Some UC Davis, Sac State students have had their visas revoked by Trump administration
SACRAMENTO — The University of California and California State University systems confirmed that more than 100 international students have had their student visas revoked by the U.S. State Department in recent days, with no reason why.
UC Davis and Sacramento State are among the universities with international students with visas suddenly invalid.
Michael Lee Chang is a Sacramento State student leader at Students for Quality Education calling out abrupt disruption.
"People are fearful," Lee Chang said. "When it's my own classmates, when it's the people teaching me, when it's the people who work on campus, I mean, these are the people who make sure that my college campus works."
Sacramento State confirms that students have had their visas revoked but would not say how many.
UC Davis confirms that seven students and five recent graduates have had their visas revoked.
Attorney Ann Block with the immigrant resource center said that these students are now in a kind of legal limbo. She said that visas are only entry documents. If the students leave, they can't re-enter the U.S.
"The government isn't being clear about what it's doing, why it's doing it. There's no transparency," Block said. "As long as the university allowed them to keep taking classes, they should be allowed to keep taking classes."
U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce declined to answer why so many student visas are now revoked.
"We've never gone into the details," Bruce said. "What we can tell you is that the state department revokes visas every day in order to secure our borders, and to keep our security safe."
Attorneys for international students in Southern California filed lawsuits against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, claiming they were unaware of the facts surrounding the visa revocation. More lawsuits are expected.
"Not only is it confusing, I don't think it's right at all," Lee Chang said.
Sacramento State and UC Davis issued statements of support for international students, but neither would speak specifically about what's next for their students whose visas were revoked.
