UCLA law school accused of silencing conservative group after protest

SPECIAL – The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Law faces charges of discrimination after an administrator allegedly threatened to discipline a conservative campus group for identifying protesters disrupting a recent event.

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) said it sent a letter urging the university to withdraw what it described as a threat to the rights of Federalist Society members.

The controversy stems from an April 21 event attended by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) general counsel James Percival. More than 150 protesters filled the speech, booing, shouting profanities and, according to Percival, making death threats.

In emails obtained by Fox News Digital on April 22, Bayrex Martí, UCLA’s associate dean for student affairs, warned Federalist Society President Matthew Weinberg about identifying obstructionists.

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“I have also seen requests online to identify students in the audience who appear in the video recordings,” Martí wrote. “I strongly advise you and other organizers not to disclose these details.”

Martí warned that the Federalist Society itself would be held accountable for “reasonably foreseeable” consequences if names were shared and those protesters subsequently faced online criticism or harassment.

“If this information is shared despite the content of some online comments and a concerned student reports the conduct of any individual that falls within the scope of prohibited conduct under the Student Code of Conduct, the student organization and/or individual students may be implicated (claiming that the outcome was reasonably foreseeable when names were released) and subject to campus processes,” the dean added.

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Jessie Appleby, FIRE’s program advisor, wrote that students participating in a public, recorded event have no expectation of privacy.

“While online criticism may be stinging at times, UCLA may not restrict protected speech merely to protect student protesters from the consequences of their actions,” Appleby wrote.

A brochure from UCLA with text and graphics obtained by Fox News Digital. (Fox News Digital)

FIRE also alleges that UCLA employed double standards, that members of the Federalist Society were silenced while protesters “identified and mocked” them online.

Last week, the school administration issued a statement to Fox News Digital defending the event, stating that the event was over.

“UCLA Law is committed to free speech and academic freedom, including viewpoints that may be controversial or deeply controversial,” he wrote.

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“This culminating student-organized event was an example of these principles in action. The law school previously worked with the Office of Campus and Community Safety to support the event and uphold the university’s commitment to the free exchange of ideas.”

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At the event, students booed Percival, called him a “Nazi” and held signs that read, “F–you loser.” Speaking to “The Will Cain Show,” Percival said the experience was “not pleasant.”

“I may get death threats when I go to a college campus, but the people I work with at DHS get death threats just because they come to work every day,” Percival said. “I felt like I had an obligation to the people I worked with to not back down, to come forward and engage in abuse.”

“We are committed to supporting the First Amendment. We received the letter and plan to respond,” a UCLA School of Law spokesperson told Fox News Digital.