The Trump administration’s recent decision to ban Harvard University from accepting overseas students has prompted the university to initiate a lawsuit against it. The institution says the action is retaliatory and unlawful because Harvard refused to bow to political pressure from the White House.
Harvard said that the administration’s action violates the First Amendment and has a “immediate and devastating effect” on the university and the more than 7,000 students who are presently in the United States on visas. The complaint was filed on Friday in a federal court in Boston. To stop the Department of Homeland Security from implementing the policy, Harvard announced its intention to request a temporary restraining order.
The institution says the U.S. government has accused it of encouraging an unsafe campus by providing opportunities for “anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators” to target Jewish students. The administration has also charged Harvard of working with the Chinese Communist Party, including incidents as late as 2024 in which the university allegedly housed and trained members of a Chinese paramilitary outfit.
