WASHINGTON (AP) — A class action lawsuit filed Friday asks federal court to restore legal status for international students who have been stripped of their visa. Trump administration crackdown It left over a thousand for fear of deportation.
The lawsuits filed by several American Civil Liberties Union affiliates seek to represent more than 100 students in New England and Puerto Rico.
“International students are important communities at state universities and should not be allowed to unilaterally take away status, disrupt research and avoid laws that put them at risk of deportation.”
Students watch at schools across the country Visa has been revoked or legal status has endedusually barely notice it.
About 1,100 students from more than 170 universities, universities and university systems have been affected since late March, according to university statements, communications with school staff and court records. The AP is working to confirm reports from hundreds of affected students.
The students filed other lawsuits alleging that they were denied a legitimate procedure. Federal judges have given temporary restraint orders in Wisconsin, Wisconsin and New Hampshire, Montana, to protect students from efforts to remove them from the United States.
Plaintiffs in a new lawsuit filed in federal court in New Hampshire learn that they learned without warning that the status of F-1 students has ended.
One of them, Manikanta Pashra, India, received a Masters degree in Computer Science from Rivier University in New Hampshire and applied to stay in the country through a work programme for international students. China’s Hangului Chang had come to the United States for his PhD. Electronic and Computer Science Programs at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts. Now he cannot work as his only source of income, his research assistant, the complaint said.
The government did not inform the foreign student that it must be provided before it ends the legal status, the lawyer said.
The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
Last month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the State Department had revoked visas held by visitors who are rebutting national interests, including those who protested Israeli war in Gaza and those facing criminal charges.
In some prominent cases, including the involvement of Columbia University activists. Mahmoud Khalilthe Trump administration cites involvement in pro-Palestinian activities as the rationale for deportation.
However, the university says most students affected by Visa Recocations played no role in these protests. Many people have been chosen for minor violations, such as traffic violations that occurred long ago, and in some cases the university says the reason is unknown.
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Associated Reporter Christopher L. Keller contributed to this report from Albuquerque, New Mexico.
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