The Trump administration has asked colleges to provide the names and nationalities of students who may have harassed Jewish students or faculty members and those who participated in protests. This move has sparked fears that it could serve as a “tip sheet” to identify and deport foreign students, according to The Wall Street Journal. This development comes as the government has taken a hard stance on deporting undocumented immigrants and cracking down on protesters at U.S. universities.
Indian students, who make up the largest group of international students in the U.S. with 331,602 individuals, could be especially impacted. Recently, Ranjani Srinivasan, an Indian student at Columbia University, self-deported after her student visa was revoked. Similarly, Badar Khan Suri, an Indian-origin researcher, is facing deportation due to alleged ties to a senior Hamas official. Legal experts are voicing concerns about the administration’s focus on collecting the names and nationalities of students, as this deviates from typical harassment investigations, which normally center on the number of complaints and how universities handle them.
One attorney described the administration’s actions as a “witch hunt” to The Wall Street Journal. Craig Trainor, the Education Department’s acting assistant secretary for civil rights, defended the policy, stating that it aims to assess how universities handle antisemitism cases. President Trump has consistently opposed campus protests and antisemitism, especially in light of the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas in Israel, followed by Israeli military action in Gaza, which led to widespread demonstrations at U.S. universities.
The federal government has already cut funding to colleges that have become hotbeds for protests, revoking $400 million in grants and contracts from Columbia University on March 3, only reinstating the funds after policy changes were made. This decision sparked protests across several campuses. A memo obtained by The Wall Street Journal shows that Trainor has instructed the Office for Civil Rights to focus on antisemitism cases, warning that universities will no longer be able to avoid accountability with “toothless reform proposals” or “empty platitudes.”
The Department of Education has also warned 60 universities that they could face sanctions for failing to protect Jewish students. Many of these schools have significant numbers of Indian students. At the same time, the administration has moved to deport students involved in pro-Palestinian protests, including Green Card holders such as Mahmoud Khalil, with officials accusing the protesters of supporting Hamas and violence.
The Education Department’s request follows a February 3 notice of investigations into antisemitic harassment at five universities—Columbia, Northwestern, Portland State, UC Berkeley, and the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Typically, investigations begin with requests for school policies, complaint records, and responses, but this time the demand also included the names, ethnicities, and nationalities of students flagged for potential violations, even if they have not been convicted or found guilty of misconduct.
One attorney pointed out to The Wall Street Journal that there was no investigative reason to request such information. Another legal expert warned that the request could violate civil rights laws. Trainor justified the request, citing the Civil Rights Act, claiming that inconsistent discipline based on national origin could be unlawful. However, some attorneys have questioned whether this reasoning is valid, suggesting that a more thorough investigation would require broader data, not just specific student names.
In the wake of these actions, two more Columbia University protesters were targeted. One had her visa revoked and quickly left the country, while the other was arrested after her visa expired.
Bridget A. Blinn-Spears, an attorney in Raleigh, North Carolina, who represents universities, suggested that gathering student names likely serves an immigration or national security purpose. “The only reason to gather names is if there’s an intent to investigate them, take action, or possibly place them on a watchlist for future enforcement,” she explained to The Wall Street Journal. “If you’re compiling names, it’s because you plan to use them in some way later on.”
This has raised significant concerns among international students, particularly those from India who have been involved in protests or activism, as they fear potential repercussions under the Trump administration’s new policies.
