Administration had demanded sweeping changes or loss of millions in federal grants
NEW YORK – Today the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) sent a letter to a joint task force consisting of the U.S. Department of Education, the General Services Administration, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The letter is a response to the Trump administration’s cancellation of $400 million in federal funding to Columbia University and its intrusion into the academic freedom of the university, and argues that the federal government’s demands fail to comply with Title VI requirements and violate the First Amendment.
In the letter, the NYCLU argues that the Trump administration failed to follow proper notification and due process procedures required by Title VI before the cancellation of grants due to alleged violations. It argues that the Trump administration’s demands that the university place the Middle East, South Asian, and African studies department under “academic receivership” and demands that the university change its admission and student discipline processes intrude upon academic freedom and First Amendment protections. The NYCLU letter also clarifies that any restrictions in federal funding must be limited to the specific program alleged to have violated Title VI, not the kind of sweeping withdrawals of funds for scientific and medical research carried out by the Trump administration.
“Trump’s ultimatum to Columbia is a McCarthyite attempt to bring our universities to heel,” said Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union. “Under the guise of fighting antisemitism, Trump seeks to control and weaken our universities and suppress dissent. Indeed, this is a thinly veiled effort by an out-of-control federal government to seize control of significant university functions and turn Columbia into a mouthpiece of the Trump Administration. It is no accident that this comes as Trump directly targets students advocating for Palestinian rights like Mahmoud Khalil. Universities must resist Trump’s power grab and we should all see it for the unconstitutional and existential threat it is.”
On March 10, the Trump administration sent letters to 60 colleges and universities under investigation for alleged antisemitism, threatening federal funding cuts similar to Columbia’s. The Trump administration demanded a response from Columbia by March 20, and yesterday the university indicated it would accede to many of the administration’s demands.
You can read the NYCLU letter here: https://www.nyclu.org/commentary/letter-trump-admin-ultimatum-to-columbia-university-violates-free-speech-academic-freedom
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