Washington Sues Over ICE Policy On International Student Visas
SEATTLE, WA — Washington state is suing the Trump administration over a new policy targeting international students.
Under the policy, the federal government will revoke student visas for international students studying in America if their classes are held remotely next fall. It would also ban international students from taking remote classes at American institutions from their home countries. The Trump administration says the policy is an attempt to encourage schools to reopen, but the move has been met with widespread backlash since it's announcement earlier this month.
Now, Washington state is stepping in: Attorney General Bob Ferguson has announced he is filing a lawsuit challenging the visa rule. Ferguson's office says the rule is both unlawful and dangerous: they argue it could force classes to unsafely open, jeopardizing the health of students and teachers. It also endangers state tuition revenue at a time when Washington needs its economy to be strongest. Roughly 27,000 international students are attending colleges and universities in Washington, bringing with them roughly $1 billion in spending each year.
"President Trump and ICE need to let colleges and universities make their own decisions about the health, safety, and education of their students, not arbitrarily and illegally punish schools that want to provide classes remotely," said Ferguson in a statement announcing the lawsuit.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee also issued a statement reaffirming his support for Ferguson.
"This just another way the federal government is demonstrating animosity toward immigrants and that is not acceptable in Washington state," said Inslee. Thursday, Inslee held a news conference to discuss president Trump's threats to withhold federal funding to states who do not reopen schools, which he dismissed as "hogwash" and "bullying."
The Trump administration issued the directive on July 6, asking schools to make a decision on whether or not to reopen their classes by July 15, giving schools just over a week to decide what will happen to their international students. The attorney general argues that that move violates several laws requiring advance notice and is an attempt to force colleges to make hasty and potentially unsafe choices to secure funding.
The suit will mark the Attorney General's 65th lawsuit against the Trump administration. Of those, Washington state has won 29. Another 35 are still waiting a ruling and the last case is being appealed.
Before the Trump administration's directive many of Washington's colleges and universities may have reopened in-person classes without coercion. The state has issued a number of safety guidelines to help higher education classes return this fall. Under their guidance, schools can return if:
Students and staff wear masks or facial coverings
Class sizes and large gatherings are limited to allow for physical distancing
The number of visitors on campus are limited
Contact tracers are allowed to isolate or quarantine students who may have been exposed to the virus
If schools cant meet those requirements, the state says they should remain teaching remotely, or risk a major outbreak— one of which is actually playing out right now in Seattle. As of Friday, 131 students living in University of Washington fraternity houses have caught the coronavirus.
Meanwhile, Washington's K-12 schools are also planning on reopening if they can meet similar guidelines, but will be allowed to continue remotely if they cannot.
Read the attorney general's full statements on the lawsuit here.
Related:
Inslee: We Will Not Be Bullied Into Unsafely Reopening Schools
Washington Schools Plan To Return To Classrooms This Fall
Washington Outlines How Colleges, Universities Can Return In Fall
This article originally appeared on the Seattle Patch
