Donald Trump's "Muslim Ban"

Overview

Donald Trump's "Muslim Ban", also known as Trump's Travel Ban, refers to a controversial executive order issued by President Trump which calls for an immediate suspension of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) and entry admission to any foreign nationals originating from seven Muslim-majority countries, regardless of their visa status. Upon its enactment on January 27th, 2017, Trump's anti-immigration policy drew sharp criticisms from politicians, advocacy groups and public opinion alike, as well as a series of protests at major international airports across the United States. The executive order was upheld in a 5-to-4 decision by the Supreme Court in June 2018.

Background

Formally entitled "Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States," President Trump's executive order stipulated the immediate suspension of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP), a joint federal agency that identifies and admits refugees for resettlement into the United States, and a temporary denial-of-entry to any foreign nationals originating from seven Muslim-majority countries, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen and Syria, with the duration ranging from 60 days to indefinite, regardless of their visa status.

Developments

Online Reaction

On the early morning of January 28th, within the hour of the breaking news, many Americans wary of Trump's anti-immigration policy took their reactions to Twitter and Facebook using the hashtags #MuslimBan,^[10] #OccupyAirports,^[11] #RESIST^[12] and #RiseUp,^[13] among many others.

Official Responses

Throughout the day, mass confusion and unexplained detainment of at least a dozen foreign nationals were reported from various international airports across the country, as security agents and ranking officials struggled to adjust to the new directives alike. According to CNN, neither the Department of Homeland Security or the United States Border Patrol had been briefed on the specifics of the plan in advance, while the White House didn't seek guidance or input from the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel before signing of the order, citing an anonymous source inside the White House. On January 29th, the White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus announced that green card holders from the seven countries would not be banned from entering the country during an appearance on NBC’s Meet the Press, effectively revoking one of the key aspects

Federal Court Ruling

On January 28th, hours after the executive order was signed, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit on behalf of two Iraqis who were detained at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on the day before, asserting that President Trump's order was in violation of procedural due process under the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, the Immigration and Nationality Act, the Convention Against Torture, the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998, and the Administrative Procedure Act. At about 9:00 p.m. (EST), New York federal district judge Ann Donnelly partially blocked the executive order, ruling that refugees, naturalized citizens, visa holders, and green-card holders from the sanctioned countries could not be sent back to their home countries.

Airport Protests

Also on January 28th, tens of thousands of Americans assembled at dozens of major international airports across the country to protest Donald Trump's travel ban on Muslim immigrants, most notably in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington D.C.

#DeleteUber Protests

On January 27th, 2017, thousands of demonstrators assembled at the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City to protest President Donald Trump's executive order calling for a large-scale travel ban on foreign nations originating from certain Muslim-majority countries. The protest was also joined by an hour-long strike from mostly immigrant New York City taxi drivers under the direction of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance (NYTWA).

Approximately half an hour into the NYTWA's hour-long strike, Uber NYC tweeted that surge pricing has been temporarily disabled at JFK as the demand for Uber services began skyrocketing.

While the company's intention behind the decision remains unclear, Uber's temporary suspension of surge pricing was largely interpreted by many New Yorkers as a strike-breaking move, soon giving rise to an Uber boycott movement across the social media under the trending hashtag #DeleteUber.

Acting Attorney General Reaction

On January 30th, 2017, Acting Attorney General Sally Yates ordered the Justice Department to not defend Trump's order, saying "At present, I am not convinced that the defense of the executive order is consistent with these responsibilities of the Department of Justice, nor am I convinced that the executive order is lawful."^[14] Trump then fired her from her post in a move that political analysts said recalled Nixon's "Saturday Night Massacre," when the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General resigned for refusing to fire Nixon's prosecutor.

#BoycottStarbucks

In response to the executive order, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz declared that Starbucks would hire 10,000 refugees over the next five years.^[15] This led Trump supporters to tweet the hashtag "#BoycottStarbucks" in protest of the company's stance.

Supreme Court Decision

Following months of litigation in lower courts, many of which who rejected the travel ban on grounds of discrimination due to President Trump's stated intent while a presidential candidate, the Supreme Court upheld the president's executive order in a 5-to-4 decision. Chief Justice John Roberts delivered the court's decision, stating that the president was within his rights to apply the travel ban as a means of national security, "an act that could have been taken by any other president."^[16]

Liberal judges dissented. Justice Sonia Sotomayor compared the decision to that of Korematus v. United States, which upheld the president's right to place Japanese-Americans in internment camps. Pointing to the multiple instances that President Trump had made remarks about Muslims, including "Islam hates us," that that speaks to the intent of the ban. In her written opinion, she said, "Our Constitution demands, and our country deserves a judiciary willing to hold the coordinate branches to account when they defy our most sacred legal commitments."

That day, President Trump tweeted,^[17] "SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS TRUMP TRAVEL BAN. Wow!" The post (shown below) received more than 36,000 retweets and 163,000 likes in 24 hours.

Search Interest

External References