Masked Men, Revoked Visas, Vanishing Rights: A Stark Warning
by
Angela Valenzuela, Ph.D.
At the center of the clash was a disturbing case involving a university student — a legal visa holder — who authored an op-ed critical of the Trump administration's position on Gaza. That piece, which expressed a dissenting but constitutionally protected opinion, apparently drew the ire of someone high up.
What followed reads like something from a surveillance-state dystopia: the student was reportedly taken from the street by masked agents, held without due process in a Louisiana detention center, and had their visa revoked under orders signed by none other than Secretary Rubio.
Jayapal was unflinching in her rebuke. Her voice rose not just in volume, but in defense of civil liberties, demanding accountability for what she called a blatant violation of the Constitution. Rubio, now tasked with carrying out foreign policy in an increasingly hardline administration, offered little reassurance — instead deflecting, denying, and ultimately defending the administration’s actions under vague "national security" justifications.
Let’s call this what it is: authoritarianism. The idea that expressing dissent, especially as a non-citizen, now puts you at risk of indefinite detention without a hearing — it’s chilling. The Constitution doesn't evaporate at the border, and certainly not for students attending American universities who use their voice to engage in public discourse.
This isn’t about left vs. right. It’s about the foundation of our democratic values. We don’t disappear people for disagreeing with the government — or at least, we shouldn’t.
Secretary of State Rubio may claim national security. Congresswoman Jayapal calls it what it is: a betrayal of everything the U.S. is supposed to stand for. Free speech. Due process. Human dignity.
For those watching closely, this moment isn’t an outlier — it’s a pattern. From escalating surveillance of student activists to legislative efforts that criminalize protest, the space for dissent in this country is shrinking. The Jayapal-Rubio clash just exposed how far we’ve already slid.
 |
| Attorney Heide Plummer |
To this, we also add the recent arrest of Heidi Plummer, an attorney and U.S. citizen in Orange County who recently got swept up by ICE agents and put into a detention center for about an hour-and-a-half after getting caught up in a park raid near her home (Saunders, 2025). So bizarre.
This is not the time for silence. This is not the time for neutrality. Call it authoritarianism, call it fascism — the label matters less than the urgency.
We cannot normalize this.
I’m also deeply concerned about what this means for people from other countries who are hoping to migrate to the U.S. The Saunders (2025) piece notes that Trump has already deported over 100,000 individuals—fewer than Biden had at a comparable point in his presidency.
But as one immigration expert pointed out, many of Biden’s deportations occurred immediately at the border, largely involving recent crossings. What’s clearly different now is not just the numbers — it’s the tone. There’s an unmistakable cruelty in how this administration approaches peaceful, non-criminal immigrants who are simply trying to build lives and contribute to our country.
God help us if all it takes to be expelled from the U.S. is writing an op-ed or taking a quiet walk in the park — only to be stopped and arrested by ICE. If that’s the bar, who’s next?
Reference
Saunders, D. (2025, June 19). OC attorney says she was detained in ICE Raid at Santa Ana Park, Daily Journal. https://www.dailyjournal.com/articles/386228-oc-attorney-says-she-was-detained-in-ice-raid-at-santa-ana-park
No comments:
Post a Comment