Harvard University risks paying a high price for its courage in standing up to intimidation by the Trump administration. Since the oldest US university refused to bow to White House attempts to force changes in its governance, federal officials have said they would freeze $2.2bn in funding. The Internal Revenue Service is examining whether to revoke its tax-exempt status. The government has threatened to ban it from enrolling foreign students. Yet academic freedoms and independence of higher education from state diktat are values that must be defended. Harvard is right to take a stand. Other universities should do the same.
The Trumpian assault on universities is ostensibly about purging “woke” ideology from classrooms and hiring, and combating alleged antisemitism. The administration has been threatening to withhold federal funding unless schools submit to its edicts, arresting students who took part in pro-Palestinian protests and capping scientific research costs — potentially a huge own goal against the American economy.
US universities do need to consider why they have become such bitter targets of the populist right. Some have gone too far in allowing left-leaning sentiment to predominate, tolerating practices such as “no-platforming”, and allowing education costs to spiral. But much right-wing criticism has been exaggerated, and threats and coercion from the White House are no way to bring about reform.