Visa revocations causing fear and uncertainty on local college campuses

Multiple local universities have reported the visa revocations of international students and other community members in recent days, and students say it's making them fearful.

UMass Amherst, UMass Boston, Harvard University, Emerson College and Northeastern University have all reported instances of student visas being revoked, though the exact reasons for them were not immediately clear.

Students who spoke with NBC10 Boston Sunday night said they are scared - international students concerned they may be next, and their US-born friends worried about what happens if they speak out.

"I'd say it's a scary time and people are kind of worried," Watson Meyer, a Harvard student, told NBC10 Boston.

Harvard's International Office said the office learned about three students and two recent graduates have had their visas revoked. Officials learned about it during a routine records review, and said they're unaware of the details or reasons.

"The threat of them possibly losing their place at a school or being like taken out of the country is just dangerous and subconsciously affects their speech," said Harvard student Sarita Popate.

"It can't be easy to try and seem like everything is normal when it's not," Meyer said.

The Harvard students were aware of similar situations playing out at other schools. The ACLU of Massachusetts weighed in Sunday night, saying in part:

“We are alarmed by the Trump administration’s sudden revocation, without any stated justification, of student visas and student status… Reports that university leaders have been kept in the dark about these changes deepen our concern. International students and scholars are a vital part of our universities, our economy, and our nation.”

The Harvard students said their international classmates have been walking around in fear since the detainment of Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk. She was taken into custody while walking on a Somerville street. The Department of Homeland Security has accused her of supporting Hamas by co-authoring a pro-Palestinian op-ed last year. Ozturk remains in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.

"Tufts is three miles from here, we all have friends who go to Tufts and just seeing academic speech kind of be limited that way is really, really scary," Potate said.

The Trump administration has said it will take aim at foreign-born college students if it deems them a threat to national security.

Jeff Thielman, the CEO of the International Institute of New England, said it's a situation that causes anxiety.

“This is the wrong way to treat higher education, and I think it’s going to send a message to the world that is going to cause a lot of people not to come here to study," Thielman said.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said she's been in communication with the impacted schools.

“We obviously can’t control thee federal government but every single day I hear from our community members about the fear and the instability and just chaos that feels like this federal administration is causing right now," Wu said.

The U.S. Department of State declined to provide explanations for the revocations in any of the cases, citing privacy considerations.

"Every prospective traveler to the United States undergoes extensive interagency security vetting.  All visa applicants, no matter the visa type and where they are located, are continuously vetted.  Security vetting runs from the time of each application, through adjudication of the visa, and afterwards during the validity period of every issued visa, to ensure the individual remains eligible to travel to the United States," a department spokesperson said in a statement.

Colleges and universities are offering resources to their communities and urging foreign-born students to monitor their status and stay in touch with their legal representatives, if they have them.

Local organizations like the International Institute of New England recommend international students contact their respective country's consulate for further guidance.