The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has issued guidelines for students targeted for defending Palestinian rights or for their Islamic faith.
These guidelines focus on the rights of expression in educational settings and addressing any bullying that may result.
Cory Saylor, director of research at CARE, said students had the right to practice their religion openly and "peacefully defend human rights without harassment, threats or punishment."
"We encourage schools, colleges and universities from kindergarten to grade 12 to address this sudden increase in reports of abusive and discriminatory behaviour and expressions of support for students from all backgrounds, including Muslims and Palestinians. We also encourage affected students to report any incidents of abuse and seek help."
CAIR has received multiple reports of students being harassed online and in schools for defending human rights, particularly related to the Palestinian cause in recent days, including reports of obvious bullying against Muslim students, disciplinary action in public schools, and cases of threatening messages targeting university students online.
CAIR encouraged affected students to report any incidents of abuse and seek help (Getty Images)
The organization's legal team provided advice that included ensuring that students at all levels of education enjoy freedom of expression in public, distributing leaflets within public schools, and wearing non-violent and expressive clothing in school as long as it does not disrupt or violate the school's neutral policies.
According to the Supreme Court, school authorities must respect students' rights to express themselves outside of school, including their right to express dissenting or unpopular views. She said the school did not have the right to punish students for expressing their positions outside the school.
According to the U.S. Constitution, university administrations are prohibited from suppressing freedom of expression on the basis of point of view, which means that a student or student group cannot be punished for claiming that their message does not correspond to the university administration, and therefore the university may be held responsible for violating students' constitutional rights.
He noted that students can only be punished for posting content on social media if it poses a threat to the school or its members.
The legal team of the "Palestine Legal" organization (independent) - to protect the rights of defenders of the Palestinian cause in America - also presented a guide to educate university students defending Palestine, which included tips such as maintaining continuous contacts with peers and members of student organizations, with the need to document and report incidents of bullying and discrimination, and take detailed notes to take the necessary legal action.
The guideline indicated the need to seek support from a trusted university administrator in the faculty or university administration.