Harvard University has firmly rejected the Trump administration’s demands that tied $9 billion in federal funding to significant changes in University governance and hiring practices as well as viewpoint audits of academic departments, students, and faculty.
The funding in question, more than $2 billion of which was frozen just hours after Harvard’s response, supports research that has resulted in groundbreaking innovations across a wide range of medical, engineering, and scientific fields.
In a message sent to the Harvard community on Monday afternoon, President Alan Garber emphasized the critical role this funding plays in advancing research and innovation.
The Trump administration cited concerns about antisemitism on campus as a key reason for halting funding not just at Harvard, but also at several other higher education institutions.
Responses to the funding cuts were sought across campus, where students and faculty voiced their worries regarding the chilling effects on academic freedom and scientific progress.
Xie, a student whose research focuses on quantum computing, expressed her concern by stating, “I feel like at some core level, it violates our rights as people and researchers and scientists — and as a university as well.”
She, along with many of her peers, fears that the significant funding cuts to major institutions like Harvard will hinder advancements in scientific research.
“Universities play a major role because it’s where a lot of research takes place,” she noted. “There are companies and startups that do this kind of work, but I feel like it’s truly in universities where a lot of the fundamental work is done, and a lot of the pioneering work in terms of allowing us to not only better understand the platforms like the ones I work with, but also help put them into real-world applications.”
Tyrie, a student at the Kennedy School, emphasized the need for broader dissent against what he termed “dangerous decisions” by the Trump administration.
He argued, “I think there’s a much bigger job to be done, and that is for all those who disagree with the dramatic and, in my view, dangerous decisions being taken by the new administration to speak up.”
He also expressed concern about the implications of the actions for the United States’ global standing.
“And of course, as a non-U.S. citizen, I am concerned about the wider effects on the world — both the prospects for growth and prosperity, but also for its security and stability,” Tyrie added.
Cherniss, who studies political theory and focuses on authoritarian regimes, also voiced his apprehensions, noting that while the current situation doesn’t fully equate to established authoritarianism, it shows signs of government attempts to control academic discourse.
“I think that it’s important that Harvard and other universities not buckle under what I think is pretty clearly an assault on academic freedom and university self-governance,” he stated.
Cherniss warned about the potential fallout from funding freezes on various fields of scholarship, especially those deemed socially beneficial.
“We may have to cut a lot of the most socially useful work that we do in medical sciences and technology — things that have really benefited America and benefit the world in very practical ways,” he concluded.
image source from：https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2025/04/this-is-weakening-the-united-states/
