University students in the United States have called the Trump administration's decision to ban international students at Harvard University a "terrible choice" and "misstep" that would harm U.S. education.
China Global Television Network (CGTN) interviewed university students in Cambridge of Massachusetts -- including some from Harvard University -- on Friday to get their views on the decision.
Tirone Breathwhite, an engineering student, said the move was "terrible." He argued that the U.S. thrives by bringing together people from around the world and should preserve this diversity.
"I think Trump's decision to ban international students at Harvard University is a terrible choice. I think that America is built of diversity and being a melting pot. And we need to value everybody and not discriminate against people just because of them being from a different place," said Breathwhite.
"I think it's horrible for American academia. Like we are a lot like universities, like benefit from students coming all over the world, like that's part of what makes our country great that like people want to come and learn here. So I think overall it's horrible," said Chris McFarlane, a student of Political Science and International Affairs.
The interviewees said that the Trump administration's decision would damage educational environments in the U.S. and weaken Harvard's reach globally.
"It's a terrible misstep to ever try to make educational environments insulated. I think that education implies openness, broadness. I think that people go to college and university to be able to widen their scope of what it means to be an academic. Varied perspectives are incredibly valuable," said Lisa Owens, a psychology student.
"As an academic institution, Harvard's success has historically depended on its relationships abroad as much as its relationships within the United States. I think not only will its place as an intellectual research institution will be diminished by the lack of international students there, I think its reach globally will be weakened. And I can only hope that this is something that Harvard can come back from," said Britney Jones, a former social sciences student.
"If no school is allowed to have international students in the future, then I think that really affects the U.S. education stuff in a negative way," said Lucas Adams, a biomedical sciences student.
A federal judge in Boston issued a Temporary Restraining Order on Friday, blocking the Trump Administration's policy that aimed to prevent Harvard University from enrolling international students, and saying that such an order is "justified" to preserve the status quo pending a hearing.
Unless Harvard's Motion for a Temporary Restraining Order is granted, "it will sustain immediate and irreparable injury before there is an opportunity to hear from all parties," Judge Allison Burroughs from the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts said in a court document.
Earlier on Friday, Harvard University sued the administration for a second time.
"The revocation continues a series of government actions to retaliate against Harvard for our refusal to surrender our academic independence and to submit to the federal government's illegal assertion of control over our curriculum, our faculty, and our student body," Harvard University President Alan Garber wrote in a letter to members of the Harvard community.
"We condemn this unlawful and unwarranted action. It imperils the futures of thousands of students and scholars across Harvard and serves as a warning to countless others at colleges and universities throughout the country who have come to America to pursue their education and fulfill their dreams," Garber said.
Students in U.S. call Trump's Harvard ban "terrible choice", "misstep"
Students in U.S. call Trump's Harvard ban "terrible choice”, “misstep"
