AFT and AAUP on Department of War Directive Targeting 30 Universities

WASHINGTON-AFT President Randi Weingarten and American Association of University Professors President Todd Wolfson issued the following response to the Department of War directing 30 universities to begin comprehensive reviews of their academic, financial and research collaborations with foreign entities they deem concerning:

"The AAUP and AFT condemn the recent directive from the Department of War that publicly places 30 universities under suspicion and gives them two weeks to investigate years of academic activity. While safeguarding national security is a legitimate government priority, this demand creates a serious danger of racial and national-origin profiling that threatens the foundational principles of academic freedom, open inquiry and global scholarly collaboration and undermines scientific innovation and research that benefits all Americans.

"The directive represents another form of funding-based coercion. By threatening to pull vital federal research funding without disclosing the standards used to target these institutions, and without providing any public evidence of actual wrongdoing, the government may be bypassing due process. It remains unclear what legal authority permits the Department of War to condition all federal research funding, rather than just its own budget, on compliance with this order.

"The AAUP and AFT urge the Department of War to rescind this ultimatum and engage in a transparent, collaborative dialogue with the higher education community-one that protects genuine security concerns without sacrificing global academic research, cross-border scientific research and the free exchange of ideas that has long made U.S. research institutions world leaders."

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The AFT represents 1.8 million pre-K through 12th-grade teachers; paraprofessionals and other school-related personnel; higher education faculty and professional staff; federal, state and local government employees; nurses and healthcare workers; and early childhood educators.