A federal judge criticised the Trump government for attempting to infringe upon foreign students\u2019 rights to free speech.<\/p>\n
A United States federal judge has ruled that President Donald Trump\u2019s administration violated the constitutional rights of international students when it sought to punish them for criticising Israel\u2019s genocidal war on Gaza.<\/p>\n
In California on Friday, District Judge Noel Wise heaped criticism on the US Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) after the agencies attempted to deport noncitizens over protected speech.<\/p>\n
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\u201cStated plainly, in the United States, freedom of speech belongs to the people,\u201d Wise said in her 90-page decision. \u201cIt is not the government\u2019s to take.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wise, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, added that, in the US, speaking out about the government and its leaders was a testament to the health of the country\u2019s democracy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat strength is diminished when members of our society \u2014 citizens and noncitizens alike \u2014 must self-censor and \u2018behave\u2019 or suffer the government\u2019s retaliation,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The ruling centred on how the second Trump administration revoked visas and detained international students studying in the US after they engaged in pro-Palestinian advocacy.<\/p>\n
The detentions began with Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil in March 2025.<\/p>\n
Columbia had been an epicentre for the student protest movement, and Khalil, a graduate student and permanent US resident, had emerged as a key negotiator<\/a> for the student groups.<\/p>\n