A district judge raised free speech concerns in the latest legal block of the Trump administration’s attempts to ban Harvard University from enrolling international students.
U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs issued an injunction against a proclamation from President Trump that said Harvard could not enroll foreign students due to national security concerns from him administration.
Although the order by the Department of Homeland Security to take away Harvard’s foreign student is still in litigation, Burroughs pointed to significant free speech concerns.
“Here, the government’s misplaced efforts to control a reputable academic institution and squelch diverse viewpoints seemingly because they are, in some instances, opposed to this Administration’s own views, threaten these rights,” she wrote Monday.
“To make matters worse, the government attempts to accomplish this, at least in part, on the backs of international students, with little thought to the consequences to them or, ultimately, to our own citizens,” she added, extending a previous block on the move.
Harvard says the ban is retaliation for it not giving into the Trump administration’s demands such as changing its disciplinary policies, reforming admissions and hiring practices, and eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
The administration’s letter laying out the demands “aimed directly at these protected academic freedoms, as it clearly sought to control the views of Harvard’s faculty and students as well as the school’s curricula and make them subject to government approval,” Burroughs wrote.
If Harvard was not able to enroll foreign students, it would lose 27 percent of its current student body.
The Trump administration has also paused billions of dollars in funding to Harvard, threatened its tax-exempt status and launched numerous investigations against the university.
Trump announced last week there would soon be a deal between his administration and Harvard, though it was unclear what such an agreement might entail.
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