United States: Republicans launch a parliamentary investigation into Harvard

The Republicans in the US Congress announced that they had launched an investigation into Harvard on Thursday, accusing him of raping equality laws, the Trumpist Camp’s last attack on the prestigious university.

The Trump administration has hired a financial showdown for several weeks with several American universities, accused of having left anti -Semitism prospering during student movements against the war in Gaza.

Among its targets, Harvard University was freezing $ 2.2 billion (1.8 billion Swiss francs) of subsidies after rejecting the requirements of the United States government. Donald Trump threatens to go even further by removing the tax exemption granted to Harvard, whom he accused of spreading the “hatred and (l) ‘imbecility”.

“Return Harvard in accordance with the law”

In their letter announcing the opening of a parliamentary investigation, the Republican elected officials mean to the presidency of the university that they will control his “lack of conformity with the laws on civil rights”, and in particular the discrimination based on the origins.

“Harvard seems so incapable or reluctant to prevent illegal discrimination that the institution, on your order, refuses to consider a reasonable settlement agreement proposed by federal officials and intended to put Harvard in accordance with the law,” write the president of the investigative committee of the House of Representatives, James Comer, and the elected republican Elise Stefanik.

“No institution has the right to violate the law,” they add to the university president, Alan Garber.

A demonstration on the Cambridge campus

The end of failure to notify by the Presidency of the University to Donald Trump was welcomed by many teachers and students as a rare sign of resistance, while the New York University of Columbia agreed to initiate reforms under pressure from the Republican.

Harvard staff and students mobilized against the Trump administration by demonstrating Thursday on the Cambridge campus, near Boston, according to a research manager, Avi Steinberg.

“They want Harvard to hold the promises made to his students and his teachers to protect each student on the campus, to protect the teaching staff and in particular freedom of expression,” he told AFP.

An offensive against universities

The institution located near Boston, which has around 30,000 students, has been solidly installed for years at the top of the Shanghai world ranking of higher education establishments.

Like other campuses, she is in the viewfinder of the conservatives who have hired an offensive against the American universities that they consider too much on the left for years.

The offensive redoubled during student mobilizations for the Palestinian people and against the war waged by Israel in Gaza, who raised many criticisms of the lack of protection of Jewish students on campuses.

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