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As the Trump administration freezes billions of dollars in federal funding for universities across America refusing to comply with its list of demands, Harvard University has filed a federal lawsuit against the administration and accused it of violating the First Amendment.
“No government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue,” Harvard’s President Alan Garber said in a statement to the university on Monday.
The Trump administration has targeted college campuses in recent months, revoking students’ visas and attempting to defund universities over pro-Palestine activism. The administration has canceled funding forColumbiaand frozen funding forBrown,Cornell, and Northwesternover what they call antisemitism on campuses.
Harvard previously agreed to thedefinitionof antisemitism promoted largely by the right, but pushed back against the administration’s attempts to seize greater control by demanding the university shut down diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives; allow a White House-approved external body “to audit the student body, faculty, staff, and leadership for viewpoint diversity”; and more.
Although some members of the administration have claimed their letter of demands issued this month was sent by mistake, Garber said, other statements and actions suggest a different story: In addition to the initial freeze of $2.2 billion in funding, the government has moved to freeze another $1 billion in grants, and begun investigations of Harvard’s operations, threatened the education of international students, and announced that it is considering a revocation of the university’s tax-exempt status.
“The consequences of the government’s overreach will be severe and long-lasting,” Garbersaid in his message announcing the lawsuit, warning that research for child cancer, infectious diseases outbreaks, and easing the pain of wounded soldiers on the battlefield will be at risk, as well as future “opportunities to reduce the risk of multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease.”
Harvard’s lawsuit is the second stemming from the premier university against the Trump administration. Earlier this month, Harvardprofessors sued the Trump administration over its review of about $9 billion in federal funding for the university following pro-Palestine protests, calling the move a “gun to the head.” The complaint also sought a temporary restraining order, and accused the government’s tactics of amounting “to exploiting Title VI to coerce universities into undermining free speech and academic inquiry in service of the government’s political or policy preferences.”
In Garber’s letter to Harvard’s community on Monday, he wrote, “The government has cited the University’s response to antisemitism as a justification for its unlawful action. As a Jew and as an American, I know very well that there are valid concerns about rising antisemitism.” He continued, “To address it effectively requires understanding, intention, and vigilance. Harvard takes that work seriously. We will continue to fight hate with the urgency it demands as we fully comply with our obligations under the law. That is not only our legal responsibility. It is our moral imperative.”
