I’m sure most people think that Harvard University’s sports uniform color of crimson has something to do with its long history or its regal beginnings. Not so. Harvard’s color is crimson because in 1858, when Harvard’s rowing team needed to distinguish themselves at a regatta, they chose to use red bandanas as their identifying marker. This choice eventually evolved into the official adoption of crimson as Harvard’s color. The specific shade of crimson became official in 1910 when the Harvard Corporation formally designated “crimson” as the university’s official color. They even specified the exact shade by preserving a particular piece of fabric as the standard reference for the official Harvard crimson. Before this official adoption, there had actually been some debate between crimson and magenta as potential school colors in the late 19th century. Ultimately, crimson prevailed and has remained Harvard’s distinctive color ever since.
Harvard University was founded on October 28, 1636, making it the oldest institution of higher education in the United States. It was established by a vote of the Great and General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and was initially called “New College” or “the College at New Towne.” The school was renamed Harvard College in 1639 in honor of John Harvard, a young clergyman who was the institution’s first major benefactor. Upon his death, John Harvard bequeathed half of his estate and his library of over 400 books to the fledgling college. The town of Newtowne was renamed Cambridge in 1638, in honor of Cambridge, England, where many of the colony’s settlers had attended the University of Cambridge. In its early years, Harvard primarily focused on educating clergy and employed a curriculum centered on rote learning through repeated drilling, which was typical for that era. Harvard began evolving into a true university in the late 18th century, with the founding of Harvard Medical School in 1782, which made it a university in fact as well as name. Throughout the 19th century, Harvard continued expanding its academic offerings with the establishment of Harvard Law School in 1817 and Harvard Divinity School in 1819, broadening its curriculum and securing its reputation as a national university. The Lawrence Scientific School was founded in 1847 with a $50,000 gift from Abbott Lawrence, marking the beginning of Harvard’s formal programs in engineering and applied sciences. A significant transformation occurred during Charles W. Eliot’s presidency from 1869 to 1909. Eliot decreased the historically favored position of Christianity in the curriculum, liberalized education, and helped transform Harvard into a modern research university. In 1900, Harvard became a founding member of the Association of American Universities, cementing its place among America’s elite research institutions. James B. Conant led the university through the Great Depression and World War II and liberalized admissions after the war. Harvard now boasts an impressive legacy that includes 161 Nobel laureates, over 30 heads of state, and numerous global business leaders among its alumni. Harvard’s endowment, valued at $50.7 billion, makes it the wealthiest academic institution in the world, and Harvard Library, with more than 20 million volumes, is the world’s largest academic library.
Harvard University’s tax-exempt status is currently under serious challenge from the Trump administration for several reasons. The Internal Revenue Service is making plans to rescind Harvard University’s tax-exempt status as part of what appears to be a retaliatory measure as the Trump administration increases pressure on the university after it defied demands to change its hiring and other practices. Initially, the Trump administration targeted Harvard and other universities as part of a crackdown on alleged antisemitism at schools that had seen protests over the Israel-Gaza war, with an antisemitism task force reviewing nearly $9 billion in federal grants and contracts awarded to Harvard. After Harvard rejected the administration’s demands on Monday, April 14, 2025, the government responded by blocking more than $2 billion in federal funding to the university. Then, the next day President Trump suggested on Truth Social that “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?'”
The administration demanded Harvard eliminate its diversity, equity and inclusion programs, ban masks at campus protests, enact merit-based hiring and admissions changes, turn over foreign students’ discipline records, and reduce power held by faculty and administrators who are “more committed to activism than scholarship.” Congress passed a law in 1998 that forbids the president from directing the IRS to audit or investigate taxpayers. If President Trump instructed the IRS to remove Harvard’s tax exemption, that runs exactly contrary to law. Harvard University President Alan Garber has responded, saying in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that the action would be “highly illegal” and “destructive” to the university. In 1970, the IRS revoked Bob Jones University’s tax-exempt status because the school prohibited interracial relationships among students, a decision later upheld by the Supreme Court. That university’s tax exemption was only restored in 2017 after it had rescinded its interracial dating policy in 2000. The funny thing is that one would think that the action might have been motivated by Bob Jones University’s religious affiliation. The separation of church and state is enshrined in U.S. law, though not explicitly using those exact words. The principle is primarily established through the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” The phrase “separation of church and state” itself comes from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson in 1802 to the Danbury Baptist Association, where he referred to the First Amendment as building “a wall of separation between Church and State.” While not constitutional language, this metaphor has been influential in how the Supreme Court has interpreted the religion clauses. That is all ironic, given that Harvard ceased to be a religiously affiliated institution at the turn of the Twentieth Century.
Trump has now done what he always does, he has doubled down. Trump stated on May 2, 2025: “We are going to be taking away Harvard’s Tax Exempt Status. It’s what they deserve!” That yet again specifically breaks the 1998 law. Title 26, U.S. Code § 7217, which was established by the Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 (RRA 98), specifically prohibits a president from directing the IRS to take action against a taxpayer like Harvard. This law states: “It shall be unlawful for any applicable person to request, directly or indirectly, any officer or employee of the Internal Revenue Service to conduct or terminate an audit or other investigation of any particular taxpayer with respect to the tax liability of such taxpayer.” The statute is specifically titled “Prohibition on executive branch influence over taxpayer audits and other investigations.” Congress passed this law in 1998 specifically to forbid the president from directing the IRS to audit or investigate taxpayers and it requires any IRS officer or employee who receives a prohibited request to report it to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. But then, in the Trump Administration, that spot is still vacant since Trump doesn’t seem to like oversight of any sort. Violations of this prohibition can be punished by imprisonment of up to five years. The IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 was designed to transform the IRS into a more taxpayer-focused organization, representing the largest overhaul of the agency since the 1950s. It directed the IRS to revise its mission statement to place greater emphasis on serving the public and meeting taxpayer needs. The Act is also known as Taxpayer Bill of Rights III and was passed in response to congressional hearings held in 1996 and 1997 that highlighted alleged IRS abuses. The legislation received unanimous approval in the Senate. While the IRS could potentially revoke Harvard’s tax-exempt status, it can’t be at the behest of President Trump, and public statements directing such action could work in Harvard’s favor if a legal battle ensues.
I will make a bet with anyone who cares to do so that Harvard will prevail and keep its tax-exempt status. The Crimson Tide will not lose to Trump Almighty.