Interview
Riyad Alhomsi is a PhD candidate student in the Second Language Acquisition and Teaching (SLAT) program here at the University of Arizona. In addition to pursuing his PhD, he teaches Arabic 101 to undergraduate students. He lived in Syria for most of his life, getting his undergraduate degree there, and returning to teach English at al-Baath University in Homs, Syria, after obtaining his Master’s from the University of Warwick in England. He moved to the United States as a Fulbright scholar in August of 2011, a few months after the Syrian Revolution began. As a native Syrian and someone with family members directly affected by the travel ban, he graciously agreed to be interviewed for this project.
Travel Ban
The travel ban is a highly contentious and legally ambiguous executive order from President Trump’s administration. It has been issued on two separate occasions, in slightly different versions; the original banned travel from seven Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East and North Africa, with an additional ban on refugees. This harsher version of the law would have even included green card holders, and specifically gave preferential treatment to Christians over Muslims. After this order was overturned by a federal three-judge panel, the administration released a second version of the law, which was less aggressive in blocking travelers but ultimately had the same effect as its predecessor. This order was also blocked by two separate federal judges.
The original order was the fruition of a campaign trail promise made by then-candidate Donald Trump to issue “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States,” shortly following the Paris terrorist attacks in November 2015. The order was hastily composed by senior administration officials, and barred travel by any citizen or national from Iraq, Iran, Somalia, Syria, Lybia, Yemen, and Sudan. In their haste to roll out the order, however, the administration left many questions about the breadth of this law unanswered: were tourists, students, and green card holders affected? What about refugees who had already followed the years long process to obtain refuge here in the States? The vague instructions of the order created chaos at airports all across the world, especially in major hubs in the United States like New York and Los Angeles. Travelers were left stranded as the legality of their visas were questioned. Immigration lawyers and protesters alike surged to airports, with lawyers volunteering their time and expertise while protesters demonstrated in defiance of the law. Taxi drivers at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York decided to strike in protest of the order, which ultimately placed Uber in a sticky situation when they appeared to capitalize on the taxi strike by continuing to give rides, and even lifted their surge pricing for airport passengers. The chaos created by this ban lasted until a judge in Seattle issued a stay on the ban, which was ultimately declared unconstitutional.
The second, revised version of the order included far more exemptions than the original. Iraq was taken off of the list of banned countries, and blocks on green card holders, diplomats, and dual nationals were lifted. Language regarding religious preference was removed, which had been significant in the first order being blocked, since the law was evidently not promoting national security but instead codified religious discrimination into law. Critics of the order, including Democrats and immigration rights activists, decried the revised order as more carefully masked discrimination. The order was blocked by U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson on March 15th, the day before the ban was to take full effect.
The original order was the fruition of a campaign trail promise made by then-candidate Donald Trump to issue “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States,” shortly following the Paris terrorist attacks in November 2015. The order was hastily composed by senior administration officials, and barred travel by any citizen or national from Iraq, Iran, Somalia, Syria, Lybia, Yemen, and Sudan. In their haste to roll out the order, however, the administration left many questions about the breadth of this law unanswered: were tourists, students, and green card holders affected? What about refugees who had already followed the years long process to obtain refuge here in the States? The vague instructions of the order created chaos at airports all across the world, especially in major hubs in the United States like New York and Los Angeles. Travelers were left stranded as the legality of their visas were questioned. Immigration lawyers and protesters alike surged to airports, with lawyers volunteering their time and expertise while protesters demonstrated in defiance of the law. Taxi drivers at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York decided to strike in protest of the order, which ultimately placed Uber in a sticky situation when they appeared to capitalize on the taxi strike by continuing to give rides, and even lifted their surge pricing for airport passengers. The chaos created by this ban lasted until a judge in Seattle issued a stay on the ban, which was ultimately declared unconstitutional.
The second, revised version of the order included far more exemptions than the original. Iraq was taken off of the list of banned countries, and blocks on green card holders, diplomats, and dual nationals were lifted. Language regarding religious preference was removed, which had been significant in the first order being blocked, since the law was evidently not promoting national security but instead codified religious discrimination into law. Critics of the order, including Democrats and immigration rights activists, decried the revised order as more carefully masked discrimination. The order was blocked by U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson on March 15th, the day before the ban was to take full effect.
Discussion Questions
- This executive order has often been referred to as a Muslim ban. Is this appropriate?
- Aside from blocking ordinary travelers and immigrants to the United States, should the United States bar refugees from entry, if only for a limited period of time? Why or why not?
Citations
Kaleed, Jaweem. “Hawaii judge extends national halt on Trump’s travel ban.” http://www.latimes.com/politics/washington/la-na-essential-washington-updates-hawaii-judge-trump-travel-1490816530-htmlstory.html. 29 March 2017.
Thrush, Glenn. “Trump’s New Travel Ban Blocks Migrants From Six Nations, Sparing Iraq.” https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/06/us/politics/travel-ban-muslim-trump.html?_r=0. 6 March 2017.
Siddiqui, Faiz. “Uber triggers protest for collecting fares during taxi strike against refugee ban.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2017/01/29/uber-triggers-protest-for-not-supporting-taxi-strike-against-refugee-ban/?utm_term=.1fd421626577. 29 January 2017.
“Reaction and analysis: What happens now with Trump’s new travel ban?” http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-live-updates-9th-circuit-arguments-court-questions-whether-trump-s-travel-1486511981-htmlstory.html. 6 March 2017.
Thrush, Glenn. “Trump’s New Travel Ban Blocks Migrants From Six Nations, Sparing Iraq.” https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/06/us/politics/travel-ban-muslim-trump.html?_r=0. 6 March 2017.
Siddiqui, Faiz. “Uber triggers protest for collecting fares during taxi strike against refugee ban.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2017/01/29/uber-triggers-protest-for-not-supporting-taxi-strike-against-refugee-ban/?utm_term=.1fd421626577. 29 January 2017.
“Reaction and analysis: What happens now with Trump’s new travel ban?” http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-live-updates-9th-circuit-arguments-court-questions-whether-trump-s-travel-1486511981-htmlstory.html. 6 March 2017.