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Harvard Rejects Trump Administration's Demands, Risks $9 Billion in Federal Funding

University leadership cites constitutional rights and academic independence as reasons for defying federal conditions aimed at combating alleged campus antisemitism.

FILE - People take photos near a John Harvard statue, left, on the Harvard University campus, Jan. 2, 2024, in Cambridge, Mass. Two task forces charged with proposing ways to combat anti-Muslim, anti-Arab, and anti-Palestinian bias and antisemitism at Harvard University have delivered their preliminary recommendations to Harvard interim president Alan Garber. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)
Demonstrators rally on Cambridge Common in a protest organized by the City of Cambridge calling on Harvard leadership to resist interference at the university by the federal government in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S. April 12, 2025. REUTERS/Nicholas Pfosi
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Overview

  • Harvard University has formally refused a set of demands from the Trump administration, which tie nearly $9 billion in federal funding to sweeping policy changes.
  • The administration's demands include ending diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, merit-based admissions reforms, and audits of faculty and student viewpoints.
  • Harvard President Alan Garber asserted that the demands exceed federal authority, violate First Amendment protections, and threaten the university's autonomy.
  • In response to Harvard's defiance, the federal government has frozen $2.2 billion of multi-year grants and $60 million in contracts as part of ongoing investigations.
  • This standoff has reignited national debates on academic freedom, federal overreach, and the balance between combating antisemitism and preserving university self-governance.