Harvard faculty filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration on Friday, which conducted a federal assessment of the school’s spending due to their “failure” to protect students from allegations of anti-Semitism.
The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and its campus chapters are plaintiffs in the lawsuit, which, according to legal documents, claimed that the failure was “unspecified”.
In a letter, they noted that Harvard received a government policy request outlining the steps to retain $9 billion in federal funds.
“Harvard, like all American universities, relies on federal funds for academic research. Such a threat is the “gun” of the university’s survival,” the lawsuit reads.
It continues: “They also hold billions of dollars in Congress in prime-prime congressional grants, which is crucial to ensuring that the U.S. university system remains a global leader in scientific, medical and technological research.”
The move comes weeks after the Trump administration cut $400 million in federal grants to Columbia University in an anti-Semitism investigation into New York campuses.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon warned that cutting to Harvard is similar.
“Harvard was a symbol of the American dream for generations – students around the world worked hard and won the pinnacle of this legendary institution,” McMahon said.
“Harvard failed to protect students on campus from anti-Semitism – while promoting separatist ideology rather than free inquiries.
The Harvard Group application comes a month after AAUP sued the Trump administration for alleged violations of First Amendment rights, and the document was expressed by expelling individuals with legal status.