Trump Kills $400 Million for Columbia U because it didn't persecute anti-genociders enough

𝙋𝙧𝙤-𝙋𝙖𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙖𝙣 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙜𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙨𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙢𝙗𝙞𝙖 𝙐𝙣𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙘𝙖𝙢𝙥𝙪𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝙔𝙤𝙧𝙠 𝘾𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙚𝙧 𝙄𝙨𝙧𝙖𝙚𝙡𝙞 𝙋𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙈𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙉𝙖𝙛𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙞 𝘽𝙚𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙩𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙝 4, 2025. (Photo: Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Columbia University administrators garnered widespread condemnation last year for overseeing a violent crackdown on students who protested against U.S. support for Israeli war crimes in Gaza, but those actions against pro-Palestinian students didn't stop the Trump administration from cutting contracts and grants for the school on Friday.

The White House announced it was canceling contracts and funding for the Ivy League university shortly after Columbia officials began sending notices to students who have participated in Palestinian solidarity protests decrying Israel's bombardment of Gaza and the West Bank.

A senior named Maryam Alwan was accused by the school of "discriminatory harassment" for writing an op-ed in the student newspaper joining the call for divestment from Israel, while another student was contacted by a new disciplinary committee—established specifically to discipline students who express criticism of Israel—for hosting an art exhibit that focused on last year's demonstrations.

But in a move that one civil liberties advocate said was aimed at coercing all colleges into "censoring student speech," the Trump administration announced it was pulling the grants and contracts because Columbia hasn't done enough to clamp down on alleged antisemitism on campus.

"Universities must comply with all federal antidiscrimination laws if they are going to receive federal funding. For too long, Columbia has abandoned that obligation to Jewish students studying on its campus," Education Secretary Linda McMahon said.

One critic advised Columbia administrators that the news of the canceled funding was proof that "you can't appease the Zionists" by oppressing pro-Palestinian students:

𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙢𝙗𝙞𝙖 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙗𝙧𝙪𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙥𝙧𝙤-𝙋𝙖𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙚𝙘𝙝/𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩. 𝘾𝙖𝙢𝙥𝙪𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙨, 𝙢𝙖𝙨𝙨 𝙨𝙪𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣, 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙪𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙪𝙧𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 (𝙊𝙄𝙀).

𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙚𝙩 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙩𝙨 𝙛𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙨.

𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙘𝙖𝙣'𝙩 𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙯𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙨. 𝙎𝙩𝙤𝙥 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙢𝙚—𝙧𝙚𝙛𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙢𝙨.

Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, told The Associated Press the move was unconstitutional and meant to stop student's "advocacy that isn't MAGA-approved, like criticizing Israel or supporting Palestinian rights."

Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch, added that while Trump "claims to be protecting Jews" by pushing Columbia to take more aggressive action against Palestinian rights supporters, "this is clearly about suppressing criticism of Israeli war crimes.":

𝙄𝙣 𝙘𝙪𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 $400 𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙢𝙗𝙞𝙖 𝙐𝙣𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙮, 𝙏𝙧𝙪𝙢𝙥 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙢𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙅𝙚𝙬𝙨. 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙢𝙥𝙪𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣'𝙩 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙙. 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙘𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙨𝙢 𝙤𝙛 𝙄𝙨𝙧𝙖𝙚𝙡𝙞 𝙬𝙖𝙧 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙚𝙨. 𝙝𝙩𝙩𝙥𝙨://𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙗.𝙖𝙡/8𝙡𝘼𝙁𝙍8𝙤

The news came days after U.S. Senate Republicans held the latest hearing on what they claim is antisemitism on college campuses. One Jewish student at Tufts University, Meirav Solomon, who was invited by Democrats to testify at the hearing, pointed out that Trump's gutting of the Department of Education has left all students without a way to lodge complaints of discrimination with the agency's Office of Civil Rights—eliminating "a crucial avenue for Jews and other minorities to advocate for our rights."

Meanwhile, noted Solomon, Republicans on the committee had nothing to say about Trump ally Elon Musk's apparent Nazi salute at an inauguration event in January.

On Friday, the advocacy group Bend the Arc: Jewish Action said Trump's cancellation of Columbia's grants, "falsely in the name of Jewish safety, actively puts Jews in danger."

"History has shown that a strong democracy is what keeps Jews safest," said the group. "At the core of strong democracies are free speech and education."