The lawsuit — filed final week — seeks a court docket order prohibiting CSU directors from disclosing any college members’ private info in response to federal subpoenas with out first offering discover to the impacted workers and giving them the chance to object.
“The CSU leadership is out of step with most Californians, and most people in the nation,” mentioned CFA President and Sacramento State professor Margarita Berta-Ávila. “While California is leading the nation in our efforts to fight the targeting and harassment of educators, government employees, LGBTQ folks, immigrants, and Black and Brown communities, CSU capitulated without a fight to the Trump Administration’s witch hunt of faculty. We are suing for accountability of the CSU administration and we demand they do more to protect faculty, students and academic freedom.”
The Trump administration has been investigating universities’ dealing with of antisemitism complaints throughout the nation that arose amid pupil protests towards Israel’s battle in Gaza responding to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 assault on Israel. CSU officers indicated that Cal State LA, which had hosted a Gaza Solidarity Encampment, obtained a discrimination grievance in 2024. College students from San Jose State, Sacramento State, San Francisco State and CSU Lengthy Seaside participated in a starvation strike protesting the Israel-Hamas battle, although it’s unclear if it led to complaints.
In an announcement Thursday, CSU mentioned officers are conscious of the lawsuit and the college system shares the school affiliation’s concern for safeguarding worker privateness however has a accountability to adjust to federal legislation. The college system mentioned refusal to conform may end in federal court docket enforcement and sanctions.
“As a public institution, the CSU has a legal obligation to comply with such subpoenas while striving to limit disclosures to only what is required by law,” the college system mentioned. “We are reviewing the claims made in the lawsuit and will continue to take all appropriate steps to ensure compliance with both state and federal law, while upholding the privacy and trust of our faculty and staff.”
The lawsuit comes on the heels of the same battle on the College of California after the college supplied the names of tons of of UC Berkeley college members and college students to the Trump administration as a part of an investigation into alleged antisemitism. The incident sparked outrage throughout the state and led to a nationwide, Democratic-led coalition to name for the elimination of UC president James Milliken, who stepped into the function Aug. 1.
Initially Printed: October 17, 2025 at 4:30 AM PDT
