Judge orders University of Florida to readmit law student who posted antisemitic content online
The UF Hillel wrote that it was “deeply concerned” by Preston Damsky’s readmission to the school
The University of Florida in Gainesville. Photo by Jillian Cain/iStock
(JTA) — A University of Florida law school student who posted that Jews must be “abolished by any means necessary” on social media was ordered to be readmitted to the school by a federal judge last week.
The student, Preston Damsky, was banned from the campus for three years in April after he posted dozens of antisemitic and xenophobic statements to his X account. He also drew attention for having won an award for an academic paper where he argued that the Constitution applies solely to white people.
Damsky then sued the school in September, arguing that his expulsion violated his First Amendment rights.
In a ruling last week, Chief U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor in Tallahassee granted a preliminary injunction ordering Damsky to be readmitted to the law school, writing that the school had failed to prove that Damsky’s speech constituted a real threat to the University of Florida.
“The University, of course, has an interest in maintaining order, but it has no interest in violating the First Amendment to achieve that goal,” wrote Winsor in his ruling.
Damsky’s lawyer, Anthony Sabatini, called the ruling a “HUGE First Amendment win” in a post on X, writing that he had been “unlawfully punished in response to his poltical opinions.”
The University of Florida told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that it does not comment on pending litigation. The school is permitted to appeal the ruling, which ordered Damsky be returned to normal standing no later than this past Monday. A trial in the lawsuit is set for May.
In a statement posted on Instagram last week, the University of Florida Hillel expressed concern over the ruling, writing that the school “must be a safe space where Jewish students, and all students, can live and learn free from threats of hateful and antisemitic violence.”
The statement continued, “UF Hillel is deeply concerned about the recent court ruling that disregards violent threats made toward the Jewish community and hopes the University of Florida administration will take all necessary legal steps to protect the campus community from those who would threaten to harm it.”
