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On election night, as poll tallies slowly rolled in and began revealing the inevitable regarding our newly elected Commander-in-Chief, I wrote a status on Facebook that read:
<blockquote>As much as I would want to leave America if Trump wins, there is a legit fear I may not be able to get back in the country.</blockquote>
On November 8, 2016, that remark was somewhat facetious; on January 27, 2017, the fear was legitimized in a whole new way. Friday, President Trump signed an Islamaphobic executive order banning seven countries from entering the United States for the next 90 days and suspended admission of all refugees for 120 days. The seven countries banned are nations where Islam is the majority religion -- Iraq, Iran, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Somalia, and Sudan -- hence the reference to the executive order as a Muslim ban. And although the American Civil Liberties Union took immediate action Saturday afternoon, filing a class action lawsuit challenging the travel ban which resulted in Judge Ann M. Donnelly blocking part of the executive order that same evening, thanks to protests, notably at New York's JFK airport, the spirit of the law lives on, as does the bad taste it's left in the mouth of Americans and those abroad, even beyond the countries banned.
There's always been concern about traveling to certain countries where there's a strong Anti-American sentiment, but at this point in history, it's safe to say that ill feeling is spreading. While the anguish might be more specifically anti-Trump than anything else, the compulsion to make any member of a nation associated with the man deemed our leader suffer the way individuals in their nation have been made to suffer as a result of our government's policies is not far-fetched, and it has many in my own circle questioning whether a trip abroad is worth the risk.
A friend from high school who has spent the last several years exploring the globe and who founded the popular travel group <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/blackgirlfly/">Black Girl Fly</a> said her mom has begged her to postpone any trips until Trump is out of office. My mom somewhat alluded to the same when I told her my plans to visit Cuba this spring for my birthday. She reminded me of my Facebook status two months prior, as well as the history of relations between America and Cuba and asked whether I was sure that's what I wanted to do. A few weeks ago, that answer was a definite yes. Today, I'm not so sure, though I realize the position of leadership isn't necessarily shared by the people which it governs. Still, I saw plenty more comments across social media about it being "time to explore the United States," in lieu of international travel -- at least while our country attempts to undo the unconstitutional mess it created this past weekend, if not until the havoc wreaked is permanently undone in 2020 (if not before then, Lord willing).
And though I am an American citizen with no ties to Islam -- which should not matter -- I am still a double minority. I'm Black and I'm a woman, two groups of people Trump has repeatedly demonstrated he has no qualms about discriminated against. Do I think I could somehow be prohibited from returning to my homeland with the swipe of a pen while traveling outside of the country? Not necessarily, but I can't say I believe anything is outside the realm of possibility for a man so hungry for authority and so eager to appease the people for which this country was built -- not who built it -- that even the constitution doesn't sway his totalitarian ideology. For a close friend of mine, that fear is even more real. Born in Québec City in the Philippines, she has resided in the United States for nearly as long as she can remember. With a green card, she is allowed to travel outside of the country, but she never has for fear of something like we witnessed over the weekend happening. In fact, plans for her honeymoon trip to Italy this year have been put on hold until she receives her citizenship, which is currently in the hands of our government and slowly progressing.
What happened Friday may be labeled a Muslim ban, but its consequences reach far beyond those our government wants to keep out to ensure greater security on our soil, so much so that all of our safety has been put in jeopardy in the United States as beyond. Are you scared to travel outside of the United States while Trump is in office?
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