Trump-backed Project Esther is Next Chapter in Student Speech Suppression
Heritage’s Project 2025 successor threatens all-out war on students free speech
ZAKAREYA HAMED
Students protesting in New York City in support of Palestine and for free speech outside of the Columbia University, Getty Images 2023
Last year, the ultra-conservative think tank Heritage Foundation published its plan for widespread radical policy moves across every facet of government: Project 2025. Three months ago, its counterpart, Project Esther was published, calling to crack down on student free speech through extensive First Amendment violations against students. The project comes in response to the nationwide campus protests in support of Gaza earlier this year.
The project ludicrously names an array of groups on and off campuses of high schools and colleges as ‘Hamas-supporting organizations,’ including Students for Justice in Palestine, Jewish Voice for Peace, and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. It calls for shutdowns of these organizations’ on-campus operations using federal funding as a blackmailing tactic—and backs suspensions and expulsions of students in their ranks. The early impacts of Esther-like policies came into full display this past spring, when schools like the University of Southern California suspended dozens of students for involvement in peaceful on-campus demonstrations.
This rhetoric presents a dystopian agenda: employing counterterrorism laws and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act to intimidate and silence students involved with these organizations.
Ironically, the project is spearheaded by Christian nationalists with personal ties to anti-semitic figures. Project Esther has declared its ‘desired end state’ to be the eradication of ‘propaganda’ from the American pro-Palestine movement within all levels of the US education system. This Orwellian pursuit is a direct attack on students’ free expression under the guise of combating hate.
Project Esther’s ties extend to pose threats in the K-12 space as well. Jay P. Greene, a leading Heritage Foundation operative known for his support of school choice through charter schools, vouchers, and decentralization, is one of the lead architects of the project. Greene, a staunch critic of the Department of Education, reflects a growing movement to decentralize and dismantle the American public education system entirely.
“The effects of this agenda are already being felt. Many influential, politically involved extremist groups have narrowed in on their efforts into restricting campus speech at high schools and colleges after pro-Palestinian protests gained momentum in late 2023. Dozens of K-12 teachers have faced repercussions as severe as being fired from their posts for speaking up about Gaza with these repercussions supported and even initiated by groups like the Anti-Defamation League.
Project Esther crosses the line into outright suppression of student voices as an intimidation tactic to obstruct lawful student organizing. Its front-facing goal of “eradicating” alleged antisemitic content is a coverup of a broader plan for censorship of K-12 curricula. These plans aim to eliminate nuance in Middle Eastern history and global human rights discourse from classrooms altogether.
At the Saphron Initiative, we stand firmly against student speech suppression and call on school divisions to isolate organizations that back such efforts, most prominently among them, the ADL. These efforts won’t cease in the face of Project Esther—or in the face of the incoming Trump administration’s destabilizing education policies—and we will continue to work with education stakeholders nationwide to neutralize these threats. Student voices must be respected, uplifted, and honored—not diminished or suppressed by private interests.
Saphron Initiative staff and guest contributors often express their views in pieces on Edisco. These pieces do not constitute an organizational endorsement of the viewpoints within. Our goal is to encourage and uplift student voices and we respect diverse opinions. We encourage all readers to conduct further research and develop informed opinions on the issues discussed.
