Harvard Sues Trump Administration to Stop Block of International Students

The government restriction creates immediate and irreparable harm to the school and “imperils the future 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,” Harvard President Alan Garber wrote in a letter to the community.

On Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security said it was yanking Harvard’s authority to enroll foreign students because it believed Harvard had failed to create a safe campus environment for students, especially Jewish ones, and alleged that many “anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators” on campus were foreign students. 

Harvard enrolls about 7,000 international students—more than 25% of the student body— and relies on their tuition payments, which are often full-fee. The Trump administration has already pulled billions of dollars in federal research funding from the school and threatened to revoke its tax exempt status, citing concerns about antisemitism and DEI.

The Ivy League school has been locked in a battle with the Trump administration since March, when the government said it was reviewing nearly $9 billion in federal funding over antisemitism concerns. Harvard has filed a federal lawsuit against the government, arguing the administration has violated the university’s constitutional rights as well as due process.