A graduate student living in Portland has had their student immigration status terminated under a move by the Trump administration targeting students from abroad who are studying in the United States, according to the ACLU of Maine.
Maine’s chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has joined a federal class action lawsuit seeking to represent more than 100 students in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Puerto Rico claiming their student immigration statuses had been unlawfully revoked.
The ACLU of Maine said it has confirmed at least one Maine student — the Portland graduate student — has had their F-1 student status revoked.
The student, who was not identified, said in a statement through the ACLU of Maine that they are in the process of completing their graduate studies at the Roux Institute at Northeastern University and received an email from the university this month saying their F-1 student status had been terminated by the government.
“As a result, I can no longer go to class or work. The termination of my student status is a significant concern for me because my legal status in the United States is dependent on the [Student Exchange and Visitor Program] record,” the student said. “Because of this termination, I have had to stop being involved in my community and I had to cancel my plans to visit my family this spring.”
The lawsuit claims that the F-1 student status terminations have caused severe disruptions in the students’ educational endeavors and puts the students at risk for detainment and deportation, violating the students’ right to due process.
“While Defendants’ reasons for these mass terminations of student status are unclear, what is clear is that these terminations — across the board — flout the applicable regulations governing student status termination and the regulations governing failure to maintain student status,” the suit says.
More than 1,500 students from hundreds of colleges and universities have had a sudden or unexpected change in their SEVIS listing or F-1 or J-1 visa status, according to Inside Higher Ed. The ACLU of Maine said that includes at least 112 in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Puerto Rico.
Some students have been targeted for involvement in pro-Palestine protests or for misdemeanor charges while others have no explanation for the visa revocation, according to the Associated Press.
A New Hampshire student at Dartmouth College recently had his F-1 student status temporarily restored after the New Hampshire ACLU filed a separate lawsuit.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the details of the ACLU of Maine’s lawsuit against the Trump administration. The ACLU is suing the administration over the revocation of F-1 student status from international students.