The Joint Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism revoked over $2 billion in grants to Harvard University Monday hours after the school rejected the administration’s demands to tackle antisemitism.
In a public statement Monday afternoon, Harvard declared it “will not surrender” and accept President Donald Trump’s administration’s proposal to reform the school’s process for handling antisemitic incidents. The administration suggested Harvard reform and better enforce disciplinary processes for students who participate in antisemitic protests, improve screening of international students for “hostile” views towards America and audit “programs with egregious records of antisemitism.”
“Harvard’s statement today reinforces the troubling entitlement mindset that is endemic in our nation’s most prestigious universities and colleges – that federal investment does not come with the responsibility to uphold civil rights laws,” the task force said in a statement announcing the funding withdrawal.
The total funding freeze amounts to $2.2 billion in multi-year grants and $60 million in multi-year contract value, according to the task force.
The task force, made up of the Department of Education (ED), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) initiated a review in late March of more than $8.7 billion worth of grants to Harvard and sent the list of demands to the school on April 11. The letter warned that failure to comply would result in a referral to the DOJ and the loss of federal funding.
A previous congressional investigation in September found “Harvard failed” to enforce meaningful punishment on nearly 70 students who were involved in a multi-day pro-Hamas encampment during the previous spring semester. Demonstrators at the Ivy League institution also disrupted classes and occupied a campus building.
“The disruption of learning that has plagued campuses in recent years is unacceptable. The harassment of Jewish students is intolerable,” the task force continued in its statement. “It is time for elite universities to take the problem seriously and commit to meaningful change if they wish to continue receiving taxpayer support.”
A view of Harvard Yard on the campus of Harvard University on July 08, 2020 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
In his reasoning for rejecting the administration’s demands for reform, Harvard president Alan Garber wrote that the agreement threatened the university’s free speech rights and academic freedom.
“We have informed the administration through our legal counsel that we will not accept their proposed agreement,” Garber stated. “The University will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights.”
Harvard joins a growing list of schools facing penalties for failure to comply with civil rights laws and federal directives, with the Trump administration already pulling millions from Cornell, Princeton and Columbia, among others. (RELATED: ‘Calculated Plan Of Destruction’: Twelve Anti-Israel Student Protesters Charged With Felonies)
The task force was assembled in February with the primary focus being “to root out anti-Semitic harassment in schools and on college campuses.” The following month, ED sent letters to 60 universities warning them of “potential enforcement actions” if they did not step up to protect Jewish students from harassment and discrimination.
Harvard did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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