Columbia University reached a deal with the Trump administration to resume access to significant research funding that had been previously blocked. The agreement involves a $200 million fine to the federal government and an additional $21 million for settling employment discrimination claims. Columbia will implement measures such as notifying the Department of Homeland Security about international student expulsions or arrests. Furthermore, the university will reduce its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives and enable a thorough review of its Middle Eastern Studies program. Such actions indicate serious concerns for academic freedom and institutional integrity.
This deal has been widely called a 'settlement,' but it's not really a legal settlement in any traditional sense. It's more like a capitulation to extralegal bullying tactics seemingly designed to punish Columbia for speech that this administration doesn't like.
At the top, I want to reiterate how ridiculous and embarrassing it is that we have to pretend that a political and ideological movement that cozies up to antisemites, bigots, and racists is concerned about the treatment of Jewish students on elite college campuses.
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