On the 27th of January, 2017, US President-elect Donald Trump signed an executive order
On the 27th of January, 2017, US President-elect Donald Trump signed an executive order banning the movement of people from seven Muslim-majority countries. The order barred over 218 million people from entering the US, halting all refugee admissions for 120 days and prohibiting Syrian refugees from entering the country indefinitely (Diamond and Jeremy n.p).
Protests and Effects
The immigration order has gotten a lot of positive press as well as a lot of negative press. Huge protests erupted across the world, with people converging on airports, especially in cases where people with valid documentation were detained. The order which is effective for a period of 120 days, bars resettlement of any refugees into the USA to allow further screening. The president said that the suspensions were to prevent potential terrorists from sneaking into the country as refugees or immigrants, while the national security agencies work out on improving the vetting process of immigrants, thus improving security. The seven countries affected by the ban are majority-Muslim countries and they include Iraq, Iran, Syria, Somalia, Sudan, Libya and Yemen. The ban applies to all citizens of these countries for the next 90 days, regardless of whether they are Muslims or non-Muslims on any category of visa (Diamond and Jeremy n.p).
Homeland Security and Clearance
The homeland security agency has said that after the ban has been lifted, the affected people, will be allowed back into the country if they are cleared of any relations to terrorism. The only people to be allowed into the country are those who hold clearance of the diplomatic level. The ban has included a reduction of the number of refugees to be settled this year. This means that less than 50,000 refugees will be resettled once the ban has been lifted and this excludes any Syrian while a civil war is still on going in Syria (Jeremy and Almasy n.p).
Importance of Order and Screening
The Trump’s immigration order holds with it to some degree credible course, especially when it comes to matters of homeland security. The order will definitely make it difficult for terrorist groups to sneak its agents through the US borders as refugees or as immigrants to cause harm to the US citizens. It is no secret of the interest of the many Jihadist terrorist groups to bring destruction to the US. Their efforts have been successful in more than one occasion for example the 9/11 attacks. The development of proper screening procedures on immigrants and refugees will enable a lift to the ban and hopefully bring the situation back to normal.
Customs and Border Patrol
The order also allows for the C.B.P, Customs and Border Patrol, to question people traveling in and out of the US, especially those traveling to areas known to have terrorist activities. This is important as it allows follow up on the individuals’ activities, helping to keep a check on the cases of radicalization of the individuals. In more than one case, citizens travel to such areas and for some reason or the other fall prey to radicalization. These individuals are used to promote terrorist agendas in the US. As such individuals are not easily suspected, therefore can work anonymously and aid in terrorism or in the radicalization of Americans. The order checks on these kinds of situations.
Effects on Scientific Progress and Research
The ban will inhibit scientific and research collaborations and progress between America and the barred countries as the collaboration and networking between researchers of different nations is vital in the advancement of the field of science. The ban is also making USA a hostile country that does not favor scientific research; it is driving people of great minds and talents to other countries. Most researchers currently stuck in the US are considering leaving the country for good once the ban has been lifted to avoid future persecution.
Impact on Education
In the aftermath of Trump’s order, many educational institutions stand to incur blows financially, as foreign and exchange students use out of state tuition fees to pay for their education in the public colleges. Intellectually, blocking students from certain regions is likely to limit production and diversification of knowledge and this will eventually lead to a narrow scope of education. Bringing in of foreign learners diversifies the cultural understanding within the campuses. The ban is described by Deruy (n.p), as inhibiting the American goal of education to foster open and lively interaction between students about the whole world.
Conclusion
Though the ban does hold a credible course to better protect US citizens from terror attacks, it can be viewed as too radical and designed to target or discriminate against the Muslim communities of the world. This is likely to create spite for the US, especially from members of the Islamic community. Generally, the decision by President Trump seems to be doing more harm than good. There is a loss of professionals, hostility from the Muslim community, and loss of economic power as talent and skills are being directed to other nations with more friendly terms of immigration. Though the ban is for good measure, there is still a need to consider the loss incurred from such sudden decisions especially involving other nations that play a major role in the economy of America.
Works Cited
Deruy, Emily. “How trumps immigration order is affecting higher education.” The Atlantic 30 January 2017: 1. Web. 3 February 2017.
Diamond Jeremy, Steve Almasy. “CNN Politics.” Trumps immigration ban sends shockwaves 30 January 2017: 1. Web. 3 February 2017.
