14 hours Ago By Gretta Goorno
On the night of March 25, my campus, Tufts University, became the nation’s latest battlefield for free speech. That evening, six agents from the Department of Homeland Security took Rumeysa Ozturk , a Ph.D.
student in the U.S. on an F-1 visa , away in an unmarked vehicle .
The next morning, I woke up to a flood of social media stories and messages from my fellow students. Like me, they were concerned about the nature of the detainment and the unclear reasoning behind it. The Washington Post reported that the government has accused Ozturk of engaging in activities “in support of Hamas,” but that no U.
S. authorities have provided evidence to support the claim. The story said that a State Department memo about her case also referenced an Op-Ed that she had written last year in the school newspaper, The Tufts Daily – the very same newspaper I work for.
AP Photo Rumeysa Ozturk on an apple-picking trip in 2021. Ozturk later said in court filings that she was held in inhumane conditions in a Louisiana Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility. She claimed she was denied proper medical attention and placed in a crammed, unhygienic cell.
The situation only felt more chilling in light of personal accounts of how hardworking and thoughtful Ozturk is. I feel for Ozturk. I feel for international students.
As the opinion editor at the Daily, I am concerned for my writers. In her piece, Ozturk didn’t call for the death of Israel or celebrate Hamas. Rather, she urged divestment from Israel – for the Tufts administration to give another look at resolutions our student government had already passed demanding that the university stop direct and indirect business dealings with the country.
Ozturk wasn’t inciting violence. She was sharing an opinion. In the opinion section.
In her college newspaper. A newspaper that is financially independent and student-run specifically so it can ensure free speech. Michael S.
Roth April 11, 2025 Now, that free speech is in danger. My international writers are scared to pen articles or speak their mind. Many of them have been integral parts of our opinion section during their time at Tufts.
Coming from North America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East, they regularly contribute nuanced takes on politics and culture. In some cases, their parents, who pay an estimated $95,000 annually to send their children to Tufts, have instructed their kids to stop writing for the Daily. But it’s not just international students.
U.S. citizens have also been scared to raise their voices for fear of the Trump administration and prospective employers targeting them.
Ironically, President Donald Trump and his colleagues have long been outspoken about the attacks on speech – particularly conservative speech under the Biden administration. In his campaign materials, Trump declared , “If we don’t have FREE SPEECH, then we just don’t have a FREE COUNTRY ..
. If this most fundamental right is allowed to perish, then the rest of our rights and liberties will topple just like dominos one by one.” But since retaking office, Trump administration officials have opened investigations into left-leaning press outlets , pulled funding from universities for alleged diversity, equity and inclusion programs and antisemitism , and sought revenge on political opponents .
The latest blow came earlier this week, when the president declared that Harvard University should lose its tax-exempt status . Yolanda Watson Spiva April 16, 2025 What is particularly worrying is that Trump is trying to imprison or deport those who disagree with him. He can’t easily jail U.
S. citizens, so he is targeting young visa holders. For Trump, this isn’t about freedom of speech, nor is it about easing antisemitism.
It never was. It’s about spreading his views and his power. I would like to believe that when most of Trump’s voters supported his notion of protecting the border, they were imagining he would arrest gang members and drug dealers.
Terrorists or rapists. Real criminals. I guess it’s a crime now to have a difference of opinion from his administration.
Tufts admittedly has a pretty progressive student body. Trump admittedly disdains elite institutions . Regardless, his attacks are nonsensical and hypocritical.
If you suppress free speech for one, you risk losing it for everyone. College should be a time to experiment and grow. A school newspaper is the pinnacle of such ideals, as it gives a platform for a rich exchange of ideas.
Liberals have been quick to judge Republicans for their views and voting patterns, but Trump is perpetuating the same judgments – and going even further by using the power of government to suppress opposing positions. We need to dialogue and hear each other out. Attempting to erase alternative opinions won’t create harmony.
Neal McCluskey March 20, 2025 In fact, Trump’s clampdown on demonstrations and other actions he dislikes has spurred a whole new surge of protests for free speech, fidelity to the constitution and immigrant rights, both across the country and abroad . Here at Tufts, the Opinion section has received dozens of Op-Ed submissions from new student contributors and alumni – including those who disagree with Ozturk’s rhetoric on Israel but believe that Trump’s detainment of her is wrong and immoral. While these writers remain scared they will be targeted for voicing their support for free speech, many find it is too important an issue to remain silent on.
Unity and bravery are the only way we can combat Trump’s assault on democracy. The pages of the Tufts student paper demonstrate this every day. Gretta Goorno is the executive opinion editor at the Tufts Daily.
She is a sophomore studying political science and history..
