Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel protesters apparently agree on one thing: Universities are violating their First Amendment rights.

Colleges across the country are being squeezed by lawsuits from opposing groups citing the First Amendment for their demonstrations, as administrators seek to maintain safety and decorum on their campuses.

“Universities are in a difficult position,” said Will Creeley, legal director for the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. “It’s a minefield and what we are worried about … is that schools are going to err on the side of censorship first, ask questions later.”

Public and private colleges have been hit with lawsuits over campus responses to demonstrations sparked by Hamas’ Oct. 7 deadly assault on southern Israel and the Jewish state’s retaliation against the Palestinian terror group.

• The Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law filed a federal complaint this week against Harvard University, accusing the Ivy League school of tolerating “cruel anti-Semitic bullying, harassment, and discrimination” before and after the Hamas massacre.

“Through its public actions and failures to act, Harvard has made its position clear: Jews are fair game,” reads the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court for Massachusetts. “Students and faculty can harass and discriminate against Jews, and they can do so openly and with impunity. Harvard will go out of its way to protect antisemitic protesters and conspiracy theorists.”

The Brandeis lawsuit cites numerous examples of harassment and hostility directed at Jewish students, including an Israeli student at Harvard Business School student who was accosted, pushed and yelled at by anti-Israel protesters as he walked through and filmed a November “die-in.”

• Last month, a Jewish student sued Columbia University officials after classes were canceled and Jewish students were harassed by pro-Palestinian protesters at the New York City campus.

In one incident, more than 100 protesters locked arms and marched toward a female Jewish student wearing a Star of David necklace and forced her to leave the area.

“The segregation of Jewish students is a dangerous development that can quickly escalate into more severe acts of violence and discrimination, underscoring the critical importance of addressing and combating such behavior at its early stages,” the lawsuit reads. “Plaintiff C.S. brings this lawsuit to hold Columbia accountable for failing to provide a safe educational environment for its students.”

Jeff Swartz, a professor at Cooley Law School, said the Jewish student has a “legitimate cause of action” against Columbia, saying the student isn’t asking for damages but a security fix.

“That is an easy fix,” he said. “As far as any restraint on the university regarding First Amendment rights, I think that as long as they say we provide the ability of students to demonstrate, but we don’t allow them to camp, I think they will be OK.”

• University of Virginia officials are also facing a lawsuit filed last week by a Jewish student who alleged harassment and discrimination against Jews because of their faith. The student said he had to leave his dorm due to safety concerns after a lack of action by school leadership.

• University of California, Davis officials also face a lawsuit filed this month by a disabled veteran who says a 200-person encampment blocked a public sidewalk, making it difficult for him to move about.

School officials responded to the federal lawsuit, telling reporters the university is committed to a “safe and peaceful campus environment.”

“When the university receives a complaint of denial of reasonable accommodation, antisemitism or other offensive behavior, it immediately reaches out to the affected parties to provide support and resources, and reviews the allegations under the university’s anti-discrimination policy,” the statement reads.

• The American Civil Liberties Union in November filed a lawsuit against University of Florida officials and others over a chancellor’s order stating that Students for Justice in Palestine chapters violate a state law against providing material support for terrorism. The group hosted boycott, divestment and sanctions teachings; vigils for killed Palestinians; and social events highlighting Palestinian culture.

The lawsuit alleged that the chancellor’s order against the student group ran afoul of the First Amendment rights of the students and the group as a whole.

“Independent political advocacy — no matter its viewpoint — is fully protected by the First Amendment,” the lawsuit read.

The lawsuit named as defendants Raymond Rodrigues, chancellor of the University System of Florida; Gov. Ron DeSantis, a former Republican presidential candidate; and University of Florida President Ben Sasse, among others.

A judge ruled in January that Mr. Rodrigues, despite his order, does not plan to disband the student chapters, two of which are in Florida schools. There are 200 chapters of Students for Justice in Palestine nationwide.

“Florida officials are now on notice that if they attempt to enforce the deactivation order, we will be back in court to uphold our client’s First Amendment rights,” said Brian Hauss, a senior staff attorney with the ACLU. “The Chancellor should formally acknowledge that the deactivation order will not be enforced by removing it from his official website.”

• Valerie Richardson contributed to this story.

• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.