California resident to challenge in court the ban on a license plate with the slogan "from the river to the sea"

A California resident is challenging in court the ban on a license plate bearing the slogan "from the river to the sea." Yasmin Abd al-Nabi claims that the revocation of the plate violates her right to free speech. The Department of Motor Vehicles recalled the plate after complaints from Jewish drivers who reported feeling threatened.

A California resident, Yasmin Abd al-Nabi, has sued the state's Department of Motor Vehicles after it canceled her personalized license plate reading RVRTSEA, an abbreviation of the pro-Palestinian slogan "from the river to the sea." The plate was issued in May 2024 but later recalled following complaints from Jewish drivers who said they felt fear and a personal threat. An administrative judge upheld the recall, ruling that the inscription could be interpreted as a call for genocide or incitement to violence. The plaintiff denies any intent to threaten or encourage violence and is asking a federal court to return the plate, arguing that the slogan is protected by the right to free speech under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

California resident to challenge in court the ban on a license plate with the slogan "from the river to the sea"