July 22, 2020, New York – The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) issued the following statement on today’s vote on the NO BAN Act in Congress:

We commend Congress for passing the NO BAN Act, repealing Trump’s discriminatory Muslim and African Ban. This is a significant rebuke to a hallmark of this administration’s broader war on immigrants. The Muslim Ban is fundamentally discriminatory and should be repealed in its entirety. It was designed to target Muslims and amended to single out African countries. It has had devastating impacts on communities of color. We have seen the impact first-hand from our own clients and witnessed children being separated from their parents and families suffering undue financial and emotional hardship. They have often had to resort to lawsuits and public shaming to get their loved ones’ visas issued.

We regret that the latest version of the bill includes the unnecessary “clarification” that a president may bar entry to groups based on public safety in order to contain a “communicable disease.” Such language plays into harmful tropes that have long been used to stoke anti-immigrant sentiment. Still, passing the NO BAN Act is one step toward ending discriminatory and racist immigration policies once and for all. It is past time to end Trump’s war on immigrants and people of color. 

Standing in solidarity with the Muslim and Yemeni American community, the Center for Constitutional Rights has filed cases challenging aspects of the Muslim Ban where families were separated in Dobashi v. Trump and Alobahy v. Trump, and worked with partners on a Muslim Ban Waiver FOIA and the Window Dressing the Muslim Ban report.