Identity of Speakers
-
n/a
Student
Other
Resources
Additional Information
-
Incident Nature:
Lawsuit
Other
-
Incident Political Orientation:
Right wing -
Incident Responses:
Litigation
-
Incident Status:
In litigation Federal District Court
- Did not involve Speech Codes
Summary
In early June 2025, the Trump administration issued a proclamation barring foreign students from entering the United States to study at Harvard University and authorized Secretary of State Marco Rubio to revoke visas of current international students. The administration cited Harvard’s refusal to provide information about “known illegal activity” involving its international students, along with broader national security and foreign influence concerns. Harvard called the proclamation an “illegal retaliatory step” and sued, pointing to earlier threats to cut 2.6 billion dollars in federal funding, revoke its ability to enroll foreign students, and impose policy changes after the university refused to revise its admissions and disciplinary rules in April. On June 5, United States District Judge Allison Burroughs issued a temporary restraining order, finding Harvard would face “immediate and irreparable injury” if the ban took effect before a full hearing.
The June proclamation followed other punitive steps, including a May 22 decision by the Department of Homeland Security to revoke Harvard’s certification under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, effectively blocking it from enrolling new international students. Harvard sued over that move as well, and Judge Burroughs quickly blocked its enforcement. In subsequent weeks, the administration froze federal grants, threatened to strip Harvard of its tax exempt status, and floated proposals to divert federal research funds to trade schools. On July 23, the State Department opened an investigation into Harvard’s compliance with J-1 Exchange Visitor Program regulations, which the university denounced as politically motivated. Shortly after Burroughs presided over the July hearing for Harvard’s lawsuit over federal funding cuts, the President Trump took to Truth Social and called her a “Trump-hating Judge,” adding that she was “a TOTAL DISASTER.”
By early August, the Department of Homeland Security signaled a shift. On August 7, it filed a stipulation in court agreeing not to enforce the May 22 revocation letter, saying it wanted to “simplify this case and narrow the issues in dispute.” Reports indicated the White House was considering a settlement that could require Harvard to pay at least 500 million dollars. The following day, several of Harvard’s broader claims, including some retaliation and constitutional counts, were dismissed, but the court allowed the central challenge to the proclamation to proceed.
On August 9, the Justice Department formally moved to dismiss Harvard’s lawsuit, arguing that the SEVP revocation was now moot and that the president’s proclamation was legally justified under the Immigration and Nationality Act. Harvard countered that the administration’s actions remained unconstitutional and retaliatory. As of mid August, the litigation remained active, with the university still pressing its core claims while the administration sought to end the case entirely.
