Important Information About the 'Muslim Ban' Dear community members and friends. Like you, we only recently received the final, signed copies of President Trump's Executive Orders targeting Muslims and refugees. And like you, we are appalled at these attempts to erode our American values by targeting individuals based on race, religion, and national origin. A complete analysis will take time, but we continue to hear from many of you, worried about what this means for your families and friends. Accordingly, we wanted to reach out and offer some preliminary guidance. We will send out more details as they become clear. What you need to know right now: - Generally, non-citizens, including green card holders (lawful permanent residents), from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen will be restricted from entering the U.S. for at least 90 days. Non-citizens from these countries who are presently in the U.S. should consult with an immigration attorney prior to any international travel
- However, if you are a green card holder (lawful permanent resident) outside of the U.S. please reach out to an immigration attorney before you travel back to the U.S.
- The refugee program is being halted immediately, for at least 120 days. This will mean that anyone, anywhere in the process, will not move forward. The effort to resettle Syrian refugees in the U.S. is being halted indefinitely
What you should do to protect yourself: - If you are non-citizen, even green card holders (lawful permanent residents), from one of the seven countries named above, and you are inside the U.S., please plan to delay all international travel for at least 90 days
- If you are a non-citizen from one of the seven countries named above, and you are outside of the U.S., you may face issues at the airport. Please keep looking for updates in the coming days to assess your travel options. If you are facing an emergency at the airport or are coming home in the coming days, please have our number on hand (916.441.6269)
- Whether you are a citizen or not, do not permit law enforcement to enter your home without a warrant. Even if they have a warrant, you should not speak to them without consulting with an attorney
What you can do to push back against this: - Call your members of Congress and the U.S. Senate at 202.224.3121 to ask them to speak out against anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant bigotry and oppose these Executive Orders
- Sign a letter of support for S.B. 31, which is critical legislation needed to protect against the creation of a Muslim registry: http://bit.ly/civilrightsbills
Information provided by: CAIR San Francisco Bay Area Advancing Justice- Asian Law Caucus |
