President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order aimed at fighting anti-Semitism by revoking the visas of international students who participate in Pro-Palestine protests. These protests were meant to educate others peacefully and not engage in any kind of anti-semitism.
This caused a lot of controversy because it is a clear infringement of the constitution. The First Amendment protects people’s right to protest, and deporting non-citizens who showed their support by protesting and sharing their political beliefs is unconstitutional.
There is a fact sheet on this matter that states how officials will take “forceful and unprecedented steps to combat anti-semitism.” Every federal executive department and agency leader has 60 days to review and report all civil authorities for fighting anti-semitism.
“To all the resident aliens who joined in the pro-jihadist protests, we put you on notice: come 2025, we will find you, and we will deport you,” the fact sheet said.
By trying to silence students on this matter, the government incites unnecessary fear and discourages lawful political discourse and protests. Protesting and expressing political beliefs are not foreign concepts in the U.S.; in fact, it is one of the best ways to build change. There have been many protests, such as the marches for George Floyd and the march in Washington for LGBTQ+ rights. None of the people who participated in these were threatened with deportation.
The Pro-Palestine protests are no different from any other protests in the past, and the people participating should not be threatened with deportation. The U.S. is a democracy, and protesting is well within everyone’s rights. These kinds of policies are very dangerous and undermine the principles of the Constitution. It is imperative to protect the freedom of speech for everyone, regardless of their citizenship status.
