The U.S. administration announced it will terminate 450 million U.S. dollars in grants to Harvard University, a day after the institution's president criticized the government for threatening key freedoms.
The latest cuts, announced by the Joint Task Force to Combat Antisemitism on Tuesday, are on top of more than 2.2 billion dollars in federal funds that were frozen last month. Harvard is suing the U.S. administration over demands the government made over its academic and disciplinary policies.
Harvard University President Alan Garber wrote to Education Secretary Linda McMahon on Monday to deny her allegation that the school has a partisan political bias, warning that government "overreach" is threatening key freedoms.
The government coalition slammed Harvard in a letter on Tuesday for failing to confront "pervasive race discrimination and antisemitic harassment."
At the end of March, the task force announced it would review approximately 9 billion dollars in federal funds allocated to Harvard and its affiliates.
On April 11, officials from the U.S. administration sent a letter to Harvard University, urging it to implement meaningful governance reforms and restructuring, or face cuts to federal funding.
On April 14, Harvard rejected the U.S. administration's demands. Later that evening, the administration announced it would freeze 2.2 billion dollars in multiyear grants and 60 million dollars in multiyear contract funds for the university.
The administration has also threatened to revoke Harvard's eligibility to admit international students, planned to strip the university of its tax-exempt status, and launched multiple investigations into the academic institution.
Since January, the U.S. administration has issued threats to several U.S. universities, warning them of potential funding cuts if they fail to adjust their policies. The administration's main demands include eliminating what it describes as antisemitism on campus and dismantling diversity initiatives that favor certain minority groups.
(Source: Xinhua)
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