Seven current students and five recent graduates have had their visas revoked.
On April 5, 2025, UC Davis Chancellor Gary S. May released a statement reporting that the federal government had abruptly terminated the student visas of seven current students and five recent graduates, stripping them of their legal right to remain in the United States.
“This number may change,” May acknowledged, highlighting the uncertainty surrounding the decision. Federal agents have not entered campus, and none of the affected individuals are currently in custody. Yet the gravity of the situation has shaken the campus community.
“The federal government has not explained the reasons behind these terminations,” May stated. “We recognize that these actions are distressing for many in our campus community.”
UC Davis is not alone. UCLA, Stanford, UC San Diego, and other California universities have reported similar terminations. In recent weeks, the Trump administration has revoked over 300 student and visitor visas, citing either vague national security concerns, minor legal infractions, or in some cases, no stated justification at all.
Officials warn what makes the move even more chilling is the complete absence of transparency, legal explanation, or meaningful recourse.
“This is not just about immigrants with criminal records,” said immigration attorney Lindsay Toczylowski on 60 Minutes this weekend. “It’s about bypassing due process altogether.”
The scope of this crackdown goes far beyond campus. Three weeks ago, 238 Venezuelan migrants were flown from Texas to El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison — a maximum-security facility whose own justice minister once stated that the only way out is “in a coffin.”
“This is not just about immigrants with criminal records. It’s about bypassing due process altogether.” – Immigration Attorney Lindsay Toczylowski
The Biden and Obama administrations never utilized this kind of wartime authority. The Trump administration, by contrast, invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 — a law not used since World War II — to justify these removals without hearings, trials, or even charges.
A 60 Minutes investigation found that 75% of those deported to El Salvador had no criminal record whatsoever. Some, like 31-year-old Venezuelan makeup artist Andry Hernandez Romero, were in the midst of legitimate asylum claims. Hernandez, who is gay and had faced political persecution in Venezuela, was on track to win his asylum case when he suddenly disappeared. His attorney later identified him in photos from inside CECOT, shaved, shackled, and crying out for his mother.
The only “evidence” presented by the government? Tattoos of crowns — which Hernandez said were tributes to his parents, his “king and queen” — and social media photos showing nothing criminal. His lawyer had never even been informed of his deportation.
“It’s horrifying,” said Toczylowski. “He was targeted not because of what he did, but because of what he represented.”
The Alien Enemies Act was designed to remove citizens of hostile foreign powers during wartime. But the Trump administration has interpreted it far more broadly — targeting undocumented immigrants and even visa-holders with no proven ties to crime or terrorism. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem defended the deportations in a video recorded in front of Salvadoran gang members, stating: “This facility is one of the tools in our toolkit that we will use if you commit crimes against the American people.”
Yet in case after case, the government has refused to provide proof of those crimes. CBS News obtained a list of the deported Venezuelans and cross-referenced it with international court filings and arrest records. The result: nearly 180 had no criminal background. About 22% had records, most for nonviolent offenses like theft or trespassing. A mere dozen were accused of serious crimes. Even so, all were sent to a prison where, according to legal experts, they may never emerge.
The government’s response? “State secrets.”
“The federal government has not explained the reasons behind these terminations.” – UC Davis Chancellor Gary S. May
Back at UC Davis, Chancellor May made clear the university’s position: “International students are an essential part of this university, and we will continue to advocate for your rights and well-being.”
The campus police have been instructed not to cooperate with immigration enforcement. Policies prohibit the release of confidential student information without a court order or legal authorization. UC Davis is offering legal support and emotional resources to affected students, but the sense of fear and uncertainty remains palpable.
Similar statements were issued at UCLA, where Chancellor Julio Frenk said 12 students and recent graduates had their SEVIS (Student and Exchange Visitor Information System) status terminated during a routine audit. Like May, he emphasized that UCLA was not given an explanation and had seen no federal law enforcement activity on campus.
“The University of California is aware that international students across several of our campuses have been impacted,” a statement from the UC President’s office read. “We are committed to doing what we can to support all members of our community.”
