About 150 UC San Diego students gathered on campus Wednesday to protest the sudden revocation of F-1 visas for five of their classmates.
The protesters gathered on campus before a smaller group of took the trolley downtown, where they marched to the courthouse and ended their demonstration at City Hall.
F-1 visas allow international students to legally live in the United States while attending school. According to the university, these visa terminations came without warning or explanation.
"We want them to make sure that they're following the rule of law when it's applicable and ensuring that the DHS is providing proper evidence as to why these F1 visas are being terminated," said Aryan Dixit, President of the UCSD Students' Civil Liberties Union.
@abc10news Student protesters at UC San Diego tell ABC 10News reporter Max Goldwasser that they are outraged over the revocation of five of their fellow classmates' F-1 visas without reason. Roughly 150 students gathered together in solidarity on campus before a smaller group took the trolley to march to the courthouse downtown. The demonstration ended at City Hall. #protest #f1visas #visas #immigration #internationalnews #news ♬ original sound - ABC 10News San Diego
The identities of the affected students and the reasons for the visa revocations remain unknown, fueling frustration among the protesters. They hope to pressure local immigration judges who handle these cases to provide answers.
Immigration attorneys say F-1 visas can be revoked for several reasons, including illegal employment, criminal convictions, or failure to maintain a normal school schedule. However, under recent policies, even minor infractions like participating in protests or receiving speeding tickets can now jeopardize a student's immigration status.
Students at the protest expressed concern that this could be just the beginning, potentially putting international students of all backgrounds at risk of similar action.
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