The Trump administration says nearly $256 million in contracts and $8.7 billion in grants are at risk at Harvard University.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon (shown above) said there will be a review of Harvard's federal funding, saying that Harvard's reputation is in jeopardy amid its failure to protect students from antisemitic discrimination and promoting divisive ideologies instead of free inquiry.
In a statement, Harvard president Alan M. Garber called antisemitism “one of the most insidious forms of bigotry” and insisted his school has made attempts to quell it.
“For the past fifteen months, we have devoted considerable effort to addressing antisemitism … We will continue to combat antisemitism and to foster a campus culture that includes and supports every member of our community.”
Brooke Goldstein, the Executive Director of The Lawfare Project, reacted on Fox News.
"Really, the statement is too little too late and curiously just comes after $8.7 billion worth of grants is now being threatened. But where was this university in the last two years? Not only the students, but the faculty at the university were openly celebrating the October 7th terror attacks, have called for death to Jews, Jewish students have been assaulted on campus, beaten up by mobs, they've been spat on, they've been retaliated against, they've been discriminated against."
Goldstein said this hostility to Jews has had nothing to do with the "so-called Israeli-Palestinian conflict."
She said it has everything to do with Jewish civil rights.
“Yet the university has done absolutely nothing. They have been the subject of lawsuits. Apparently, there's still a lawsuit going on that hasn't been settled by Showbiz Kestenbaum, and I don't see the university taking any actions based on their words and their now renewed commitment to fight anti-Jewish discrimination."
Goldstein added that aside from withholding and reviewing federal grants, one of the most important things that has to happen is a complete and total review of the curriculum at Harvard.
According to Jewish Virtual Library, Qatar has contributed almost $5 billion to colleges and universities in the United States including $3.8 million to Harvard between 2020 and 2024.
“I understand (the Harvard curriculum) to be riddled with anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism. The school apparently has gotten grants from Qatar, the second-largest state sponsor of terrorism. Why is Qatar funding our colleges? Why is Qatar funding Harvard, and what relationship does that funding have to do with the level of anti-Americanism and antisemitism in the curriculum itself?"
