Momodou Taal, a Cornell student and British citizen, has decided to self-deport following an attempt to sue Donald Trump for allegedly violating his rights. Taal has since dropped the lawsuit.
Like many of the other international students in similar circumstances, Taal was involved in anti-Israel demonstrations and posted inflammatory anti-American messages on social media.
The Cornell Daily Sun reports:
BREAKING: Momodou Taal, the Pro-Palestinian Activist Who Sued Trump, Voluntarily Leaves the CountryMomodou Taal, a pro-Palestinian activist and international Ph.D student, announced his decision to leave the country on Monday — ending a weeks-long struggle with the federal government that began when he sued the Trump adminstration.Soon after Taal announced his decision on X and Instagram, his lawyers withdrew his lawsuit in federal court.Taal first made national news when he, alongside Sriram Parasurama, a Ph.D. student in plant sciences, and Prof. Mũkoma wa Ngũgĩ, literatures in English, sued the Trump administration for allegedly violating their First and Fifth Amendment rights. Their suit claimed that the implementation of two Trump executive orders targeted pro-Palestinian speech and dampened dissent.The U.S. State Department revoked Taal’s F-1 student visa after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement identified him for “disruptive action” on March 14, one day before the lawsuit was filed. Taal would not be notified of the change to his visa status until March 21, according to testimony submitted in court by John Armstrong, senior bureau official for the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs.
More from The Hill:
Taal said he was due to submit a second briefing in court, which he planned to do “with the hope that I could stay out of detention” as the lawsuit progressed, but he decided to leave the country instead, fearing for his safety.“Given what we have seen across the United States, I have lost faith that a favourable ruling from the courts would guarantee my personal safety and ability to express my beliefs,” Taal wrote in his statement.“I have lost faith I could walk the streets without being abducted,” he continued. “Weighing these options, I took the decision to leave on my own terms.”“This is of course not the outcome I had wanted going into this, but we are facing a government that has no respect for the judiciary or for the rule of the law,” he added.
Once again, the media and the left are working overtime to try to make this all about free speech.
This is not a free speech issue.
This isn’t rocket science. If you’re in the United States as a guest, maybe don’t attend protests calling for the destruction of the United States and praising known terrorist groups.
Featured image via YouTube.
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