Issue:

Major Civil Rights Groups Condemn Imminent Ban on Black Immigration, Call for Congressional Action

More than 25 Percent of Africans to be Banned Starting Friday, February 21

Washington, DC — In advance of an imminent expansion of the Muslim Ban, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., the National Action Network, the National Urban League, the NAACP, the Lawyers’ Committee For Civil Rights Under Law, Color of Change, the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and Muslim Advocates have released a joint statement. On Friday, February 21 at 12:01 AM, President Trump’s expanded Muslim Ban will take effect. The six African nations included in the ban account for more than 25 percent of the entire continent’s population. In response, the groups listed above have issued the following joint statement:

“On Friday, more than a quarter of Africans will be banned from immigrating to America, leaving millions of American families cut off from their loved ones living abroad. This is in addition to the countless families that have already been separated by the Muslim Ban for the past three years. 

America is a nation where people of all races and religions are entitled to equal protection under the law, yet the expanded Muslim Ban is another attack on the rights, the dignity and the identity of Black communities. As the expanded Muslim Ban includes people from Nigeria, Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania and Libya, even more Black families will needlessly suffer from a policy with no legitimate justification.

We call on all Americans to learn their rights under the expanded ban and for Congress to work swiftly to pass the NO BAN Act to end this ban and discrimination in our immigration system.”

Additional Resources:

Muslim Advocates is a national civil rights organization working in the courts, in the halls of power and in communities to halt bigotry in its tracks. We ensure that American Muslims have a seat at the table with expert representation so that all Americans may live free from hate and discrimination.

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