JCPA Statement on Trump Administration Effort to Move Office for Civil Rights Out of Department of Education

In response to reports Tuesday that the Trump administration will move multiple Department of Education offices, including the Office for Civil Rights, to other federal departments as part of its ongoing push to dismantle the agency, Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, released the following statement:

“The Trump administration continues to dismantle the Department of Education, jeopardizing the rights and wellbeing of students across the country.

“By attempting to move the DOE’s Office for Civil Rights to the Department of Justice, the administration is weakening one of the most effective mechanisms for protecting Jewish students and for enforcing civil rights protections on campus. The administration, which has claimed to prioritize the fight against antisemitism, now leaves Jewish students – and all students – vulnerable to discrimination, sexual assault, and broader attacks on civil rights.

“The Department of Justice is not an acceptable home for the Office for Civil Rights because it has a higher threshold for investigating discrimination, which means that students may need to hire a lawyer before having their complaints investigated. And by bypassing Congress to make this alarming move, the Trump administration continues to undermine our democracy, civil service, and academic institutions.

“Strong educational institutions are inextricably linked with the advancement, rights, and safety of the Jewish community and all minority communities, and with our democracy itself.

“If the administration truly cares about the safety of Jewish and all students, it will invest in, rather than dismantle, the Department of Education and the Office of Civil Rights — and advance policies that build resiliency to hate and extremism, rather than using our rights and fears as excuses to undercut our democratic institutions.”