In Trump’s America, foreign students have become ‘expendable’ after his broken promise

To attract the brightest minds to America, President Donald Trump proposed a novel idea while campaigning: If elected, he would grant green cards to all foreign students who graduate from US colleges.

“It’s so sad when we lose people from Harvard, MIT, from the greatest schools,” Trump said during a podcast interview last June. “That is going to end on Day One.”

That promise never came to pass. Trump’s stance on welcoming foreign students has shifted dramatically. International students have found themselves at the centre of an escalating campaign to kick them out or keep them from coming as his administration merges a crackdown on immigration with an effort to reshape higher education.

An avalanche of policies from the Trump administration – such as terminating students’ ability to study in the US, halting all new student visa interviews and moving to block foreign enrolment at Harvard – has triggered lawsuits, countersuits and confusion. Foreign students say they feel targeted on multiple fronts. Late on Wednesday, Trump himself took the latest action against international students, signing a proclamation barring nearly all foreigners from entering the country to attend Harvard. A federal judge temporarily blocked the order the following day.

In interviews, students from around the world described how it feels to be an international student today in America. Their accounts highlight pervasive feelings of fear, anxiety and insecurity that have made them more cautious in their daily lives, distracted them from schoolwork and prompted many to cancel trips home because they fear not being allowed to return.

For many, the last few months have forced them to rethink their dreams of building a life in America.

04:21

Citing China ‘activity’, Trump administration bars Harvard from enrolling foreign students

Citing China ‘activity’, Trump administration bars Harvard from enrolling foreign students