As an international student here at Wagner College I am concerned about what the future holds for my educational future. President Donald J. Trump issued an executive order this past January that affects thousands of international students around the U.S. This order banned citizens from seven different countries to enter the United States for 90 days.
This affects:
- 14,981 students from Iran
- 3,772 students from Libya
- 2,053 students from Yemen
- 1,335 students from Syria
- 1,075 students from Iraq
- 481 students from Sudan
- 67 students from Somalia
This 90-day travel ban has made me consider if I should continue pursuing my higher education here in the United States or move somewhere else. My family as a whole is concerned that even if I am not from the countries that were banned, I would have problems re-entering the country after visiting my family at home. For this upcoming President’s day break I won’t be able to go back home because of the rising discrimination and racism at the airports. This ban is much more than just preventing people from re-entering the country, this ban reinforced the institutionalized racism that exits in this nation. It would be fair to say that I am disappointed at what is happening but mostly I am sad that the United States has come to this.
International students often pay full tuition prices, so if all of these international students are not allowed to come back the universities could lose as much as $701,802,834. Exceptions to this travel ban have been made however, as of today 23,763 students face an uncertain future. This ban also affects the future generations of international students. It certainly affects my decision to keep pursuing my undergraduate studies here. I am investing money in my education to have a better future not to have a future filled with uncertainty and fear due to my citizenship. I came to the United States because of its exceptional reputation for higher education, but if this situation continues as it is I will seriously consider moving to a nation that promotes diversity instead of discrimination. Yale’s President, Peter Salovey said: "American institutions of higher learning are united in their distress on behalf of our international students and faculty, and in their reliance on our communities' most fundamental values of accessibility and open dialogue. Our educational mission and the welfare of our community members are directly at stake. National security is of the utmost importance, but we are steadfast in asserting that this goal can be achieved while maintaining respect for core academic — and American — values."
I am not only concerned about my future but also for those of my fellow international students. I will certainly not go back home for a while and instead make this country as much of a home as I can.
