Latest news with #internationalstudents
The Guardian
2 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Why Trump is really going after Harvard
In mortarboards and crimson-fringed gowns, thousands of students were joined by smiling families for the centuries-old ritual of graduation day. But this year was different. Alan Garber, the president of Harvard University, received a standing ovation and welcomed graduates 'from down the street, across the country and around the world', drawing applause for the last words: 'Around the world – just as it should be.' It was a nod, subtle but firm, to the international students who are part of the lifeblood of Harvard but now a target for Donald Trump: his administration is seeking to revoke Harvard's ability to enroll students from overseas. It is just one front in an escalating battle between a US president with authoritarian ambitions and the county's oldest, wealthiest and most prestigious university. Since taking office more than four months ago, Trump has used executive power to take aim at Congress, law firms, media organisations, cultural institutions and leading universities. Some have resisted but many have capitulated. In Harvard, the man who urged his supporters to 'fight, fight, fight' faces a resilient foe unlike any he has taken on before. Its emergence as a bulwark of the opposition to Trump was summed up by this year's Class Day speaker at Harvard, the former basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 'After seeing so many cowering billionaires, media moguls, law firms, politicians and other universities bend their knee to an administration that is systematically strip-mining the US constitution, it is inspiring to me to see Harvard University take a stand for freedom.' Harvard was founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1636, a century-and-a-half before the nation itself. Its alumni include former presidents John F Kennedy and Barack Obama, supreme court justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Elena Kagan, tech entrepreneurs Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, actors Matt Damon and Natalie Portman and writer Margaret Atwood. Now it is in Trump's crosshairs. The administration claims its actions are aimed at tackling issues such as antisemitism on campus, discrimination – particularly against white, Asian, male and straight individuals - foreign influence from China, and perceived 'woke' or 'leftist' ideology in academia. The administration launched its offensive in April, sending a letter to Harvard demanding that it make far-reaching changes in how it operates. The list included external audits of campus viewpoints, achieving 'viewpoint diversity' as determined by the government and potentially terminating certain programmes. Garber publicly rejected the demands, stating they amounted to ceding control of the university to the government and were an unconstitutional attack on academic freedom. Within hours, the Trump administration announced it was freezing more than $2bn in federal contracts and grants with Harvard, which mostly fund scientific and medical research. This has since risen to a total of $3bn. Harvard is fighting the funding cuts in court. In May, Trump turned the screws further. He said he is considering taking previously awarded grant money for scientific and engineering research away and giving it to trade schools. The White House urged federal agencies to cancel any remaining contracts with Harvard, worth an estimated $100m. The administration also announced that it would revoke Harvard's ability to enroll international students and force current foreign students to transfer to other schools or lose their legal immigration status. In a chilling statement, Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, said: 'Let this serve as a warning to all universities and academic institutions across the country.' More than a quarter of Harvard's students come from outside the US and serve as a vital revenue source at the Ivy League school. Critics warned that Trump's actions would represent a spectacular own goal, driving the world's best talents away from the US and into the arms of its competitors. Michael McFaul, a former US ambassador to Russia, wrote on Substack: 'Had Trump's anti-foreign student policies been in place decades ago, Oxford grad Elon Musk would have built Tesla in the United Kingdom, Tsinghua University alum Jensen Huang would have built Nvidia in the People's Republic of China or Taiwan, and Moscow State University grad Sergei Brin would have built Google in Russia.' Harvard sued the administration and won an emergency block on the action. This week, a judge said she would extend the order as the two sides continue to thrash it out in court. Trump is also using the tax system as a cudgel. Most universities, including Harvard, are exempt from federal income tax because they are deemed to be charitable organisations operated exclusively for public educational purposes. The administration is now threatening Harvard's tax-exempt status, which experts say saves the school hundreds of millions of dollars each year. Trump's massive spending bill before Congress would drastically hike taxes that Harvard and other elite schools pay on the profits their massive endowment investments make. Critics say that would weaken the ability of Harvard and other rich schools to provide generous financial aid packages to poorer students. What are the White House's motives? Some observers detect the hand of JD Vance and the deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller. In 2022, Vance told Vanity Fair magazine: 'I tend to think that we should seize the institutions of the left and turn them against the left. We need like a de-Baathification programme, a de-woke-ification programme.' And on Thursday, Miller told Fox News: 'Harvard has engaged in decades of invidious, unlawful and illegal race-based discrimination against American citizens ... The Democrat party's philosophy right now is for foreigners, everything – for Americans, nothing.' Jason Johnson, a political scientist at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, said: 'Their goal is to intimidate and break down institutions of higher learning in America because that is where most of the resistance to their authoritarian tendencies is going to come from. 'They figure, if we can bankrupt Harvard, if we can embarrass Harvard, if we can put Harvard in a position of weakness or at least get them to bend the knee, then all the other institutions in America will follow. That's why they're doing this.' Johnson warned: 'Trump is not going to meet his match because he has the entire resources of the federal government at his disposal. Regardless of what Harvard does, there will be other universities who simply see the attack and comply in advance, and that ultimately would still be a victory for the Trump administration.' Other commentators detect an element of class warfare. Trump won election last November with a base drawing largely on non-college-educated white men. Now he is stoking hostility towards the ivory towers of the US's most elite university. Brendan Boyle, a Democratic representative who graduated from Harvard in 2005, said: 'Part of Trump's political skill is figuring out how to portray himself as this working man's populist hero even though he's a billionaire who pisses in gold toilets. 