Everything You Need to Know About Trump’s Immigration Actions

Why did he issue the order? The rationale for this move was to protect Americans from terrorists. However, as stated in this politico.com article: “There has not been a single terrorism-related death caused by foreign operatives coming into the country since 9/11. From Fort Hood to Orlando, jihadist killings have been the work of American citizens and green card holders. The strong consensus in the counterterrorism community remains that the principal danger today continues to come from homegrown extremists.”

Plus, immigrants as a group commit crimes at a lower rate than the native born, and in the U.S. that is true of second generation immigrants as well.

Negative Consequences

We have already seen many negative consequences resulting from this immigration order.

• American Muslims have been shown that they are in for a fight against discrimination and isolation, even though freedom of religion is a hallmark of American democracy.
• Such discrimination will likely set back law enforcement’s efforts to build stronger bridges to Muslim communities. Those ties, as FBI Director James Comey has pointed out, are essential to U.S. domestic counterterrorism, according to politico.com.
• Shutting the door on Iraqis, on whom we are relying in the ground fight against ISIL, isn’t going to help in that ongoing conflict.

• Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said Iran would retaliate with legal, political and reciprocal measures, though he didn’t clarify what those measures would be.
• There was a negative impact on the economy. According to marketwatch.com:

Reaction Against Trump’s Order

• Protests were held across the nation. Massive crowds packed Boston’s Copley Square, Battery Park in New York City and outside the White House, and public areas in other cities, with demonstrations also held at airports from coast to coast to protest the order.
• Federal judge, Ann Donnelly, in response to a lawsuit from the American Civil Liberties Union temporararily halted Trump’s executive order on immigration, marking the first successful legal challenge to the Trump administration. This action affects those who arrived in the U.S. with previously approved refugee applications or were in transit with valid visas. Similar rulings were later issued in Virginia, Massachusetts and Washington state.
• Politicians including Dallas’ own mayor, Mike Rawlings, disavowed this immigration order. At a press conference, Rawlings said he was “deeply distressed” at the ongoing situation at the airport, where 50 travelers became detainees. “This is just not good for our city,” he said. “It’s not good for our state. This is a welcoming place. We want you here.”
• The acting US Attorney General, Sally Q. Yates, directed the Department of Justice not to defend Trump’s executive order regarding immigration because she said it was unconstitutional. She was fired. Firing a member of the cabinet over a a differing legal interpretation is almost unheard of. As the New York Times reported earlier Monday, “as the top Senate-confirmed official at the Justice Department, she is the only one authorized to sign foreign surveillance warrants, an essential function at the department.”

What Can We Do?

Concrete actions we can take to change this and other harmful immigration policies:

• Call, write or meet with our political leaders to voice our opinions. This website gives a comprehensive list of contact information for our leaders: www.usa.gov/elected-officials/
• Join a peaceful protest. An internet or twitter search will reveal protest opportunities in different regions across the US.
• Reach out to our networks to let friends and family know what they can do to help.
• Let the press know about our personal stories that highlight the negative impacts of Trump’s immigration policies.
• Stand up for groups and individuals who are being affected by Trump’s actions and words (Muslims and Hispanics are two groups that are feeling the impacts the most at the current time).
• Donate to groups that are fighting to change Trump’s immigration policies.
• Boycott companies supportive of Trump’s policies.

This is a time for unity and solidarity. This is not a time for finger-pointing or blaming others who may have voted differently than us or who disagree with us. As much as possible, we must work together with everyone who disapproves of Trump’s problematic immigration policies.

Heather Richardson, professor of History at Boston College, tells us we are being played. She says, “What Bannon (a Trump advisor) is doing, most dramatically with last night’s ban on immigration from seven predominantly Muslim countries– is creating what is known as a “shock event.”

Such an event is unexpected and confusing and throws a society into chaos. People scramble to react to the event, usually along some fault line that those responsible for the event can widen by claiming that they alone know how to restore order.

Trump’s Executive Order has all the hallmarks of a shock event. It was not reviewed by any governmental agencies or lawyers before it was released, and counterterrorism experts insist they did not ask for it. People charged with enforcing it got no instructions about how to do so. Courts immediately have declared parts of it unconstitutional, but border police in some airports are refusing to stop enforcing it.

Predictably, chaos has followed and tempers are hot.

The shock event game is designed explicitly to divide people who might otherwise come together so they cannot stand against something its authors think they won’t like… If the shock event strategy works, though, many of us will blame each other, rather than Trump’s administration, for the fallout.

If people realize they are being played, though, they can reach across old lines and reorganize to challenge the leaders who are pulling the strings. This was Lincoln’s strategy when he joined together Whigs, Democrats, Free-Soilers, anti-Nebraska voters, and nativists into the new Republican Party to stand against the Slave Power.

These wise words regarding the lessons we can use from history should guide us to stand together, speak out in one voice, and change the fate that is being imposed upon us.

If you need the help of an immigration lawyer, please contact us today to schedule your consultation. We have over 40 years of experience as immigration law specialists and are here to make sure your transition to the US is as smooth as possible.