The Trump administration's increased scrutiny of pro-Palestinian protests, including social media screening and visa revocations, has dampened campus activism. Free speech experts and some activist groups are concerned about the chilling effect on student activism and the potential long-term implications for First Amendment rights.

“I think that the intimidation is just starting to take effect,” says William Banks, professor emeritus of public administration and international affairs. “Trump's back and everybody knows it.”

Banks says chilling student protests risks quieting the country's conscience. Protests might be sometimes-inconvenient or messy, but young people have long provided a valuable values check about what the United States stands for, he says.

“I think we will (eventually) see a return to activism but some courts are going to have to come along and say to the Trump administration, ‘you can't summarily round people up, can't summarily tell people they can't protest,’” Banks says. “He's going to do it as long as he can get away with it.”

Read more in the USA Today article, “Trump targeted college students. Campuses went silent.”