Today, the Trump administration announced that it is expanding its current Muslim travel ban, adding several more predominantly Muslim countries to the list of those whose citizens will face extensive restrictions on their ability to immigrate to the United States. The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) strongly condemns this discriminatory act, which is reflective of troublesome past actions that resulted in very painful periods in this country’s history.
“The Trump administration’s expansion of its Muslim ban is disgraceful and discriminatory,” said Sherrilyn Ifill, LDF’s President and Director-Counsel. “This senseless ban relies on dangerous and harmful stereotypes — like those that were used to justify the internment of Japanese Americans and the enslavement of Black Americans — to rationalize discrimination against thousands of individuals from around the world. LDF has always been committed to promoting anti‐discrimination and freedom of religion principles — and we will continue to hold this administration accountable for any actions that defy these intrinsic values.”
Today’s announcement expanding the Muslim ban arrives just after the third anniversary of the first ban, which sought to bar individuals from seven predominantly Muslim countries (and two additional countries) from entering the United States. Now, the revised ban prohibits citizens of Eritrea, Myanmar, Nigeria, and Kyrgyzstan from applying for immigrant visas, and citizens of Sudan and Tanzania from entering the American diversity visa lottery. LDF, along with many allies, worked through the court system to seek to stop the initial Muslim ban – and will continue to support ongoing efforts to fight the patently racist agenda of this administration.
In the coming weeks, the U.S. House of Representatives will consider the NO BAN Act – a bill that would repeal the current Muslim ban and prevent similar bans from being enacted in the future. “The Muslim ban — in both its original and revised versions — has caused irreparable harm to families, who have endured anxiety, separation, and trauma because of this administration’s actions,” said Lisa Cylar Barrett, LDF’s Director of Policy. “LDF urges Congress to pass the NO BAN Act and put an end to this unquestionably cruel and discriminatory policy.”
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Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization. LDF has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund or LDF.
