USF student protester forced to leave the country after suspension

*USF suspended a student and expelled another for their involvement in a series of protests in April. ORACLE PHOTO/LILY BELCHER*

Joseph Charry, a junior sociology major, had to move back home to Colombia after he lost his student visa due to his year-long suspension from USF.

He said he was suspended due to his involvement with a series of April protests calling for the university to divest from companies that support Israel.

While several students were arrested for staying past the 5 p.m. deadline, Charry wasn’t.

He said he left the protest by 5 p.m., along with several other international students because they didn’t want to risk their student visas.

Despite his criticism of the university, Charry still said USF feels like home. In fact, he said he plans to enroll at USF.

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“I care about the students,” he said. “I care about the people that work there. I want to see [USF] disclose and divest from all the ties they have.”

Charry said he was “targeted” by the administration since he was the “admin liaison” for the protesters that day.

In the April demonstrations, the protesters locked arms in a circle surrounding an erected tent, which was restricted by administration, while holding umbrellas and makeshift plywood shields.

Charry was suspended before the end of the spring semester, but the university temporarily lifted his suspension so he could take his final exams.

He appealed the suspension over the summer, but was unsuccessful.

Althea Johnson, a USF spokesperson, said she could not comment on an individual’s status in the conduct process due to federal student privacy laws. She said USF values free speech and the right of groups to express themselves, but that there are consequences for those that do not follow university policies or the law.

“Those who violate the USF Student Code of Conduct or university use of space policies are subject to sanctions from the university,” she said.

When Charry was told in August that the suspension would stick, he said it was “impossible” to transfer to a different college.

To keep his student visa, Charry must be enrolled in classes each semester. So, when he wasn’t registered in the fall, he received an email on Sept. 11 saying he would have to leave the country by the end of the month.

Back with his family in Colombia, Charry is still working on transferring to a different school, such as Hillsborough Community College, where he could get a new student visa in the spring.

“They’re really worried about me,” Charry said about his family’s reactions.

He said his family was shocked at USF’s actions in response to the protests, including his suspension.

He was one of several students who faced consequences from the university for their involvement.

Victoria Hinckley was supposed to graduate in May, but right before her graduation, she was notified by USF that she was expelled.

She said she was picked from the crowd of student protesters because she was listed as the president of the Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) on BullsConnect.

“It was really devastating to learn that they were keeping me from going to my graduation ceremony,” said Hinckley, who was a sociology and women’s and gender studies major.

Hinckley, who is 22 years old and still working with SDS, said her appeals were also unsuccessful.

She said she felt like she was targeted for her support of Palestine.

“I think it’s a really horrible, evil thing to do,” Hinckley said.

She said she was charged with “multiple” code of conduct violations, including facilitating or encouraging others to violate university policies.

Like Charry, she was not arrested during the protests.

Hinckley said she stepped away from the encampment after the 5 p.m. deadline given by law enforcement. However, she said she stayed near the Marshall Student Center holding water for the students who were tear-gassed.

Hinckley said other students had faced disciplinary consequences from the university, such as writing an apology letter, but that their punishments were small in comparison to her expulsion.

She said everyone around her was “shocked” and “upset that the school was doing this.” Hinkley said she had worked hard over the past four years and committed a lot of time and money to a degree she was just days away from receiving.

“I was talking about Palestine,” she said. “It’s absolutely ridiculous. And it’s such a miscarriage of justice.”