Korean American faces deportation for pro-Palestinian support

A legal permanent resident at Columbia University is suing to stop her deportation.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Homeland Security issued an arrest warrant for third year student Yunseo Chung earlier this month. The 21 year old has been in the United States since age 7.

“Chung has engaged in concerning conduct, including when she was arrested by NYPD during a pro-Hamas protest at Barnard College,” a spokesperson for Homeland Security said. 

Columbia University investigated Chung’s activities and determined she violated any school policies, according to her lawsuit.

“Simply put, immigration enforcement—here, immigration detention and threatened deportation—may not be used as a tool to punish noncitizen speakers who express political views disfavored by the current administration,” the lawsuit states.

According to the NY Post, Homeland Security agents went to both her home and her dorm room seeking to arrest Chung. Her lawyer confirms she is not in custody but would not disclose her location.

“The government’s retaliation against Ms. Chung comes in a broader context of retaliation against other noncitizens who have exercised their First Amendment rights,” her legal team argued.

The warrant for Chung’s arrest follows the arrest of former Columbia student Mahmoud Khalil, a leader last year in the pro-Palestinian student protestors at the uiversity.