Harvard University Under Threat of Federal Funding Cuts from Trump Administration
Image Caption: A view of Harvard University’s campus on John F. Kennedy Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts, captured on December 7, 2023. — Reuters
NEW YORK: Former President Donald Trump has threatened to revoke Harvard University’s tax-exempt status after the institution declined to comply with what it described as unlawful demands from the government regarding its academic programs. The university warned it would risk losing federal funds if it didn’t acquiesce to these demands.
Following a similar backlash against Columbia University, the Trump administration has criticized various universities nationwide for their management of the pro-Palestinian protests that stirred controversy on campuses last year.
Trump has characterized the protests as anti-American and antisemitic, alleging that universities promote Marxist and “radical left” ideologies. He has vowed to withhold federal grants and contracts from institutions that do not conform to his administration’s expectations.
In response, some faculty, students, and university leaders contend that the portrayal of these protests as antisemitic serves as a guise for an unconstitutional assault on academic freedom.
Columbia University, a private institution in New York City, agreed to enter negotiations after the Trump administration announced it was terminating grants and contracts totaling $400 million, primarily aimed at medical and scientific research.
In a letter dated Monday, Harvard President Alan Garber described the administration’s demands— which included an audit to ensure “viewpoint diversity” among the student body and faculty, as well as the cessation of all diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives— as unprecedented overreaches that detached from legal boundaries, thus infringing on constitutional free speech rights and the Civil Rights Act.
Garber asserted that just like Columbia, Harvard has been actively engaged in combating antisemitism and other forms of discrimination on its campus while upholding the principles of academic freedom and the right to protest.
Shortly following Garber’s letter, the Trump administration’s Joint Task Force to Combat Antisemitism announced it was freezing over $2 billion in contracts and grants to Harvard, the nation’s oldest and wealthiest university. The administration has yet to clarify which specific grants and contracts have been cut, and Harvard has not commented on the matter.
In a social media post on Tuesday, Trump hinted at the possibility of seeking to strip Harvard of its tax-exempt status should it continue what he termed “political, ideological, and terrorist-inspired ‘sickness.’” He did not specify how he would execute this plan. According to the U.S. tax code, most universities are exempt from federal income tax because they are considered “operated exclusively” for educational purposes.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt conveyed to reporters that Trump demands an apology from Harvard regarding what she referred to as "antisemitism occurring on their campus against Jewish American students."
She accused Harvard and other universities of violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination by recipients of federal funding on the basis of race or national origin.
Under Title VI, the termination of federal funds necessitates a lengthy investigation and hearing process, along with a 30-day notification to Congress— procedures that have not been followed concerning the funding cuts at either Columbia or Harvard.
