Jewish Student Group Hillel Withdraws Support for Harvard's Legal Fight Over Federal Funding Freeze

Hours after initially backing Harvard University's legal challenge against the Trump administration's decision to freeze $2.7 billion in federal funding due to antisemitic incidents, the Jewish student organization Hillel reversed course. The original affidavit was intended to support Harvard in its dispute over the funding freeze, which was announced just before the Jewish fast day of Tisha B'Av. However, the move sparked outrage within the Jewish community, which criticized Hillel for siding with an institution perceived as not adequately addressing antisemitism. Under pressure, Hillel's president, Adam Lehman, stated that the affidavit was "submitted by mistake" and that he had not seen it before it was filed with the court. This reversal highlights tensions within the Jewish community regarding responses to antisemitism on college campuses and the role of advocacy groups representing Jewish students.