the incident. However, Veksler said that the administration failed to hold anyone accountable, leading to fears over her safety. “The administration wouldn’t protect me,” she said.
Last month, Veksler’s photo was found slashed on a student government poster featuring members of Associated Students.
Veksler says she was the subject of social media attacks, signage, vandalism, and threats on UCSB’s campus for months before the MCC suspension, which she brought to the administration’s attention multiple times. She suffered from panic attacks and was forced to take her fall quarter final exams online over safety concerns. “Administrators told me it wasn’t bad enough for them to do anything,” she said. “But what would be bad enough? How bad did I have to feel for them to do something?”
According to the full complaint filed by The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law — a nonprofit dedicated to advancing justice for the Jewish population — Veksler first informed administrators of the harassment in December 2023. She did not get a response until three months later, when the university issued a school-wide statement regarding the MCC, but did not respond to Veksler individually.
UCSB, as a public university and recipient of federal funding, is required under Title VI to “take immediate and effective action to respond to harassment that creates a hostile environment.”
“Despite knowing about it, UCSB failed to promptly address the harassment and eliminate the impact of the hostile climate on campus for Ms. Veksler, in violation of its legal obligations to do so under Title VI,” said Denise Katz-Prober, the director of legal initiatives at the Brandeis Center who is representing Veksler.
“Universities should not misunderstand the problem as a difference of political opinions,” Katz-Prober emphasized. “Administrators need to address the problem head-on, as they would and should when confronted with any other form of racism and discrimination, and as they are required to do under the law.”
If the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights opens another investigation into UCSB and finds them guilty of violating Title VI, the university will be at risk of losing federal funding.
“The university is committed to supporting our students and to investigating and addressing all reports made to it,” said Kiki Reyes, media relations manager for the university. “We look forward to working with the Department of Education.”
