A sweeping and controversial move by the Trump administration has left hundreds of international students scrambling to pack their bags and leave the U.S.—some within just a week’s notice.
Universities from California to Florida are reporting a wave of sudden visa cancellations, blindsiding students and sparking nationwide outrage. In many cases, the students didn’t even get a phone call. Some found out through vague emails, while others were stunned to discover their status revoked in the federal Student Exchange and Visitor Information System.
“I’ve been doing this for 25 years and I’ve never seen anything like this,” said immigration attorney Len Saunders. “Three hundred students losing their visas at once? It’s completely political.”
The visa revocations appear to be tied to a mix of petty issues—such as traffic violations and roommate spats—and more serious allegations involving student activism, particularly participation in pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
In a shocking admission, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he personally ordered the cancellation of over 300 visas, labeling the affected students “lunatics” for their protest involvement. “Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visas,” he declared.
While the students haven’t been arrested, they’ve been given a strict seven-day window to exit the country. The short notice has sparked student-led protests at universities like Tufts and the University of Arizona, where a Turkish student, Rumeysa Öztürk, was even detained despite reportedly holding a valid visa.
Colorado State University confirmed six of its international students lost their visas. UMass Amherst reported five cases. “We’re doing everything we can to connect these students with legal resources,” said CSU’s Vice Provost Kathleen Fairfax. UMass Chancellor Javier Reyes, himself once an international student, pledged his “unwavering support” and urged other students to double-check their immigration status immediately.
Education advocates are demanding clarity. A coalition including the American Council on Education penned a letter to federal officials, warning that these “unexplained actions have generated fear, confusion, and instability” for international students who have already sacrificed so much to study in the U.S.
NYU professor Robert Cohen didn’t mince words: “This crackdown shows that Donald Trump and his allies don’t really believe in free speech—they’re using immigration policy to silence dissent.”
For many of these students, the American dream has turned into a legal and emotional nightmare overnight.
