UPDATE: In response to Dr. Suri's emergency filings, a federal judge ordered that he cannot be removed from the country, pending the outcome of our lawsuit. This is an important first step. We'll continue to work to ensure Dr. Suri is returned to Virginia and released to his family.
RICHMOND, VA – Today, the ACLU of Virginia filed an emergency motion in the Eastern District of Virginia on behalf of a Georgetown professor who has been targeted by the Trump administration for removal from the U.S. in direct retaliation for his speech in support of Palestinian rights and his family’s ties to Gaza.
Badar Khan Suri, a Georgetown professor and postdoctoral scholar on religion and peace processes in the Middle East and South Asia is legally in the U.S. on a research scholar and professor visa. He is an Indian national who lives with his U.S. citizen wife and three children in Rosslyn, Virginia. When he arrived home on Monday evening following a traditional Ramadan meal celebration, he was taken into custody by masked federal agents without being charged with or accused of any crime. In just over 72 hours, he has been transferred to multiple immigration detention centers and is currently at an ICE staging center in Alexandria, Louisiana potentially awaiting deportation.
“Ripping someone from their home and family, stripping them of their immigration status, and detaining them solely based on political viewpoint is a clear attempt by President Trump to silence dissent,” said ACLU of Virginia Senior Immigrants’ Rights Attorney Sophia Gregg. “That is patently unconstitutional.”
On Tuesday, Dr. Suri’s private immigration attorney, Hassan Ahmad, filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus alleging that ICE’s arrest and detention of Dr. Suri on the basis of his speech on Palestinian rights violates the Due Process Clause and the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Now, the ACLU of Virginia is joining his legal team and requests the court issue an order to stop his removal as his case is considered.
“Dr. Suri’s experience is shocking and disgraceful,” said Suri’s immigration attorney Hassan Ahmad. “It should worry everyone that masked government agents can disappear someone from their home and family because the current administration dislikes their opinion.”
“The First Amendment protects the right to free speech of everyone in the United States, regardless of their immigration status,” said ACLU of Virginia Senior Supervising Attorney Vishal Agraharkar. “Similar to what’s happening to Mahmoud Khalil, Dr. Suri’s unlawful arrest and detention represent a frightening escalation in the Trump administration’s efforts to silence speech of which they are critical. Under the First Amendment, the federal government does not have the authority to deport individuals or revoke their residency on the basis of viewpoint alone.”
“Political speech – however controversial some may find it – may never be the basis for punishment, including deportation,” said ACLU of Virginia Executive Director Mary Bauer. “We will not let this egregious, unprecedented, and illegal abuse of power go unchecked.”
The emergency motion asks the court to bar the administration from removing Dr. Suri from the U.S. pending the case’s consideration, and that Dr. Suri be immediately returned to Virginia and released to his family.
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About the ACLU of Virginia The ACLU of Virginia promotes civil liberties and civil rights for everyone in the Commonwealth through public education, litigation, and advocacy with the goal of securing freedom and equality for all. For more information on the ACLU of Virginia go to www.acluva.org.
About the HMA Law Firm Hassan Ahmad is the founder and principal of HMA Law Firm. The HMA law firm helps people prosper, by using U.S. immigration laws affirmatively and defensively, to help its clients achieve security and prosperity. For more information on HMA Law Firm go to www.hmalegal.com.