'Beating up on Harvard will probably help him among some in his base, but I do think most Americans recognize this for what it is: an attempted government takeover of higher education. That's something that should actually worry all of us.' The onslaught against Harvard is typical of an administration that, in its opening weeks, sought to overwhelm opponents with shock and awe. Columbia University made sweeping concessions, hoping to claw back $400m of withdrawn federal grants. But Harvard's substantial $53bn endowment provides it with greater capacity to withstand pressure and engage in legal battles compared with less well-endowed institutions. It has refused to buckle to Trump's demands. Instead, it has challenged the administration's actions in court and achieved some temporary victories. Boyle, who spoke with Harvard's Garber recently, said: 'I personally expressed to him how proud I am to see Harvard standing up and not backing down from this fight the way, unfortunately, some other universities had backed down. In standing up to this administration, Harvard is waging a battle not just for the future of Harvard but for the future of American higher education.' Asked whether he is confident that Harvard will win, Boyle replied: 'Harvard has been around for hundreds of years before Donald Trump and it will be around for hundreds of years after Donald Trump.' Trump has long styled himself as a fighter. He waged legal battles during his business career. He has feuded with celebrities ranging from Rosie O'Donnell to Taylor Swift to Bruce Springsteen. He has railed against media outlets such as CNN and the New York Times. In the political arena, he took on the entire Republican party establishment and won. He also waged bitter campaigns against Democrats such as Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. But both Trump's first and second presidential terms have run afoul of a robust judiciary finding many of his actions unconstitutional. This week, a federal court blocked him from imposing sweeping tariffs on imports under an emergency-powers law. He won a temporary reprieve from an appeals court a day later but his signature set of economic policies remains in doubt. Academics at Harvard trust that the rule of law will prevail in their own case. Laurence Tribe, a professor of constitutional law emeritus, said: 'I think we're going to win the battle in the courts. These are open-and-shut cases. 'In fact, in the federal courts in the month of May, there were a lot of battles involving Trump against various individuals and institutions, and you know what his record was? He lost 96% of them. The percentage that he lost was not very different depending on which president appointed the judge, because these are easy legal questions.' Holding firm is crucial, Tribe believes, because Trump is trying to pick off universities one by one, just as he did with law firms. At stake is a stand against authoritarianism and the hope that courage will be contagious. 'If they can't control the university, they want to disband it because the first thought of a tyrant is to suppress the power of reason and the citadel of freedom,' Tribe said. 'That is the university. It's been true since the Middle Ages. Harvard has an emblematic significance that makes it stick in Donald Trump's craw. Its motto 'veritas' must irritate the hell out of him because truth is his enemy.'
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
What White House reportedly said about the future of Mark Carney's daughter at Harvard
As Harvard University remains the focus of the Trump administration's ire, the fate of its international students hangs in balance, including Cleo Carney, the daughter of the Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. A little over a week ago, the Trump administration cancelled Harvard's ability to enroll international students, leaving current foreign students to transfer to other colleges or risk losing their visa status. 'They have lost their Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification as a result of their failure to adhere to the law,' Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted on X on May 22. 'Let this serve as a warning to all universities and academic institutions across the country.' In return, the university sued the administration and won its initial court fight. The university on its website notes: 'The May 29 court decision allows the University to continue enrolling international students and scholars while the case moves forward. Harvard will continue to take steps to protect the rights of our international students and scholars, members of our community who are vital to the University's academic mission and community — and whose presence here benefits our country immeasurably.' For the academic year 2024-2025, the Ivy League university had 6,793 international students enrolled. As for the Canadians at Harvard, the unofficial statistics of scholars and students on its various campus roughly has ranged between 600 to under 800 over the years. A first-year student, Cleo is pursuing bachelor's in economics at the prestigious university, one her father graduated from in 1987. After Justin Trudeau stepped down as Prime Minister, Cleo introduced her father as the newly elected party leader in March at the Liberal Convention in Ottawa. A sustainability REP for Harvard's Resource Efficiency Program, Cleo also serves as a board member for Bluedot Institute, a climate-focused non-profit. 'When she is not cooking or running,' reads her Harvard bio, 'she is talking about the need for increased investment in the strategic mining industry.' 'The White House confirmed Carney, along with other international students, would get the boot if the administration gets its way,' Gabrielle Fahmy for the New York Post wrote on Saturday. 'The President's goal is clear: we will put America first, and that means our policies on everything from trade to immigration should benefit Americans, not other nations at the expense of our people,' a senior administration official told the New York Post. National Post has reached out to the Prime Minister's Office for comment. As Cleo's return to Harvard in September remains undecided, the academic future of her siblings — Tess, Amelia and Sasha — less so. Sasha graduated from Yale University in 2023, Amelia reportedly from the University of Edinburgh last year, and Tess has noticeably stayed out of the public eye. Inside Mark Carney's PMO where ministers get called out, punctuality matters and patience is on short supply 'It's done': Trump's 51st state comments are 'behind us,' says U.S. ambassador to Canada Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.
