Florida to review college courses that mention 'Israel,' 'Palestine,' 'Zionism'

Florida's state university system is sending requests to schools across the state to flag any course that might contain what it calls "antisemitic or anti-Israeli bias."

"We are going to conduct a keyword search on course descriptions and course syllabi," State University System Chancellor Ray Rodrigues wrote in an early August email. "Any course that contains the following keywords: Israel, Israeli, Palestine, Palestinian, Middle East, Zionism, Zionist, Judaism, Jewish, or Jews will be flagged for review."

The email comes as universities in the state are being told to say if they can create "faculty committees" to review those resources, according to the email. That review "will need to be completed" by the fall semester, the chancellor told schools.

"This review should flag all instances of either antisemitism or anti-Israeli bias identified and report that information to my office," Rodrigues said.

The situation in the Sunshine State underscores escalating tensions on college campuses nationwide amid the pressure to uphold academic freedom, protect the First Amendment and curb a rise in antisemitism at universities since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war last year.

In Florida, some of the onus will be put on professors to stay compliant with the new state rules. Rodrigues said there's a "need to implement a process" for each professor to attest they've reviewed their course materials for such content.

The email was first reported by the Orlando Sentinel, which noted alarm among some faculty members that it would lead to self-censorship. And the free speech group the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, or FIRE, is also expressing concerns about the directive.

"When we see a letter from the chancellor of a statewide system asking for a review of course materials based on vague and undefined standards that raise real red flags," said Tyler Coward, FIRE lead counsel, in an interview. "Singling out certain keywords and phrases for targeted review will certainly chill speech on these important issues, and, if institutions take action against professors for including certain materials, that violates long-standing academic freedom guarantees."

Some things in letter unclear

The letter doesn't specify what would happen to the courses found to have antisemitism or anti-Israeli bias, or what would happen to any professors involved.

In his email, Rodrigues says he's addressing "confusion that has arisen" from a previous discussion, but there are limited details. The letter also doesn't precisely define what's considered "antisemitism or anti-Israeli bias."

Responding to emailed questions, Cassandra Edwards, a spokesperson for the university system, sent only a copy of Rodrigues' letter.

But Rodrigues told the Miami Herald that the directive was prompted by a controversial incident at Florida International University. Students of an online course were offered a multiple-choice question that asked about Israelis practicing terrorism, according to Coral Springs Talk.

Earlier this year, the Florida legislature passed and Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a measure that created a definition for antisemitism with language developed by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance. Proponents said it was designed to empower governments to address a rise in hate and discrimination against Jewish people.

One of the examples of antisemitism provided in the law was "applying double standards by requiring of the Jewish state of Israel a standard of behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation."

While some worried the bipartisan legislation might limit First Amendment rights, a provision was added that said it can't "be construed to diminish or infringe upon any right protected under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution." Another outlined that the term antisemitism doesn't "include criticism of Israel that is similar to criticism of any other country."

"What does that even mean?" Coward said. "How is a person going to evaluate how much they can criticize Israel if they're not criticizing another country similarly? It makes no sense. As applied, it's impossible to do."

Nor does Coward believe those additions protect the law's constitutionality.

Joe Cohn, director of policy for the campus viewpoint diversity advocacy group Heterodox Academy, stressed that addressing antisemitism on college campuses is an important goal. But in his view, "it has to be accomplished in a manner that respects the principles of academic freedom."

"In this particular context, what we're concerned about is the chilling effect it will have on the ability of students and faculty to freely explore all of the contours of the conflict in the Middle East," he said.

Florida stands out on this directive

Coward also said this was the first time he heard of a state issuing such a directive.

Since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the resultant conflict that has leveled wide swaths of Gaza, Florida's governor and his higher education appointees have taken strict action against any pro-Palestinian protesters accused of breaking any law or university rule.

"We do not allow the inmates to run the asylum in the state of Florida," DeSantis said at the time. "If you can't abide by the rules that we have in place for conduct, then we will show you the door and you will be expelled."

DeSantis waived application fees for out-of-state Jewish college students "who have a well-founded fear of antisemitic persecution at their current postsecondary institution," and urged universities to offer them in-state tuition.

"While leaders of 'elite' universities enable antisemitism, we will protect Jewish students and welcome them to Florida," he said.

In late October, in a move that troubled free speech advocates, DeSantis and Rodrigues told universities that two chapters of Florida Students for Justice in Palestine had to be deactivated, accusing them of providing support to Hamas.

Rodrigues later walked back that claim, but DeSantis continued to call for their deactivation. The two groups sued, but those lawsuits were unsuccessful, with a federal judge finding they lacked the right to sue since no action was taken against them.

Mark Walker, the chief judge in the Northern District of Florida, criticized the state's actions. “It’s not lost on me that it very much matters to you when someone runs off at the mouth and puts your lives in danger," he told the groups in a hearing.

Contributing: Zachary Schermele, USA TODAY

This reporting content is supported by a partnership with Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. USA Today Network-Florida First Amendment reporter Douglas Soule can be reached at DSoule@gannett.com.