ANANISH CHAUDHURI: Trump’s war against Universities
In brief
Not all of Trump administration’s demands on Harvard are unreasonable; some are in keeping with existing civil rights laws.
The administration is overreaching in asking for external audit of “viewpoint diversity”. This goes to the heart of academic freedom and no university can submit to this without losing its soul.
However, those outraged at Trump’s tactics should realise that viewpoint diversity is also missing in New Zealand universities.
Those decrying Trump are adopting similar tactics insisting on particular courses and course content, which are also violations of academic freedom.
