I support international grad students

[SarahBethSortino]

Hey I didn't really know where to post this, but I just wanted to give a shout out to every potential grad student out there who is dealing with waiting for decisions AND having their plans potentially derailed by the immigration order yesterday. I'm NOT trying to make this political - I'm just throwing out some support during what has to be a difficult time for our fellow "waiting gamers."

[GunningForGrad]

I agree with this! Certainly support international grad students and everyone on this forum. Hoping things turn around for the better soon.

[Slowly]

As an international applicant hoping to study in the US, this post gives me warm and fuzzy feelings  Thanks for the positive energy. My country wasn't one of the targeted in the recent EO, but with Trump having called my people "terrorists" in the past, who knows. And there's still that dreaded visa application. Still: onward!

[DBear]

3 minutes ago, Slowly said:

As an international applicant hoping to study in the US, this post gives me warm and fuzzy feelings  Thanks for the positive energy. My country wasn't one of the targeted in the recent EO, but with Trump having called my people "terrorists" in the past, who knows. And there's still that dreaded visa application. Still: onward!

Warm and fuzzy here too! Thanks @SarahBethSortino! Even if one's country hasn't been targeted yet, there's so much uncertainty on how things will change. Nice to know that we will be welcome by at least some people!

[stereopticons]

I support international students! I think people forget what a huge benefit having students from a wide variety of backgrounds is. There are a lot of us who want you here and are offering support to those who now have plans up in the air. 

[SarahBethSortino]

35 minutes ago, DBear said:

Warm and fuzzy here too! Thanks @SarahBethSortino! Even if one's country hasn't been targeted yet, there's so much uncertainty on how things will change. Nice to know that we will be welcome by at least some people!

A fellow academic is always welcome to me! Good luck to you! Also, don't let some bad things change your perception of us as a whole. You'll find that we are more accepting than we are showing us to be at the moment.

[SarahBethSortino]

13 minutes ago, stereopticons said:

I support international students! I think people forget what a huge benefit having students from a wide variety of backgrounds is. There are a lot of us who want you here and are offering support to those who now have plans up in the air. 

Yes! As an historian, I think it's vital to have a different perspective. When I was doing my masters it was fascinating to get a non western perspective on my research topics. 

[SarahBethSortino]

42 minutes ago, Slowly said:

As an international applicant hoping to study in the US, this post gives me warm and fuzzy feelings  Thanks for the positive energy. My country wasn't one of the targeted in the recent EO, but with Trump having called my people "terrorists" in the past, who knows. And there's still that dreaded visa application. Still: onward!

Onward and upward! You win a place at university you have just as much right to be here as anyone else!

[Amanda87]

Great post! I've been thinking about this all weekend in relation to people applying to schools. Much love to our international friends, and I hope you are still able to go to whichever school you'd like once you get in. 

[DogsArePeopleToo]

Thank you for starting this thread and sending your support, @SarahBethSortino. We international students are going through a lot of uncertainty and there's nothing we can do about it - no amount of hard work, good grades or better scores can help. But solidarity helps! Thank you.

[DBear]

1 hour ago, SarahBethSortino said:

A fellow academic is always welcome to me! Good luck to you! Also, don't let some bad things change your perception of us as a whole. You'll find that we are more accepting than we are showing us to be at the moment.

Luckily I've spent half my life in the U.S. and have met awesome people along the way so I have faith that whatever is going on now will be met with wisdom and solidarity! I'll be a little more nervous when I get to immigration and customs but I know I have great friends awaiting me and look forward to the new people I'll be meeting! Hope you also find great people at your new program!

[Warelin]

Please remember that the majority of us do not agree with Trump's policies.

[viridian]

Thank you for this. As a fellow historian and an international applicant, I feel replenished by this thread. I've been following images and footage of the airport protests to keep despair at bay (please keep those meme-able protest signs coming). I thought to myself how, in my home country, this kind of protesting would not happen. This level of courage and commitment to democratic values is, I think, what remains beautiful about America. 

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

As a US citizen, I just want to say I hope this gets resolved soon. Our borders should never be closed to someone because of their race, religion, country of origin, etc. <3 to all of you international applicants who are dealing with this on top of the anxiety of waiting to hear back from programs and planning out your futures.

[MsHypatia]

Agreed. Great topic. Not to sound alarming, but I would recommend doing some pretty extensive research on the locations of prospective universities as you make your decisions in the next few weeks. Some universities/cities are more welcoming to international students than others. Unfortunately, there have been racially motivated incidents since Trump's election on several campuses, including the one I attend (in a very red, very Trump state). In the current political climate, I would do your homework and at the very least be aware of the situation at whatever school you choose to attend. Good luck to all!

