US President Donald Trump wan reshape elite universities for di US
Di US goment don threaten to ban Harvard University from enrolling foreign students sake of di institution say dem no go bow to demands from Donald Trump administration.
Di White House don demand di oldest university for di US to make changes to hiring, admissions and teaching practices wey e tok say go help fight antisemitism on campus.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Wednesday accuse di Ivy League school say dem dey “threaten national security” and dey “bend di knee to antisemitism”.
Di Secretary also demand records on dia foreign student visa holders “illegal and violent” activities.
International students dey make up more dan 27% of Harvard enrolment dis year.
“Di university no go surrender dia independence or di constitutional rights,” Harvard President Alan Garber write for message on Monday to di Harvard community.
Dis threat dey come afta Trump seize Harvard University funding.
- African export products wey Trump new US tariffs hit well
- South Africa President Ramaphosa call for negotiation after US 30% tariff hit
- Trump go fit serve for third term as US president?
Why Trump dey cut Harvard funding?
Trump administration say e dey freeze more dan $2bn (£1.5bn) in federal funds for Harvard University, hours afta di elite college reject a list of demands from di White House.
Harvard don become di first major US university to reject di administration demands, and e don accuse di White House say e dey try to “control” dia community.
President Trump don call for di kontri oldest university to lose a valuable tax break.
Although dis na fraction of Harvard’s $9bn for federal funding, di fallout raise questions regarding di institution future, American universities more broadly, and academic freedom under Trump.
Since Trump dey re-elected, im govment don try to reshape elite universities as e threaten to withhold federal funds wey much of am dey spent on research.
Trump also accuse leading universities of failing to protect Jewish students wen college campuses around di kontri dey for protests against di war in Gaza and US support for Israel last year.
A letter from di White House on Friday, seen by di New York Times say Harvard don fail to live up to di “intellectual and civil rights conditions” wey justify federal investment.
Di letter include 10 categories for proposed changes, including:
- reporting students to wey dey ‘hostile’ to American values to di federal govment
- ensure each academic department dey on “viewpoint diverse”
- hiring an external government-approved party to audit programmes and departments “wey dey fuel antisemitic harassment”
- checking faculty staff for plagiarism
DI letter order di university to take disciplinary action for “violations” wey happun during Gaza protests.
Trump threaten to go beyond withholding di federal funds and targeted Harvard tax-exempt status.
Universities, as well as many charities and religious groups, dey exempted from paying federal income taxes. Losing di exemption fit cost Harvard millions of dollars each year.
Wetin be Harvard response?
To explain dia rejection of Trump administration demands, Harvard president Alan Garber say di university no go surrender dia independence or relinquish dia constitutional rights under di First Amendment wey dey protect free speech.
“Although some of di demands outlined by di govment get aim to combat antisemitism, di majority represent direct govmental regulation of di ‘intellectual conditions’ for Harvard,” e tok.
Shortly afta dem send im letter of resistance , di Department of Education say e dey freezing $2.2bn grants and $60m contracts to Harvard immediately.
“Harvard statement today reinforce di troubling entitlement mindset say e dey endemic for our nation most prestigious universities and colleges,” dem tok for statement.
How dis fit affect American universities?
Harvard na di seventh university to be targeted by di Trump administration, either by freezing or threatening to freeze federal funding.
Columbia University for New York City agree to a number of demands last month afta di White House announce say e dey pull $400m federal funding.
Di Trump administration don freeze more dan $1bn federal funding for Cornell University and about $790m for Northwestern University.
Di White House say di govment dey investigate alleged civil rights violations for di universities.
Both universities tok last week say dem neva confam any official confirmation of di freeze.
For statement, Cornell leadership say di university don “work diligently to create an environment wia all individuals and viewpoints dey protected and respected”.
Last month, di US Department of Education say dia office for civil rights dey investigate 45 universities sake of complaints say di schools engage wit a programme wey dey set eligibility based on race.
Harvard dey “fortunate” say e fit absorb some of dis cuts, according to di director of di Centre on US Politics at University College London, Thomas Gift, but e say dat no be di case for oda universities wey fit face similar freezes.
About 42% of higher education institutions for di US na public, dis mean say dem dey get substantially support by public funds and governed by public officials or appointees, according to education non-profit group Bellwether.
Mr Gift call Trump approach as “dangerous” and say e dey ” sets a veri bad precedent”.
E believe say e dey “threaten academic freedom to di extent wey di federal govment dey really hold a gun to Harvard and oda universities.”
But im also point to public opinion on US universities.
- Trump omit smartphones and computers from new tariffs
- Iran nuclear programme – wetin e be and wetin US and Israel want?
- Wetin US and China dey import from each oda?