Overview

• The American Association of University Professors and Middle East Studies Association brought suit accusing the administration of coordinating visa revocations, detentions and deportation threats against noncitizen students and faculty advocating for Palestine
• U.S. District Judge William Young ordered a two-week nonjury bench trial, marking the first full judicial examination of the alleged ideology-based deportation campaign
• Plaintiffs have called professors to testify that they scrubbed social media posts, dropped courses and avoided public engagement out of fear for their immigration status
• Government attorneys insist no formal policy exists and defend visa revocations and detentions under the Immigration and Nationality Act’s foreign policy enforcement provisions
• Judge Young has warned against witness intimidation or retaliation and will consider remedies if First Amendment or Administrative Procedure Act violations are found