Comment on Reported Guidance for Trump Muslim Ban Implementation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 29, 2017

CONTACT
Email: [email protected]
Juan Gastelum, 213-375-3149
Hayley Burgess, 202-384-1279

Comment on Reported Guidance for Trump Muslim Ban Implementation

WASHINGTON — The federal government has reportedly issued extremely restrictive guidance on how it plans to implement a portion of President Trump’s Muslim ban.

The ban had been blocked by court orders, but on Monday the Supreme Court issued a ruling allowing the government to move forward with a narrowed portion of the ban starting today.

As modified by the Supreme Court, the federal court orders governing the ban provide that the government may not apply either the 90-day ban on nationals of six countries or the 120-day ban on refugees to any individual who can credibly claim a “bona fide relationship” with a person or entity in the United States.

Reports indicate, however, that the guidance arbitrarily refuses to treat certain categories of familial relationships (grandparents, grandchildren, uncles, aunts, cousins, fiancés, fiancées, and more) as “bona fide” relationships.

“It remains clear that President Trump’s purpose is to disparage and condemn Muslims. The reported guidance does not comport with the Supreme Court’s order, is arbitrary, and is not tied to any legitimate government purpose,” said Omar Jadwat, director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project.

The American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Maryland, and National Immigration Law Center are challenging the ban on behalf of HIAS, the International Refugee Assistance Project, the Middle East Studies Association, and individuals affected by the ban.

“This reported guidance would slam the door shut on so many who have waited for months or years to be reunited with their families. Those engaged to be married, for example, have been cruelly left out. This reported guidance should leave no doubt that the Trump administration will exploit any opportunity to advance its xenophobic agenda,” said Karen Tumlin, legal director at the National Immigration Law Center.

More information is available at www.nilc.org/irap-v-trump/.

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