Nineteen Democratic state attorneys general are asking a federal judge to stop the Trump administration from cancelling hundreds of international student visas ‒ a move that's sent shockwaves through the collegiate community.
Although there's been no comprehensive accounting of how many students have seen their visas revoked, in some cases weeks before graduation, Trump officials say they have been in part targeting students they accuse of harboring ill-will toward the United States.
In some cases, the students participated in protests or otherwise gained attention for pro-Palestinian stances. Other visas appear to have been cancelled over paperwork issues or traffic violations.
The amicus brief filed April 11 by AGs from Arizona, California, Michigan and New York, among others, says an estimated 700 international students have lost their visas. The cancellations have forced students to leave the United States essentially on the spot, in some cases sending university administrators scrambling to figure out how to help them complete their degrees from their home countries.