US universities issue letter condemning Trump's 'political interference'
PRINCETON
More than 100 U.S. universities and colleges, including Ivy League institutions Princeton and Brown, issued a joint letter on April 22 condemning President Donald Trump's "political interference" in the education system.
"We speak with one voice against the unprecedented government overreach and political interference now endangering American higher education," the letter read.
"We are open to constructive reform and do not oppose legitimate government oversight. However, we must oppose undue government intrusion," it said, adding: "We must reject the coercive use of public research funding."
Trump has sought to bring several prestigious universities to heel over claims they tolerated campus anti-Semitism, threatening their budgets, tax-exempt status and the enrolment of foreign students.
The letter said the universities and colleges were committed to serving as centers where "faculty, students, and staff are free to exchange ideas and opinions across a full range of viewpoints without fear of retribution, censorship or deportation."
Trump has pursued a wide-ranging immigration crackdown that has expanded to foreign students, revoking their visas, often for little or no reason.
Turkish student Rümeysa Öztürk was detained by masked immigration officials on March 25.
Öztürk was one of four students who wrote an op-ed in The Tufts Daily at Tufts University, criticizing the school’s response to student activists demanding the school "acknowledge the Palestinian genocide," disclose investments and divest from companies with ties to Israel.
Last month, the director and associate director of Harvard University’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies were also stepped down.
The departure of Turkish historian Cemal Kafadar, who led the center, came after criticism of the department's alleged anti-Israel bias.
The White House has publicly justified its campaign against universities as a reaction to uncontrolled "anti-Semitism" and the desire to reverse diversity programs aimed at addressing historical oppression of minorities.
The administration claims protests against Israel's war in Gaza that swept across U.S. college campuses last year were rife with anti-Semitism.
Harvard lawsuit
Many U.S. universities, including Harvard, cracked down on the protests over the allegations at the time.
Several top institutions, including Columbia University, have also bowed to demands from the Trump administration, which claims that the educational elite is too left-wing.
In the case of Harvard, the White House is seeking unprecedented levels of government control over admissions and hiring practices at the country's oldest and wealthiest university.
But Harvard rejected the government's demands, prompting the Trump administration last week to order the freezing of $2.2 billion in federal funding to the institution.
In its lawsuit, Harvard calls for the freezing of funds and conditions imposed on federal grants to be declared unlawful, as well as for the Trump administration to pay the institution's costs.
The Department of Homeland Security has also threatened Harvard's ability to enroll international students unless it turns over records on visa holders' "illegal and violent activities."
International students made up 27.2 percent of Harvard's enrollment this academic year, according to its website.
