Lawmakers unveil bipartisan legislation to fight campus discrimination

Bipartisan lawmakers introduced a bill on Thursday to combat discrimination on college campuses amid the rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia.  

The Protecting Students on Campus Act would give students more information about the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in the Department of Education and their right to file a civil rights complaint if they are discriminated against on campus based on their gender or race.  

The bill was introduced by Democratic Pennsylvania Sens. Bob Casey and John Fetterman, along with Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.).  

“Diversity is our strength as a country. No student should face hostility or violence for who they are, what they look like, where they’re from, or what they believe,” Fetterman said in a statement. “Amid a despicable rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia in our country, I am proud to introduce this bill with my colleagues to empower students facing discrimination to take action and hold universities accountable in protecting students.” 

The bill would require colleges to post a link to the OCR’s website on their main homepage and post materials around campus on how to file a complaint. The OCR would also have to tell Congress on a monthly basis how many complaints were filed, how long complaints have taken to get addressed and plans to address the complaints.  

OCR would not be able to close a complaint based on other investigations besides their own and the Education Department inspector general would have to investigate schools that get higher numbers of complaints.  

“No student should be harassed or attacked at school just because of who they are,” said Cassidy. “This legislation holds colleges and universities accountable and ensures discrimination against students is never ignored.”  

The legislation comes after a spike in antisemitism and Islamophobia on campus since the war between Israel and Hamas began in early October.