Harvard professor hits back at Trump administration | LBC

David Armitage, a History professor at Harvard University, has hit back at the Trump administration as tries to remove the University's ability to enrol foreign students.

Speaking to Matt Frei on LBC, Armitage said the Trump administration has a 'fear of critical thought, fear of a civil society that does not knuckle down to MAGA ideology'.

Harvard has announced legal action against the US government over a ban on allowing foreign students.

The legal action comes after the federal government revoked Harvard's certification under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) and stripped the University of its authority to sponsor F- and J- visas for international students.

In a statement, Harvard's President Alan M. Garber said: "The revocation continues a series of government actions to retaliate against Harvard for our refusal to surrender our academic independence and to submit to the federal government’s illegal assertion of control over our curriculum, our faculty, and our student body."

The statement condemned the "unlawful and unwarranted action", and added: "We have just filed a complaint, and a motion for a temporary restraining order will follow. As we pursue legal remedies, we will do everything in our power to support our students and scholars."

Harvard enrols almost 6,800 foreign students at its campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Most are graduate students and they come from more than 100 countries.

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