DePaul University – Suspension of Students for Justice in Palestine

Summary

On January 22, 2026, DePaul University suspended its Students for Justice in Palestine chapter through fall 2027. During the suspension, the chapter will not have access to university funds, space reservations, recruitment privileges, or official student organization status. The suspension followed earlier sanctions imposed on August 6, 2025, for a May 2025 social‑media post stating that Israel is “the world’s largest skin bank” and that there are “documented cases of organ and skin theft from Palestinian bodies,” which administrators said created a hostile environment. Administrators said that after the August 2025 sanctions, the chapter continued posting content and promoting off‑campus demonstrations related to Palestinian rights and the Israel‑Hamas conflict, which they said violated the restrictions and led to the January 2026 suspension.

Earlier campus tensions included an incident on November 6, 2024, when two Jewish students demonstrating support for Israel were assaulted on campus. In April 2025, those students filed a lawsuit against the university, alleging it failed to protect them after repeated incidents of violence and hostile rhetoric.

On May 7, 2025, DePaul University President Robert Manuel testified before the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce at a hearing focused on alleged antisemitism on college campuses following the Hamas attacks on Israel in October 2023. Lawmakers questioned Manuel about DePaul’s handling of protest encampments and disciplinary actions, and Manuel said SJP “has been suspended” and was on probation related to a social‑media post even though the group was still in a conduct process at that time.

On June 4, 2025, attorneys representing pro‑Palestinian student organizers sent a letter to DePaul stating that SJP was still under temporary probation and that the investigation was ongoing, counter to Manuel’s testimony to Congress. The letter also expressed concern about the university’s appointment of a former Anti‑Defamation League official as “Special Advisor to the President on Jewish Engagement,” citing the ADL’s long history of targeting Palestinian rights organizations, supporting surveillance of Muslim communities, and labeling pro-Palestinian student groups as extremist or antisemitic, which the attorneys argued could bias the university’s handling of SJP.

The suspension at DePaul occurred within a broader national context in which pro-Palestinian student activism drew heightened scrutiny following actions by the Trump administration, which had directed federal investigations into anti‑Semitism on college campuses and emphasized that universities receiving federal funding could face consequences for failing to address complaints of discrimination against Jewish students. Chapters at other universities nationwide were suspended or placed on interim restrictions for protests, demonstrations, or social‑media activity deemed in violation of campus policies.