The social media post of a woman from Kerala, India became so viral that she deleted her ex-account and also the post in which she had expressed her helplessness due to not getting an appointment for the F-1 visa. Therese Jo Lawrence said she is from Kerala and got into Harvard Law School with more than a 90% scholarship. But now she is stuck at the visa level as she could not get an F-1 visa appointment, and she has only 25 days left. She also mentioned that the course could not be postponed, and she only opened an X account to talk about her situation.“My name is Thresi. I am from Kerala. I am an upcoming LLM candidate at HLS Fall 2026. For almost two months I have tried everything. No slots. No date. Nothing. My program starts from 13th August. I have to reach there by August 10,” claimed the student. The post and account have now been removed.“I don’t come from a family of contacts. I don’t have any contacts in embassies or the government. I’m just a first-generation student who has worked for this for years – and I’m 25 days away from losing it because of one slot,” she said.The post went viral after American billionaire Bill Ackman expressed sympathy for Thresi and asked for help on Thresi’s behalf. Our immigration policies need to be reformed to allow the best and brightest to stay here to receive an education in the United States and create value for our country. As long as their values are aligned with the long-term interests of our country, their visas should be fast-tracked. Can anyone help this young lady with immigration? Bill Ackman wrote.
‘The best and brightest are Americans’
X users criticized Ekman for concluding that the Indian woman in question was one of the best and brightest women. “And just how, may I ask, are you determining that these are the “best and brightest” in the world? Fraud is rampant in the degrees and recommendation letters awarded from students who are not US citizens (well documented, especially from India). You of all people should know better. Your ignorance in this area really saddens me,” one wrote.“Then why don’t you finance a Harvard in Kerala?” Another wrote.“I’m the best and brightest and I’ve been unemployed for less than a year. Since then – applied for hundreds of jobs, created really innovative products, and kept my family together. If I didn’t save and invest I’d be alone. How many people do you think actually understand value creation? It takes longer than Harvard to understand it,” wrote a third user.