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First Amendment, which protects our rights to freedom of speech and association
Fourth Amendment, which protects our rights to be from unreasonable searches and seizures and right to privacy
Fifth Amendment, which protects our right to due process and against self-incrimination
Sixth amendment, which protects our right to effective counsel
Fourteenth Amendment, which affords us the right to equal protection of the laws

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First Amendment

Focus on two Executive Orders that combined raise serious First Amendment concerns for campuses
January 20: National security order

Immigrant speech
“Espouse hateful ideology”
“hostile attitudes towards…culture, government, institutions”

January 29: Combatting antisemitism order

Instruct universities to monitor and report immigrant students
Title VI investigations

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Immigration Arrests

Rescission of Biden enforcement priorities (public safety, national security and border security)

ICE instructed to pursue any immigrant who may be removable, which necessarily includes millions of longtime residents

Rescission of “protected areas” guidance, authorizing arrests at sensitive locations, including universities

Previous memo specified officers should refrain from enforcement actions “near” protected areas, including sidewalks, entrances, parking lots

Increase in interior enforcement, specifically street level arrests and raids

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Institutions

Educate ourselves on FERPA protections

1974 law that protects privacy in educational records
Can’t release personal information without written consent

Doesnt include directory information, name/address (talk to counsel)

But FERPA has exception for a subpoena

But "ICE subpoena" is not a valid judicial subpoena

Reevaluate the records we keep
Warrants necessary for law enforcement officers to access any nonpublic areas.

“ICE warrant” is not valid judicial warrant
Consider policies on what parts of the school are nonpublic.
BUT, recognize that this will make us a less open campus

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Know Your Rights

(1) 5^th Amendment right to remain silent, including about your status
(2) 4^th Amendment right to say no to search if no judicial search warrant
(3) 1^st Amendment right to film ICE in public as long as don’t interfere
(4) 6^th Amendment right to lawyer, including interrogations on campus
(5) 1^st/4^th Amendment right to ask if free to leave, agents show badges
(6) 4^th/5^th Amendment rights & statute regulate when to show ID, documented immigrants yes, US citizens in NJ no
(7) 4^th Amendment right not be held by ICE unless reason to think without authorization or violated immigration-related criminal law

14^th Amendment: Race or ethnicity alone not valid reasons for stop

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What Never To Do

Never physically resist
Never reach for your belongings without permission
Never lie
Never present fake documents
Never sign anything before talking to lawyer

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What to do if ICE comes:

https://www.ilrc.org/red-cards-tarjetas-rojas

Princeton Township:

https://www.princetonnj.gov/670/Legal-Immigration-Resources

https://inclusive.princeton.edu/community-resources/inclusive-community/daca-faqs

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��Our uncertain state

Kim Lane Scheppele, UCHV/SPIA/SOC, Princeton University

(speaking in my personal capacity)

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The state we’re in: Autocratic legalism

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban worked with the Heritage Foundation to develop Project 2025, the blueprint for what we’re seeing now in action.

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President Trump has issued dozens of executive orders since he took office on 20 January 2025, upending government across the board.

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ENDING ILLEGAL DISCRIMINATION AND RESTORING MERIT-BASED OPPORTUNITY

(21 January 2025) https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/ending-illegal-discrimination-and-restoring-merit-based-opportunity/

(requires eliminating DEI from all federal contracts)

DEFENDING WOMEN FROM GENDER IDEOLOGY EXTREMISM AND RESTORING BIOLOGICAL TRUTH TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT (20 January 2025) https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/defending-women-from-gender-ideology-extremism-and-restoring-biological-truth-to-the-federal-government /

(requires eliminating all references to gender except for binary sex)

UNLEASHING AMERICAN ENERGY (20 January 2025)

https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/unleashing-american-energy/

(requires eliminating all federal funding for green initiatives)

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Office of Management and Budget Memo M-25-13

From the Acting Director Matthew Vaeth, 27 January 2025

. . . .each agency must complete a comprehensive analysis of all of their Federal financial assistance programs to identify programs, projects, and activities that may be implicated by any of the President’s executive orders. In the interim, to the extent permissible under applicable law, Federal agencies must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by the executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.

