Obama Backs Harvard’s Resistance in Fight Over Campus Speech, Equity

In an extraordinary escalation of the culture war in academia, the Trump administration has halted $2.3 billion in funding to Harvard University—sparking national debate and receiving fierce criticism from former President Barack Obama.

The funding freeze followed Harvard’s refusal to dismantle diversity initiatives, enforce strict protest rules, and conform to a federal “campus accountability directive.” Obama, speaking at a Chicago civic forum, called the move “a misuse of government power designed to bully institutions into silence.”

Observers note that Obama’s entrance into the debate may rally other institutions to speak out, especially as Yale, Stanford, and Columbia face similar ultimatums. Civil rights groups, including the ACLU and NAACP, are now preparing legal challenges, calling the funding cuts discriminatory and retaliatory.

Meanwhile, Harvard’s board released a statement reaffirming their “uncompromising support for diversity, dialogue, and dissent as cornerstones of higher learning.” Obama hailed the stance as “the leadership we need in dark times.”

The administration’s demands included dismantling diversity programs, banning face masks used by pro-Palestinian protesters, and revising admissions and hiring practices to be strictly merit-based. Harvard’s refusal to comply with these demands led to the funding freeze.​

Obama condemned the funding freeze as an unlawful attempt to suppress dissent and enforce ideological conformity. He praised Harvard for standing firm in defense of academic freedom and encouraged other universities to follow its example.​