International grad student taken into custody by ICE at University in latest crackdown. Immigration authorities detained an unidentified student at the University of Minnesota last Thursday, according to Fox News. The graduate student, enrolled at the Carlson School of Management at the Twin Cities campus, was taken from an off-campus residence. The student’s nationality and reason for detention remain unclear. Following the incident, protests erupted in downtown Minneapolis, prompting the University of Minnesota to express deep concern, emphasizing they had no prior knowledge of the situation. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has sought further details from Homeland Security. Under the Trump administration, foreign-born students, such as Mahmoud Khalil and Yunseo Chung, have been targeted by immigration authorities. Khalil, a former graduate student at Columbia University, is currently detained by ICE in Louisiana. Chung, a Columbia junior, faced deportation threats but received a restraining order. Other recent detentions include Alireza Doroudi from the University of Alabama and Rumeysa Ozturk from Tufts University, both detained by ICE at their respective residences.
A DHS spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin, emphasized that having a visa is a privilege, not a right. She stated that promoting terrorism and targeting Americans can lead to visa termination. However, McLaughlin did not explain why a doctoral student, Ozturk, was detained or provide details on the alleged terror support. Secretary of State Marco Rubio proudly announced that around 300 international students have had their visas revoked, claiming to do so regularly when encountering individuals with extremist views. The arrests on campuses have sparked nationwide protests against the Trump administration’s perceived infringement on students’ First Amendment rights. Jamie Prenkert, the Dean of the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota, affirmed the institution’s support for international students in light of uncertain changes in federal immigration policies. Prenkert expressed that detentions like these have a significant impact on the university community, emphasizing the value that international students bring to the school’s research and classrooms.
