President's Executive Order Suspends Immigration From Seven Countries

The Wired Word for the Week of February 5, 2017

In the News

On Friday, January 27, President Donald Trump signed an executive order placing restrictions on immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries, suspending all refugee admissions to the United States for 120 days and barring Syrian refugees indefinitely.

The order, titled "Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States," is intended to buy time to develop procedures for determining whether a person claiming to be a refugee actually is a refugee and will not pose a risk to U.S. citizens.

The president's action was quickly met with pushback from immigration attorneys representing individuals who were already traveling when the order was activated, from crowds who gathered at some airports to protest the order, from church groups and other organizations that believe the United States has a moral obligation to open its borders to those fleeing war and violence, from representatives of the nations included in the ban, from leaders of some other countries, the European Union and the African Union, and from some members of Congress, including several from President Trump's own party. Judges in Boston, New York, Seattle and Alexandria, Virginia, soon ruled against detention of persons already at airports or in transit.

At the same time, a poll conducted by Rasmussen Reports showed that 57 percent of Americans supported a temporary halt on refugees from the seven countries. The same poll found 33 percent opposed to the ban and 10 percent undecided.

The full text of the executive order can be found at the first link in the list below, but in summary, it does the following:

• Upgrades the current enhanced visa scrutiny for travelers from the seven nations previously designated as "countries of concern" by the Obama administration in its visa-waiver program. A 90-day moratorium on entry applies to six countries (Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, Yemen, Libya, Iran) and an indefinite moratorium applies to Syria. During the suspension period, the Department of Homeland Security and others are tasked with developing better screening methods than those currently in place.
• Sets in motion development and implementation of means to counter fraudulent entry into the United States.
• Suspends refugee admission for 120 days until an improved process for review and adjudication is in place; exception is Syria, where the ban lasts until changes are sufficient to make determinations on Syrian applicants.
• Prioritizes claims of religious minorities (per the claimant's nationality) claiming religious-based persecution.  
• Caps the refugee entry at 50,000 for 2017.
• Authorizes the Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security to jointly make individual exceptions, especially for cases of religious persecution or undue hardship.
• Suspends the Visa Interview Waiver Program and expands the number of personnel able to conduct interviews in order to meet the increased demand.
• Enforces visa reciprocity laws (foreign nationals receive treatment similar to the way in which U.S. citizens are treated by foreign countries).
• Establishes transparency and data-collection requirements concerning terrorist and radicalist behavior of foreign nationals admitted to the United States.

While it remains to be seen what the long-term results of the order will be, the immediate fallout was chaotic, stressful and disruptive. Refugee families already en route to new homes in the United States were detained at airports for hours, while others waiting overseas saw their hopes dashed, or at minimum, delayed. Some of the confusion resulted from officials misinterpreting the directive, thinking it applied to permanent residents ("green-card holders"). Though they had valid visas in hand, one Syrian Christian family of six was turned back at the Philadelphia airport on Sunday. Confused by their options, they returned to Lebanon.

TWW team member Joanna Loucky-Ramsey said she'd heard from Iranian friends who are in her community at local colleges on student visas how stressful the situation is. One scholar's father made it into America to visit his son just before the executive order came down.

Partly due to comments then-candidate Trump was said to have made while running for office, some have viewed this executive order as a Muslim ban. But the vocabulary of the order does not seem to bear that out. The seven affected countries do indeed have Muslim-majority populations, but they are not the top sources of Muslim immigration to the United States and they have not produced terrorists in the same numbers as some other Muslim-majority countries not on the excluded list.

Critics have pointed out that the list of seven selected countries actually overlooks some whose citizens have committed terrorist attacks on U.S. soil, or are linked to them. For example, Muslims from Saudi Arabia, the country from which most of the 9/11 attackers came, can still visit this country. Syrians, meanwhile, have not committed a terrorist attack on U.S. soil and are fleeing a huge humanitarian crises. According to an analysis by the Cato Institute of terrorism risks through immigration, no one accepted to the United States as a refugee has been implicated in a major fatal terrorist attack since the Refugee Act of 1980 set up systematic procedures for accepting refugees into the United States.

However, with the exception of Iran, the countries included in the ban are all "failed states" where there is significant difficulty in obtaining information about people wanting to leave. And the U.S. State Department considers Iran a sponsor of terrorism.  

Given that terrorists have come from countries including some of these seven but also beyond them, it does leave open the question of how effective this ban will be in accomplishing the order's stated goal of ensuring "that those admitted to this country do not bear hostile attitudes toward it and its founding principles."

Nonetheless, Kenneth Palinkas, president of the union serving U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services employees in New York City, says he's confident the executive order will expose holes in how border screenings have been conducted in recent years, and ultimately improve detection of potential terrorist cells.

TWW team consultant James Gruetzner observed that the religious persecution priority of the executive order eliminates and makes neutral what some have considered an anti-Christian bias in U.S. immigration policy. (One example: Though Christians are about 10 percent of the Syrian population, they represent about 0.5 percent of refugees approved.)

