Former US President Barack Obama, an alumnus of Harvard University, has expressed his vociferous support for his alma mater, which is currently embroiled in a face-off with the Trump administration. In a message on social media platform X, Obama hailed Harvard for taking "concrete steps" to uphold its environment of intellectual inquiry, rigorous debate and mutual respect, as the University faces allegations of letting 'anti-Semitism' run rampant from the current dispensation. In what can be seen as a message to his successor, Donald Trump, Obama called out the "unlawful and ham-handed" move to "stifle academic freedom" and hoped that, like Harvard, other universities would follow suit and reject such attempts. Obama's remarks come as the US administration freezes $2.2 billion in grants and contracts to Harvard University after the latter refused to comply with its demands to limit protests and activism on campus. "Harvard has set an example for other higher-ed institutions – rejecting an unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic freedom, while taking concrete steps to make sure all students at Harvard can benefit from an environment of intellectual inquiry, rigorous debate and mutual respect. Let’s hope other institutions follow suit," Obama said on X. Also Read: 'Supporting Ideological Sickness!': Trump Now Threatens Stripping Harvard Of Its Tax Exemption Trump has also threatened to strip the university of its tax-exempt status. Taking to his social media platform, Truth Social, Donald Trump warned that Harvard should perhaps lose its tax-exempt status if it keeps "supporting and pushing political, ideological, and terrorist-inspired sickness". "Perhaps Harvard should lose its Tax Exempt Status and be Taxed as a Political Entity if it keeps pushing political, ideological, and terrorist inspired/supporting “Sickness?” Remember, Tax Exempt Status is totally contingent on acting in the PUBLIC INTEREST!" he wrote on his Truth Social platform. Also Read: Trump Vs Harvard: University's $2.2 Bn In Grants Frozen after It Defied US President's Demands Trump vs Harvard University Harvard President Alan Garber, in a letter to the University community, said that the demands by the Trump administration violated the university's First Amendment rights and "exceed the statutory limits of the government's authority under Title VI," which prohibits discrimination against students based on their race, colour or national origin." "No government, regardless of which party is in power, should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue," Garber said while rejecting Trump's demands to put a stop to university protests. He added that the university had taken extensive reforms to address antisemitism, which the Trump administration said was going "unchecked" during campus protests. Get Latest News Live on Times Now along with Breaking News and Top Headlines from US News, World and around the world.