Local Iranian Student Speaks to CW6 About Being Detained & Deported

Sara Yarjani speaks with CW 6’s Neda Iranpour about being detained and deported because of her Iranian background. She is getting her master’s degree at California Institute for Human Science in Encinitas and is here with a student Visa. 

She was visiting family in Austria during winter break and upon her return, mid-flight, President Trump signed the first travel ban. When she landed at LAX she was told her student Visa no longer was valid because of her Iranian background. 

She was detained for 23 hours and sent back to Austria. She says she has not lived in Iran in 20 years but she grew up there, so to be detained because of her heritage came as a shock to Yarjani, who has never had any trouble traveling. 

During the interview, Yarjani said she worries about entire races or religions being discriminated against. She says there must be a better way to keep the U.S. secure from terrorism and she hopes fear does not guide policy. 

She did receive an outpouring of support when news got out about her deportation and she wanted to thank everyone who reached out to her. Yarjani was recently invited to be the guest of Congresswoman Judy Chu in Washington D.C. during President Trump’s speech to Congress. 

She is back home from D.C. now and focusing on getting her master’s degree in holistic health. Read More: cw6sandiego