Harvard Fires Back at Trump’s International Student Ban With Lawsuit

Tom DuranteMay 23rd, 2025, 9:55 am

(Steven Senne/AP photo)

Harvard University has filed a lawsuit against Donald Trump’s White House, one day after his administration slapped the Ivy League institution with a ban on all international students.

In the complaint, filed Friday in Boston, Harvard called the move “unconstitutional” and argued it will result in an “immediate and devastating effect for Harvard and more than 7,000 visa holders,” according to the Associated Press.

Harvard officials told the AP that it will next file for a temporary restraining order to keep the Department of Homeland Security from enforcing the ban.

Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard. https://t.co/V8uvTNaL64

— Harvard University (@Harvard) May 23, 2025

The lawsuit is the latest salvo in a war between Harvard and the White House, which has also demanded the university expel pro-Palestinian protesters and eliminate DEI programs, threatening to stop the school’s federal funding and take away its tax-exempt status if they don’t comply.

International students make up more than 27% of Harvard’s enrollment for the 2024-25 academic year, according to figures published by CNN.