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As conservatives fought against cancel culture on college campuses, they developed a particular fondness for the First Amendment. It was un-American, they argued, to punish someone for exercising their right to speak freely. Today, however, many of those same conservatives, now in power in state and federal government, are behind a growing crackdown on political … Read more
It was an obscure, 44-word demand toward the end of the Trump administration’s ultimatum to Columbia University this month ordering a dramatic overhaul of admissions and disciplinary rules. But it could prove to have consequences for colleges and universities nationwide. With $400 million in canceled government grants and contracts on the line, federal officials ordered … Read more
As conservatives fought against cancel culture on college campuses, they developed a particular fondness for the First Amendment. It was un-American, they argued, to punish someone for exercising their right to speak freely. Today, however, many of those same conservatives, now in power in state and federal government, are behind a growing crackdown on political … Read more
In October 2023, three days before Hamas fighters attacked Israel, Columbia University’s new president stood outside Low Library and posed a foundational question. “What,” she asked, “does the world need from a great university in the 21st century?” The president, Nemat Shafik, argued that the world required much. Rigorous thinkers who were grounded in the … Read more
The University of California said on Wednesday that it would stop requiring the use of diversity statements in hiring, a practice praised by some who said it made campuses more inclusive but criticized by others who said it did the opposite. Diversity statements typically ask job applicants to describe in a page or so how … Read more
President Trump plans to sign an executive order on Thursday instructing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to begin dismantling the agency, according to two White House officials. The department cannot be closed without the approval of Congress, which created it. But the Trump administration has already taken steps to narrow the agency’s authority and significantly cut … Read more
The Trump administration said Wednesday it would suspend about $175 million in federal funding to the University of Pennsylvania over its approach to transgender athletes, according to a White House social media account that trumpeted the pause. The move would intensify the government’s campaign against transgender people’s participation in public life and escalate a clash … Read more
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the Education Department to restore some federal grants that were terminated as part of the Trump administration’s purge of diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Judge Julie R. Rubin of the Federal District Court for the District of Maryland said in an opinion that the department had acted arbitrarily and … Read more
Harvard was also the place where Schumer first saw left-wing antisemitism in action — using the cloak of anti-Zionism, as it often does today. At a 1970 campus speech by the Israeli foreign minister, Abba Eban, students in the gallery unfurled a banner that read, Fight Zionist Imperialism. Schumer’s book recalls Eban’s reply: “I am … Read more
The first legal battle for Mahmoud Khalil, the recent Columbia University graduate who was arrested and moved to Louisiana last week, is the fight to keep his case in New York. The issue may seem minor compared with the First Amendment concerns raised by the arrest of Mr. Khalil, a legal permanent resident who was … Read more