By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-03-25 18:22:49 | Updated at 2025-03-29 03:32:04
3 days ago
A Columbia University student is suing the Trump administration to avoid being deported after going on the run from ICE agents over her pro-Palestinian views.
Yunseo Chung, 21, said that ICE are moving to have her deported from the country after she was arrested on March 5.
Chung, who is also a lawful permanent resident, was arrested that day while at a protest at Barnard College, where pro-Palestine students staged a sit in.
A group of over 50 students stormed and occupied a campus building and assaulted and injured a staff member at Barnard, sending them to hospital.
Days after her arrest, Chung says in her suit that ICE officials signed an arrest warrant and went to her parents' residence looking for her.
On March 10, Chung said, a federal law enforcement official told her lawyer that her lawful permanent resident status was being 'revoked'.
Three days later, she said that agents executed search warrants at two Columbia-owned residences, including her dorm, seeking travel and immigration records, and other documents.
She has lived in the US since emigrating with her parents at the age of 7 from South Korea. Her lawyers would not comment on her current whereabouts.
The junior is seeking a court order to block the Trump administration's efforts to deport noncitizens who participated in campus protests against Israel's military actions in Gaza.
Yunseo Chung, seen here, said that ICE are moving to have her deported from the country after she was arrested on March 5
NYPD cleared pro-Palestinian demonstrators from the Barnard College after a group of student protesters occupied Milstein Library on March 5
The 'Gaza Solidarity Encampment' in the West Lawn of Columbia University is seen here on April 29, 2024 in New York City
She is asking a judge to prevent the administration from detaining her, moving her out of New York City or removing her from the country while her lawsuit plays out.
The suit, filed in federal court, says: 'ICE´s shocking actions against Ms. Chung form part of a larger pattern of attempted U.S. government repression of constitutionally protected protest activity and other forms of speech.'
According to the suit, those in government are 'attempting to use immigration enforcement as a bludgeon to suppress speech that they dislike.'
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said: 'Yunseo Chung has engaged in concerning conduct, including when she was arrested by NYPD during a pro-Hamas protest at Barnard College.
'She is being sought for removal proceedings under the immigration laws. Chung will have an opportunity to present her case before an immigration judge.'
Her lawsuit also cited the case of Mahmoud Khalil and other college activists who have spoken out.
Khalil, 29, a Palestinian who was born and raised in Syria, helped to lead protests against Israel at Columbia University last year.
He also acted as a negotiator between students and university officials. The protests were allowed to run rampant for two weeks.
Mahmoud Khalil, seen here last year, was taken into custody at his university-owned apartment by ICE agents
Students stage a walk-out protest at Columbia University's Low Library in New York City, March 11, 2025
They were marked by violent assaults and instances of Jewish students being afraid to go to class.
He was taken into custody at his university-owned apartment earlier this month by ICE agents.
The Department of Homeland Security claimed he had 'led activities aligned to Hamas' and that the action was taken 'in coordination with the Department of State.'
The president accused Khalil of being 'pro-Hamas' and Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared the US would revoke visas and green cards of 'Hamas supporters'.
Khalil's supporters say his arrest is an attack on free speech, and have been staging protests in the city and across the country.
He has not been charged with a crime. He is also married to a U.S. citizen. His wife is eight months pregnant.
Chung says in her suit that ICE officials signed an arrest warrant and went to her parents' residence looking for her
His arrest has ignited a fierce debate over whether the Trump administration violated his First Amendment rights by detaining him and trying to deport him.
A lawyer for Khalil called the allegations 'plainly thin' and said the government would have to prove any omission was willful and materially important.
One of Chung's lawyers Naz Ahmad told The New York Times: 'Like many thousands of students nationwide, Yunseo raised her voice against what is happening in Gaza and in support of fellow students facing unfair discipline.
'It can't be the case that a straight-A student who has lived here most of her life can be whisked away and potentially deported, all because she dares to speak up.'
It comes after Columbia University caved to Trump's demands for several policy changes.
The president had threatened to take away $400 million in government grants from the institution.
