(MIAMI) — Florida legislators are moving quickly to pass alarming new legislation that would prohibit use of the term “West Bank” in K-12 public schools and state agencies, including public universities and colleges, and require the use of the term “Judea and Samaria,” instead. PEN America called on state lawmakers to reject the idea as too “costly and confusing” and “ideologically-motivated,” and said the bills would broadly threaten teaching and learning about Palestine, Israel, and the Middle East.
“This bill does not operate in the abstract; it touches people’s histories, families, and lived realities,” said William Johnson, PEN America Florida director. “Our state is home to thousands of Palestinian Americans, many of whom have deep ties to the West Bank. At a time of rising anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian rhetoric, the legislation sends a worrying signal that some Floridians’ identities and experiences fall outside the bounds of recognition and belonging.”
If HB 31 and SB 1106 pass, Florida state agencies, including universities and colleges, would be prohibited from referring to the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territory West Bank in any “communication,” “material,” and “work product document” the institution prepares; instead, they must use “Judea and Samaria.” For K-12 public schools, the bills would require that any new instructional or school library materials adopted or acquired after July 1 comply with the new law.
The West Bank is the internationally recognized term for the territory captured by Israel in 1967. It is used by the United Nations, in the Oslo Accords, and by most governments, other international institutions, and human rights organizations. In recent years, some Israeli and American political officials have promoted the mandated use of the terms “Judea and Samaria.” This shift departs from widely accepted international legal frameworks regarding the status of the West Bank and reflects a move toward a politicized framing of the territory.
“These bills continue the abhorrent pattern of ideologically-motivated government censorship in Florida’s educational institutions,” said Sophia Brown, PEN America Florida program coordinator. “Implementation of these restrictions would be costly and confusing for schools and threaten academic freedom in Florida’s universities. Students’ learning will inevitably be impacted. Publishers and authors will be forced to self-censor, and educators will likely avoid coursework and library materials related to Palestine and Israel, the Middle East, or even international politics and world history in general. We urge the Florida House and Senate to carefully consider the chilling consequences of these bills and reject them.”
In recent years, Florida forced K-12 schools to replace “Gulf of Mexico” with “Gulf of America,” instructed publishers to avoid the term “climate change,” and imposed politicized K-12 social studies standards that distort Black history and recast McCarthyism in a positive light. In 2024, state universities were told to review instructional materials for courses whose description or syllabus contained the keywords Israel, Israeli, Palestine, Palestinian, Middle East, Zionism, Zionist, Judaism, Jewish, and Jews. Together, these actions show a clear pattern of political interference in how educators teach history, science, and global affairs at every level of education.
In 2025, Arkansas was the first state to mandate replacing the use of “West Bank” in state institutions. Similar bills have been proposed federally. The American Legislative Exchange Council published a model bill proposing to censor the term last summer, and several other states are considering identical provisions. Florida’s legislation, however, is unique in its sweeping efforts to also target K-12 schools.
About PEN America
PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. Learn more at pen.org.
Contact: Suzanne Trimel, [email protected], 201-247-5057