On November 25, 2025, the Liberty Justice Center filed a lawsuit on behalf of Dr. Matthew Abraham, a tenured professor at the University of Arizona (UA), against the Arizona Board of Regents. The case challenges the University’s exclusion of Dr. Abraham from prestigious governance committees after he opposed and sought records about what he reasonably believed were unlawful, race-based hiring and selection practices tied to DEI initiatives.
Upon discovering discriminatory practices at the University of Arizona, Dr. Abraham engaged in protected activity from 2017 to 2022. This included internal grievances, extensive public records requests, a September 15, 2020 demand letter through counsel, a public-records special action against the Arizona Board of Regents, and charges filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). After University officials became aware of these efforts, the University excluded him from the Committee on Academic Freedom and Tenure (CAFT) and from further service on the English Department Academic Program Review Committee (APR).
Internal communications show UA staff directed the nominating process using undisclosed “confidential” criteria, labeling certain faculty, especially those who had filed grievances or challenged university practices, as “problematic,” “not appropriate,” or subject to “conflicts of interest.” Dr. Abraham was flagged as “ineligible,” and was even included in a slide presentation which highlighted him and other “problematic” faculty in red. UA later cited a purported “conflict of interest” based on his protected grievances and selectively invoked a “degree‑seeking” bar while he was enrolled in law school.
As a state institution, the University of Arizona must comply with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. By excluding Dr. Abraham from CAFT and APR for his protected opposition and petitioning activity, and by maintaining race/DEI‑preferential selection practices, UA violated Title VII’s anti‑retaliation provision.
The Liberty Justice Center’s lawsuit seeks to halt the University’s use of protected activity as a disqualifier, to require neutral and published criteria for faculty governance appointments, to prohibit unlawful race‑based selection practices, to expunge stigmatizing labels from Dr. Abraham’s records, and to restore fair consideration for committee service.
“Faculty governance cannot be contingent on whether a professor stays silent about potential civil rights violations,” said Ángel J. Valencia, senior counsel at the Liberty Justice Center. “Blacklisting Dr. Abraham from governance committees because he exercised his rights is a serious civil rights violation, and we intend to hold the University of Arizona accountable.”
Abraham v. Arizona Board of Regents was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona on November 25, 2025.
Strategic litigation doesn’t just vindicate one professor—it sets national precedent, safeguarding educators and students across the country.
Ángel J. Valencia is a Senior Counsel at the Liberty Justice Center, where he litigates to defend individual liberties and challenge government overreach.
Tenured Professor. Governance Leader. Whistleblower.
For years, Dr. Matthew Abraham believed faculty governance was one of the most important safeguards of academic integrity.
A tenured professor at the University of Arizona, he participated in university service, committee work at the highest level, and institutional oversight—the often-unseen labor that keeps universities accountable and functioning.
When Dr. Abraham began to uncover what he believed were unlawful, race-based hiring and selection practices, he didn’t stay silent. He alerted administrators and filed internal grievances. He submitted public records requests. He sought transparency through lawful channels, even pursuing legal action through counsel all the way up to the Arizona Supreme Court,
His actions weren’t disruptive—they were protected civil rights activity.
But internal university communications later revealed he had been labeled “problematic.” His name appeared on internal power point slides presented to the nominating committee. He was quietly removed from consideration for influential governance committees, including bodies responsible for academic freedom and tenure protections.
In effect, the professor who spoke up about fairness was excluded from the very structures designed to safeguard it.
Dr. Abraham’s case is about more than committee assignments. It’s about whether professors can question institutional practices without being professionally marginalized for doing so.
“Faculty governance depends on transparency and accountability. When I raised lawful concerns, I was shut out of the very committees meant to protect those principles.”
By Matthew Holloway | Dec. 8, 2025 (AZ Free News) University of Arizona (UA) English professor Dr. Matthew Abraham has filed a federal lawsuit alleging he was blacklisted from key faculty-governance committees after raising concerns about DEI-driven hiring practices within his department. The complaint, filed Nov. 25 in the U.S....
Author: Leslie Bolden | Dec.1, 2025 (Tampa Free Press) A tenured professor at the University of Arizona has slapped the Arizona Board of Regents with a federal lawsuit, alleging he was secretly “blacklisted” from key faculty committees as retaliation for challenging what he viewed as illegal, race-based hiring practices. The...
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