President Donald Trump recently announced that he would redirect $500 million in federal funding to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), pulling those dollars away from other minority-serving institutions (MSIs), including Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). On the surface, this may look like a win for HBCUs. But the reality is more complicated—and dangerous.
This decision risks fueling division between Black and brown communities, pitting us against each other for resources we all deserve. While HBCUs absolutely need and deserve increased funding, it should not come at the expense of HSIs or other MSIs. That approach creates a false choice: either we win, or they lose. When we accept that framing, we all lose.
A setup, not support
Jaiden Whitner, an afro-latina student and a sophomore international relations major at Spelman College, called the move out for what it really is.
“It’s a setup and manipulation,” Whitner said. Instead of actually investing in our communities, the government basically said, ‘Here’s some money, but only if it means taking it away from someone else who also needs it.’ That’s not support, that’s manipulation.”
Her words reflect what many of us feel—this isn’t real investment. It’s a political strategy, one aimed at winning Black votes while deepening divides.
What’s at stake for students
At Morehouse, Keyshawn Ward, a business management major and political science minor, stressed that celebrating this move misses the bigger picture.
“If you want to truly support HBCUs, you should fully invest and give resources,” Ward said. “All schools need more money, HBCU or not.”
He also emphasized that true uplift means partnership.
“If we really want to talk about uplifting the Black and Brown community, let’s partner with these schools,” Ward said.
Ward, who grew up in Oakland, California, also spoke about what division looks like on the ground.
“Yes, that’s always been a concern,” Ward exclaimed. Coming from California, where it is mostly Black and brown, I have seen division not only in the city of California, but across the country. We have ICE coming into the country and taking anybody. A lot of us in the Black community, we are not going out in the streets as we should be because not only does it affect them, it affects us as well.”
Latina students echoed that sentiment.
Bella Galleglos, a political science and international relations double major at the University of Denver, saw the decision as a “clear division tactic to try to pit one group against the other.” She noted that even at a predominantly white institution, Trump’s rollback of DEI funding and programs stripped away cultural spaces that made students of color feel seen.
Her sister, Gabby Gallegos, a freshman at Metropolitan State University of Denver,an Hispanic Serving Institution, spoke about the economic stakes.
“A lot of the people that are attending this school are attending it because it’s affordable,” Gabby said. “Taking away that funding, making tuition rise, that’s basically making it harder for us to get education.”
At Morehouse, Martin Seals, a sophomore political science major, highlighted the long-term costs.
“In the short term, HBCUs might benefit, while HSIs will definitely suffer,” Seals said. “If this effort continues, in the long term, HSIs might be wiped out, forcing HBCUs to pick up the slack, which is not at all ideal. We need as many institutions as possible to educate minorities in our country.”
The bigger picture
What’s clear from all of these voices is that this policy is not about justice—it’s about division. It reflects a zero-sum framework where communities of color are forced to compete for crumbs while billions flow elsewhere.
“Solidarity is everything,” Whitner said. “If we let them convince us that your gain has to mean my loss, we’ve already lost.”
Where do we go from here?
If Trump or any politician really cared about HBCUs, HSIs, and MSIs, they wouldn’t reallocate funding from one to another—they would expand funding for all. Students are right: we should demand that money come from bloated budgets like military spending or ICE, not from each other’s futures.
“I want to see the money come from the right places, like the bloated military budget or the billions spent paying ICE agents ridiculous bonuses for tearing families apart,” Whitner said. Don’t tell us there isn’t enough funding when this country pours endless resources into violence.”
This is why unity matters. As Bella said, “the strongest impact communities of color can make is being together, staying united, and supporting each other through this difficult time.”
We can’t let political strategies convince us otherwise. Black and Brown students have always been stronger together. And in this moment, solidarity isn’t just an ideal—it’s a survival strategy.
