Imamigration Lessons from the Controversial Case of Dharun Ravi

Dharun Ravi, a 20-year-old Indian citizen and former Rutgers student, recently served 20 days in jail for bias intimidation and other offenses after he broadcast via webcam his gay roommate’s sexual encounter with a man (and ended in his suicide).

Professor Mark Noferi discussed the Rutgers webcam case in relation to immigration detention and removal. The widely publicized case sentenced Dharun Ravi, an Indian immigrant, with 30 days in jail for bias intimidation that lead to the suicide of his gay roommate. Although Ravi was not pursued by U.S. Immigration authorities for his conviction, Professor Noferi explains that many green card holders are subject to detention and removal by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for far lesser crimes. “As a result, many immigrants, unlike Ravi, are detained without public attention, without representation and without a realistic chance to defend deportation to a country they hardly know,” wrote Professor Noferi. “And many older immigrants, with even stronger ties to America through a lifetime of work, family and friends, are deported later in life for crimes committed when Ravi’s age.”

KJ