Tuscaloosa, Alabama chaos: Fear grips Iranian students after crackdown
Foreign scholars in Alabama expressing anxiety amidst the detainment of a researcher, seemingly unlinked to politics.
TUSCALOOSA, AL - The lives of Sama Ebrahimi Bajgani and her fiance, Alireza Doroudi, took a sudden turn for the worse after a cozy Persian New Year celebration at the University of Alabama. Seven armed immigration officers arrived at their apartment before dawn, arresting Doroudi.
"Life was normal until that fateful night," Bajgani shared. "Afterward, nothing is just normal anymore."
news of Doroudi's arrest swept through Tuscaloosa's small Iranian community, home to both Bajgani and Doroudi as doctoral students. Other Iranian students claim faculty have informally advised them to "stay low" and "be invisible," causing unease in the once vibrant scholarly cohort.
Doroudi's detention is part of a broader trend involving students across the U.S., as President Donald Trump's immigration policy tightens its grip. Bajgani claimed that Doroudi, with no criminal record or public political views, faces deportation, and feels betrayed by the university following Trump's visit, stating that "it seemed like the university was ignorant of our crisis."
One close friend and fellow civil engineering student said he's lost over ten pounds due to stress and depression amid Doroudi's detention. "It feels like we're all waiting for our turn. Every knock, every email could be deportation," he confessed anonymously, owing to concerns about his own legal status. Now, he avoids unnecessary trips outside and dreads any potentially dangerous situations, like a car accident last month that he begged not to report.
Permission denied
Bajgani described Doroudi, 32, as an ambitious mechanical engineering student from Shiraz, Iran. Doroudi entered the U.S. legally in January 2025 on a student visa. He worked tirelessly, often averaging 60-hour weeks while still tending to loved ones' errands. "If someone like him doesn't manage to reach his destination, there is no such thing as the American dream," Bajgani lamented.
Doroudi's visa was revoked in June 2025, but the embassy provided no reason and ignored his inquiries. The university informed him that he could remain as long as he maintained student status but would not be allowed to reenter the U.S. should he leave, Bajgani said. Hoping to follow these guidelines, Doroudi was taken aback when immigration officers came to their door in March.
The University of Alabama declined to comment on Doroudi's case, stating only that it offers resources to help immigrants on campus comply with federal law and provides guidance to students whose visas are revoked.
Detained in a Louisiana immigration detention facility more than 300 miles from Tuscaloosa, Doroudi awaits a deportation hearing scheduled for next week. "I didn't deserve this," he asserted in a letter to Bajgani. "If they had simply sent a letter requiring me to appear in court, I would have come because I didn't break any laws. I stayed there with their permission. What was the reason for throwing me in jail?"
Immigration crackdown fallout
More than 1,000 international students across the U.S. have seen their visas or legal status revoked since late March, according to an Associated Press review of university statements and school officials' correspondence. Even among those detained, reversals have occurred, including four University of Alabama students.
"University staff closely monitors changes that could affect their status and communicates updates regarding new protocols and procedures," the University stated.
Doroudi's attorney, David Rozas, expressed astonishment after a Louisiana judge failed to grant Doroudi bond in mid-April, citing insufficient proof that Doroudi posed no national security threat. Yet, no evidence has been presented that implicates Doroudi in any wrongdoing, aside from visa revocation and status issues as claimed by the Department of Homeland Security.
A taste of fear
International students constitute approximately 13% of the University of Alabama's graduate program, according to the school's website. An estimated 100 Iranian students attend the university, as reported by the Iranian Student Association.
Every year, the community gathers for Sizdah Bedar, a festive holiday commemorating the thirteenth day of the Persian new year. This year, the celebration felt somber and despairing — like a funeral service, as one Iranian doctoral student put it. At times, the group fell silent as a police car passed by.
"Living here and thriving is becoming increasingly difficult," the student shared anonymously, fearing retaliation. Having long spoken out against the Iranian regime since arriving in the U.S. over five years ago, she now questions her safety, both in Iran and Alabama.
"It's starting to feel like we're going back to Iran," she said.
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The search results do not provide information about Alireza Doroudi's detention during Trump's immigration crackdown in 2025. However, they do mention a recent incident involving Alireza Doroudi, a University of Alabama graduate student, who was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in March 2025.
Here are the details from the recent incident:
- Detention and Charges: Alireza Doroudi was detained on March 25, 2025, due to an alleged revoked F-1 student visa and an accusation of not being in legal status. He was held at the Jena-LaSalle ICE Detention Facility in Louisiana.
- Voluntary Departure: Doroudi requested voluntary departure to avoid prolonged detention, following a hearing on May 8, 2025. This decision was made to return to his home country of Iran.
- Legal Perspective: Despite national security concerns initially raised, no evidence was presented to justify these claims. The charges were limited to visa revocation and status issues, with the revocation to take effect only upon his departure from the U.S. [1].
For information specifically about Trump's immigration crackdown, you would need to look for historical data or news articles from that period. However, the current search results do not provide that information.
Education and self-development is a fundamental aspect of Alireza Doroudi's life as he pursues his doctoral studies in mechanical engineering at the University of Alabama, but politics and general news have drastically impacted his journey. The immigration crackdown under President Donald Trump's policy has disrupted the lives of many international students, including Doroudi, who was detained in March 2025, despite holding a legal student visa since January 2025. This unsettling turn of events has caused unease and fear within Tuscaloosa's small Iranian community, raising concerns about the once vibrant scholarly cohort's future prospects.
