“This kind of threat is an existential gun to the university’s head,” the professor said in their lawsuit.
A Harvard professor sued the Trump administration on April 11 after threatening to withhold nearly $9 billion in grants and contracts if the university fails to adopt the necessary structural changes of the administration.
According to court filings, the university received a letter on April 3 from the administration outlining an outline of the “non-exhaustive prerequisites” that must meet in order to maintain government funds following an investigation into the university’s failure to address anti-Semitism on campus.
Among the requirements is a review of programs within the university to “improve diversity of perspectives and capture ideologically” and “improve diversity of perspectives.” Harvard also had to enact a mask ban and eliminate all diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, according to the lawsuit.
The administration said it threatened to end its contract at least $255.6 million and make more than $8.7 billion in commitments to Harvard and its affiliates, with no longer agreeing to implement the proposed changes.
“Harvard, like all American universities, relies on federal funds to conduct academic research. Such a threat is an existential “gun to the head” for universities,” the lawsuit states.
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“These drastic but indeterminate demands are not remedies targeting the cause of decisions to violate federal law. Instead, they are trying to impose Harvard’s political views and policy preferences advanced by the Trump administration, and committing the university to punish unfavorable speeches,” they say.
The professor asked the court to permanently ban the university’s further investigation or examination of federal funds in advance. They also demanded that the administration block the government from using its authority to punish Harvard University for its members’ perspectives.
The Epoch Times contacted the White House for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
Protests erupted across US universities after Israel launched military operations in the Gaza Strip with its goal of eradicating Hamas terrorist groups. The operation was retaliation of Hamas, which launched a land, sea and air attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people and 251 hostages. Last spring, pro-Palestinian protesters camped on campus and took over the building at one point.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon has previously urged university leaders to prevent discrimination against Jewish students on campus or risk losing federal funds.
“U.S. universities benefit from the enormous public investment funded by US taxpayers. That support is a privilege and conditional on strict compliance with the federal anti-differentiation law.”