But critics say such statements, however well-meaning, are not enough. A letter from UCLA faculty members on the Task Force on Anti-Palestinian, Anti-Arab, and Anti-Muslim Racism demanded that the administration take a stronger stance — including refusing to share information with federal authorities and allowing impacted students to continue studying remotely if needed.
“There is growing concern that students are unprotected,” the letter read.
The Trump administration’s messaging has leaned heavily on a familiar narrative: that those being targeted are violent criminals, gang members, or terrorists. But as the 60 Minutes investigation and numerous legal advocates have shown, this narrative simply doesn’t hold up under scrutiny.
“We’re not talking about threats to national security. We’re talking about makeup artists, food delivery drivers, and students. People who have committed no crimes and pose no danger.” – ACLU Attorney Lee Gelernt
“We’re not talking about threats to national security,” said Lee Gelernt, an ACLU attorney leading the legal challenge against the administration’s deportation program. “We’re talking about makeup artists, food delivery drivers, and students. People who have committed no crimes and pose no danger.”
In court, Gelernt argued that the Trump administration had ignored a judge’s order to turn back three deportation planes. Instead of complying, the flights landed briefly at a military base in Honduras before proceeding to El Salvador — a maneuver he called a “deliberate act of defiance.”
“The frightening part,” Gelernt added, “is that the legal process itself is being bypassed. Once wartime authority is invoked with no oversight, anything is possible. Anybody can be picked up.”
The visa terminations, deportations, and use of wartime laws are not isolated events. They are part of a broader strategy to criminalize migration and suppress dissent — including pro-Palestinian activism. A January executive order from Trump declared that international students who participated in such protests would face deportation. Secretary of State Marco Rubio later confirmed that visa revocations were “mostly over pro-Palestinian protests,” affecting students from countries the administration deems adversarial.
That includes the UC Davis students, some of whom may have been caught in the dragnet not for any crimes, but for political expression, speech, or activism — or simply for fitting a certain profile.
“This is targeted, it’s discriminatory, and it violates every principle of due process,” said Professor Gaye Theresa Johnson at UCLA.
Chancellor May’s statement captured the gravity of the moment. “We are committed to upholding the law, and we expect local, state and federal agencies to do the same.”
But as the Trump administration claims the right to deport people without due process, transport them to foreign prisons, and invoke 18th-century wartime laws against 21st-century migrants, that legal foundation is rapidly eroding.
“The terrifying truth,” said Toczylowski, “is that this is not about what anyone did. It’s about who they are — and whether the government thinks they belong.”
For now, students at UC Davis remain in limbo — unsure whether they’ll be able to complete their studies, continue their lives, or even stay in the country they call home.
” Officials warn what makes the move even more chilling is the complete absence of transparency, legal explanation, or meaningful recourse. “This is not just about immigrants with criminal records . . . It’s about bypassing due process altogether.” ”
I was going to ask what these students/recent-grads had done according to the DT admin, but clearly that isn’t clear. Was is Kalil’s so public in their attempted deportation, and these are all totally secret? There, sides have been take, and a figure either empathetic or made to look that way, depending on the side taken, and so a bit of a living martyr. In a way, total absence of information on the “12” makes it all the more terrifying.
There may indeed have been some who crossed legal lines — since there is no information I don’t know, but likely it was months ago. I am not against actual agitators, especially those who invoke violence, in being deported. But this has to be transparent, the gov’t has to make its case, and there has to be a process. The previous admin may have been too lax, but hard to know as zero cases were made here, and now we don’t know because there is no information. So it will break down into politics instead of actual cases, with people taking sides based on what they think is happening based on what the sources they tend to trust tell them.
Students tend to react when it gets personal and when it gets scary. Unrest on campus may hit an all-time high if some transparency isn’t given soon, as no information is the strongest fuel for protest. With fellow students disappearing and rampant speculation fueled by clashing ideologies, I wonder if last Thursday will seem but a minor skirmish soon.