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Harvard challenges Trump administration: “We will not compromise our independence”
One of the world’s most prestigious universities, Harvard, is at the epicentre of a conflict with Donald Trump’s administration. The reason for this is the refusal to comply with government demands to restrict freedom of speech on campus and control over teaching, The Washington Post reports.
After openly criticising the government, Harvard lost $2.3 billion in federal funding. And that’s just the beginning: the administration plans to review the university’s grants and contracts totalling more than $9 billion.
“No government – regardless of party affiliation – has the right to dictate what private universities can teach,” Harvard President Alan Garber said in an open letter.
Government demands: ideological cleansing and audit of teachers
The US Department of Education requires Harvard to do so:
- stop selecting students and teachers on the basis of race or origin;
- limit the influence of “activists” in science;
- conduct an external audit of the views of teachers and students;
- to test foreign students for loyalty to “American values”.
The government explains these demands as a “fight against anti-Semitism” following student protests in support of Palestine that swept many campuses after the 2023 Gaza conflict.
Harvard is not giving up: “We will not allow our autonomy to be stolen”
“This is an attempt to force us to give up our academic freedom under the guise of ‘fighting hate’. We will not accept this,” Harvard’s leadership said in a statement.
The university also announced plans to raise $750 million in private funding from Wall Street to preserve its autonomy and scholarships.
