A federal judge in Boston has temporarily halted US President Donald Trump’s attempt to prevent foreign nationals from entering the United States for study or exchange programs at Harvard University.
In a two-page temporary restraining order issued to Harvard, US District Judge Allison Burroughs restrained Mr. Trump’s proclamation from being enacted while the legal case proceeds, amidst an ongoing conflict between the Ivy League institution and the Republican president.
The judge determined that Mr. Trump’s order prohibiting foreign nationals from entering the country for Harvard studies over the next six months would inflict “immediate and irreparable injury” before the courts could assess the case.
Last month, Judge Burroughs had already blocked Mr. Trump from enforcing a different order that would prevent Harvard from enrolling international students, who constitute over a quarter of the university’s student population.
“The Proclamation denies thousands of Harvard’s students the ability to come to this country to pursue their education and achieve their dreams, as well as denying Harvard the opportunity to educate them. Without its international students, Harvard cannot be Harvard,” the institution stated in its legal documents.
Judge Burroughs’ order also upheld a separate temporary restraining order she issued on May 23 against the administration’s restrictions on international student enrollment at Harvard.
Earlier, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson labeled Harvard as “a hotbed of anti-American, anti-Semitic, pro-terrorist agitators,” a characterization that the university has strongly refuted.
In its court filing, Harvard stated that US President Donald Trump had violated federal law.
“Harvard’s actions have compromised the integrity of the entire US student and exchange visitor visa system and pose risks to national security. Now it must face the consequences of its actions,” Ms. Jackson conveyed in a statement.
Mr. Trump justified the prohibition on international students accessing the US for studies at the university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, by citing national security concerns.
According to Mr. Trump’s proclamation, the initial suspension was set for six months but could potentially be extended. The order also instructed the US State Department to consider revoking academic or exchange visas of any current Harvard students who met the criteria laid out in his proclamation.
In a court filing on the previous day, Harvard contended that Mr. Trump had transgressed federal law by failing to substantiate his national security claims.
“The Proclamation does not deem the entry of any individual or group of individuals as detrimental to the interests of the United States, as non-citizens affected by the Proclamation can still enter the United States—provided they go elsewhere besides Harvard,” the university argued.
The Trump administration has launched a multi-faceted assault on the nation’s oldest and wealthiest university, freezing billions of dollars in grants and other funding while proposing to revoke its tax-exempt status, leading to a series of legal battles.
Read more: US govt revokes Harvard’s right to enroll international students
Harvard contends that the administration is retaliating against it for refusing to comply with demands regarding the governance, curriculum, and ideological stance of its faculty and students.
The university filed suit after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem declared on May 22 that her department was immediately revoking Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification, which permits enrollment of foreign students.
Judge Burroughs swiftly blocked Ms. Noem’s action. On the eve of a hearing last week, the department shifted its stance and announced it would pursue a more extended administrative process to challenge Harvard’s certification.
Nevertheless, Judge Burroughs expressed her intent to issue a longer-term preliminary injunction, emphasizing that one was essential to provide protection for Harvard’s international students.
Mr. Trump’s two-page directive released on Wednesday asserted that Harvard had “demonstrated a history of concerning foreign ties and radicalism,” along with “extensive entanglements with foreign adversaries,” including China.
It stated that Harvard had experienced “a drastic rise in crime in recent years while failing to discipline at least some categories of conduct violations on campus,” and had not provided adequate information to the Homeland Security Department about foreign students’ “known illegal or dangerous activities.”
The university’s court filing asserted that these claims were unsubstantiated.
