The Trump administration’s Joint Task Force to Combat Antisemitism said it is freezing more than USD 2 billion in multi-year grants and contracts to Harvard University in Massachusetts, Fox News reported. The decision comes after the Harvard University president issued a statement saying the school would not follow the administration’s demands regarding antisemitism.
The task force said, “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.”
It further stated, “The disruption of learning that has plagued campuses in recent years is unacceptable. The harassment of Jewish students is intolerable.” The task force announced a freeze on USD 2.2 billion in multi-year grants and USD 60 million in multi-year contract value to Harvard University, Fox News reported.
The statement said, “It is time for elite universities to take the problem seriously and commit to meaningful change if they wish to continue receiving taxpayer support.” “The Joint Task Force to combat anti-Semitism is announcing a freeze on USD 2.2 billion in multi-year grants and USD 60M in multi-year contract value to Harvard University,” the Joint Task Force said.
The Trump administration’s decision follows Harvard University President Alan M Garber’s statement that the school would not follow the administration’s demands despite the possibility of the Ivy League school losing federal funding.
In his letter, Garber said the federal government has threatened its partnerships with several universities, including Harvard, due to accusations of anti-semitism on their campuses.
He stated that the Trump administration issued an updated and expanded list of demands, saying if the school wants to maintain financial ties with the federal government, it must comply.
In his letter, Garber wrote, “Late Friday night, the administration issued an updated and expanded list of demands, warning that Harvard must comply if we intend to ‘maintain [our] financial relationship with the federal government’. It makes clear that the intention is not to work with us to address antisemitism in a cooperative and constructive manner. Although some of the demands outlined by the government are aimed at combating antisemitism, the majority represent direct governmental regulation of the ‘intellectual conditions’ at Harvard.”
Alan M Garber said that they have informed the administration that they will not accept their proposed agreement.
“We have informed the administration through our legal counsel that we will not accept their proposed agreement. The University will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights,” Garber wrote in the letter.
US President Donald Trump has suspended federal funding to every Ivy League school, apart from Penn and Dartmouth, over a probe into anti-Israel protests that have taken place on their campuses since October 2023, Fox News reported. Funding of dozens of other universities has been affected by the probe for the same reason.
Earlier this month, a federal antisemitism task force announced a review of Harvard’s federal grants and contracts, worth nearly USD 9 billion.
The Trump administration has vowed to be more aggressive in ending antisemitism on campuses in the US after saying that former US President Joe Biden did not hold universities accountable for their violent protests. The Trump administration also plans to detain and deport foreign students who were part of or orchestrated anti-Israel protests at universities in the US.
(with inputs from ANI)
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