May 2, 2025
Policy Updates
President Trump signed two executive orders on Monday that affect immigrants. One directs federal agencies to present a list of "sanctuary cities" that do not comply with federal immigration enforcement efforts. The second was a directive that requires commercial truck drivers in the United States to be proficient in English.
News Updates
The Trump administration has restored thousands of student visa registrations to the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), a federal database that provides information about international students to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). This reversal comes after more than 50 lawsuits had been filed against the administration by students affected. The administration had removed the records of international students who had minor legal infractions, many of which had been dismissed. This reversal does not appear to impact students who have had their actual visas revoked and are in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Last week, three mothers of U.S. citizens were arrested and deported while attending routine check-ins with Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE). In two of the cases, children — all U.S. citizens — were deported alongside their mothers. The women were arrested during their routine check-ins with ICE officials and not given appropriate opportunity to contact family members or attorneys before being deported within 3 days or less. One of the children, a 4-year-old deported with her mother to Honduras, has a rare type of cancer.
On Tuesday, a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to continue providing funding for legal representation for unaccompanied minors. Several nonprofit organizations have sued the administration after it ended parts of a contract that provided funds appropriated by Congress to legal-service providers to assist children in navigating immigration court. The preliminary injunction by the judge allows funding to continue while the lawsuit continues.
A federal judge ordered the Trump administration to release Columbia student Mohsen Mahdawi from ICE custody on Wednesday. Mahdawi had been detained during what was supposed to have been a naturalization interview. “His continued detention would likely have a chilling effect on protected speech, which is squarely against the public interest. And continuing to detain him would not benefit the public in any way, as Mahdawi appears not to be either a flight risk or a danger to the community,” the judge said.
