Harvard University has filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration in an effort to block proposed cuts to billions of dollars in federal funding.
The lawsuit, filed on Monday, follows a growing dispute between the elite Massachusetts institution and the administration, which escalated last week when Harvard rejected a set of demands it said would compromise academic independence. The administration claimed the demands were intended to curb diversity programs and address anti-Semitism on campus.
In response to the university’s defiance, President Donald Trump froze $2.2 billion in federal funding and threatened Harvard’s tax-exempt status.
“The consequences of the government’s overreach will be severe and long-lasting,” Harvard President Alan M. Garber wrote in a letter to the university community on Monday.
The White House responded later that night. “The gravy train of federal assistance to institutions like Harvard—which enrich their grossly overpaid bureaucrats with tax dollars from struggling American families—is coming to an end,” said spokesperson Harrison Fields. “Taxpayer funds are a privilege, and Harvard fails to meet the basic conditions required to access that privilege.”
Garber said the freeze directly affects critical research programs, including those focused on pediatric cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease.
In its legal filing, Harvard argues that the federal government is using funding as leverage to influence academic decisions. “This case involves the Government’s efforts to use the withholding of federal funding as leverage to gain control of academic decision making at Harvard,” the lawsuit states.
The university is also facing pressure regarding international student enrollment, which has come under threat in recent weeks.
Garber, who is Jewish, acknowledged the university has had instances of anti-Semitism on campus but said task forces have been established to address both anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim bias. He noted that their findings would soon be released.
Harvard is not alone in facing federal funding threats. Other Ivy League schools have also been targeted. The administration has suspended $1 billion in funding to Cornell University and $510 million to Brown University. Columbia University, which was at the center of pro-Palestinian protests last year, agreed to some of the administration’s demands after $400 million in funding was threatened.
Among the demands to Harvard were external audits of its curriculum, hiring practices, and admissions data. In a strongly worded April 14 letter, Harvard rejected these terms.
“The university will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights,” the letter stated. “Neither Harvard nor any other private university can allow itself to be taken over by the federal government.”
Former President Barack Obama, a Harvard alumnus, expressed his support for the university.
