International tourists, visa holders, and lawful permanent residents (green card holders) face detainment at airports and border crossings under the Trump administration’s efforts to curb immigration.
While US citizens have guaranteed access to the country, temporary visa holders have the least amount of protection against detainment and deportation. Temporary visas are most often granted to international students and tourists. Earlier this month, Brown University urged international staff and students to postpone travel plans outside the US “out of an abundance of caution.”
A few days ago, Kseniia Petrova, a Russian research scientist at Harvard Medical School was detained by ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) officers and her visa was revoked for failing to disclose frog embryo samples at customs, according to court documents.
In mid-March, 34-year-old electrical engineer Fabian Schmidt, a green-card holder originally from Germany, was taken to immigration detention from Logan International Airport in Boston and “violently interrogated” over a decade-old misdemeanor charge for marijuana possession.
American Pie actress Jasmine Mooney was detained at the US-Mexico border while traveling to the states to renew her work visa, an experience she described as a “deeply disturbing psychological experiment.”
At this time, experts warn visa holders to postpone any international travel to avoid detainment or being kicked out of the country.