Students Oppose Fordham’s Motion to Dismiss in SJP Legal Battle

September 2, 2017
The Observer

The fight to grant club status to Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) has not ended, as several Fordham students who are engaged in an ongoing legal battle with the university have filed their opposition in response to the university’s June motion to dismiss their lawsuit.

The filing, occurring on July 10, is the latest move in a two-year battle for Fordham University to recognize SJP as an official club. After a year-long application process that garnered the support of the United Student Government (USG), Dean of Students Keith Eldredge denied the group club status after consulting with school officials, faculty, and students. In his email explaining his decision, Eldredge stated that the “complex” topic of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict often leads to “polarization rather than dialogue,” and that “the purpose of the club as stated in the proposed club constitution points toward that polarization.”

Although the students provided a letter expressing their non-affiliation from the National Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), Senior Vice President for Student Affairs Jeffrey L. Gray wrote on January 20 that the decision “was based on the fact that chapters of this organization have engaged in behavior on other college campuses that would violate this University’s student code of conduct.”

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Last modified 

September 6, 2017