Editorial | Trump’s foolhardy spat with Harvard is just tip of the iceberg
American president’s goal to restrict and control foreign students entering US universities will leave his country all the poorer
US President Donald Trump’s feud with Harvard University has headlined a crackdown on education, student visas and immigration that has reverberated through Asia, including Hong Kong.
In a bid to force Harvard, America’s oldest and wealthiest university, to accept federal demands about hiring, admissions and curriculum, Trump has cut federal funding and threatened its tax exemption.
Harvard has resisted the demands, partly linked to “antisemitic” protests on campus over the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has begun revoking the rights of more than 1,000 student-visa holders to remain in the US – part of a broad immigration crackdown. Judges in several states have granted orders protecting students from deportation.
The administration has raised the pressure on universities generally, demanding compliance with reporting requirements. This also comes amid further tightening of approvals of foreign student visas and reports of Chinese with valid visas being turned back at airports.
It fuels uncertainty in Hong Kong and the mainland, where a US college education remains a magnet for some students and parents, even if it has declined in popularity in recent years.