Travel ban thwarted, judges claim discriminatory

Lilly Durante

On Jan 27, one week after President Trump took office, he issued an executive travel ban to prevent refugees from eight predominantly Muslim countries from entering the United States. The ban prohibits citizens of Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Libya, Sudan, and Yemen from entering the United States for 90 days, and Syrian citizens indefinitely.

This travel ban order caused chaos throughout the United States, as it was put into action immediately. Airlines had to fly some travelers back to where they came from, and other travelers were detained for indefinite periods of time.

The ban significantly affected people with valid green cards and visas from these seven countries, as they would no longer be able to enter into the United States for any reason.

“I think it’s important that people feel safe, but I don’t agree with singling out a group of people based on their religion, ethnic identity, or their race in terms of denying them the possibility of traveling to the United States, especially when so many of these travelers are refugees. The United States has a history of a more open immigration policy; it’s who we are historically,” Government and Economics teacher Fred Beale said.

Protesters around the country have begun to file lawsuits against the ban, believing that it is unconstitutional. Eventually, the travel ban was ruled as unconstitutional by a U.S. District Court Judge in Virginia because of its truly discriminatory motives.
“I think it’s an important time to protest because this is an ongoing issue that is incredibly, morally wrong,” sophomore Lucia Raith said.

On March 6, Trump released an updated version of his travel ban that allows people with valid green cards and visas to enter the United States. It went into effect on Thursday, March 16.

A federal judge in Hawaii concluded that the second version of the travel ban is indeed an anti-Muslim ban as well, as it targets all people from the seven mentioned countries, regardless of their religious beliefs. Hawaii then issued a temporary restraining order that prohibits the execution of the order.

On Thursday, March 16, U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang issued a restraining order against a small portion of Trump’s travel ban, prohibiting only the portion that stopped citizens of the seven targeted majority Muslim countries receiving visas.

“No matter how much President Trump says that his travel ban is not directed at the Muslim religion, it will always have that preconceived notion. I believe that this act is wrong, both due to its underlying morals and that according to the facts, those from the Middle East are not near the leading cause of terrorism in the United States,” senior Caitlin Fitzpatrick said.
Currently, the legality of the order is being considered, as Donald Trump recently stated that, “To be clear, this is not a Muslim ban, as the media is falsely reporting.” However, in 2015, Trump called for “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.”

Trump claimed that his newly effective travel ban intended to protect the country from terrorism. However, many people believe that Trump’s motives are based on religious discrimination, as the ban targets primarily Muslim countries, and they will not stand for any type of wrongful discrimination.