Two Harvard University faculty groups recently sued the Trump administration in federal court, claiming its threat to cut $9 billion in funding due to antisemitism concerns violates their First Amendment rights and academic freedom.The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and its Harvard chapter filed the lawsuit in the US District Court in Massachusetts, requesting a temporary restraining order to stop the administration from halting funds for research, grants, and university programs.
The Trump administration is reviewing $255.6 million in contracts and $8.7 billion in multi-year grants to Harvard. On March 31, the Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, and the General Services Administration sent a letter demanding Harvard meet conditions to keep the funding.
These include banning masks, ending diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, and working with law enforcement. The administration says it has authority under Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, but the lawsuit argues it did not follow the law’s requirements and is trying to control speech it disagrees with.
The lawsuit states, “This action challenges the Trump administration’s unlawful and unprecedented misuse of federal funding and civil rights enforcement authority to undermine academic freedom and free speech.”Harvard law professor and AAUP-Harvard general counsel Andrew Manuel Crespo said, “Harvard faculty have the constitutional right to speak, teach and conduct research without fearing that the government will retaliate against their viewpoints.”
The Trump administration is reviewing $255.6 million in contracts and $8.7 billion in multi-year grants to Harvard. On March 31, the Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, and the General Services Administration sent a letter demanding Harvard meet conditions to keep the funding.
These include banning masks, ending diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, and working with law enforcement. The administration says it has authority under Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, but the lawsuit argues it did not follow the law’s requirements and is trying to control speech it disagrees with.
The lawsuit states, “This action challenges the Trump administration’s unlawful and unprecedented misuse of federal funding and civil rights enforcement authority to undermine academic freedom and free speech.”Harvard law professor and AAUP-Harvard general counsel Andrew Manuel Crespo said, “Harvard faculty have the constitutional right to speak, teach and conduct research without fearing that the government will retaliate against their viewpoints.”
The lawsuit comes as the Trump administration targets universities like Harvard, Columbia, and Cornell, accusing them of failing to address antisemitism. A recent letter claimed Harvard “fundamentally failed to protect American students and faculty from antisemitic violence.”
Harvard president Alan Garber said the university has worked hard for 15 months to tackle antisemitism but noted more needs to be done.
On Saturday, hundreds of students, professors, and local officials, including Cambridge Mayor Denise Simmons, protested near Harvard’s campus against the administration’s actions. Simmons said, “Harvard possesses not just the resources to withstand the pressure, but the moral obligation to do so.”
(With input from agencies)
