TLDR: Submit a comment against the new DHS ruling here: http://tinyurl.com/DHSCommentAction
For those that were not aware, the Department of Homeland Security has proposed a new ruling that would cruelly target international students. Unfortunately, there has been insufficient communication from the university administration on this proposed ruling. The ruling would:
1) seek to eliminate admission for duration of status for F, J and I visa applicants. Essentially as of now, citizens of most countries–there are exceptions based on the institutionalized racism of the DHS—get student visas that last the period of their programs. Under the new rule, the DHS would no longer issue student visas for the duration of study, limiting visas to four, or, in the case of dozens of African, Middle Eastern and East Asian countries, to two years. As such it would make it very hard for all international students, and almost impossible for students of these countries to come to the US for graduate, or even undergraduate studies.
2) introduce restrictions to the renewal of visas. For example, ordinarily, a fifth year Princeton graduate student seeking to get a renewal for a sixth year would have to show a source of funding and “normal progress” towards the degree to be given an extension. Now, severe and largely unnamed restrictions are going to be placed. Given that many PhD programs in Princeton have an average length far exceeding 5 years, this will create severe problems for international students—current and future.
3) reduce the “grace period” for F1-visa holders and tighten the rules for OPT applications.
A few months ago the DHS proposed a rule change that was going to affect all international students. This change was reversed due to resistance from students and court cases filed by universities. The Trump regime has successfully exhausted resistance with an initial attack, and are now using this moment of exhaustion to target, much more insidiously, the more vulnerable among international students.
Over the coming weeks, PGSU will demand support from Princeton, the most important among these being free, individual access to immigration lawyers. But right now, we appeal to all Princeton colleagues, citizens and non-citizens, to take action. The rule change is in its “comment period” till October 26th. PGSU has constructed a template for comments here: http://tinyurl.com/DHSCommentAction
Please submit a comment before October 26! Please log your comment submission here.