Graduate Student in Science: ‘Standing Up to Fear’

Ohio University graduate student Ali Khaledi-Nasab shared his views on being an international student in a column on “Standing up to fear” in the journal Science.

In 2014, after years of planning, I finally got my visa to start my Ph.D. studies in the United States. I chose to come to this country—leaving behind my family and other loved ones in Iran—because I thought it would be the best way to grow as a scientist. I also felt I could be happy in a country built on a foundation of freedom, tolerance, and diversity. And that was pretty much the case for the first 2 years of graduate school, when I focused on my science, excited to be investing in my career and my personal growth. But the new U.S. president and the climate he has fostered have changed everything for me and people like me, and I need to speak out.

Casual interactions now make me feel unwelcome and unsafe. When the first attempted travel ban was announced, for example, a conversation with one of my former students—whom I had always had a good relationship with—turned to politics. I said that this country promises religious freedom for everyone. “Not for you, only for U.S. citizens,” he responded, adding that he supported the travel ban because he does not think that people with “different beliefs” should be allowed in this country. I was shocked at his ignorance of the law, and hurt that he seemed so eager to take away my rights. In a similar conversation about the effects of anti-immigrant sentiment, someone whom I had considered a friend told me bluntly that if I left an American would take my place—implying that this outcome would be preferable….

Read the rest of his column in Science. Khaledi-Nasab is a graduate student in Physics & Astronomy.