<
https://www.techdirt.com/2025/07/03/state-dept-tells-student-visa-applicants-to-set-their-social-media-profiles-to-public-if-they-want-to-come-to-the-us/>
"Way back in the day of EARLIER THIS YEAR, people could expect to be subjected
to warrantless, invasive device searches only at US borders and international
airports. Visa applicants, however, just needed to fill out some paperwork and
wait for permission to head abroad to find work and/or continue their
education.
Now, you don’t even have to enter the United States to be subjected to rigorous
vetting that opens every digital drawer and roots around in your
unmentionables/mentions. And pay no mind to Lady Liberty. She’s come a long
way, baby.
November 2, 1883:
“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
June 18, 2025:
A U.S. visa is a privilege, not a right.
[…]
Under new guidance, we will conduct a comprehensive and thorough vetting,
including online presence, of all student and exchange visitor applicants in
the F, M, and J nonimmigrant classifications.
To facilitate this vetting, all applicants for F, M, and J nonimmigrant
visas will be instructed to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social
media profiles to “public.”
That’s from Marco Rubio’s State Department, an announcement that makes it clear
Trump’s anti-migrant actions aren’t just about ejecting foreigners of the
browner-skinned persuasion, but about preventing foreigners from setting foot
in the US for any reason at all."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