This memo was rescinded on 29 January after a court order

(and another court order on 2 February)

but it’s not clear that funding has resumed.

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Scientific institutions in US law

Public Health Services Act of 1944

Established the NIH within the Public Health Service, part of HHS.
Institute and Centers (ICs) within NIH have directors with the authority to make final decisions on funded research, with budget provided by congressional appropriation.
Peer review required by statute (PHSA Sec. 492) PLUS regulation (42 CFR Part 52h).

NIH Revitalization Act of 1993 (PL 103-43):

Established requirements to include women and minorities in clinical research when appropriate to the scientific question under study.
Established Office of Women’s Health and the Office of Research on Minority Health

National Science Foundation Act of 1950, 42 U.S.C. 1861, et seq.

NSF's regulations are located in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 45 C.F.R. Part VI.

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42 U.S. Code § 289a–2 - Inclusion of women and minorities in clinical research

Requirement of inclusion (1) In general, in conducting or supporting clinical research for purposes of this subchapter, the Director of NIH shall, subject to subsection (b), ensure that—

(A) women are included as subjects in each project of such research; and

(B) members of minority groups are included as subjects in such research. . . .

45 C.F.R. § 611.3 (regulations applied to the National Science Foundation)

This regulation does not prohibit the consideration of race, color, or national origin if the purpose and effect are to remove or overcome the consequences of practices or impediments which have restricted the availability of, or participation in, the program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance, on the grounds of race, color, or national origin. Where previous discriminatory practice or usage tends, on the grounds of race, color, or national origin, to exclude individuals from participation in, to deny them the benefits of, or to subject them to discrimination under any program or activity to which this regulation applies the applicant or recipient has an obligation to take reasonable action to remove or overcome the consequences of the prior discriminatory practice or usage, and to accomplish the purposes of the Act.

You may be pulled in contradictory directions because

current statutes and associated regulations require you

to take race and gender into account in your research

while the executive order forbids it:

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What is to be done?

Mobilize your professional expertise to fill in what government will stop doing.

Organize with your international colleagues to keep research going with funding from other and possibly international sources.

Think about how your professional associations can support a commitment to apolitical science to keep your fields intact while buffering from political threats.

Communicate the value of politically neutral science directly to public audiences through platforms like Substack, podcasts and other outreach NOT through platforms controlled by government-aligned oligarchs.

Your job is to keep science buffered from these politics – plus you will also be able to engage as a citizen in other activities to hold autocracy at bay.

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Maintain professional standards.

Do not let external forces divide the academic community of scholars.

Inform University of external contacts.

Strengthen your digital security.

(digital cleanse lessons: https://www.optoutproject.net/tags/cleanse/)

Be active in your community. Stand up for your work. Write. Speak. Help.

Protect your science and your community

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National action: https://erlywrm.com

Congressional: Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D, NJ-12)

Senator Cory Booker (D, NJ)

Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. (R, NJ-07)

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R, PA-01)

Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R, PA-08)

Do they know the severity and impacts? How are they applying pressure?

On campus: Your department chair

Your dean(s) and administrators

Are they ready to protect foreign scholars, maintain standards, and resist pressure?

People to approach ASAP. Go in person. Match the message to the listener.

Community: Your mayor and local politicians

Nonpartisan groups that rely on government

Are they ready to protect rights and vulnerable populations?

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What is a mutual aid society? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutual_aid

Mutual Aid – as a scientist and as a citizen

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On campus:

grantsquestions@princeton.edu

Davis International Center

Off campus:

Princeton Council

LALDEF:

609-688-0881 or apoyo@laldef.org

https://www.princetonnj.gov/670/Legal-Immigration-Resources

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