A coalition of student organizations, labor unions representing UC workers, and faculty associations filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration on Tuesday, seeking to halt the administration’s suspension of research grants and a $1.2 billion fine against UCLA.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court for the Northern District of California, accused the administration of “attempting to coerce colleges and universities across the country to do what the Trump administration cannot do directly itself: infringe on the speech rights of faculty, academic and other staff, and students.”
The Trump administration is accused of following a “playbook” of threatening colleges and universities over their curricula, campus activities, and diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
“In America, there is no king,” said Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, which represents the coalition. “The president cannot force people to think like he does, believe like he does, or be exposed only to the ideas he agrees with. Yet, he’s trying to do just that. The Trump-Vance administration’s attempt to stop UC campuses from exercising their First Amendment rights and intimidate educational institutions is a callous dismissal of one of the most important pillars of our democracy.”
The lawsuit follows the administration’s $1.2 billion fine against UCLA and a freeze on research funding, citing claims the school allowed antisemitism and other civil rights violations. UCLA became the first public university to face such a freeze, which the administration has also imposed on private institutions, including Harvard, Brown, and Columbia.
UC President James B. Milliken on Monday called the administration’s action “one of the gravest threats to the University of California.”
“Losses of significant research and other federal funding would devastate UC and inflict long-term harm on our students, faculty, staff, patients and all Californians,” Milliken said. “It would also end life-saving research from which all Americans benefit.”
UC receives more than $17 billion in federal support annually, including $9.9 billion for Medicare and Medicaid, $5.7 billion for research and programs, and $1.7 billion for student financial aid. Those funds support health care for millions of Californians, research into cures and technologies, and aid that helps keep UC accessible.
A substantial loss of federal dollars, Milliken said, would mean fewer classes and student services, reduced access to health care, tens of thousands of lost jobs statewide, and an exodus of top faculty and researchers.
The Department of Justice declined to comment on the lawsuit.
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