Trump administration seeks $1B from University of California over antisemitism claims

ISTANBUL

The Trump administration has demanded $1 billion from the University of California (UCLA) to resolve allegations of discrimination and antisemitism on campus, offering to restore over $500 million in frozen federal grants in exchange.

Fox News reported that the proposed settlement, sent to the university on Friday, includes a $172 million claims fund for alleged victims of Title VII violations under the Civil Rights Act.

The Justice Department previously suspended $584 million in federal funding after determining UCLA violated the Equal Protection Clause and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.

The university's President James Milliken responded in a statement to Fox News Digital, emphasizing the financial strain the demand would place on the public university system.

"Demanding $1 billion from a publicly-funded, leading research institution is a misuse of tax dollars that will hurt the University’s mission of serving students and the public," Milliken said.

He highlighted UCLA’s efforts to combat antisemitism: "They have been committed to increasing security, strengthening policies against hate, and engaging directly with Jewish voices to better inform their approach."

"If the Administration’s mission is truly to protect the Jewish community, they would be supporting that work – not hamstringing it with these outlandish demands that would only take away needed resources and services for students and faculty," Milliken added.

According to Fox News, California State Senator Ben Allen criticized the move, calling it "harming the engines of American power, innovation, and, indeed, greatness."

The demand follows similar settlements with Ivy League schools Columbia and Brown, which agreed to pay $220 million and $50 million, respectively, in related civil rights investigations.

UCLA also settled a separate lawsuit last July, paying $6 million over allegations of allowing "Jew Exclusion Zones" during anti-Israel protests, according to the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.

Governor Gavin Newsom weighed in, contrasting California’s stance: "We’re not Brown, we’re not Columbia. ... I will fight like hell to make sure that doesn’t happen," he said in San Francisco.