Key Takeaways:
- Harvard adds to its ongoing lawsuit after the Trump administration terminates another $450 million in research grants.
- The university argues the funding cuts violate First Amendment rights and lack legal justification.
- Federal agencies accuse Harvard of failing to address antisemitism and discrimination on campus.
Harvard University has expanded its federal lawsuit against the Trump administration following the termination of an additional $450 million in federal research grants. The lawsuit comes amid a deepening standoff between the Ivy League school and the White House over campus governance, academic freedom, and alleged antisemitism.
The amended complaint, filed Tuesday in a Boston federal court, accuses the administration of escalating punitive measures without due process and claims the cuts are politically motivated. This latest action follows the administration’s previous decision to freeze $2.2 billion in federal funding last month.
According to the lawsuit, Harvard contends the funding cuts amount to retaliation for its refusal to implement sweeping changes demanded by federal agencies, including revisions to admissions and hiring policies, dismantling diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, and conducting internal audits. Harvard asserts that these demands infringe upon the university’s constitutionally protected free speech and academic independence.
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“The government has not identified—and cannot identify—any rational connection between antisemitism concerns and the medical, scientific, technological, and other research it has frozen or terminated,” the university stated in its filing.
The Trump administration’s Joint Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism, which includes the Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, and Justice, issued a statement Tuesday declaring that Harvard had failed to adequately address “pervasive race discrimination and anti-Semitic harassment.” The task force described the university as a “breeding ground for virtue signaling and discrimination.”
Education Secretary Linda McMahon also signaled a freeze on all future federal aid to the university until it complies with the administration’s demands. President Trump has further suggested revoking Harvard’s tax-exempt status and limiting its ability to enroll foreign students.
Harvard President Alan Garber has defended the university’s record and academic principles. “These decisions not only undermine our research mission but threaten the rights of students and scholars across the nation,” he said in an earlier statement.
U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs has scheduled a hearing on the case for July 21. The outcome could have significant implications for federal oversight of higher education institutions.