[Mugi Mila]

I agree! I support international students and would like to wish you all the best of luck! I welcome you all, as it promotes diversity and encourages collaborations that births brand new ideas and projects! We learn from one another and this shouldn't be stopped by any laws! I have friends from other countries and it angers me that they may not be able to enter the states to further their education. To prevent them or another other individual from achieving their dream is wrong. So best of luck and we will continue to fight for your rights to come and obtain the education you desire!! ?

[THS]

We have to stop saying that we need to "not sound political".  Being political and debating those opinions are a vital element of a democracy.  When we stop doing that we have problems.  We have Trump today because we stopped debating, because we all stopped being political.  Yes this is absolutely political.  Most of us are not xenophobic jerks scared of what the future holds, most of us fully support bright and talented people from all over the world coming into this country, most of us support saving the lives of thousands of families (who are in part forced to leave because of US interference in their part of the world).  This is a forum of educated people who will have differing opinions from my own, but I think we can offer our support to international students w/o disclaimers of not being political.  Supporting them is political, and that's ok.  

Otherwise I too stand with you all.  As a hispanic American I too have some uncertainty, but not nearly the kind that an international student must feel after this week.  

[pdxspeechie]

We are fighting for you and we support you!  #resist 

[DBear]

46 minutes ago, montanem said:

We have to stop saying that we need to "not sound political".  Being political and debating those opinions are a vital element of a democracy.  When we stop doing that we have problems.  We have Trump today because we stopped debating, because we all stopped being political.  Yes this is absolutely political.  Most of us are not xenophobic jerks scared of what the future holds, most of us fully support bright and talented people from all over the world coming into this country, most of us support saving the lives of thousands of families (who are in part forced to leave because of US interference in their part of the world).  This is a forum of educated people who will have differing opinions from my own, but I think we can offer our support to international students w/o disclaimers of not being political.  Supporting them is political, and that's ok.  

Otherwise I too stand with you all.  As a hispanic American I too have some uncertainty, but not nearly the kind that an international student must feel after this week.  

So eloquent and poignant. Thank you. Once I can 'like' posts again, I'm so liking this.

[GunningForGrad]

@montanem beautifully put! I absolutely agree.

@DBear...are you in forum jail for liking things? I didn't realize that was a thing.

[stereopticons]

@montanem I'm out of upvotes too but this is great and so true. 

@GunningForGrad yes, you can only like 5 things a day I guess before they put you in forum jail. 

[GunningForGrad]

@stereopticons huh. The more you know. *shooting star*

[Amanda87]

20 hours ago, MsHypatia said:

Agreed. Great topic. Not to sound alarming, but I would recommend doing some pretty extensive research on the locations of prospective universities as you make your decisions in the next few weeks. Some universities/cities are more welcoming to international students than others. Unfortunately, there have been racially motivated incidents since Trump's election on several campuses, including the one I attend (in a very red, very Trump state). In the current political climate, I would do your homework and at the very least be aware of the situation at whatever school you choose to attend. Good luck to all!

Yes! I live in a super red state (which I hate, by the way) and can't wait to get out and live in Massachusetts later this year. The weekend after the election, someone went around and spray painted swastikas on street signs just outside of town. This election has really emboldened the worst kinds of people. On the other hand, there are also a lot of people that are willing to fight for everyone's rights (myself included). But yes, I wholeheartedly agree with really researching the towns that you're looking at living in. There's also a City Guide section of the forums where you can talk to people that live there or other people that are thinking of moving to an area. 

[la_bouche22]

On 1/29/2017 at 9:40 PM, SarahBethSortino said:

Hey I didn't really know where to post this, but I just wanted to give a shout out to every potential grad student out there who is dealing with waiting for decisions AND having their plans potentially derailed by the immigration order yesterday. I'm NOT trying to make this political - I'm just throwing out some support during what has to be a difficult time for our fellow "waiting gamers."

There's no need to be apologetic about being political. Quite the opposite--politics belongs to the people, not the few. We rely on your ability, as a historian, to delineate patterns across time and geography, so we see the present with such lucidity that we understand the dangers, and organize to avert a catastrophe. You, of all people, should realize that studying history is in itself political, as history--as well as the study of history--is always about a vision... now which vision? is entirely up to you.

Edited February 1, 2017 by la_bouche22