‘It seems like science fiction.' Harvard students set to graduate amid fear, uncertainty of Trump's pressure campaign
'It seems like science fiction, or a horror movie,' said Julie Shields, mother of a Harvard Law graduate, walking out of the Harvard Coop on Tuesday. 'It proves that what happens somewhere else — it can happen here.'
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Shields, an attorney originally from New York, said it had been 'frightening' to see the pressure campaign unfold against one of the most prestigious and respected institutions in the country — even more so knowing that it could affect her daughter's education and career.
'The First Amendment, freedom of speech, it doesn't seem that it's being respected in the same way it was when I was growing up,' she said, adding that 'Nothing in the world is normal right now. It's all shifting. And for [the graduates], even more so.'
Others say the Trump administration's threats have also brought the community together, at least for the time being, in solidarity and defiance.
'It is infuriating, and it's really obvious to anybody who has been following this, that what's going on is vindictive,' said Tony Vitt, a first-year graduate student of Celtic Languages and Literature. 'It is targeted. It's being sold as protection against antisemitism and ideological capture and those kinds of things — [but] all of that is false.'
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The uncertainty felt by so many around Harvard is only heightened for graduating international students, who are weighing whether they can, or should, remain in the country after walking the stage. Kamsai Nawapruek, originally from Thailand, wrapped up her studies at Harvard in November. But she said her job at the MBTA is still predicated on an extension of her F-1 student visa.
'If you can revoke the visa, does that mean that you can revoke my EAD card?' she said, referring to the document that allows her to work in the US. 'I've heard some of my friends got laid off the next very next day [after the crackdown on international student enrollment]. I don't know why or how, but yeah, that was what happened. I'm not affected by the situation yet ... but right now it's just wait and see.'
For Mobi Humayun, a naturalized US citizen originally from Pakistan graduating with a masters' in information technology, the crackdown has made him uneasy about the future of the country he now calls home.
'Right now, it feels like they're closing the doors and windows for freedom of speech,' he said. 'If I disagree with you, that doesn't mean I'm breaking the law. Disagreement brings opportunities to make things better.'
Beyond the ramifications of curtailing speech on Harvard's campus, Humayun said the threat of research funding cuts would only weaken the university — and the United States.
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'Universities need funds,' he said. 'If you cut the funding, how are you going to produce those Nobel Prizes? How will America lead?'
It's been enough to give students pause about what Harvard's future looks like.
'If I was thinking about doing a PhD here, this information, with everything that's happening — it would make me take a second look," said David Levin, graduating with a masters degree in computer science.
Levin, who is Jewish, says he understands the need to address antisemitism on campus. But he said that most faculty members — and international students, he added — are 'not interested in causing any trouble.' 'They just want to be able to do their research in peace.'
'I didn't ask for my professors to lose research funding,' Levin said. 'That's not something that benefits me. So I think Trump is essentially screwing over the people who he said he was going to protect.'
The potential cuts to scientific research have also worried alums, such as Elizabeth Adams, 64.
'One thing that might be endangered is an Alzheimer's project, which is making great inroads,' Adams said. 'And that's personal to me, because my mom died of Alzheimer's.'
Adams, a retired marketing executive and graduate of the class of 1982, describes herself as a moderate Republican. But Trump's actions against Harvard have all the markings of a personal vendetta, she said.
When the Department of Education announced last week it would halt Harvard's ability to enroll international students, she said she immediately made a donation to her alma mater.
Peter Connolly, an 80-year-old alum living in Chelsea, felt compelled to revisit the campus Wednesday to pick up a crimson bucket hat.
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'It sounds like they're trying to basically destroy Harvard,' said Connolly, who took economics courses at Harvard in 1980. 'And higher education in general.'
Ryan Doan-Nguyen, a member of Harvard College's class of 2025, stood by the entrance to Harvard Yard on Tuesday having his photograph taken by family members.
David L. Ryan/Globe Staff
Other students say they're encouraged the university has refused to back down in the face of federal pressure, even with the potential repercussions to its academics and research.
'I'd say Harvard affiliates from all the schools, from undergrad through PhD, have been immensely proud of the stance our institution has taken,' said Ryan Doan-Nguyen, a Worcester native graduating from Harvard College.
Some students said the outside attacks have helped bridge some of the deep fractures on campus. Even those critical of the university's handling of antisemitism, Islamophobia, and diversity initiatives are generally supportive of his stance against the Trump administration.
'I think people — even those who might otherwise have disagreements about things like viewpoint diversity or [the university's] administrative policies — are finding more common ground than not, in opposing the overreach that we've seen," said Gareth Cleveland, who's graduating with a master's in education.
Doan-Nguyen said that Harvard's resistance has helped bring the student body together. And, he added, it has also impacted him personally; thanks to the ongoing litigation surrounding the school, the history and literature major said he'd been encouraged to explore a career in law.
'I'm very happy to represent Harvard,' Doan-Nguyen said. 'And that's not something we're always proud to say.'
Angel Vargas, graduating with a master's in liberal arts in creative writing and literature, said that, as far as universities go, Harvard has 'done a better job than a lot of others.'
For someone who served six years as a US Army reservist, Vargas said the Trump administration's efforts to control higher education feel like a betrayal of the values he signed up to protect.
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'It's a disservice,' he said, 'not just to myself, but to my friends and other service members — what they fought for and had to sacrifice.'
But Doan-Nguyen said that, regardless of what the future holds for their university, Harvard graduates are nothing if not resilient.
'We've been walking on eggshells these past four years,' he said. 'So our feet have hardened.'
Camilo Fonseca can be reached at
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