MERCED, Calif. (KFSN/KMJ) — Across the country, international students are having their visas revoked without warning.
On Monday, UC Merced confirmed to Action News that ” a few” international students suddenly had their visas revoked.
The news came as a shock to students on campus.
“If somebody had the opportunity to come here and they got that opportunity legally, they shouldn’t have that opportunity revoked for them, unless there’s another legal reason it should be revoked for them. But if it’s being randomly revoked, that’s totally unfair,” said Malcom Berry, a student.
The university provided a statement that read, in part:
“The university is aware of a few students who have been impacted, and the campus is supporting them in accordance with long-standing procedure for visa revocations. Our Office of International Affairs is working with these UC Merced students to navigate the process and encouraging them to seek legal counsel for further guidance.”
The university went on to say due to student privacy laws, they cannot provide any more information on the circumstances.
This comes as the Trump Administration is cancelling F-1 student visas across the nation.
Visas can be canceled for several reasons, but college leaders across the country say that many students’ legal residency status is being terminated with little to no notice to students or schools.
In the Bay Area, Berkeley says six students had their visas revoked by the Department of Homeland Security and were told to leave the country.
There, it’s believed some students may have been targeted for their political activism, involving pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
“It’s sadly ironic that this has happened here. People have been silenced for speaking out, literally sent back to where they are from for expressing their right,” said student Trinity Ravindran.
The news comes after Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the State Department had revoked more than 300 student visas in March.
Fresno State wouldn’t say if any students were impacted on their campus, but said in total, 32 CSU students system-wide have had their visas revoked.
