Coalition of Students, Faculty, and Community

Texas State University

May 1, 2024

Dr. Kelly R. Damphousse, President

601 University Drive
San Marcos, Texas 78666

Regarding Governor Greg Abbott’s Executive Order GA-44

On March 27th, 2024, Governor Greg Abbott issued an executive order to “address acts

of antisemitism in institutions of higher learning.”1 More tangibly, the governor's order directs all

public institutions of higher education in Texas to review and update their policies on free speech

with regards to antisemitism, and to “discipline” pro-Palestine student organizations – those

specifically named are the Palestine Solidarity Committee and Students for Justice in Palestine.

Our coalition of students, faculty, and community members at Texas State University are

unequivocally opposed to antisemitism, which is increasing at alarming rates. The rise of

antisemitism in Texas can be traced to the many white nationalist groups that have made Texas

their “homebase” and any meaningful attempts to combat this dangerous form of hate must focus

on such groups.2 Governor Abbott’s order deflects attention and resources from the root cause of

this pernicious problem. As such, we are concerned that Abbott’s executive order could actually

sabotage attempts to combat antisemitism while also undermining academic freedom and free

speech.

1
Greg Abott, Executive Order GA-44, 27 March 2024
https://gov.texas.gov/uploads/files/press/EO-GA-44_antisemitism_in_institutions_of_higher_ed_IMAGE_03-27-20
24.pdf
2
Areeba Shah, “Expert: Texas Is ‘Homebase’ for White Nationalist and Neo-Nazi Groups, Further Amplifying
Extremism.” Salon, 23 September 2023.
https://www.salon.com/2023/09/23/how-texas-became-the-new-homebase-for-nationalist-and-neo-nazi-groups/
 Furthermore, this executive order dangerously conflates support for Palestinian rights and

legitimate criticism of Israel with antisemitism by adopting the highly contested International

Holocaust Remembrance Association’s working definition of anti-semitism.3 Anti-semitism is

hatred for and discrimination against people who are Jewish. Israel is a state actor, not a religion,

and criticism of state actors – any state actors – is essential to a healthy democracy. Governor

Abbott’s order thus constitutes a profound threat to free speech and academic freedom.

Additionally, the order falsely claims that the phrase “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be

free,” is fundamentally antisemitic; this slogan is an aspirational call for freedom, equality, and

peace used by Muslim and Jewish groups alike to call for the end of Israel’s occupation of

Palestine.4 Governor Abbott’s order thus constitutes a profound threat to free speech and

academic freedom.

We were distressed to witness the failure of Texas colleges and universities to take swift

and effective action to protect their missions and defend their values from Abbott’s attacks on

departments of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Indeed, several institutions opted instead to shut

down these departments and, in some cases, even fire employees who were previously associated

with them.5 We need to strongly defend academic freedom on our campus, stand up for

3
Jonathan Hafetz and Sahar Aziz, “How a Leading Definition of Antisemitism Has Been Weaponized Against
Israel’s Critics,” The Nation, 27 December 2023.
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/ihra-definition-antisemitism/
IHRA, https://holocaustremembrance.com/resources/working-definition-antisemitism
4
Zayna Abdel-Rahim, “Being pro-Palestine isn’t antisemitic; neither is being anti-Israeli policy” The University
Star, 24 April 2024.
https://universitystar.com/25990/opinions/being-pro-palestine-isnt-antisemitic-neither-is-being-anti-israeli-policy/?f
bclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0I6728Gkh0xn9sG35BQNL7AIlHs8xx5Gx6ww3KOEIFX95yY3fqo5pMhO8
_aem_AZUptjvd7bbQ4fXLi02KXplryF0MBa_c19AD21sBWHNbiLtFqM9VJmgZQ-gg3Z5L3ko8wthVNfEolVy2Q
Q0tMVKt
5
Annie Xia and Sneha Dey, “UT Austin announces round of firings in latest step to comply with Texas’ DEI ban,”
Texas Tribune, 2 April 2024. https://www.texastribune.org/2024/04/02/university-texas-austin-firings-dei-ban/
pro-Palestine student organizations across the state, and protect every student's constitutional

right to freedom of speech – all of which are threatened by this new attack.

To this end, we are calling upon our Texas State University President, Dr. Kelly R.

Damphousse, and The Texas State University System Board of Regents to take a stand against

this executive order by reaffirming support for academic freedom, defending the legitimacy of

student organizations in support of Palestine, and, if needed, preparing a litigation team to defend

the rights of their students.

Support for Palestine CANNOT be treated as an exception to Texas State University’s

mission to facilitate free and rigorous debate over important issues and ideas; instead, it is a

proving ground for our shared values and the stated values of Texas State University.

We look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

The Young Democratic Socialists of America at Texas State

Palestine Solidarity Committee at Texas State

Muslim Student Association at Texas State

San Marcos Abortion Activists

College Democrats at Texas State

Hays County Young Democrats

Mano Amiga at Texas State

Student Urban Planning Organization

Minorities and Philosophy at Texas State