A College Student's Perspective: Trump's Muslim Ban

By Anthony Romero on February 20, 2017

Whether you’ve read it or not, most people have heard of Trump’s Muslim Ban. As a millennial college student who embraces all the bad and good connotations of the label, I’ve been keeping an eye on politics in my downtime. I don’t know, there’s something interesting about seeing how national policy in its many varieties works out, and the just as fascinating faces that present them.

To be clear, however, I am not a Trump supporter, nor do I shame anyone who is, despite my thoughts on it all. Freedom of speech is a strong standpoint for me, and while I may not support you, and I may not agree, I very likely will make sure you can still speak.

Furthermore, I, myself, am flat-out against any blanket ban of any immigration based solely on whatever religion they may embrace, whatever that religion may be. So, with that said, today, I’d like to take a look at the executive order our President put out that affects immigration and travel.

Find the source here.

First and foremost, let us explain the executive order in simple terms. The restriction of travel affects seven countries: Yemen, Libya, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, and Somalia; there is a 90-day travel ban for travelers, and a 120-day travel ban for refugees (Syria is an exception as it has an indefinite ban); during this time, the vetting process will be reviewed and altered accordingly; and only 50,000 refugees will be permitted to enter the U.S. per year while visas, or green-cards, can be refused for travel back into the country.

With that out of the way, let’s delve right in and address my thoughts on the idea that this is, or isn’t, Trump’s Muslim Ban. From just reading the executive order alone, one can find that the word Muslim isn’t utilized once; so, one would have to specify what it is they’re discriminating against, if one were at all.

On the other hand, of course, the seven countries are known as Muslim majority-countries — basically, countries that identify their natural religion as Islam, or countries with a populace that mostly practices the beliefs. There’s also the notable omission of Saudi Arabia, which is especially interesting because the September attacks of 9/11 were cited as supporting reasons. The reason why this particular country, if you’re not aware, is so notable is because the majority of the hijackers that had damned the Twin Towers were Saudis (beyond the fact that we have confirmed plenty of terrorists coming out from that particular country as well).

Trump’s official reasoning was that these places were identified as sources of terror, and well, he isn’t quite wrong; many sectarian conflicts occur in the listed countries, but again, there should have been more countries added to the list if that was all. However, many of us all saw the campaigning that the current President did, and have seen his interviews and all sorts of media surrounding him. We know the anti-Muslim promises he made, and while this has been reworded and shaped without the usage of the word Muslim, I feel it’s a safe-bet to know he is realizing these promises.

So, is Trump’s Muslim ban actually a Muslim ban? Well, not directly, but there sure are interesting prospects within it that could make it so; a strong legal point, for example, would be to note this particular passage from the order:

“Sec. 5 (b) … the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, is further directed to make changes, to the extent permitted by law, to prioritize refugee claims made by individuals on the basis of religious-based persecution, provided that the religion of the individual is a minority religion in the individual’s country of nationality …”

The order specifically gives preferential treatment of certain persons based on their religion, solely. The minority would, mainly, be Christians, and while I think saving them (anyone really) is a great thing, one also has to understand that other Muslims are at just as much risk as Christians out there. To pretend one way or another would be ridiculous, and yet, that isn’t even the most perturbing of things.

The First Amendment is clear in that the government cannot make laws, by executive order or through legislation, that regard the establishment of a national religion or prohibit the free exercise of any religion. Given the partnership of that and the list itself, you can argue the President’s order does, indirectly, say that anyone who is a Muslim (or who doesn’t practice any religion at all) from any of these countries will be treated differently from anyone who does practice a different religion. Personally, I find it to be a discriminatory regulation in plain-view, and an unconstitutional one.

Whether or not this is a Muslim Ban, is really more of a red-herring, though. Why? Well, for one, only Syria is actually banned indefinitely; travel is merely suspended while we review our vetting processes. I think, that, by itself is fine, but I also see favoritism and omissions as I’ve already mentioned previously. You could argue one way, or another way, and you wouldn’t be entirely wrong on either side of the coin, beyond constitutional violation.

What really bothers me, however, is the fact that many people who have lived here for years — people with jobs and families, that have gone through and gotten their green card — can now be barred from entry should they leave. More than that, people who may have dual citizenship from one of the banned countries, but have lived in a western country for decades, such as the UK, could be easily barred entry as well.

Honestly, what is even the point of that? Why couldn’t there be a temporary ban on new applicants instead? Is it truly necessary to ban people already here who have families and jobs? I don’t think so, and this is the part of the entire order that really makes me flare my nostrils. To me, it comes off as an inaccurate, shotgun-reactionary approach.

At the end of the day, though, this is just my personal view of the overall executive order, and whatever opinions you have, or don’t have, I encourage you to explore information on your own and help create discussions on this, and any future topics. Politics are an interesting sphere of influence and knowledge, and this Muslim Ban is only one of many events in the coming future of our President’s four years.

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