Oregon students lose visas amid immigration crackdown
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The feds are expanding their revocation of student visas in Oregon and across the country, igniting concerns about First Amendment and immigration rights.
Why it matters: Nearly two dozen students or recent graduates have had their visas canceled in Oregon since President Trump was sworn in for his second term, some after criminal records checks turned up unspecified charges, others with no explanation at all.
Zoom in: At Oregon State, 13 students were stripped of their visas, the school tells Axios.
- The University of Oregon has seen the visas of four students revoked, school officials said.
- Portland State University has seen one recent graduate and two current students lose their visas, including a Ph.D. student who left the country just months before completing his degree, according to the Oregonian.
- Another three students at Portland Community College have had their visas terminated, per KGW.
Zoom out: Those students are among the hundreds nationwide who've had their visas revoked by the Trump administration in the last few weeks.
- The Trump administration has claimed that some of those impacted lost their status because they were affiliated with pro-Palestinian protests. For some, revocation was attributed to a crime or traffic offense; for others, the reason is unknown.
The big picture: Kelly Simon, legal director at the Oregon chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, called the cancelations alarming, especially in cases "where there's an apparent retaliation component for speaking out or holding particular political viewpoints."
Threat level: Officials at the U of O said the four students had their visas revoked after the Department of Homeland Security cited findings from "criminal records checks."
- But "the university was not informed in advance and has not been given details about the nature of the criminal allegations students faced," the school said in an emailed statement to Axios.
What they're saying: In a note to the international campus community, Dennis Galvan, dean and vice provost of the college's division of global engagement, said the university was working with affected students to help them secure legal representation.
- "We are also mindful of how fear and anxiety from these events ripple out across widening concentric circles surrounding the students, to others who worry if they might be next," Galvan wrote.
What's next: Erin McKee, co-director of the Immigrant Rights Project at the Oregon Justice Resource Center, told Axios that "revocation of a visa and termination of lawful status are two separate things."
- "Many students have received notices that their visas have been revoked and that they should self-deport immediately," McKee said.
- "This is not necessarily true or lawful, so don't book your flight without talking to an immigration attorney. You still have rights, regardless of the federal government's scare tactics."