PTV APPLAUDS THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION

President Biden’s signature on the executive order rescinding the Muslim Ban on his first day in office is a fitting rebuke to the Trump Administration’s xenophobic and religious discriminatory policies. The removal of these inhumane travel restrictions now allows people from almost a dozen predominantly Muslim and African countries the opportunity to re-unite in the United States. Students, academics, and those fleeing violence or human rights abuse will no longer be discriminated against because of their religion or nationality.

PTV is part of the NO BAN Act Coalition and joined in a statement yesterday: “The Muslim and African Ban was never about national security, it was always rooted in bigotry and called into question what values America stands for. However, just ending the ban through an executive order won’t stop this from happening again. That’s why we applaud the historic inclusion of the NO BAN Act in the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021.”

The Muslim and African Ban: By the Numbers, published in June by the Bridge Initiative at Georgetown University, gives the timeline of the ban and its devastating impact. For example, between December 2017 and April 2020, 74% of the visa waiver requests from countries affected by the ban were denied. Further, between FY 2016 and FY 2019, of all the refugees resettled in the U.S, there was a 90% decrease in the number of Muslims resettled. Don’t let anyone tell you this wasn’t a Muslim ban. It was.

PTV will continue to join with Muslim and other faith allies advocating with the Biden Administration and Congress for an increase in the historically low refugee caps the former Administration placed on all entry to the U.S. We will also work to restore the right of asylum for all who have come to the U.S. seeking shelter from the threat of torture, violence, and death.

 

Trip Oldfield

Executive Director

 

 

*Image credit New York Times