An executive order signed by former President Donald Trump that expanded the protections of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 could lead to a flurry of lawsuits against colleges in the wake of the rise of antisemitism after the attacks in Israel and subsequent war.

Vin Bonventre, distinguished professor of law at Albany Law School and editor of the New York Court Watcher blog, told Capital Tonight that the executive order expands the Title VI provisions of the Civil Rights Act to include discrimination rooted in antisemitism.

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 states that no person can be excluded, denied, or discriminated by any program or activity that receives federal funding on the basis of race, color or national origin. Religion is not one of the protected classes in the original legislation. The executive order signed by former President Trump in 2019 expanded that to include discrimination rooted in antisemitism. Bonventre says that expansion is due in part of Jewish identity or Israeli citizenship being considered under race or national origin.

Bonventre warns that efforts to tamp down antisemitic rhetoric must be “very, very careful” because there is a “real danger” of “chilling free speech.” Bonventre argues that even though it could be bad speech, it is still protected by the First Amendment.