Deport Mahmoud Khalil? Even He Deserves Due Process

Mahmoud Khalil has been challenging his arrest in federal court, arguing it was unlawful. (AP pic)

​Should anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil have his green card pulled so he can be deported? Only if he is given due process before a judge or other government official, as a legal resident of the United States.
 
Expelling Khalil is what the Trump Administration has set out to do for his leading role in protests last spring on the Columbia University campus attacking Israel and purportedly praising Hamas. And, as the lead negotiator and spokesman for the Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), Khalil might be deportable for violating the law governing green card holders. The law makes a green card holder inadmissible for residency if he “endorses or espouses terrorist activity” or represents a group with the same goal.
 
An appearance before a judge or other unbiased official is the only way to winnow out the facts of this case, namely the degree of Khalil’s participation that led to the illicit occupation of parts of Columbia University as a “Jew-free” zone, and giving Jewish students and faculty legitimate reason to fear for their safety. And what, specifically, did he say and endorse? Only an unbiased decision-maker can determine if Khalil’s anti-Israel, pro-Hamas protests veered into endorsement of terrorism, which would lead to his ejection from this country, or were simply political speech protected by the First Amendment.
 
We appreciate that due process for a Hamas-sympathizer is the tiniest of violins. But it must be played. As a legal resident, Khalil deserves only one thing – a fair opportunity to account for his actions and to answer accusations. We cannot lose sight of the bigger picture: If Khalil loses those due process rights, we all lose something precious.

DONATE & HELP US PROTECT YOUR FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS