SAN DIEGO — Five students at UC San Diego had their F-1 visas suddenly revoked by the U.S. government, and a sixth student was detained at the border, denied entry and deported to their home country, university Chancellor Pradeep Khosla said on Friday.
In an April 4 campuswide notice, Khosla said the students’ visas were removed “without warning” and with no explanation from the federal government.
“The students have been notified, and we are working directly with them to provide support,” Khosla said.
UC San Diego students are among hundreds recently impacted by the government’s crackdown on student visa holders. President Donald Trump issued an executive order in January that threatened to revoke the visas of people who participated in pro-Palestinian protests last spring amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on March 27 that the government had revoked the visas of 300 international students studying in the United States, including dozens in California.
The University of California said on April 4 that they are aware of student visa terminations across various campuses. According to news reports, students have also been affected at UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis and UC Irvine.
“This is a fluid situation, and we continue to monitor and assess its implications for the UC community and the people affected,” the University of California said. “We are committed to doing what we can to support all members of our community as they exercise their rights under the law. In doing that, the University will continue to follow all applicable state and federal laws.”
Rubio has boasted about stripping visas from pro-Palestine protestors on college campuses in recent weeks, whom he referred to as “lunatics” and accused of supporting Hamas.
Since early March, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have detained several international students at schools, including Columbia and Harvard, who have participated in pro-Palestine protests.
However, the crackdown is not solely focused on students, and involves many different types of visa holders as part of a broad range of immigration policies implemented by the Trump administration.
“The overwhelming majority of student visas in this country will not be revoked, because the overwhelming majority of people that are coming to this country to study are not involved and associated or aligned with organizations that seek to do damage in this country, and that, frankly, organizations that hate the United States government and hate our way of life,” Rubio said. “So I just think it’s crazy to continue to provide visas so people can come here and advocate for policies that are in direct contradiction of our national interest.”
It is unclear whether the UC San Diego students whose visas were revoked were targeted for their involvement in protests.
UC San Diego officials are urging international students to engage with the International Services and Engagement Office, including their Immigration Policy Updates webpage.
“We recognize that recent federal immigration actions, whether occurring locally, within the UC system, or across the country, are distressing for many in our campus community. We reiterate our strong support for our valued Triton international students and everyone in our Triton community,” Khosla said.
The Coast News wire service contributed to this report.
1 comment
Good riddance. Deportations should be in the thousands