I must admit that I was very glad that Prof. Mehta's story made to
the
headline and drew significant attention. It seems that the apology was
delivered mainly because of Prof. Mehta's scientific prestige. I reckon
there is one more reason to be the best.
Nonetheless, such humiliation is all too common to foreign nationals.
Three years ago, the U.S. consulate in Toronto told me that they had to
conduct a security background check before they could renew my H1b
visa. At that time, I was actively employed by Oak Ridge National
Laboratory (ORNL), a US Dept. of Energy's facility. Every person who works at
ORNL goes through a background check that is far stricter than
that of the State Department's. The arrogant Consel in Toronto refused
to accept the security clearance report provided by the ORNL legal staff
who accompanied me, and insisted on a separate investigation initiated
by the State Department.
It took nine months.
After waiting outside the United States for nine moths, I could not say no when the
visa
was finally granted, because I loved my research too much and
desparately wanted the job. Not surprisingly, there was no apology to
me, a junior-ranked scientist who had just started her career.
Jane Howe, PhD
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