Five nonprofit organizations have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), challenging new federal grant conditions they argue unlawfully restrict free speech and force recipients to align with the Trump administration’s positions on diversity, gender identity, and immigration.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court in Seattle, seeks to block the implementation of the new grant requirements, claiming they violate constitutional protections and exceed the government’s legal authority.

The plaintiffs are Agroecology Commons, Oregon Farm Corps, Syracuse-Onondaga Food Systems Alliance, Third Sector New England, and Washington Farmland Trust. The organizations contend that the revised grant terms threaten their ability to carry out their missions while advocating for diversity, equity, and immigrant communities.

At the center of the legal challenge is a memorandum signed by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on December 31, introducing new conditions for USDA grant recipients. According to the lawsuit, the policy requires grantees to adhere to the administration’s positions on a range of social issues, including race and diversity, gender identity, and immigration.

“The new terms and conditions include several provisions that impose vague and unprecedented substantive requirements on USDA grantees,” the complaint states, arguing that the conditions effectively compel organizations to adopt government-approved viewpoints as a prerequisite for receiving federal funding.

Rollins has defended the policy as part of the administration’s effort to eliminate what she described as “radical left ideology” from federally funded programs.

The USDA had not publicly responded to the lawsuit as of Thursday. According to the department’s website, it distributed more than $145 billion through 287 programs during fiscal year 2025.

The case is the latest legal challenge to a series of Trump administration policies aimed at reshaping federal funding. Since returning to office, President Donald Trump has sought to restrict grants and federal support for nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, and other recipients over issues including diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, transgender policies, climate-related programs, and pro-Palestinian campus protests.

The administration argues that diversity programs undermine merit-based standards and unfairly disadvantage white people and men. Civil rights organizations, however, maintain that such initiatives are designed to address longstanding systemic inequalities affecting women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and racial and ethnic minorities.

The lawsuit also comes amid broader criticism of the administration’s immigration policies, with rights groups accusing the government of pursuing aggressive enforcement measures that disproportionately affect immigrant communities.

The Seattle court is expected to determine whether the USDA’s new grant conditions can remain in effect while the legal challenge proceeds.