Opposition to Detainments, Deportations and Visa Revocations in Higher Education

WHEREAS, America’s colleges and universities produce knowledge, foster learning and new scientific discoveries, and are home to open and vigorous debate; and

WHEREAS, colleges and universities are often among the first institutions to come under attack by authoritarian regimes precisely because debate, disagreement and dissent are necessary components of a democratic society; and

WHEREAS, the attack on higher education workers and students and their citizenship, visa or residency statuses, including the abductions, detainments and deportations, is being used to silence faculty, staff and students to force the higher education community into compliance; and

WHEREAS, these deportations are also part of a larger attack on human rights, the rule of law and due process; and

WHEREAS, one of the AFT’s principal objectives is to support and promote the ideals of democracy as enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, its Bill of Rights and other amendments; and

WHEREAS, the AFT strives to protect democracy through organizing and mobilizing our members to engage in the promotion of democracy through community engagement, collective bargaining and political activism; and

WHEREAS, labor unions through collective action and solidarity have historically played an essential role in standing up to authoritarian regimes:

RESOLVED, that the AFT will condemn these detainments, deportations and visa revocations in the strongest terms possible and call these out for what they are—a campaign to silence international students, faculty and staff; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will continue to fight for the humanity and dignity of all, and vigorously defend intellectual freedom and foundational democratic First Amendment freedoms, including the rights to assemble and protest; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will support our higher education members who face visa revocation, detention and/or deportation that result from the exercise of their protected speech or their participation in lawful campus protests; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will call on college and university leaders to stand up for the rule of law and human rights, and to condemn these attacks on higher education workers and students and to provide them resources in the form of legal aid, trainings and other forms of support; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will provide support and resources for our higher education members and for our locals and state federations in the form of legal resources, trainings, toolkits and guidance.

Adopted May 28, 2025