LATINOPIA BLOG JULIAN VASQUEZ HEILIG ON CRIMSON COURAGE: HARVARD STANDS UP

CRIMSON COURAGE: HARVARD STANDS UP TO POLITICAL INTIMIDATION

The storm clouds over American higher education have been gathering. What once seemed unthinkable is now common: politically motivated threats to academic autonomy, the weaponization of federal funding, and coordinated campaigns to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. These attacks are part of a well-funded, ideologically driven effort to remake education in a narrow, exclusionary image. But amidst this orchestrated chaos, a few institutions have decided to fight back.

Today, one of the most powerful universities in the world drew a line in the sand. Harvard University — long regarded as a symbol of academic prestige, but also criticized for its hesitations in moments of crisis — has stepped forward with clarity and courage. In rejecting sweeping demands from the Trump administration, Harvard is doing more than defending its own faculty, students, and structure. It is defending the soul of higher education.

A Personal Dream, a National Moment

I’ll be honest — Harvard has always meant something personal to me. As a student of color, it once felt like a distant constellation, something just out of reach. When I was admitted to both a master’s and doctoral program at Harvard, it wasn’t just an academic milestone — it was a dream realized. To have the opportunity to walk the same paths as Du Bois, King, and Hooks was more than prestige; it was proof that ideas mattered, and that scholars who looked like me belonged. Ultimately I chose Michigan and Stanford, but that is a story for another day.

That’s why the events surrounding President Claudine Gay’s resignation last year were especially gutting. The university’s first Black president — a celebrated political scientist — was targeted in a coordinated campaign fueled by conservative political operatives. Although an internal investigation concluded her citation errors did not rise to the level of academic misconduct, the right-wing outrage machine won. She stepped down, and many of us felt a heavy silence descend.

Harvard’s inaction in the early days of that attack felt like capitulation — a missed opportunity to draw a line against the forces seeking to dismantle DEI and silence Black leadership. In those weeks, it seemed like Harvard had forgotten what it stood for.

But this week, something shifted. Interim President Alan Garber issued a statement that was not only forceful, but transformational. It made clear that the university will not comply with demands that seek to override academic freedom, destroy DEI programs, and surveil faculty and students in exchange for federal dollars. In that moment, Harvard reclaimed its voice — and with it, the possibility of becoming a national model for academic courage.

Harvard Draws the Line

The April 14 letter from Harvard was more than administrative boilerplate — it was a declaration. The Trump administration had issued sweeping, punitive demands. These included requiring federal approval of admissions data, mandatory plagiarism scans for faculty, shuttering of DEI offices, and the placement of entire departments under third-party oversight for alleged “antisemitism.” The list of demands read less like a compliance memo and more like an authoritarian manifesto.

But Harvard didn’t flinch. In its official response, the university stated: “No government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue.” That one sentence is as radical as it is obvious. Harvard wasn’t just rejecting a policy — it was rejecting the premise that education should be controlled by political whims.

Garber went further: “The university will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights. Neither Harvard nor any other private university can allow itself to be taken over by the federal government.” With that statement, Harvard transformed from a symbol of elite caution to a beacon of institutional defiance.

The implications are enormous. If Harvard can be threatened, any institution can. And if Harvard can resist, so can others.

I’ve Been There Before

This moment is not abstract to me. When I served as an academic leader at a public university, the Department of Defense contacted our institution with a clear message: fire a specific faculty member or risk losing all federal defense funding. It was an outrageous overreach — an attempt to use financial leverage to dictate who could teach on our campus.

I refused to back down. Working behind the scenes, I explored every political, legal, and strategic avenue to defend our faculty member. I understood that the consequences of yielding to that kind of pressure were far greater than losing funding. We would lose our integrity, our autonomy — and the trust of our academic community.

What Harvard has done this week echoes that same ethical dilemma. They chose the harder path — the principled one. And they did so knowing full well the potential risks. This is what it looks like when institutions remember their purpose and prioritize principle over pragmatism.

Shrinking Away or Stepping Up?

