Harvard University President Alan Garber on Tuesday called on educational institutions to maintain a “firm” stance against the Trump administration, one day after the president threatened further reductions in federal funding for the Ivy League school.
In an interview with NPR, Garber described President Trump’s actions against Harvard, including the decision to freeze billions of dollars in federal grants due to allegations of antisemitism on campus, as “perplexing.”
“What is perplexing is the measures that they have taken to address these that don’t even hit the same people that they believe are causing the problems,” Garber stated.
He emphasized the detrimental impact of cutting research funding, arguing that while it affects Harvard, it ultimately harms the nation. “Why cut off research funding? Sure, it hurts Harvard, but it hurts the country because after all, the research funding is not a gift. The research funding is given to universities and other research institutions to carry out work — research work — that the federal government designates as high-priority work. It is work that they want done. They are paying to have that work conducted.”
Garber further elaborated on the disconnection between the funding cuts and the stated reason of addressing antisemitism. “Shutting off that work does not help the country, even as it punishes Harvard, and it is hard to see the link between that and, say, antisemitism,” he concluded.
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