(OKLAHOMA CITY, OK, 3/16/2017) — The Oklahoma Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-OK) today welcomed orders issued by federal judges in Hawaii and Maryland blocking President Trump’s new “Muslim Ban 2.0” Executive Order.
That presidential Executive Order, issued March 6th, preserved major components of the original Muslim ban including halting new visas and green cards for people from six majority-Muslim countries: Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. The ban would have stopped all refugees from entering the United States for 120 days and limited total refugee admissions to 55,000 per year. The ban was set to go into effect just after midnight yesterday.
U.S. District Judge Derrick K. Watson’s (Hawaii) federal court order stated in part: “The illogic of the Government’s contentions is palpable. The notion that one can demonstrate animus toward any group of people only by targeting all of them at once is fundamentally flawed.” It also stated, “Any reasonable, objective observer would conclude, as does the Court for purposes of the instant Motion for TRO, that the stated secular purpose of the Executive Order is, at the very least, ‘secondary to a religious objective’ of temporarily suspending the entry of Muslims.”
In Maryland, U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang noted that while the second executive order includes some changes from the first order, the purpose of the second order “remains the realization of the long-envisioned Muslim ban.” He also called President’s own statements about his intentions “highly relevant.”
SEE: Highlights From Court Ruling Halting Trump’s Revised Travel Ban
SEE: Federal judges block Trump’s travel ban
“We welcome the ruling of the courts in Maryland and Hawaii and remain committed to challenging anti-Muslim bigotry in Oklahoma,” said CAIR-OK Civil Rights Director Veronica Laizure.
CAIR is America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
La misión de CAIR es mejorar la comprensión del Islam, fomentar el diálogo, proteger las libertades civiles, capacitar a los musulmanes estadounidenses, y construir coaliciones que promuevan la justicia y la comprensión mutua.
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CONTACT: CAIR-OK Civil Rights Director Veronica Laizure, 405-430-9877, vlaizure@cair.com; CAIR-OK Executive Director Adam Soltani, 405-248-5853, asoltani@cair.com