Unfortunately, Harvard is the exception, not the rule. Across the country, many institutions are choosing a different route — one of silence, avoidance, and appeasement. Even here in Michigan, a public university near my home has refused to stand up against similar political interference. Despite calls from faculty and advocacy groups — and even quiet encouragement from state officials — the university has remained strategically silent.

That silence is not neutrality. It’s complicity.

I’m hearing about conversations in Lansing where lawmakers and legal experts have advised institutions to consider lawsuits as a form of resistance. Not statements. Not task forces. Lawsuits. Concrete legal action. That’s what it may take to defend the rights of students, faculty, and public institutions in this political climate.

And yet, too many universities are hoping to survive the storm by keeping their heads down. But 2025 isn’t a year for ducking and covering. If institutions don’t step up now, they may not get another chance. What’s being tested is not just policy — it’s the very idea of higher education as a place of critical thought and independent inquiry.

Faculty Are Watching. So Are Students.

Let’s not forget: faculty are watching their institutions closely. When the heat is turned up, who stands up for them? Who protects their rights? Who asserts the values of shared governance and academic freedom? These are the questions being asked — and remembered.

Students are watching too. In an era where youth activism is on the rise, they are evaluating which institutions align with their values. They are paying attention to who is protecting diversity and who is erasing it. If we want the next generation of scholars, educators, and changemakers to believe in our institutions, we must show them that courage still lives in the academy. Just ask Columbia University. Amid backlash over its handling of pro-Palestinian protests and its perceived capitulation to political pressure, Columbia has seen a significant drop in undergraduate applications — down 5.3% this year according to their admissions office. That’s not just a statistic; it’s a warning. Students aren’t just listening to statements — they’re watching actions, and they’re choosing accordingly.

Harvard’s decision to say no, loudly and clearly, was not just for its current community. It was a signal to every educator, every student, every policymaker who is questioning whether higher education will bend or break under political pressure.

This Is Bigger Than One School

Make no mistake: this is not just about Harvard. The Trump administration’s strategy is a national one. It’s not just trying to dismantle DEI; it’s trying to redefine what education is allowed to be. And that means every institution — public or private, large or small — must grapple with the same fundamental question: will we resist or will we comply?

Columbia University initially agreed to certain federal demands to restore $400 million in suspended funding, implementing measures such as enhanced campus security protocols. However, this compliance has not halted federal scrutiny. Recently, the Trump administration has sought to impose a consent decree on Columbia, aiming to establish ongoing federal oversight of the university’s policies concerning campus protests and administrative practices. The message is clear: once an institution begins to bend, the demands don’t stop — they escalate. The more you give, the more they take. Compliance doesn’t buy peace; it invites further control.

Harvard has charted a different course. It has refused to exchange its values for a check. And in doing so, it has given the rest of us something invaluable: a model. An example. A reminder that even the most powerful institutions must be willing to say no.

A Call to the Sector

Now the question is: who’s next? Will Rutgers follow Harvard’s lead? Will Indiana University, where faculty recently passed a resolution resisting political interference? Will UMass Amherst, which has made bold statements in support of academic freedom? Or will these universities — and others like them — shrink under the weight of federal scrutiny?

What we need now is a Mutual Academic Defense Compact — a coordinated, cross-institutional effort to resist political overreach. We need faculty unions, governing boards, and presidents to come together and say clearly: “An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us.” We need legal coalitions, rapid response strategies, and shared media messaging to ensure that no university stands alone when it defends its principles.

And we need the public — especially alumni and donors — to support institutions that choose courage over compliance.

Conclusion: Harvard Has Shown Us the Way

We are at a crossroads. The playbook being executed by the Trump administration is clear. It targets DEI, censors curricula, surveils international students, and weaponizes funding to force ideological compliance. But the resistance playbook is being written, too — and Harvard just added a BOLD new chapter.

Their defiance reminds us that institutions are not helpless. That values still matter. That neutrality is not an option when democracy and education are under attack.

When the Department of Defense came for my faculty, I stood up. When the Trump administration came for Harvard, it stood up. Now the rest of us must decide: Will we?

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Copyright 2025 by Julian Vasquez Heilig and reprinted on Latinopia by permission. Photo of students copyrighted by Barrio Dog Productions, Inc. All other images are in the public domain.  Please share this widely.