On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Harvard University could have its tax-exempt status revoked and demanded an apology from the institution. This came in response to Harvard’s refusal to comply with demands to significantly alter its academic programs or risk losing federal grants.
The Trump administration began criticizing universities like Columbia University for their management of student protests supporting Palestinians. These protests emerged after a 2023 attack by Hamas inside Israel and subsequent Israeli responses against Gaza. President Trump characterized these protests as un-American and antisemitic, accused universities of promoting Marxism and extreme leftism, and threatened to halt federal funding for any institution not complying with his administration’s conditions.
In a social media post, Trump hinted at potentially ending Harvard’s tax-exempt status if the university continued what he described as support for “political, ideological, and terrorist inspired/supporting ‘Sickness.'” However, he did not specify how this action would be implemented, considering that most universities are not subject to federal income tax under the U.S. tax code as they are considered to be serving educational public purposes.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that President Trump expected Harvard to apologize for alleged antisemitism against Jewish American students on its campus. She accused Harvard and other educational institutions of breaching Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination by federal fund recipients based on race or national origin. However, under Title VI, terminating federal funds requires a thorough investigation, hearings, and a 30-day prior notice to Congress, none of which had been executed in cases involving Columbia or Harvard.
Some academic staff and students have argued that the connections between the protests and antisemitism have been misrepresented to justify unconstitutional measures against academic freedom.
Columbia University, facing similar federal pressure, had agreed to modify its protest policies after the Trump administration canceled grants and contracts worth $400 million, mostly for research. Alan Garber, Harvard’s President, responded with a letter indicating that the demands made by the Trump administration, including conducting an audit for “viewpoint diversity” and eliminating diversity programs, constituted unprecedented power assertions and violated constitutional free speech principles and the Civil Rights Act.
Hours after this response, the Trump administration announced it was suspending over $2 billion in contracts and grants to Harvard. The administration did not clarify which specific grants were affected, and Harvard declined to comment.
In response to the actions against Columbia and Harvard, several professors from Columbia initiated a lawsuit against the Trump administration, claiming violations of Title VI and infringements on their constitutional rights. A federal judge in New York has ordered the administration to respond by May 1.
Columbia’s interim president, Claire Shipman, expressed in a statement that the university would continue dialogues with the U.S. Justice Department’s antisemitism task force. She asserted that any agreement compromising academic autonomy would be rejected.
Support for Harvard’s stance came from other academic institutions. Princeton University’s President, Christopher Eisgruber, publicly backed Harvard’s position. Additionally, Stanford University’s President Jonathan Levin and Provost Jenny Martinez affirmed their support, emphasizing that universities should address issues with humility but noted the necessity of preserving academic integrity and research capabilities.
On a broader educational landscape, several institutions, including Princeton and the University of Illinois, initiated legal action against the Department of Energy due to significant cuts in federal research funding.
Elsewhere, a U.S. judge observed that there was no evidence suggesting the Trump administration had sought the return of a man deported to El Salvador but withheld contempt charges for now. Meanwhile, a judge in Washington partially blocked an executive order by Trump targeting the law firm Susman Godfrey, marking a legal challenge against Trump’s opposition to certain firms.
Amidst these developments, there was an increase in interest among U.S.-based students for studying in Canada, prompted by Trump’s policies affecting funding and student visas.
