Harvard University has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) revoked its ability to enroll international students. The university claims the administration’s actions are a “blatant violation” of the law and have an “immediate and devastating effect” on Harvard and its 7,000 visa holders.
In a statement, Harvard President Alan Garber condemned the administration’s decision, saying, “We condemn this unlawful and unwarranted action. The revocation continues a series of government actions to retaliate against Harvard for our refusal to surrender our academic independence and to submit to the federal government’s illegal assertion of control over our curriculum, our faculty, and our student body.”
The Trump administration alleges that Harvard has not done enough to combat antisemitism and change its hiring and admissions practices, allegations that the university strongly denies. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem demanded that Harvard provide records of foreign students participating in protests on campus within 72 hours to regain its ability to host foreign students.
Harvard argues that the administration’s decision would effectively erase a quarter of its student body, with international students making up over 27% of its enrollments this year. The university is seeking a court order to halt the DHS’s decision to revoke its Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification.
This lawsuit is part of a larger dispute between the Trump administration and Harvard, which has also seen the White House freeze $2.2 billion in federal funding to the university. The administration has launched investigations into dozens of universities across the country, claiming they discriminate against conservative viewpoints and fail to clamp down on pro-Palestinian activists.
Harvard’s view is in tandem with the views of many who have accused President Trump of discriminatory tendencies in view of his policies which appears to be very hostile to blacks and all that they stand for.