ADC Attorneys Argue First Amendment Challenge to California’s AB 715 in Federal Court

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 1, 2026

SAN JOSE, CA — Attorneys for the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) appeared in federal court today in Andrea Prichett, et al. v. Gavin Newsom, et al., a constitutional challenge to California Assembly Bill 715, a law signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in October 2025 that threatens to chill classroom discussion of Palestine, Israel, Zionism, and Palestinian history under the guise of combating antisemitism.

ADC President and Legal Director, Jenin Younes, and ADC Staff Attorney, Malak Afaneh, presented arguments before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The case challenges AB 715 on First Amendment, due process, and equal protection grounds. Plaintiffs, including public school teachers and LA Educators for Justice in Palestine, state that the law pressures educators to self-censor constitutionally protected classroom discussions about Palestine, Zionism, and the ongoing genocide in Gaza.

“ADC has no issue with laws enacted to prevent students from unlawful discrimination.  But that’s not what AB 715 is. The law was intentionally crafted to discourage teachers and students from discussing historical facts about Palestinians’ ties to their land; about Israel’s occupation and genocide of the Palestinian people; and conversations recognizing Palestinians’ humanity for fear of punishment. The First Amendment does not tolerate limits on the type of speech AB 715 has successfully chilled,” said ADC President and Legal Director, Jenin Younes.  

ADC argued that AB 715 fails to define antisemitism and instead directs schools to rely on federal guidance that Plaintiffs contend conflates criticism of Israel and Zionism with discrimination against Jewish students. The result, ADC maintains, is a vague, complaint-driven, and viewpoint-discriminatory enforcement scheme that doesn’t even require a showing of injury, and predictably chills protected speech before it even occurs and is prone to abuse.

The State has argued that AB 715 simply reinforces existing anti-discrimination protections. ADC counters that existing state and federal law already prohibit antisemitic harassment and discrimination, and that AB 715 goes further by creating a new enforcement framework  that invites complaints and investigations against teachers for lawful classroom instruction concerning Palestine, Israel, and Zionism.

This hearing follows the Court’s earlier denial of Plaintiffs’ request for a preliminary injunction. In that decision, the Court concluded that AB 715 does not, on its face, prohibit  criticism of Israel or Zionism, and reasoned that teachers’ in-class curricular instruction  constitutes government speech rather than protected private speech for First Amendment purposes.

ADC strongly disputes that conclusion.

“At its core, this case is about whether students can learn through open discussion rather than fear-driven silence,” said ADC Staff Attorney Malak Afaneh. “Public education should prepare students to think critically, engage with different perspectives, and wrestle with difficult historical and political questions. The First Amendment protects that kind of inquiry. It should not be replaced by a system that encourages educators to avoid protected speech out of fear of anonymous complaints and vague disciplinary threats.”

About ADC

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) is the largest Arab American grassroots organization in the United States, founded in 1980 by former Senator James Abourezk.  ADC’s mission is to defend and promote the human rights, civil rights, and liberties of at least 3.7 million Arab Americans residing in the United States. Through its work, ADC fights discrimination, enhances public understanding of Arab history and culture, and partners with marginalized communities globally to advance social justice.