WESTWOOD—On April 11, California Attorney General, Rob Bonta, issued a press release announcing that he joined the American Association of University Professors, the state of Massachusetts, and several other Democrat-led states in challenging Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, and the Trump Administration for revoking student visas of students who participated in pro-Hamas protests. The full text of the complaint may be found here.
AAUP v. Rubio State Amicus Brief
“Students across the country are being aggressively targeted without notice and for no clear reason beyond the President’s political agenda, creating a culture of fear and disrupting our institutions of higher education. The unjustified and unconstitutional revocation of student visas for expressing their opinions sends a stunning message to campuses across the nation: fall in line or face deportation. I urge the court to put a swift stop to this policy before it can do any further damage,” AG Bonta stated
Bonta cited a partial statement posted on the White House press release dated January 30, 2025. In the last few paragraphs of the Presidential fact sheet, President Trump clarifies that any anti-semitic, pro-Hamas behaviors will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Those who earned a student Visa should not participate in such activities lest they have their visas revoked.
“My promise to Jewish Americans is this: With your vote, I will be your defender, your protector, and I will be the best friend Jewish Americans have ever had in the White House.”
Aggressively enforce the law, protect public order, and prosecute anti-Semitic crimes: “I will issue clear orders to my Attorney General to aggressively prosecute terroristic threats, arson, vandalism, and violence against American Jews.”
Deport Hamas Sympathizers and Revoke Student Visas: “To all the resident aliens who joined in the pro-jihadist protests, we put you on notice: come 2025, we will find you, and we will deport you. I will also quickly cancel the student visas of all Hamas sympathizers on college campuses, which have been infested with radicalism like never before.”
On April 9, U.S. Immigration and Customs Services (ICE) issued a press release warning U.S. aliens that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will be screening their social media posts for antisemitism.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio made a statement on April 5, following students at UCLA Westwood and other major Universities had their Visas revoked. They were sent back to their home countries.
“It is time for the Transitional Government of South Sudan to stop taking advantage of the United States. Enforcing our nation’s immigration laws is critically important to the national security and public safety of the United States.
Every country must accept the return of its citizens in a timely manner when another country including the United States, seeks to remove them.
As South Sudan’s transitional government has failed to fully respect this principle, effective immediately, the United States Department of State is taking action to revoke all visas held by South Sudan Sudanese passport holders and prevent further issuance to prevent entry into the United States by South Sudanese passport holders. We will be prepared to review actions when South Sudan is in full cooperation.”
By Sharon