Campus activists push for anti Trump 'mutual defense compact' of major universities
Several universities, many receiving substantial federal funds, might soon oppose President Trump's executive directives limiting progressive programs in public education, following campus activists' urging. Members on a Rutgers University advisory panel recently approved a resolution creating a "Mutual Defense Compact" to combine legal and policy assets among Big Ten Academic Alliance institutions against Trump administration directives.
The resolution asks Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway to lead this effort and "take a primary role in organizing a meeting of Big Ten academic and legal leaders to begin implementing this Compact."
A professor who talked with Fox News Digital joked that "the left has found free speech."
"These same individuals would punish university community members for using incorrect pronouns or alleged microaggressions," Dr. Kevin Jon Williams, a cardiovascular sciences professor at Temple University, told Fox News Digital.
"They prohibited conservative speakers and used force to prevent conservative speakers from visiting campuses, they canceled admission offers to accepted students because someone discovered something they did perhaps when they were 11 or 12 years old," Williams stated. "They were completely harsh and completely opposed to any kind of freedom of expression."
Williams received the measure – officially called the Resolution to Establish a Mutual Defense Compact for the Universities of the Big Ten Academic Alliance in Defense of Academic Freedom, Institutional Integrity, and the Research Enterprise – before the Rutgers University Senate passed it.
The resolution declares that "recent and growing politically motivated actions by government bodies threaten key principles of American higher education, including university governance autonomy, scientific research integrity, and free speech protection," and therefore, the "Trump administration and allied political figures have indicated readiness to target specific institutions with legal, financial, and political interference meant to undermine their public mission, silence opposing voices, and/or exercise improper control over academic study."
The Big Ten Academic Alliance, consisting of more than twelve universities from the Big Ten Conference, including both public and private schools, created the defense-compact resolution. The alliance, previously named the Committee on Institutional Cooperation, was formed to promote research collaboration and resource sharing.
"I don't think they're hypocrites, I think they're liars," Williams concluded.
Williams argues, "I think they're concealing themselves behind free speech principles, which they don't actually support, to maintain their grip on university environments. It's just a tactic. It's a method, and we shouldn't believe them when they claim to value free speech, because they've shown they clearly oppose it."
The plan suggests participating schools would add money to a joint defense fund to offer quick help against what they see as legal and political violations. Which Big Ten universities might back this resolution remains unknown.
The resolution will also "be sent to all Big Ten university leaders and their respective governing boards and shared governance groups," while Rutgers University's president "will take a key role in organizing a meeting of Big Ten academic and legal leaders to start implementing this Compact."
"This document shows remarkable political bias," said Williams, who also serves as a fellow for the conservative Do No Harm medical advocacy organization. "It broadly condemns the Trump administration. They certainly have the free speech right to do this, but by doing so, they stop being neutral, and I would question their tax-exempt status."
Many Big Ten schools have traditionally gotten federal research grants from organizations like the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy.
The resolution appears as the Trump administration closely examines universities receiving federal money. In March, the administration canceled $400 million in federal grants to Columbia University, citing antisemitism concerns on campus after the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel. This action was part of a larger review of prestigious universities for alleged civil rights violations, especially toward Jewish students.
The administration has also focused on removing university diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs to match Trump's executive orders while prohibiting biological males from competing in women's sports.
The Department of Education launched investigations into more than 50 colleges for alleged racial discrimination, challenging race-based admissions and scholarships in February.
Trump also signed an executive order greatly reducing the Department of Education's size in March. While the department now operates on a smaller scale, it still manages essential functions including Title I funding, Pell grants, student loans and special education funding.
