Judge Blocks Trump Ban on Harvard's International ...

Judge Blocks Trump Ban on Harvard's International Students

Zim Now Writer

A U.S. federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to bar Harvard University from enrolling foreign students, just hours after the Ivy League school filed a lawsuit challenging the move.

The lawsuit, filed in Boston, claims the decision violates the First Amendment and represents unconstitutional retaliation for Harvard’s previous resistance to the administration’s political demands. Judge Allison Burroughs, appointed during the Obama era, issued a temporary restraining order on Friday, freezing the policy pending further hearings scheduled for May 27 and 29.

Harvard, home to nearly 6,800 international students from over 100 countries, argued that the policy would have an “immediate and devastating effect” on the university and its community. “With the stroke of a pen, the government has sought to erase a quarter of Harvard’s student body,” the university said in court documents. “Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard.”

The Trump administration dismissed the lawsuit as “frivolous.” Meanwhile, Columbia University also came under scrutiny, with the Department of Health and Human Services accusing it of failing to protect Jewish students from harassment following the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023.

Tensions have risen on U.S. campuses over pro-Palestinian protests, with the administration ordering investigations into student activists. The Department of Justice reportedly resisted a recent probe at Columbia, raising concerns about overreach.

Earlier this year, Columbia agreed to demands from the Trump administration after the loss of US$400 million in federal funding over similar concerns.