Fear and Silence

Last spring, Cornell University was home to a student encampment, where dozens slept in tents on the quad to protest Israel's war in Gaza. The demonstration lasted more than two weeks.

"It's actually one of my most beautiful memories in Ithaca," said a Ph.D. candidate at the school currently studying on a visa. She asked to be identified by the nickname Sam due to concerns over how she could be treated by immigration authorities if targeted for deportation.

Sam didn't sleep in the encampment, but visited daily. She remembers a "supportive and accepting and diverse environment" where students organized alongside faculty members and local residents.

It was part of a wave of demonstrations at schools around the country calling on universities to divest from Israel — protests that students have defended as largely peaceful. However, much of that same activism is now under increased scrutiny as part of a policy that the Trump administration says is aimed at eliminating antisemitism, particularly on American campuses.

The effort has led to the targeting of non-citizen students over their past pro-Palestinian activism, resulting in students losing visas and several high-profile arrests. These incidents have created a climate of uncertainty at many colleges and universities, leaving some students feeling increasingly silenced and fearful.

Sam disagrees with the administration labeling the protests as antisemitic. She argues the movement she supports is focused on criticizing Israel and its policies towards Palestinians — not discriminating against Jewish students.

But watching Trump's actions has made her worried for her safety.

In recent weeks, she has watched other student protesters have their lives upended, including Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil, a legal permanent resident, and Rumeysa Öztürk, a Ph.D. candidate at Tufts University who had a visa. Both are currently being held in U.S. detention centers and challenging their arrests. On Friday, an immigration judge in Louisiana ruled that Khalil can be deported – a decision he is expected to appeal.