Feds revoke visas of Emerson, Harvard and Tufts students
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Emerson College is the latest Boston-area institution to see an international student's visa revoked.
Why it matters: The lives of international students across the country are being upended as the Trump administration terminates student visas, often without immediate explanation.
The latest: The Department of Homeland Security revoked the student's visa status in its online system, Emerson College president Jay Bernhardt said in a message to students.
- Bernhardt said Emerson is working with the affected student, who has requested privacy.
- While some students nationwide have lost their visas after pro-Palestinian protests, Bernhardt said: "We have no reason to believe that this student was targeted for protest-related activity."
State of play: Colleges across Massachusetts saw student visas revoked this weekend, more than a week after the high-profile detainment of Tufts University international student Rumeysa Öztürk, ostensibly for pro-Palestinian activism.
- A second Tufts international student had their visa revoked, a Tufts spokesperson told Axios. Tufts encouraged that student to seek "outside immigration resources" for support and said the university is still gathering information.
- Harvard University confirmed that the Trump administration revoked the visas of three students and two recent graduates last week.
- The federal government also revoked five UMass Amherst students' visas, New England Public Media reported.
- An undisclosed number of Boston University students' visas were terminated, a spokesperson said. The spokesperson declined to say how many, citing privacy reasons.
Other universities, from UCLA to Columbia University, have also seen students' visas revoked.
What's next: Harvard has scheduled two Know Your Rights sessions — one on Friday and another on April 17 — for students, staff, faculty and affiliates.
- The Harvard Representation Initiative, a pro bono legal clinic, can provide legal consultations on immigration rights to Harvard affiliates and has information about what to do if immigration agents come to campus.
What we're watching: What reasoning DHS and the State Department give for revoking the visas, an uncommon practice for international students.