Fern, a community advisor with Students for Justice in Palestine at VCU, spoke April 4 at VCU’s Park Plaza during the “Hands Off Our Students Walkout” in response to international students having their visas revoked.
 

Nicole Subrayan-Bailey, a nurse, visited the Social Security office Tuesday morning to request a physical copy of her Social Security statement—previously accessible online—because she was concerned her benefits might be erased, she said. “I thought I was getting a statement today. Oh no, honey. They were like, ‘No, this is to make an appointment to get your statement.’ And I couldn’t even make an appointment! She’s like, ‘the system’s down,’” Subrayan-Bailey said.

The Social Security Administration implemented new measures Monday, which President Trump and Elon Musk, senior adviser to the president, have described as an effort to reduce fraud. The agency announced it will begin conducting “fraud checks” on all phone applications for benefits. Applications flagged as potentially fraudulent will require applicants to verify their identity in person at a Social Security office.

Subrayan-Bailey later joined about 30 protesters outside the Social Security office on Cary Street, demonstrating against what they viewed as threats to the agency under Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Their concerns were heightened  later that day by a memorandum signed by the president.

 Demonstrators gather outside the Social Security Administration office on West Cary Street in Richmond for a “Hands Off Social Security” rally.
 

A change to policies prevents beneficiaries from updating direct deposit information over the phone, which could create accessibility problems for those living far from physical Social Security offices. According to a report by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, less than one hundredth of a percent of the total $1.5 trillion in benefits distributed last year was lost due to direct deposit fraud.

Outside the office, there was a cardboard cut-out meant to represent U.S. Rep. John McGuire (R) tied to a tree. Jennifer Strozier, the co-chair of the Goochland Democratic Committee, said the cutout was originally made for a town hall meeting, which Maguire was expected to attend but did not.

“We’ve been taking him around because John McGuire is impossible to reach on the phone or in person. He has an office in Lynchburg that he is never at. It took him months to put a phone in there and it still I think has a weird recording that doesn’t identify it as John McGuire’s phone,” Strozier said.

Strozier said McGuire, who is “deeply in the pocket of Donald Trump,” has supported policy changes in line with DOGE’s attempts to reduce fraud that make it harder to access Social Security resources online, especially for rural Virginians, such as those who live in McGuire’s 5th congressional district.

McGuire’s office was contacted for comment, but did not reply at the time of publication.

On the same day as the protest, the president signed a memorandum that claimed to end Social Security retirement benefits for undocumented immigrants, which was already the law. The memorandum also expands Social Security’s fraud prosecutor program to at least 50 U.S. Attorney offices, according to the White House.

Recently, the Social Security administration announced plans to lay off 7,000 employees, about 12% of their workforce, in compliance with DOGE. Although the Trump administration has said it intends to protect Social Security,

Virginia Senator Ghazala Hashmi, who attended the protest, said the administration has already taken steps to dismantle and privatize it, citing impending layoffs and impacts to services.

“They have fed misinformation all across the country arguing that Social Security is going bankrupt, that it’s a handout and all of those are lies. It’s not going bankrupt.

“It is the retirement plan for hundreds of millions of Americans,” Hashmi said.

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About 25 international students from four Virginia universities — Virginia Commonwealth University, the University of Virginia, George Mason University and Virginia Tech — have had their student visas revoked as the Trump administration targets more than 1,000 international students nationwide.

According to a statement from VCU president Michael Rao, two of these students and one alum were from VCU, where students staged a walkout at noon on Monday.

Students involved in Students for Justice in Palestine held a walkout in protest of these actions on Monday. Sereen Haddad, student at VCU and pro-Palestinian activist, explained that the pro-Palestinian movement stood up for international students because the issues are intertwined.

“I think that these actions and the visa revocations do send a very disturbing message that anyone at any time really can be targeted. And it’s not just about immigration status, it’s about repression. It’s about kind of sending a warning to every student who does dare to speak, organize or resist,” she said.

In the same statement, Rao said the university “stands with the international community,” though Haddad said that support hasn’t been reflected in the school’s actions.

“I mean that that’s quite literally VCU’s entire branding that they’re ‘UNcommon’ and that they’re diverse. Yet when it comes to protecting that international community and the students that make it diverse, they back down and they don’t stand by that promise,” Haddad said.

 A protester’s sign hangs at VCU’s Park Plaza on Monday, April 4, during the Hands Off Our Students Walkout. The rally was held in response to two VCU students and one recent graduate having their visas revoked and called on the university to support those affected and end the presence federal authorities on campus.
 

About 10 university professors attended the protest. Mark Wood, an associate professor of religious studies, said he was disappointed by the turnout of his peers, but noted that some faculty members may fear backlash for speaking out.

“They’re afraid that if they get involved, they’re going to be on a list and they’re more likely to be subject to some sort of disciplinary action or worse, you know, given what’s going on right now,” he said.

Last week, international students received an email from the Global Education Office which instructed them to carry documents with them at all times, and reminded them that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) does not need a warrant to request documentation from people in public.

Zarina Fazaldin, who attended the protest to support international students, traveled from India to Virginia to pursue a graduate degree at VCU in 1987. When she first came to the country, she felt supported by the community in Richmond, something that has changed in recent years, she said.

“It was very different. Life was different. We didn’t have to worry about not carrying anything. Of course, I always had my VCU ID, but I didn’t carry my passport or anything. Things have changed now. We all have fear. Even though I’m a citizen we still have fear,” Fazaldin said.

 Zarina Fazaldin, a former international student at VCU, attends the protest at Park Plaza. She said it was painful to see others lose the same opportunity she had to build a life in Richmond.
 

Fazaldin finds it odd that the United States is attempting to reduce the number of international students, especially because those who come to the United States are already investing a lot in the country, she said.

“We leave our family, we stay far away. But because of education, because of the opportunity, (because) of free speech. If you work hard, your life will get better,” Fazaldin said, “This is why America is the land of opportunity. Now it looks like we are doing something wrong coming to study here.”

The university said, due to privacy laws, it could not disclose the criteria for student visa terminations, whether affected students were in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, or whether ICE agents are allowed to enter campus classrooms. It also could not confirm whether there is a plan to let affected students complete their degrees online.