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- Biliana said she made sure to stay far away from these kinds of demonstrations, fearful she might show up in a photo and be falsely linked to the group
NEW YORK: Biliana, an international student at New York鈥檚 Columbia University, is studying for exams but fears being arrested by immigration police.
Columbia professors meanwhile are scrambling to save research funding in the crosshairs of President Donald Trump鈥檚 administration.
An atmosphere of crisis hovers over campus as the semester winds down, as the White House accuses the prestigious university and other Ivy League schools of anti-Semitism and 鈥渨oke鈥� liberal ideology.
Several hundred foreign students nationwide have been threatened with the cancelation of their visas, while others have been targeted 鈥� and a few arrested, including at Columbia 鈥� over everything from participation in pro-Palestinian protests to traffic violations.
鈥淭he situation is just terrifying,鈥� said Biliana, a 29-year-old law student, who feels such dread that she asked not to be identified by her real name or even the Latin American country she comes from.
鈥淵ou feel like you cannot say anything, you cannot share anything.鈥�
She went on: 鈥淢e and my friends, we have not been posting anything on Twitter,鈥� and many are deleting old posts for fear of crossing an invisible red line.
鈥淏asically, what we鈥檙e trying to do is just to go to normal classes,鈥� she said.
Last week, with final exams looming, 80 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested after attempting to overtake the main library.
The university鈥檚 interim president quickly condemned the protest action.
Biliana said she made sure to stay far away from these kinds of demonstrations, fearful she might show up in a photo and be falsely linked to the group.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said officials were reviewing the visa status of the 鈥渧andals鈥� involved, adding: 鈥淧ro-Hamas thugs are no longer welcome in our great nation.鈥�
For newly elected student body president Oscar Wolfe, 鈥淭here is definitely a heightened level of anxiety among international students, regardless of their involvement in the protests.鈥�
Wolfe arrived on campus in September 2023, just before Hamas militants launched their October 7 attack on Israel, sparking the Gaza war and giving rise to protests that continue. He said he has known little more than a month of 鈥渘ormal鈥� campus life.
Reflecting the turmoil, Columbia 鈥� which normally draws thousands of tourists to its Manhattan campus featuring colonnaded buildings, sweeping lawns and famous Alma Mater statue 鈥� has largely cut off public access to its grounds.
The Trump administration has accused the university of allowing anti-Semitism to flourish on campus 鈥� something the school strongly denies 鈥� and has slashed some $400 million of Columbia鈥檚 federal funding.
Harvard, another Ivy League college, has defiantly pushed back 鈥� suing the administration to halt a federal freeze of $2 billion in grants.
Columbia, for its part, is negotiating with the government. But on Wednesday, interim President Claire Shipman announced that 鈥渘early 180 of our colleagues who have been working, in whole or in part, on impacted federal grants鈥� were going to lose their jobs.
Rebecca Muhle, a professor of psychiatry, said her grant for a research project on autism was 鈥渘ot canceled, but it鈥檚 not funded 鈥� it鈥檚 in limbo.鈥�
鈥淚 cannot hire anyone or make large purchases,鈥� she said.
鈥淭here are many, many grants in this situation,鈥� Muhle added. 鈥淚t鈥檚 chaos, and you can鈥檛 conduct good science in chaos.鈥�
History professor Matthew Connelly, who specializes in state secrets and their declassification, said he had been notified that the National Endowment for the Humanities had canceled two grants, with 鈥渘o real reason given.鈥�
The grants, he said, were intended to train scholars and archivists in analyzing and preserving historical records, particularly those in digital form 鈥� 鈥渙ne of the great challenges facing researchers.鈥�
But Connelly said he was not about to throw in the towel.
鈥淯niversities are a target, because everything we do is completely contrary to what the Trump administration is trying to achieve,鈥� he said.
鈥淚f we stopped teaching... if we stopped doing our research, we would be handing them a victory.鈥�
Student leader Wolfe also views this as part of a broader battle.
鈥淭his is not just an attack on Columbia,鈥� he said, 鈥渋t is the opening act of an attack against civil society.鈥