Documents from the Trump Administration Suggest Rubio Targeted Students for Op-Eds, Protests
Internal Department of Homeland Security and State Department documents obtained by five students and academics as part of a lawsuit against President Donald Trump and Immigration and Customs Enforcement reveal a discrepancy in Secretary of State Marco Rubio's reasoning for attempting to deport them.
While Rubio claimed in public that the students were being targeted because they supported terrorism, internal documents suggest that their advocacy for Palestinian rights in protests and writings was actually the primary basis for the deportation orders. The Department of Homeland Security memo noted that there was no evidence that the students had provided material support to any terrorist organization, a claim often conflated with pro-Palestinian speech.
The State Department memos recommended deporting the five students due to their participation in on-campus protests and advocacy, citing the need to create a "hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States" and undermine U.S. policy to combat anti-Semitism worldwide. However, these actions were allegedly protected under the First Amendment.
One of the students, Rumeysa Öztürk, had her visa revoked due to her involvement in associations that may have undermined US foreign policy by creating a hostile environment for Jewish students. Her op-ed piece was linked to an organization later banned from campus, which has sparked concerns about Rubio's actions.
The Intercept has obtained a trove of documents detailing the State Department and DHS efforts to target students speaking out on Palestinian issues, raising questions about Rubio's role in this process and his handling of sensitive national security information.
Internal Department of Homeland Security and State Department documents obtained by five students and academics as part of a lawsuit against President Donald Trump and Immigration and Customs Enforcement reveal a discrepancy in Secretary of State Marco Rubio's reasoning for attempting to deport them.
While Rubio claimed in public that the students were being targeted because they supported terrorism, internal documents suggest that their advocacy for Palestinian rights in protests and writings was actually the primary basis for the deportation orders. The Department of Homeland Security memo noted that there was no evidence that the students had provided material support to any terrorist organization, a claim often conflated with pro-Palestinian speech.
The State Department memos recommended deporting the five students due to their participation in on-campus protests and advocacy, citing the need to create a "hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States" and undermine U.S. policy to combat anti-Semitism worldwide. However, these actions were allegedly protected under the First Amendment.
One of the students, Rumeysa Öztürk, had her visa revoked due to her involvement in associations that may have undermined US foreign policy by creating a hostile environment for Jewish students. Her op-ed piece was linked to an organization later banned from campus, which has sparked concerns about Rubio's actions.
The Intercept has obtained a trove of documents detailing the State Department and DHS efforts to target students speaking out on Palestinian issues, raising questions about Rubio's role in this process and his handling of sensitive national security information.
they were just tryna express themselves and speak out for palestine & jewish folks got caught up in it lol but seriously tho, how is Rubio trying to create a hostile environment 4 jewish students? does he not know that ppl got the right 2 free speech & assembly even if u disagree with them?
sounds like rubeo was messin' w/ people's lives over some trumped-up nonsense. anywayz, glad we got some answers & maybe justice will be served for these students 
the fact that his admin was trying to create a hostile environment for jewish students on campus is just disgusting. rumeysa ozturk's op ed piece was literally linked to an org that got banned from campus and her visa gets revoked? 
I'm shocked that even after all these years, it still takes a lawsuit to get to the bottom of some of our government officials' actions... Like, what's the point of having "free speech" protections if they're just gonna use them as an excuse to silence people who aren't in line with their agenda? 
And the way Rubio is trying to justify deporting these students because they spoke out about Palestine... it's just so weak. If he really cared about national security, wouldn't he be looking at more than just one issue? 
And those memos from the DHS and State Department? They're basically saying that being pro-Palestinian is somehow equivalent to supporting terrorism... that's not how it works! 
meanwhile Rumeysa Öztürk had her visa revoked just for bein part of an org that was banned from campus lol what's next is Rubio gonna deport ppl for watchin Netflix or somethin? 
. I mean, him trying to create a "hostile environment" for Jewish students just because they're speaking out against the Palestinians? That's not just weird, it's also kinda racist (but in a more subtle way, which makes it even creepier). And what's up with linking Rumeysa Öztürk's op-ed piece to an organization that got banned from campus? That's like trying to silence someone just because they're making waves 
. I'm not saying Rubio did anything wrong on purpose, but come on, this all looks pretty shady to me 
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I mean, what's next? Targeting people for their opinions 
? It's crazy that they thought advocating for Palestinian rights was terrorism 
. Those students were just trying to speak out and make a difference 
. And now their lives are being messed with because of it 
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. We need to stand up for our rights and fight against hate and fear 
. Everyone should have the freedom to express themselves without fear of persecution or deportation 
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They were just trying to speak out for a cause they care about, and suddenly they're being targeted by the government. It's like, what's going on here? The fact that Rubio was allegedly targeting them because of their Palestinian rights advocacy is crazy. I mean, I get that there's a lot of controversy around that issue, but deporting people over it? That's just not right.
And let's not forget, these students were exercising their First Amendment rights, and Rubio's team was trying to take that away from them. It's time for some accountability, you know? 
. These internal docs show how DHS and State Dept were working together to create a "hostile environment" for Jewish students on campus 
. And here's a bar chart comparing the number of pro-Israel groups on campus pre- and post-Rubio's actions 
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And it's crazy that the DHS memos kept talking about "hostile environment" without actually saying what that meant, and now we're left wondering if Rumeysa was unfairly targeted... 
and btw why did they target them specifically? were they like the most outspoken ones? 
anyway i just think this is super sus 
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. It sounds like Rubio was trying to silence students who were making a point about Palestine 
. And for what? To create a hostile environment for Jewish students? That's not only unfair but also kinda twisted 
That's just ridiculous. I mean, can't we just have open discussions about politics without getting hurt by Rubio's rhetoric? It's all just so unfair and polarizing... 
. The fact that one of the students had her visa revoked because she was involved with an organization linked to a banned campus group is just outrageous! 