Other U.S. presidents have issued visa bans, usually for six months, when they believed it warranted, along with waiver procedures -- for example, President Obama (2011, Iraq) and President Carter (1980, Iran).

Like the U.S. population as a whole, American Christians are divided about the ban. TWW editorial team member, Heidi Mann, gives voice to one position, supported by many church leaders across the theological spectrum, saying, "I am heartsick about the ban, be it temporary or permanent, of refugees and other immigrants who had been fully vetted for resettlement in the United States. It has always been core to the Judeo-Christian tradition, and has long been a part of my denomination, Lutheranism, to offer hospitality and assistance to refugees. What's more, though it hasn't always been practiced by the United States, it is what we claim to stand for: 'Give me your tired, your poor ....' Refugees have already suffered more than most of us will ever experience. To turn them away, when they have done absolutely nothing wrong, is shameful."

Supporters of the executive order don't necessarily dispute that statement, but maintain that the  question is whether a person who claims to be a refugee really is a refugee and has no harmful aim toward Americans.

More on this story can be found at these links:

Executive Order: Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States. The White House
What Trump's Executive Order on Immigration Does -- and Doesn't Do. The Atlantic
More Than Half of Americans Support Trump Immigration Ban: Poll. AL.com
Lawsuits Pile Up Against Trump's Vetting Policy for Seven Muslim Nations.The Washington TimesHow the Trump Administration Chose the 7 Countries in the Immigration Executive Order. CNN 
Union Prez on Ban: 'I Don't See It As a Bad Thing.' Boston HeraldTrump's Order Is a Balm for Christians, Not a Ban on Muslims. CNN Terrorism and Immigration: A Risk Analysis. Cato InstituteHow Many Fatal Terror Attacks Have Refugees Carried Out in the US? None. CNNPresident Trump, Please Think Again: Evangelical Leaders Plead for Rethink on Refugee Ban. Christian Today 
Refugee Ban, Border Wall: Religious Leaders Respond. Religion New Service

The Big Questions

1. What concerns and values might motivate those who want to restrict immigration? What concerns and values might motivate those who want to maintain or increase immigration?

2. What is at stake for Americans in how our immigration and refugee policies are defined and enforced? What is at stake for others around the world? What might be at stake for refugees who have fled genocide? for translators and others who have assisted the American military in the fight against terrorists? for terrorists who might claim refugee status to enter a country to help destroy it?

3. How, if at all, does Jesus' command to "love your neighbor as you love yourself" apply to immigration in general, and to immigration from countries from which terrorists have come and where it is difficult to check out the stories of people making refugee claims in specific?

4. In deciding how you feel about this executive order, what weight do you give to your national security concerns (if indeed you have such concerns)? What weight do you give your love-your-neighbor values? Does this have to be an either-or decision? Explain your answer.

5. Given the controversy raised by this executive order, what other instrument, if any, would better address the matter of security of Americans?

Confronting the News With Scripture and HopeHere are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:

Leviticus 19:34 (CEB)Any immigrant who lives with you must be treated as if they were one of your citizens. You must love them as yourself, because you were immigrants in the land of Egypt; I am the LORD your God. (For context, read 19:33-34.)
Deuteronomy 27:19 (CEB)Cursed is anyone who obstructs the legal rights of immigrants, orphans, or widows. … (For context, read 27:11-26.)

These two verses set a biblical ground floor for any discussion involving treatment of immigrants. Clearly, in ancient Israel, immigrants were to be treated well -- and notice that there's no mention of what their religion might be -- except that they were required to act and behave in accordance with the laws of Israel's religion.

Questions: Why do you think this was the standard in ancient Israel? Do you think God intends the same standard to be applied today? Why or why not? Do you think the executive order discussed in the "In the News" section should be judged by this standard? Why or why not? What are some of the laws and political philosophies that immigrants into the United States should be required to accept and conform to? What if an immigrant refuses to do so?

Matthew 22:39
And a second is like it: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." (For context, read 22:34-40.)

This is from Jesus, speaking about the two most important commandments. The first, he said, is "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind" (v. 37). And then he made the statement above.

Speaking of this second command, author Marilynn Robinson, writes:

The temptation has always been to hold affirmations of this kind up to given reality and then to declare the two of them irreconcilable, the faith statements therefore unsustainable. … This is to deny the ethical meaning of such affirmations. Sigmund Freud said we cannot love our neighbor as ourselves. No doubt this is true. But the reality that lies behind the commandment, that our neighbor is as worthy of love as ourselves, and that in acting on this fact we would be stepping momentarily out of the bog of our subjectivity, then a truth is acknowledged in the commandment that gives it greater authority than mere experience can refute. There is a truth that lies beyond our capacities. Our capacities are no standard or measure of truth, no ground of ethical understanding. (The Givenness of Things [Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2015], 99-100)

Questions: Does anything about the new immigration order call you to step out of your subjectivity? If so, in what way?

