EEOC Accuses Penn of Defying Subpoena

"intensive and relentless public relations campaign"

"extraordinary and unconstitutional demand that Penn assemble and produce lists of employees that reveal their Jewish faith or ancestry, associations with Jewish organizations, affiliation with Jewish studies, participation in programming for the Jewish community and/or de-anonymized responses to surveys on antisemitism, alongside their personal home addresses, phone numbers, and emails."

"As our motion notes, to demand that Penn create and compile lists of Jewish people-particularly those active in political causes disfavored by the government-evokes the disturbing history of twentieth-century antisemitism. Beyond Penn itself, this lawsuit has serious implications for the religious liberties of AAUP members nationwide, as well as their right to engage in speech and scholarship without the threat of ideological conformity,"

The EEOC sought lists of Jewish students and employees to identify potential victims and witnesses in an antisemitism investigation, and first requested the information in July. The federal agency alleged that the university has impeded the investigation and accused Penn of mounting an "intensive and relentless public relations campaign" to avoid complying with a subpoena. Penn argued the demand was "extraordinary and unconstitutional," saying it would force disclosure of religious identity, affiliations, and private contact information. Jewish students, scholars and AAUP chapters pushed back, and the AAUP moved to intervene citing religious liberty and academic freedom concerns.

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