National Post
11 hours ago
- Business
- National Post
What White House reportedly said about the future of Mark Carney's daughter at Harvard
Article content As Harvard University remains the focus of the Trump administration's ire, the fate of its international students hangs in balance, including Cleo Carney, the daughter of the Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. Article content Article content A little over a week ago, the Trump administration cancelled Harvard's ability to enroll international students, leaving current foreign students to transfer to other colleges or risk losing their visa status. Article content 'They have lost their Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification as a result of their failure to adhere to the law,' Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted on X on May 22. 'Let this serve as a warning to all universities and academic institutions across the country.' Article content Article content This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus. It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments… — Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) May 22, 2025 Article content In return, the university sued the administration and won its initial court fight. The university on its website notes: 'The May 29 court decision allows the University to continue enrolling international students and scholars while the case moves forward. Harvard will continue to take steps to protect the rights of our international students and scholars, members of our community who are vital to the University's academic mission and community — and whose presence here benefits our country immeasurably.' Article content Article content A first-year student, Cleo is pursuing bachelor's in economics at the prestigious university, one her father graduated from in 1987. After Justin Trudeau stepped down as Prime Minister, Cleo introduced her father as the newly elected party leader in March at the Liberal Convention in Ottawa. Article content Article content A sustainability REP for Harvard's Resource Efficiency Program, Cleo also serves as a board member for Bluedot Institute, a climate-focused non-profit. 'When she is not cooking or running,' reads her Harvard bio, 'she is talking about the need for increased investment in the strategic mining industry.' Article content Article content 'The White House confirmed Carney, along with other international students, would get the boot if the administration gets its way,' Gabrielle Fahmy for the New York Post wrote on Saturday. Article content As Cleo's return to Harvard in September remains undecided, the academic future of her siblings — Tess, Amelia and Sasha — less so. Sasha graduated from Yale University in 2023, Amelia reportedly from the University of Edinburgh last year, and Tess has noticeably stayed out of the public eye. Article content
South China Morning Post
21 hours ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Trump's attempt to calm foreign students adds to US visa confusion for Chinese
President Donald Trump's comment that international students in the US would be 'fine' has only added to the confusion about his administration's stance, following controversy over an earlier announcement that it would 'aggressively' cancel Chinese student visas. Advertisement Asked on Friday about what message he would send to foreign students in the country, Trump said: 'Well, they're going to be OK. It's going to work out fine.' 'We just want to check out the individual students we have. And that's true with all colleges,' he told reporters at the White House. This came after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on social media late on Wednesday that the US would 'aggressively revoke' visas for Chinese students, particularly 'those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields'. He said the US Department of State would also revise 'visa criteria to enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications' from mainland China and Hong Kong. Advertisement But the scope of the visa crackdown remains unclear, with Rubio's department refusing to specify the criteria for visa revocation or clarify what constitutes 'critical fields' and how ties to China's ruling party would be defined. Beijing lodged formal protests and condemned the move as 'politically motivated and discriminatory' on Thursday, amid signs of renewed tensions despite a 90-day tariff truce between the two countries.
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Trump's attempt to calm foreign students adds to visa confusion for Chinese
US President Donald Trump sought to reassure international students in the country that they would be 'fine' in a comment that added to the confusion about his administration's stance following controversy over an earlier announcement that it would 'aggressively' cancel Chinese student visas. Advertisement When asked on Friday what message he would send to foreign students in the country, Trump said: 'Well, they're going to be OK. It's going to work out fine.' 'We just want to check out the individual students we have. And that's true with all colleges,' he told reporters at the White House. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio dropped a bombshell late on Wednesday in a social media post announcing that the US would 'aggressively revoke' visas for Chinese students, particularly 'those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields'. He said the US Department of State would also revise 'visa criteria to enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications' from mainland China and Hong Kong. Advertisement But the scope of the visa crackdown remains unclear, with Rubio's department refusing to specify the criteria for visa revocation or clarify what constitutes 'critical fields' and how ties to China's ruling party would be defined. Beijing lodged formal protests and condemned the move as 'politically motivated and discriminatory' on Thursday amid signs of renewed tensions despite a 90-day tariff truce between the two countries.
