The White House spokesperson, Harrison Fields, stated on Monday through a communiqué that President Donald Trump is "working to make higher education great again by ending rampant antisemitism and ensuring that federal taxpayer money doesn't fund Harvard's support of dangerous racial discrimination or racially motivated violence."
Hours after Harvard made its stance public, President Trump's administration announced the decision to freeze 2.3 billion dollars in federal funding intended for the university.
This measure adds to a broader review that the Trump administration initiated last month, in which 9 billion dollars in contracts and grants awarded to Harvard are being evaluated. The review is part of a campaign against a surge of antisemitism on university campuses, linked to left-wing pro-Palestinian demonstrations that have occurred over the last year and a half.
In a letter published on Friday, the Department of Education indicated that Harvard "had not complied with the intellectual and civil rights conditions that justify federal investment."
The letter also demanded that the university limit the influence of professors, employees, and students who prioritize left-wing political activism over academic work, and requested an external audit of the faculty and student bodies in each school to ensure a "diversity of opinions."
Additionally, it was indicated that, starting in August, Harvard must base its faculty hiring and student admissions exclusively on merit, eliminating any preference based on race, color, or nationality.
