• The Trump administration demands UCLA pay $1 billion over alleged civil rights violations.
• Governor Gavin Newsom labels the settlement offer as "political extortion."
• UCLA is at risk of losing $584 million in federal funding tied to the allegations.
• The proposed settlement may require changes to university policies and financial compensation funds.
• Protests against Israel by students have sparked accusations of antisemitism from the government.

The Trump administration is demanding that the University of California (UC) pay more than $1 billion to settle accusations of antisemitism relating to UCLA's handling of pro-Palestinian protests. This proposal includes a call for UCLA to contribute an additional $172 million to a claims fund for individuals affected by these alleged civil rights violations, following an earlier freeze of $584 million in federal grant funding. If accepted, this would represent the largest settlement involving a university and the Trump administration to date, outpacing previous agreements made with institutions like Columbia and Brown, according to latimes and reuters.

California Governor Gavin Newsom strongly criticized the settlement demand, describing it as "extortion" and asserting that California would not yield to such political maneuvering. He emphasized that the settlement would devastate the university system while accusing the Trump administration of using the Department of Justice to suppress academic freedom, a sentiment echoed by University of California President James Milliken, who also stated that the demand posed significant financial threats to the university system, quoting lemonde, sfgate, and indiatimes.

Alongside financial penalties, the government's proposal reportedly includes demands for substantial changes to campus policy, such as abolishing scholarships for racial or ethnic groups and implementing an outside monitoring system for compliance with the agreement. Rights groups have raised concerns that the administration's threats may infringe on academic freedom and free speech, particularly given the charged atmosphere surrounding protests against Israel that occurred at UCLA and other campuses last year, as reported by indiatimes and reuters.

The backdrop to these negotiations includes ongoing scrutiny of UCLA's policies following allegations that university administration failed to adequately address antisemitism during campus protests. This situation escalated following an incident where pro-Palestinian activism reportedly obstructed Jewish students' access to campus resources, leading to a lawsuit and a settled payment of over $6 million to affected parties. These developments may complicate the university's negotiations with the Trump administration and add pressure to conform to the proposed settlement terms, according to lemonde and latimes.