WASHINGTON

A broad coalition of faculty, staff, students and labor unions in the University of California (UC) system sued the Trump administration Tuesday over the freezing of federal funds and a free speech crackdown.

The lawsuit was filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, seeking to stop the Trump administration from the further use of financial threats to coerce the UC system that it said were harmful.

"The Trump-Vance administration has attempted to implement a playbook to threaten colleges and universities," the lawsuit said.

Since taking office in January, the second Trump administration has targeted several prominent universities, claiming that they continue to pursue "woke" policies promoting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) despite President Donald Trump's assertion that such policies are discriminatory and illegal.

It has threatened to withdraw government funding for such universities, among other actions.

Trump has also criticized universities for allowing pro-Palestinian protests, which he alleges are antisemitic.