Asian Americans denounce expansion of the Muslim ban

SAALT

ASAM NEWS

Both South Asian American and Japanese American groups are condemning Donald Trump’s decision Jan. 31 to expand his Muslim travel ban to six more countries.

“Like each previous version of the Muslim ban, this new ban is rooted in the Trump administration’s bigotry and xenophobia, including the president’s well-known belief that Black immigrants come from “sh*thole countries,” said Mike Ishii, Co-Director of Tsuru for Solidarity, a group of Japanese Americans dedicated to ending detention of refugees and immigrants at detention centers.

The ban now includes Myanmar, Nigeria, Kyrgyzstan, Eritrea, Sudan and Tanzania.

“One thing is clear, the Muslim Ban was this administration’s first family separation policy just days after the presidential inauguration in 2017, and it has served as the foundational policy for targeting communities of color ever since,” said Lakshmi Sridaran, South Asian Americans Leading Together’s Interim Executive Director. “Since then, we have seen attacks on DACA, TPS, diversity lottery, green cards, public benefits, refugees, asylum seekers, pregnant women, and more to institutionalize a white supremacist agenda.”

The issue is one close to the heart of many Japanese Americans.

“We recognize this kind of bigotry; it is what politicians used during World War II to justify rounding up our families and throwing us into American concentration camps,” Ishii explained.

It is apparent that in including Myanmar, formerly Burma, the Trump administration is targeting the Rohingya Muslims fleeing government-approved persecution.

“For decades, the minority Rohingya Muslims of Burma have been exposed to human rights violations. Now, those who reside in the United States are living in fear of being seperateded from their family due to Trump’s expansion of the Muslim ban. Anything that tears apart our families threatens our nation," said Henny Ohr, executive director at Ethnic Minorities of Burma Advocacy and Resource Center in Iowa in a statement.

"That’s why today, immigrant families in Iowa and throughout our nation affirm our belief that having family values means keeping families together no matter their creed or where they were born.” 

SAALT is calling for the passage of the No Ban Act. The Act calls for the immediately rescission of the Muslim Ban and would limit the president’s power to exercise such authority.

"From scapegoating Muslims with the Muslim Ban to now expanding the same restrictions to other immigrant communities of color, the Trump administration continues to weaponize immigration law in order to advance its xenophobic agenda," said Javeria Jamil, a lawyer at the National Security & Civil Rights of Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Asian Law Caucus.

'Trump’s extended un-American travel ban undermines our nation’s core values. It is clearly driven by hate, not security," tweeted California Sen. Kamala Harris.

Views From the Edge contributed to this report.