US university cancellation of Gaza war vigil sparks lawsuit

Two civil rights groups have filed a lawsuit over the cancellation of an interfaith vigil to mark a year since the outbreak of Israel's war in Gaza.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and Palestine Legal filed the lawsuit on behalf of University of Maryland Students for Justice in Palestine to challenge the university’s decision to cancel the group’s interfaith vigil to honour the lives lost over the last year.

The university had previously granted permission to the Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace to co-host the vigil. However, the administration reversed their decision following a pressure campaign from anti-Palestinian groups, according to a press release by CAIR.

In their statement, CAIR said the decision of the university administration amounted to discrimination and a violation of students' First Amendment rights. 

"The University’s decision constitutes unlawful viewpoint and content-based discrimination, in violation of the First Amendment. This cancellation continues a trend where universities across the country have targeted, harassed, and punished pro-Palestinian, anti-genocide students on their campuses," reads CAIR's public statement on the suit.

Tori Porell, a staff attorney for Palestine Legal, said in a statement, "Throughout history, students have been at the forefront of speaking out in favour of civil rights, and divestment from apartheid from South Africa to Palestine. The University of Maryland cannot ignore the Constitution to censor Palestinian and Jewish students, simply because anti-Palestinian groups complain." 

Interfaith vigils were among the first public displays of grief following the 7 October attack by Hamas on Israel, in which more than 1,100 Israelis were killed. Many Palestinians and progressive Jews in the US correctly predicted that Israel's response to Hamas would be disproportionate, with the death toll in Gaza now at more than 41,000 from Israeli airstrikes.