The administration of President Donald Trump is initiating an investigation into the Law Magazine of Harvard University on the alleged discriminatory practices, expanding his battle of a week over federal funds with the elite institution.
The civil rights offices of the Departments of Education and Health and Human Services announced on Monday that they are investigating the review of Harvard’s Law, an independent organization led by students promoting the legal scholarship.
The offices are investigating the accusations that the magazine discriminates based on the breed “instead of the standards” based on merit “, in violation of the anti -discrimination law of Title VI, according to a statement from the two agencies.
“The Harvard Law Review selection process seems to choose the winners and losers on the basis of the breed, using a loot system in which the legal scholar race is, if not more, important that the merit of the presentation,” the merit of the presentation said on Monday, “he said Monday.
The agencies said that the review of Harvard’s law is running the risk of losing federal funds if it is found that the law of title VI has broken.
Harvard Law Review has been published and edited by students for more than 135 years. Its objective is to be an effective research tool for the practice of lawyers and students, according to their website.
“The Harvard Law Faculty undertakes to ensure that the programs and activities that Supervisa complies with all applicable laws and investigating any violation in a credible way,” said a University spokesman in a statement to ABC News, noting that the Journal “is an organization led by students that is legally independent of the Law School.”
People walk through Harvard Yard on Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachussetts, April 15, 2025.
Joseph Prezios/AFP through Getty Images
The latest research occurs after the Trump administration froze more than $ 2.2 billion in federal funds for Harvard after the university refused to meet a series of demands after a review of the anti -Semitism work group earlier this month.
The president of Harvard University, Alan Garber, said in a letter at that time that “no government, regardless of what party is in power, should dictate which private universities can teach, who can admit and hire, and what areas of study and research can carry out.”
The University has filed a lawsuit on the threats of the Trump administration to retain funds, asking a judge to prevent the freezing of funds from entering into force, arguing that the measure is “illegal and beyond the government authority.”
During a brief conference on Monday, the Judge of the United States District Court, Allison Burroughs, scheduled oral arguments in the lawsuit that challenges the freezing of financing on July 21. Meanwhile, the freezing of funds will remain in force.
The internal tax service is also considering revoking Harvard’s tax, the sources told ABC News earlier this month.
In other developments, the Department of Education said on Monday that its civil rights office found that the University of Pennsylvania violated title IX by allowing transgender athletes to compete in their women’s sports teams.
The department requires that the University issue a statement to its community that it will comply with the law, will apologize to athletes whose athletic participation was “tarnished by sexual discrimination” and will restore all the records of athletics or praise “poorly appropriate by male athletes.” The school has 10 days to resolve the violation or risk of a derivation to the Department of Justice.
Earlier this year, the Trump administration said it suspended $ 175 million in federal contracts granted to PENN, citing the participation of a transgender athlete in a female swimming team.
A Penn spokesman said at that time that the university “has always followed” the policies of the NCAA and Ivy League regarding the participation of students in sports teams.
Peter Charalambous of ABC News contributed to this report.
