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"They have a legal right to do whatever they want (so long as they don't receive any taxpayer money whatsoever, which I'm not sure is true.)"

Receiving government money doesn't transform an entity into a state actor for the purposes of the First Amendment.

In the 2014 fiscal year, Harvard received $608 million in research funding from the government.

No, but they are saying that it's a free speech issue. It is a free speech issue, but not in the way they are saying. Your anger is misplaced if it's directed at Harvard.

who is "they" and what did "they" say, specifically? can you quote someone? the discussion of speech issues is often about culture and norms rather than about legal statutes.

> the discussion of speech issues is often about culture and norms rather than about legal statutes.

While it may be something that many people make a lot of noise about 'respecting', freedom of speech, tolerance of discourse, and a willingness to listen to others are not deeply held social or cultural norms I have witnessed in the US.