LWVMA Calls for the Release of Rümeysa Öztürk

On Tuesday, March 25, Tufts University PhD student and Fulbright scholar Rümeysa Öztürk was forcibly removed by ICE in Somerville. She remains detained at an ICE detention center in Louisiana. Rümeysa was in the United States legally on a student visa, which was terminated as punishment for exercising her First Amendment right to free speech by publishing an op-ed in her student newspaper. Rümeysa has not been accused of or charged with any crime. She has been denied her Fifth Amendment right to due process. For more information, view THIS Boston.com article.

Advocacy Chair Jen Muroff and LWV Wellesley Director Marguerite Chatelier attended the rally held last night, April 1, at the JFK Federal Building in Boston to demand Rümeysa’s release. 

The League of Women Voters believes in the individual liberties guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States. No person or group should suffer legal discrimination. The League supports due process for all persons, including the right to a fair hearing, the right to counsel, the right of appeal, and the right to humane treatment.  

We applaud and join the members of our congressional delegation and the MA Black and Latino Legislative Caucus in demanding Rümeysa Öztürk’s immediate release and return to the Commonwealth.