In a sharp and rare rebuke, former Harvard University President Claudine Gay has spoken publicly for the first time in nearly two years, blasting her alma mater’s leadership for what she described as “compliance” with demands from former President Donald Trump’s administration.
Speaking on Sept. 3 at the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study, Gay accused Harvard of ceding ground to political and donor pressure under the leadership of current President Alan M. Garber ’76. A recording of the speech was obtained by The Harvard Crimson.
“The posture of the institution seems to be one of compliance,” Gay said. “This is distressing, not only for those of us who are on campus and facing the consequences directly, but also for all of those in higher ed who look to Harvard for leadership and guidance.”
Gay, who resigned in January 2024 after facing mounting political pressure, allegations of plagiarism, and criticism over her congressional testimony during the Israel-Hamas conflict, urged Harvard not to capitulate to a proposed $500 million settlement floated as part of ongoing negotiations with the Trump administration.
“The number of $500 million is completely arbitrary and it will solve nothing,” she argued.
Since April, Harvard has shuttered diversity offices, restructured Middle East programs, and suspended its partnership with the largest university in the West Bank — moves that critics say mirror Trump’s policy goals. Gay denounced these decisions as erasing decades of institutional commitments.
“There has been an elimination of programs, offices, activities that, for at least 20 years, the University has insisted represent institutional imperatives,” she told hundreds of scholars in attendance. “But now they’re gone.”
Beyond the White House, Gay also highlighted the corrosive role of wealthy donors, who, she said, often issue public ultimatums that force universities to choose between financial support and institutional integrity.
“By going public, they force institutions to choose between donor preferences and public integrity,” she said. “And when the stakes are that transparent, there’s a good chance — though not a guarantee — that integrity will prevail.”
In her remarks, Gay accused the Trump administration of actively trying to “destroy knowledge institutions because they are centers of independent thought and information.”
She warned the academic community not to be distracted by political misdirection aimed at vilifying universities as bastions of elitism while eroding their independence.
Gay’s appearance in Amsterdam marked one of her few public engagements since her resignation. Previously, she only surfaced to accept an award from the Harvard Black Alumni Society and to moderate a book talk. Her speech signals a new willingness to confront both political and institutional forces she believes are undermining higher education.
A Harvard spokesperson declined to comment on Gay’s remarks.
