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Should Harvard (And Other Universities) Lose Tax-Exempt Status?
- Yes
- No
- I Don't Know
According to two people familiar with the matter, the Internal Revenue Service is preparing to rescind Harvard’s long-standing nonprofit designation, CNN reported. A final decision could be announced soon.
The effort follows the White House’s decision to block more than $2 billion in federal funding to the Cambridge, Massachusetts, university, alleging that the university has failed to meet the government's demands.
The Trump Administration wants the prestigious school to dismantle its diversity, equity, and inclusion programs; ban masks at campus protests; implement a merit-based admissions and hiring system; and reduce the influence of faculty and administrators, he claims, are “more committed to activism” than education. The mandates are laid out in a letter from the Department of Education to Harvard. Click here to read that.
Harvard has rejected the proposed mandates, defending its autonomy and citing the constitutional rights of private institutions to manage their own hiring and academic policies.
In a public letter to Trump, Harvard President Alan Garber said the demands are “an attempt to control the Harvard community," and he vowed to protect the university's rights.
The clash has intensified in recent days as former President Donald Trump floated the idea of removing Harvard's tax-exempt status — a feature nearly all colleges and universities receive — on his social media platform, Truth Social, over the weekend.
“Perhaps Harvard should lose its Tax Exempt Status and be Taxed as a Political Entity if it keeps pushing political, ideological, and terrorist inspired/supporting ‘Sickness?’ Remember, Tax Exempt Status is totally contingent on acting in the PUBLIC INTEREST!”
Earlier this week, former President Barack Obama waded back into national politics by tweeting criticism of Trump's actions against his alma mater. Obama, who graduated from Harvard Law in 1991, called the moves “unlawful and ham-handed.”
“Harvard has set an example for other higher-ed institutions – rejecting an unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic freedom, while taking concrete steps to make sure all students at Harvard can benefit from an environment of intellectual inquiry, rigorous debate and mutual respect. Let’s hope other institutions follow suit.”
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