1. United States
2. Va.
3. Letter

As an alumna of the University of Virginia, I am disgusted by the actions of the Trump administration and the Bondi Department of Justice against UVA and its president, Jim Ryan. Virginia state lawmakers, the Governor, and Attorney General have a solemn duty to take action to fight this. Doing otherwise is a betrayal of the University’s founding principles of truth, honor and its freedom to govern itself in service to the Commonwealth and the public good. This kind of pressure undermines the very foundation of public education in Virginia. UVA must remain free to govern itself without political threats from Washington, D.C. No matter your political beliefs, this is bigger than any one university or its president. It’s about ensuring that no government—state or federal—is allowed to dictate the leadership of our universities based on ideology or political loyalty. As Virginia's Governor and members of the General Assembly, you have a responsibility to protect our Commonwealth’s institutions. We must not allow the federal government to arrogate powers that belong to the Commonwealth. UVA’s founder Thomas Jefferson would have rejected this federal intrusion in the strongest possible terms.