Tensions rose when news of Trump’s ban on immigration came to light on January 27th, 2017. This new piece of legislation restricts people from seven countries from entering the United States for 90 days. These countries are: Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. The ban also prohibits all refugees from entering the U.S. for about 120 days. Visas have been revoked, and the initial order left customs reeling, struggling to figure out how to carry the new orders out.
The ban targets countries that have a large concentration of Muslims, so many people accused Trump of discriminating against Muslim countries, carelessly putting them under the name “terrorists.” Trump claims that this ban was for the safety of United States citizens, but what are we protecting them from? Terrorism? If anything this ban has outraged organizations like ISIS even more, people believe, giving them more reasons to radicalize recruits. Not only has this new legislation turned other countries against the U.S, citizens of the United States themselves have turned against the government in anger.
It is safe to say that this ban on immigration is extremely unpopular, riots and protests springing up almost immediately after hearing the news. Airports were packed full of unhappy citizens protesting the ban, all enraged at the new president. Families were separated by the ban and many people sympathized with those targeted by the new law. Junior Amahn Syed says, “I have plenty of friends who were affected by this ban. I know a family from Iran that couldn’t have the rest of their family come and visit their dying grandmother. It’s really sad that a family missed something like that over politics.”
Junior Amahn Syed after giving his opinion on Trump’s ban. Photo by Simone Ritthisorn
Trump’s administration has released more information on the new policies. For example, many Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agents can now deport anyone with any kind of criminal background or those who pose security threats. However, during this process, instead of releasing the immigrant into the U.S. to await a decision, they will be kept or released to wherever they came from. On top of this, immigration can now deport undocumented immigrants without letting them see a judge. The Department of Homeland Security is now also training local law enforcement to act as immigration officers in some instances by identifying undocumented immigrants and turning them over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Trump’s ban was opposed by federal courts for its legality, so he will try again to push his travel ban and new immigration policies. This second order is expected to be even stricter and more in depth than the first one, which caused so much confusion. However, green card holders and permanent U.S. residents are expected to be unaffected by this law. For now though, Americans wait the release of this new order and how it will change and affect lives.