US cancels $400 million in funding to Columbia University over anti-Semitism allegations

(CLO) The administration of US President Donald Trump announced that it has canceled grants and contracts worth about $400 million to Columbia University due to anti-Semitism allegations taking place on and around the campus in New York City.

The announcement was made Friday in a joint statement from the Department of Justice, Department of Education, Department of Health and Human Services and the General Services Administration.

School website homepage. Screenshot.

The Trump administration has not disclosed specific grants and contracts affected, nor has it provided evidence of anti-Semitic harassment.

The cuts would come from more than $5 billion in current funding for Columbia, much of which goes to medical and scientific research, according to the administration.

Columbia has been one of the universities at the forefront of pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel protests over the past year, as the war in Gaza has continued.

The university has insisted it has worked to combat anti-Semitism and other discrimination on campus, and has rejected accusations from civil rights groups that it is allowing the government to interfere with academics' free speech rights.

Protesters at Columbia — including students and some faculty — occupied an academic building for several hours in April and set up tents on campus lawns, demanding that the school stop investing in companies linked to Israeli military activity in the Palestinian territories.

Protests and counter-protests from Israel supporters have also caused controversy, with accusations of anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and racism.

The Columbia University Apartheid Divest Student Coalition, the group behind the pro-Palestinian protests, which includes Jewish students and organizations, argues that criticism of Israel is being confused with anti-Semitism. Meanwhile, some Jewish and Israeli students say the protests are oppressive and disrupt the learning environment.

“Revoking these taxpayer-funded grants is our strongest signal yet that the federal government will not support an educational institution like Columbia if it fails to protect Jewish students and staff,” said Leo Terrell, head of the Justice Department’s anti-Semitism task force.

Over the past year, Columbia University has disciplined dozens of students and faculty for participating in pro-Palestinian protests, including several suspensions. The school has also called in police twice to arrest protesters, sparking protests from faculty.

Columbia spokeswoman Samantha Slater said the school's leadership is "committed to working with the federal government to restore funding."

Cao Phong (according to WH, CLU, CNN)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/my-huy-bo-400-trieu-usd-tien-tai-tro-cho-dai-hoc-columbia-vi-cao-buoc-bai-do-thai-post337600.html