IBL News | New York
Harvard University rejected yesterday a list of demands from the Trump Administration, asking the university to change many of its policies, including shutting down diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. On Monday, the university wrote on its X account, “The university will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights.”
Hours after, in response, the U.S. Department of Education said it was freezing about $2.3 billion in federal funds to Harvard University over the school’s decision to fight White House demands.
“Harvard’s statement today reinforces the troubling entitlement mindset that is endemic in our nation’s most prestigious universities and colleges – that federal investment does not come with the responsibility to uphold civil rights laws,” said the department in a statement.
The White House sent Harvard a letter on Friday that added to a list of requirements it said were designed to fight antisemitism on campus, including changes to its governance, hiring practices, and admissions procedures.
On Monday, in a letter titled “The Promise of American Higher Education,” Harvard’s President Alan Garber [in the picture above] said the university responded that it did not “take lightly” its obligation to fight antisemitism but that the administration’s prescription goes beyond the federal government’s power.
Some of the requested changes included reducing the power held by students and untenured faculty, reporting students who are “hostile” to American values to the federal government, and hiring an external government-approved party to audit programs and departments “that most fuel antisemitic harassment.”
Since re-entering the White House, President Donald Trump has put pressure on universities to curb antisemitism and end diversity practices.
In March, the Trump Administration said it reviewed roughly $256m in federal contracts and grants at Harvard, and an additional $8.7bn in multi-year grant commitments.
Harvard professors filed a lawsuit in response, alleging the government was unlawfully attacking freedom of speech and academic freedom.
The White House had previously pulled $400m in federal funding from Columbia University and accused it of failing to fight antisemitism and protect Jewish students on its campus.
When the $400m was pulled, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said: “Universities must comply with all federal antidiscrimination laws if they are going to receive federal funding”.
Harvard’s rejection of Trump’s demands is the first time a major university has resisted the Trump administration’s funding threats. Harvard is the wealthiest university in the world.
• The Harvard Crimson: Trump Administration Freezes More Than $2 Billion in Federal Funding to Harvard.
