On this Sunday, the Trump administration announced that Columbia University would lose $400 million in federal funding due to allegations that it has not done enough to combat antisemitism. On Monday, a federal task force informed the prestigious institution that it would be conducting a thorough review of its federal contracts and grants as part of an ongoing investigation under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
The “Federal Task Force to Combat Antisemitism,” created in February following Trump’s executive order, includes four agencies: the Department of Justice, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Education, and the U.S. General Services Administration. The task force’s creation followed an order from Trump called “Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism,” signed at the end of January. Last week, the task force announced plans to visit ten universities that have dealt with antisemitic incidents since October 2023, which were linked to the Hamas-led attacks on Israel and the resulting conflict in Gaza.
In a joint statement on Friday, the agencies stated that the funding cuts were due to the university’s failure to address the ongoing harassment of Jewish students. Education Secretary Linda McMahon emphasized that Jewish students had faced ongoing violence and intimidation since October 7, 2023, which the university had not adequately addressed. The statement also indicated that this was just the first wave of action, and more funding cancellations could follow. Columbia University holds over $5 billion in federal grants, and the announced cuts are nearly eight times the amount the federal task force had previously considered stopping.
Leo Terrell, a former Fox News commentator and the leader of the task force, said that freezing the funding was one of the measures taken to address the rise in antisemitism, and this was just the beginning. He emphasized that canceling taxpayer funds was a strong message from the federal government that it would not tolerate a university like Columbia failing to protect its Jewish students and staff.
Columbia University has been criticized for allowing antisemitic behavior on its campus, particularly following protests and encampments sparked by Israel’s conflict in Gaza. Other universities across the country also held similar protests after Columbia students organized an encampment. While the university leadership has repeatedly condemned the protests, it has continued to face scrutiny from the government.
Both the Biden and Trump administrations have attempted to frame anti-Israel and anti-Zionist protests as antisemitic, leading to congressional hearings and stronger law enforcement responses to protests. Last April, the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing titled, “Columbia in Crisis: Columbia University’s Response to Antisemitism.”
Since taking office, Trump had ordered a suspension of federal grants and loans, a move that was later blocked by a judge. In February, the Associated Press reported that the directive had caused universities nationwide to scramble, as they tried to understand how a funding freeze could impact their research, students, and faculty.
