Daijiworld Media Network - Boston
Boston, May 23: In a major relief for Harvard University and its international student community, a US federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s controversial attempt to strip the university of its ability to enroll foreign students.
US District Judge Allison D Burroughs granted a temporary restraining order just a day after the department of Homeland Security abruptly revoked Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification. The move had threatened the legal status of thousands of students and barred the university from admitting new international students.
Following the court order, foreign students enrolled at Harvard can continue their education while the next hearing is awaited next week.
Harvard responded swiftly to the administration’s action by filing a lawsuit in a Massachusetts federal court, accusing the government of violating its First Amendment rights and attempting to ‘erase a quarter’ of its student population.
“With the stroke of a pen, the government has sought to erase a quarter of Harvard’s student body international students who contribute significantly to the University and its mission,” the university’s legal filing stated.
The complaint named Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem, secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Attorney General Pam Bondi, alleging the move was “clear retaliation” for Harvard’s refusal to comply with sweeping government reforms, including changes to admissions, hiring, and faculty oversight.
Harvard had recently refused demands from the administration's Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism, which sought tighter federal control over campus operations.
Reacting to the lawsuit, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin described it as an effort to “kneecap the President’s constitutionally vested powers.”
White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson added, “If only Harvard cared this much about ending the scourge of anti-American, anti-Semitic, pro-terrorist agitators on their campus, they wouldn’t be in this situation to begin with.”
Harvard president Alan M Garber condemned the federal action in a letter to the university community, calling it “unlawful and unwarranted.”
“It imperils the futures of thousands of students and scholars across Harvard and serves as a warning to countless others at colleges and universities throughout the country who have come to America to pursue their education and fulfill their dreams,” he said.
The editorial board of The Crimson, Harvard’s student newspaper, also criticized the administration’s action, writing, “In his ongoing feud with Harvard, Trump has decided that Harvard’s 6,000 international students are acceptable collateral damage.”
This marks the second legal battle between Harvard and the Trump administration in recent weeks, following an earlier suit to recover over $2 billion in revoked federal research funding.