During a demonstration for academic freedom on the Harvard campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on April 17, 2025. JOSEPH PREZIOSO / AFP
The school year is starting off better than it ended for Harvard. The university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, whose federal funding was frozen in April, scored a major legal victory this week against the Trump administration. In a ruling released Wednesday, September 3, a federal judge in Boston found that the suspension of $2.6 billion in grants was unlawful.
The story is not over. The Trump administration can still appeal the decision all the way to the US Supreme Court and has other forms of retaliation at its disposal against Harvard.
The institution, which has taken the lead in opposing Donald Trump academically, scored a clear victory but remains cautious. "Even as we acknowledge the important principles affirmed in today's ruling, we will continue to assess the implications of the opinion, monitor further legal developments, and be mindful of the changing landscape in which we seek to fulfill our mission," Harvard's president, Alan Garber, wrote in a statement published Wednesday evening.
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