Two groups representing Columbia University faculty members on Tuesday sued the Trump administration over $400 million in federal funding cuts and demands that the school make dramatic changes to student discipline and admissions policies.
The plaintiffs, the American Association of University Professors and the American Federation of Teachers, asked a Manhattan federal court to restore the funding and argued that the cuts were unconstitutional.
The two groups and Protect Democracy, a nonprofit organization representing them, said in a news release that the funding cuts and an accompanying letter demanding changes to Columbia policy violated the First Amendment. The Trump administration’s actions “have created instability and a deep chilling effect on college campuses across the country,” the statement said.
Todd Wolfson, the president of the A.A.U.P., a faculty rights group, said in the statement that the funding cuts were part of a larger effort to target campus free speech, which would have consequences beyond Columbia.
“The Trump administration’s threats and coercion at Columbia are part of a clear authoritarian playbook meant to crush academic freedom and critical research in American higher education,” Mr. Wolfson said.
The funding cuts have imperiled vital scientific and public health research that contributes to the “prosperity of all Americans,” the groups said. The cuts have effectively terminated numerous projects, including research into early cancer detection, the effects of Covid-19 on pregnancy and links between diabetes and dementia.
The lawsuit names as defendants several federal agencies and officials, including the Justice Department, the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services. The funding cuts “represent an existential ‘gun to the head’ for a university,” the complaint said.
On Friday, Columbia capitulated to several of the Trump administration’s demands, pledging that the university would overhaul its campus security protocols, protest policies and Middle Eastern studies department.
The federal government has not agreed to restore Columbia’s funding. Josh Gruenbaum, commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service, which is part of the General Services Administration, one of the agencies calling for changes at the university, said that Columbia’s policy changes were “early steps” and a “positive sign.”
Several of the agencies named in the lawsuit did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Tuesday. A spokesperson for one of them, the General Services Administration, declined to comment.
A number of Columbia professors have opposed the Trump administration’s efforts to punish the university and some students for pro-Palestinian protests. On Monday, at least 50 faculty members gathered outside the university’s gates to protest the cuts and the school’s response. Some held signs proclaiming, “Protect Academic Freedom” and “Columbia Fight Back.”
Reinhold Martin, the president of Columbia’s A.A.U.P. chapter and a professor of architecture, said in the joint statement that faculty members had a responsibility to speak up.
“The integrity of civic discourse and the freedoms that form the basis of a democratic society are under attack,” Mr. Martin said. “We have to stand up.”
The lawsuit also argues that the administration violated provisions of Title VI, a section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibiting discrimination in institutions that receive federal funding. The administration has cited Title VI as justification for its decision to cut Columbia’s funding, but the suit argues that the administration failed to comply with some of Title VI’s requirements.
Some of the steps the administration failed to follow, the suit asserts, include holding a hearing, providing evidence and giving the university the opportunity to voluntarily comply with the White House’s demands. These requirements were created, the groups argued in the statement, to “prevent the government from exercising too much unfettered control over funding recipients.”
The administration has started to scrutinize dozens of other colleges and universities. Last week, the White House announced that it would suspend $175 million in federal funding to the University of Pennsylvania because of the school’s policies on transgender students’ participation in sports.
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