Ban/Limits on Muslim immigration

Example Letter 1

(added 28 January, 2017)

[your address] [date]

Dear [name]:

President Donald Trump has signed an Executive Order (EO) proposing a 90-day suspension of visas and other immigration benefits to all nationals of Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Yemen, Libya and Somalia. The unrealistic conditions required for discontinuing the suspension make it very likely that this EO will turn into a permanent ban. I would like to voice my deep concerns and strong opposition to this measure on three grounds:

1.    This Executive Order is discriminatory. The EO unfairly targets a large group of immigrants and non-immigrants on the basis of their countries of origin, all of which are nations with a majority Muslim population. This is a major step towards implementing the stringent racial and religious profiling promised on the campaign trail. The United States is a democratic nation, and ethnic and religious profiling are in stark contrast to the values and principles we hold.

2.    This Executive Order is detrimental to the national interests of the United States. The EO significantly damages American leadership in higher education and research. US research institutes host a significant number of researchers from the nations subjected to the upcoming restrictions. From Iran alone, more than 3000 students have received PhDs from American universities in the past 3 years. The proposed EO limits collaborations with researchers from these nations by restricting entry of these researchers to the US and can potentially lead to departure of many talented individuals who are current and future researchers and entrepreneurs in the US. We strongly believe the immediate and long term consequences of this EO do not serve our national interests.

3.    This Executive Order imposes undue burden on members of our community: The people whose status in the United States would be reconsidered under this EO are our students, friends, colleagues, and members of our communities. The implementation of this EO will necessarily tear families apart by restricting entry for family members who live outside of the US and limiting the ability to travel for those who reside and work in the US. These restrictions would be applied to nearly all individuals from these countries, regardless of their immigration status or any other circumstances. This measure is fatally disruptive to the lives of these immigrants, their families, and the communities of which they form an integral part. It is inhumane, ineffective, and un-American.

These bans, as proposed, have consequences that reach beyond the scope of national security. The unethical and discriminatory treatment of law-abiding, hard-working, and well-integrated immigrants fundamentally contravenes the founding principles of the United States.

I strongly denounce this ban and urge the President to reconsider going forward with this Executive Order.

Sincerely, [your name]

Example Letter 2

(added 29 January, 2017)

Adapted from: http://muslimmatters.org/2017/01/25/executive-order-muslim-ban-know/

[your address] [date]

Dear [name]:

My name is _______ and I’m a constituent in your district. I am deeply concerned about President Donald Trump signing an executive order restricting immigration from Muslim majority countries and ending the Syrian refugee resettlement program. This executive order goes against our shared American values of religious tolerance, diversity, and nondiscrimination. I’m writing to see if you plan to publicly oppose Trump’s decision to sign this executive order? Please know that Trump’s executive order does not represent my values now those upon which America was founded. I am asking you to take a principled, public stand against this kind of intolerance. Thanks for your time.

 Sincerely, [your name]


Example Letter 3
(added 29 January, 2017)

[your address] [date]

Dear [name]:

The United States government has a responsibility to defend our borders, but we must do so in a way that makes us safer and upholds all that is decent and exceptional about our nation. I am deeply troubled that the seven nations (Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen) from which immigration is now banned are not nations from which any of the 9/11 attackers hailed (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, and Egypt ). At the same time, the Trump Organization has business interests in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, and Egypt. This is not coincidental. The President continues to favor his businesses, which I find troubling as well. 

Back to the main point: targeting people based on their religion is wrong and unconstitutional. 
Shutting the doors on some of the most vulnerable people in the world—refugees seeking safety—shows a deep level of moral bankruptcy. The USA went to war in Iraq in 2003 and now prevents Iraqis who put their lives on the line to help the US in that war from entering the US? This is heartbreaking. 

It is clear from the confusion at USA airports across that the EO was not properly vetted. As Sen. McCain noted: I am “particularly concerned by reports that this order went into effect with little to no consultation with the Departments of State, Defense, Justice, and Homeland Security.
Such a hasty process risks harmful results. We should not stop green-card holders from returning to the country they call home. We should not stop those who have served as interpreters for our military and diplomats from seeking refuge in the country they risked their lives to help. And we should not turn our backs on those refugees who have been shown through extensive vetting to pose no demonstrable threat to our nation, and who have suffered unspeakable horrors, most of them women and children.”


I truly fear that this EO will have the opposite effect on terrorism to that it proposes to have – educated Muslims with valid visas have already been stopped from entering the USA. This EO sends a strong signal that the USA does not want any Muslims entering the country (regardless of education, refugee status, or visa), which in turn causes me to fear that the EO will ultimately do more to aid in terrorist recruitment than to improve USA security.

Sincerely, [your name]

Example Letter 4

(added 29 January, 2017 --- Thank you, Kevin Frankel!)

[your address] [date]

Dear [GOP Senator], Discriminating against refugees on the basis of a religious test is un-American, unconstitutional, and downright despicable. You and your colleagues in the Senate need to get it together and stand up to Trump on this issue. I'm not a member of your constituency, but I'm watching what you do. If you don't act, 60 of my friends and I will fund your primary challengers. Get to work or start polishing your resume; you'll be hitting the bricks after the next election.
Sincerely, [your name]


Example Letter 5

(added 30 January, 2017 --- Thank you, Richard Zaino, M.D.!)

[your address] [date]

Dear XXX, The screening process for refugee entry into the USA has been well defined and explained by the White House in 2015: https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/blog/2015/11/20/infographic-screening-process-refugee-entry-united-states This process is extremely thorough and very rigorous. The recent presidential order has no valid purpose, but it endangers all Americans by demonstrating to the world that the US distrusts and dislikes Muslims, making recruitment to ISIS easier, and increasing the probability of a future terrorist act. Please advertise this official government website to all, so that they can recognize that strict vetting already occurs. And please introduce, co-sponsor or support legislation that overturns President Trump’s recent presidential order regarding regulation of entry of Syrian refugees and citizens of seven predominantly Muslim countries.
Thank you.
[your name]