Harvard University President Alan Garber has admitted that a lack of conservatives and fear of voicing “unpopular” opinions on campus are problems the Ivy League needs to address.
Garber addressed the issues in a wide-ranging interview with NPR on Tuesday when asked about the Trump administration’s decision to freeze billions in federal grants due, in part, to antisemitism on campus.
“In my view, the federal government is saying that we need to address antisemitism in particular, but it has raised other issues, and it includes claims that we lack viewpoint diversity,” Garber said.
He went on to say the elite school has been “very clear” of late that they do believe they have issues — particularly surrounding free speech.
“We think it’s a real problem if — particularly a research university’s — students don’t feel free to speak their minds, when faculty feel that they have to think twice before they talk about the subjects that they’re teaching. That’s a real problem that we need to address,” he said.
“And it’s particularly concerning when people have views that they think are unpopular. And the administration and others have said conservatives are too few on campus and their views are not welcome. In so far as that’s true, that’s a problem we really need to address.”
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