President Trump’s travel ban has left many confused on what the ban actually means and how it will affect refugees and people with green cards and visas. Trump’s order titled, “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States,” has had many people asking questions and concerned for others trying to get into the U.S.
What exactly is the purpose of the order? The purpose is to detect and sort out individuals with terrorist ties and prevent them from entering the U.S. The order will last 90 days and stops those who are from the seven countries of Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, Iraq and Iran. These countries were already indicated as an area of terror concern by the Obama administration. The order allows refugees already in the process of being vetted to continue the process but only after going through a screening process. Anyone granted the status of a refugee is suspended of the status for 120 days.
The Trump administration is working towards strengthening and building up a stronger immigration procedures. The order would affect green card holders traveling to the U.S from the list of countries and if they were coming back into the U.S., they would be intensely questioned.
After the ban was put in place, many protests broke out especially at the J.F.K Airport where there were a significant amount of people protesting the ban. A student at Cabrini University, Nia Alvarez-Mapp attended the peaceful protest at the airport and felt that it was the right thing to do because there were people being vetted and holding non-U.S. citizens in the airport.
“It was different compared to the usual protests I’ve been to,” Alvarez-Mapp said. “It was calmer compared to other protests with no blood in the streets or a van full of people in handcuffs.
The protest ended when they sang “This Land is Your Land” and heard the news about Judge Ann Donnelly temporarily blocking the order in New York.
The order brought up many questions relating to whether or not we can keep the U.S. safe while also keep the refugees safe. From a Catholic perspective, Catholic Social Teaching states that a country has the right to regulate and control their borders, but also emphasizes that it must be done in a loving and merciful way.
“As a Catholic my principal duty is to open my heart to refugees and to advocate for their safety and wellbeing,” Rosa Altomare, Cabrini University campus minister said. “They are fleeing violence and danger that I am unable to imagine, and I could not imagine Jesus turning his back on them, as they are among some of the most vulnerable people in our world today.”
One of the many reasons for the ban was to keep U.S. citizens safe during these very unpredictable times with a lot of terrorism in the world. Throughout the past there have been many presidents who placed specific immigration bans on certain countries that carried a potential threat to the U.S. It is President Trump’s main focus and his responsibility to protect American citizens. The situation continues to have many Americans looking at all perspectives of the situation, and asking themselves the question, “can we really save everyone?”
