Harvard University faculty sued the Trump administration on Friday over a federal assessment of the school's spending amid allegations of their “failure” to protect students from antisemitism.
The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and its campus chapter are both plaintiffs in the lawsuit which said failures were “unspecified” according to legal documents.
In the filing they noted that Harvard received policy demands from the administration in a letter outlining steps to keep $9 billion in federal funding.
“Harvard, like all American universities, depends on federal funding to conduct its academic research. Threats like these are an existential 'gun to the head' for a university,” the lawsuit reads.
“They also hold hostage billions of dollars in congressional appropriations that are crucial to ensuring the American university system remains a global leader in scientific, medical, and technological research,” it continues.
The move comes weeks after the Trump administration cut $400 million in federal grants to Columbia University amid its antisemitism probe of the New York campus.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon warned that cuts to Harvard would be similar.
“Harvard has served as a symbol of the American Dream for generations — the pinnacle aspiration for students all over the world to work hard and earn admission to the storied institution,” McMahon said.
“Harvard’s failure to protect students on campus from anti-Semitic discrimination — all while promoting divisive ideologies over free inquiry — has put its reputation in serious jeopardy. Harvard can right these wrongs and restore itself to a campus dedicated to academic excellence and truth-seeking, where all students feel safe on its campus,” McMahon added.
The Harvard group’s filing comes a month after the AAUP sued the Trump administration for allegedly violating First Amendment rights by deporting individuals with legal status for expressing pro-Palestine views.
