Trump administration sues Harvard for allegedly discriminating against Jewish, Israeli students

JTA – The Trump administration sued Harvard University on Friday, alleging that it had failed to address antisemitism and discrimination against Jewish and Israeli students. 

The lawsuit, filed by the Justice Department in Massachusetts District Court, marked a sharp escalation of the government’s year-long battle with the university as it now seeks to freeze existing grants and demand repayment of all grants made since at least 7 October 2023. 

The 44-page lawsuit alleges that Jewish and Israeli students on Harvard’s campus were “harassed, physically assaulted, stalked, and spat upon” and “repeatedly denied access to educational facilities by antisemitic demonstrators” following 7 October. 

“Harvard’s response to this: do nothing,” the complaint reads. “Its faculty and leadership turned a blind eye to antisemitism and discrimination against Jews and Israelis. Students and faculty violated Harvard’s time, place, and manner rules with impunity; rules that Harvard has and would enforce against anyone else.” 

Harvard confirmed on Friday that it would defend against the lawsuit, writing that it was “yet another pretextual and retaliatory action by the administration for refusing to turn over control of Harvard to the federal government”. 

“Harvard cares deeply about members of our Jewish and Israeli community and remains committed to ensuring they are embraced, respected, and can thrive on our campus,” the spokesperson said. “Harvard’s efforts demonstrate the very opposite of deliberate indifference.” 

The Nexus Project, an antisemitism watchdog group, condemned the lawsuit in a post on X, writing that the Trump administration “continues to exploit legitimate Jewish concerns over antisemitism as a thinly veiled excuse to attack and bully major academic institutions”. 

“This authoritarian abuse of power doesn’t make Jewish students safer, or reflect the recommendations of antisemitism experts,” the post continued. 

The lawsuit comes days after the Harvard Jewish Alumni Alliance published a report that found Jewish undergraduate enrolment had dropped to 7%, a figure it said was “the lowest level recorded since before World War II and the lowest of any Ivy League institution with reliable data”. 

Last month, Harvard College’s dean of admissions and financial aid, William Fitzsimmons, announced that the school had been working to recruit students from Jewish schools, adding that the results had been encouraging. (The school’s pledge was first reported by The Washington Free Beacon.) 

The Trump administration’s latest salvo against Harvard shortly follows a lawsuit the Justice Department filed last month against UCLA (University of California), accusing its leadership of allowing an antisemitic work environment to “flourish” on its campus. 

Following the lawsuit, more than 100 Jewish faculty and staff at UCLA signed a letter opposing the Trump administration’s claims against the school.