Psalm 122:6-9
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: "May they prosper who love you. Peace be within your walls, and security within your towers." For the sake of my relatives and friends I will say, "Peace be within you." For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek your good. (For context, read 122:1-9.)

Psalm 122 is a prayer for the well-being of Jerusalem. It shows, among other things, that praying for "security within [its] towers" -- that is, its boundaries -- was an appropriate prayer, even if that security was a come-and-go thing, subject to the tides of times and powers.

Questions: In the view of ancient Israel, the nation was most threatened when its people failed to keep faith with God. Is that view applicable to us today? Why or why not? Regarding our immigration policies, what does keeping faith with God look like?
Scripture says "Perfect love casts out fear" (1 John 4:18) and "You were not given a spirit of fear" (2 Timothy 1:7). When have you made a decision out of fear? In retrospect do you regret or affirm that sort of decision?

1 Peter 2:13-14For the Lord's sake accept the authority of every human institution, whether of the emperor as supreme, or of governors, as sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right. (For context, read 2:13-17.)

The apostle Peter advised his Christian readers to accept the authority of "every human institution," pointing out that God sent them not only to praise those who do right but also to punish those who do wrong.

Questions: Does this specific executive order accomplish -- directly or indirectly -- either of those goals? Why or why not?

Matthew 10:16See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. (For context, read 10:5-31.)

We have included this declaration of Jesus as a reminder that we do not live in a perfect world, and that there are "wolves" seeking to devour both us and what is good. There is a trade-off between being wise and being innocent, and, whatever God may ultimately desire, different people -- different Christians -- may find themselves differing on how to handle issues of major importance.

God has also called people to different tasks -- while God may have called a police officer to handcuff a suspect, he has probably not called those of us who are not in law enforcement to do the same. The question is how can we be wise enough to recognize what someone in authority might have to do, while remaining guiltless in our own actions?  

Questions: What are some of the trade-offs involved on the part of an authority and on the part of a citizen concerning being "wise" and being "innocent"?
How might Jesus' command to love our enemies apply here?

For Further Discussion

1. When did your ancestors come to America? What hardships did they face? How was their reception different from or similar to the reception immigrants may receive today in the United States? (If you are part or all Native American, you may focus on that or focus on that other portion of your ancestry).

2. Share and discuss the thesis from this blog with your class members. Also ask, "What other filters besides those mentioned in the blog might be in play here?" The Persuasion Filter and Immigration. Dilbert

3. Sociologist Helen Fein coined the term "universe of obligation" to describe how nations define their responsibility to their citizens and others. The universe of obligation is the circle of individuals and groups "toward whom obligations are owed, to whom rules apply, and whose injuries call for amends." Nations, societies, communities and individuals each have their own implicit universe of obligation. Those within the universe of obligation are seen as deserving of respect and protection; those outside may not be treated with the same care.
            Share and discuss the concept of the "universe of obligation" to consider how we define our responsibility to others. How do you think those who feel differently from you about the executive order would define the country's universe of obligation?

4. Tell some of these stories of people directly affected by the president's immigration order and invite class members to respond.

5. Ezra 9-10 tells of the religious leader Ezra ordering his fellow Jews who were married to foreign wives to send them away. With that in mind, comment on this, from TWW team member Frank Ramirez: "The dystopic vision of Ezra 9-10 is described by David Janzen as a witch hunt. He favors that term because societies under stress look for a scapegoat, often women, to blame. There are only about a hundred names listed in Ezra of "tainted" families out of a population of at least 20,000. These hundred foreign wives could not have been a real threat to the purity of the nation. Indeed, outsiders like Ruth contribute to the vitality of a culture.
            "But the need to establish sharp boundaries without ambiguity led these leaders to focus on an imaginary enemy. The real problem -- multicultural tradespeople who did not observe Sabbath restrictions and whose marketplaces were within easy access of Judah's population might have been the real cause of the stress. 
            "Our own society has demonstrated sharp reactions to stress. German-Americans were the subject of witch hunts during World War I, causing many churches to drop German language hymns and liturgies, and to display the American flag in church. For members of peace churches with German-American populations the stresses were even greater, leading to persecution, torture and even murder of conscientious objectors in camps.
            "Japanese Americans bore the brunt of the witch hunters during the Second World War. Brethren like the Smeltzers made themselves very unpopular because of their support of people in the internment camps.
            "Eryl W. Davies, in his book The Immoral Bible, suggests that when atrocities are presented as faithful living (we would include the rape of Dinah and the murders that followed in Genesis as well as mass kidnappings, rape and dismemberment as presented in Judges 19 in this category) faithful readers of scripture are expected to read and react, not accept such things as normal."

Responding to the News

This is a good time to learn what response, if any, your denomination has expressed about the immigration order. You may want to consider supporting your denomination's response or participating in directly in it.

Prayer

O Lord, help us as Americans to be as welcoming and hospitable as possible to those needing refuge, while also finding prudent ways to keep terrorism at bay. And help us do all we can to contribute to a worldwide environment where people have no need to flee their homelands. In Jesus' name. Amen.