Amid visa revocations, students call on University of Delaware to resist Trump

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Chants of “We will not put up with ICE” and “We stand with international students” filled a campus courtyard last week at the University of Delaware.

Some 200 students had gathered to protest the Trump administration’s revocation of eight UD-sponsored visas for students to study there or work in the United States, and called on Delaware’s flagship university to do more to protect its 2,200 international students.

Three of those at UD who had their visas or legal status terminated are graduate students, and five were doing post-grad work, according to an alert the university provided April 10. The notice came as the Department of Homeland Security under President Donald Trump began revoking visas at campuses in the region and across America — a number that has since surpassed 1,000.

Dennis Assanis, UD’s president, and other school leaders assured the campus community in the alert that the Newark-based school “had no advance notice of or involvement with these decisions by the federal government.” Assanis stressed that he knew of no student “being arrested or detained” and that UD officials were not aware “of a federal law enforcement presence on our campus related to these matters.”

The school is also providing information on its website to answer questions from concerned students and employees.

Citing news reports from around the nation, the website says that federal actions at UD could be “occurring as a result of past law enforcement issues, visa infractions or failure to maintain immigration status, and protest activities.”

UD is also offering its international students and workers a “free 15-minute, one-on-one consultation with immigration attorneys,” the website says.

The students who gathered outside Old College Hall off Newark’s Main Street for some 90 minutes last Wednesday called out both the Trump administration and the school’s leadership. Some faculty members attended but did not address the crowd.

Nora Lucas, a Kansas native working on her doctorate in geography at UD, participated as a member of the university’s Graduate Student Mutual Aid group.

“These status terminations just kind of came out of nowhere and then we’ve just been working ever since to try to get resources out to people,” Lucas told WHYY News. “But it’s definitely been shocking and it’s pretty terrifying for international students, especially in the beginning.”

The protesters decried the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, yelling that they didn’t want so-called ICE agents on campus. They complained that Secretary of State Marco Rubio “brags about deporting students for exercising their First Amendment rights.”

Some held signs railing against deportations, visa revocations and even the arrest of protesters at other campuses. One placard waved by a young man proclaimed: “My classmate isn’t the threat. ICE is.”

UD’s website informed students, however, that immigration enforcement agents are not required to notify university officials if they go to public areas such as its grounds, library or student centers, which are places anyone can enter.

But to enter private areas such as dormitories, ICE agents must have a warrant signed by a judge and an arrest warrant if they plan to detain someone, the school said.

UD also linked to a webpage from the Delaware Attorney General’s Office that outlines the rights people have if approached by ICE agents.

But Emma Abrams, co-chair of UD’s Young Democratic Socialists of America chapter, which helped organize the rally, called on the school to be a more strident defender of its student body.

“We believe deeply that these visa revocations as they are happening currently are illegal and the university should not be complying with illegal visa revocations,” said Abrams, a junior from Charleston, South Carolina, who is majoring in environmental and natural resource economics.

Abrams said her group has tried to meet with UD’s Board of Trustees, which includes Assanis, to discuss the issues, but essentially was ignored — a response she said is typical.

“They really don’t interact at all, day to day,” Abrams said.

Assanis would not speak with WHYY News about the revocations or the students’ concerns, but the school shared its notice to the campus community, including the webpage with questions and answers, and a statement issued after the demonstration.

UD “takes very seriously all matters pertaining to the wellbeing and safety of our international students and scholars,” the statement said. Officials “will continue to support them while remaining in compliance with all applicable laws … and providing them with necessary support resources, including access to various university services and outside immigration legal counsel.”