Why everyone should be alarmed by the arrest of Mahmoud Khalil
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Why everyone should be alarmed by the arrest of Mahmoud Khalil
Mahmoud Khalil was a student at Columbia University. He is in the U.S. legally on a Green card as a permanent resident and is married to a US citizen who is 8 months pregnant. He was arrested a week ago and sent to a holding facility in Louisiana to prepare him for deportation. He has yet to be charged with a crime and the Department of Homeland Security has yet to prove he committed a crime. He was a leader in the pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University over Israel’s attacks on Gaza and its civilians. The protests were not Pro-Hamas or Anti-Semitic. The protests included Jewish students and non Palestinian students. . Protesting is protected under the First Amendment, freedom of speech.
The State Department is having a hard time coming up with a crime to charge him with but they seem to be detaining Mr. Khalil until they find one. This is a huge civil rights violation. One reason it matters is if they can do this to a permanent resident, who is in our country legally, they may be emboldened to do it to others including citizens. When you pervert the law to align with your own distorted sense of justice you open the door to a pandora’s box of corrupt practices and possible retribution for perceived offences.
Just this week the President announced that he is planning on invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798; it is one of four wartime laws that gives the Government the ability to deport non citizens that they deem to be a threat to national security. The Alien and Sedition Acts consisted of four laws that were used in 1798 at a time when the U.S. was preparing to go to war with France. According to the National Archives the laws were, “Passed in preparation for an anticipated war with France, the Alien and Sedition Acts tightened restrictions on foreign-born Americans and limited speech critical of the government.”
John Adams (2 nd President of the United States) used the Alien and Sedition Act to imprison his perceived critics, most of whom were journalists and citizens.
If today’s government allows this to happen, a wartime law to be used in a time of peace, it may lead to a slippery slope with widespread consequences.https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/alien-and-sedition-acts
https://www.history.com/topics/early-us/alien-and-sedition-acts
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgj5nlxz44yo
https://www.democracynow.org/2025/3/14/jvp_sitin_trump_tower_mahmoud_khalil
https://apnews.com/article/columbia-university-mahmoud-khalil-ice-15014bcbb921f21a9f704d5acdcae7a8
