Muslim civil rights and advocacy group opposes orders that could lead to a new Muslim Ban, more Israeli settler violence, and crackdowns on free speech and legal immigration in America.
On Thursday, Jan. 23rd, at 8:00 pm eastern, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, plans to host a virtual community briefing about the potential impact of President Trump’s first wave of executive orders on American Muslims, free speech, and legal immigration.
CAIR encourages American Muslim leaders, community members, partners and interested members of the public to register for the webinar.
WHAT: CAIR Briefing on Impact of President Trump’s First Executive Orders
WHEN: Jan. 23, 2025 @ 8 pm eastern time
WHERE: Virtual. Register for the briefing here.
In a statement, CAIR Director of Government Affairs Robert S. McCaw said:
“As President Trump begins his second term in office, he should build on the efforts he made during the presidential campaign to build bridges with a diverse collection of Americans, including the American Muslim community. The American Muslim community must, at the same time, fully understand the administration’s plans and be prepared to defend our rights and the rights of our neighbors.
“Although President Trump did not immediately restore his original Muslim Ban, he signed executive orders that could set the stage for a new ban, upend birthright citizenship, embolden Israeli settlers to commit more horrific violence in the West Bank, and spark an unprecedented crackdown on both free speech and legal immigration to silence critics of the Israeli government.
“Our nation should protect legal immigration, uphold free speech, never bring back the Muslim Ban in any form, and ensure that our foreign policy is truly America First—not Israel First.”
Since his inauguration on Monday, President Trump has signed around 100 executive orders, including several relevant to the American Muslim community.
In an order titled America First Policy Directive to the Secretary of State, President Trump directs the State Department to prioritize American national interests when making foreign policy decisions. CAIR notes this America First order would be positive if the administration takes it seriously by not treating U.S. interests as subservient to or synonymous with the interests of any foreign government, including the Israeli government.
In another order titled “Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats,” the Trump administration does not reinstate his original 2017 Muslim Ban but sets the stage for a potential new Muslim Ban by directing various agencies to impose new, expansive vetting criteria on prospective immigrants and identify countries from which entry should be completely suspended within 60 days.
The order also threatens an unprecedented crackdown on free speech and legal immigration by directing federal authorities to investigate prospective legal immigrants and people already legally present in America, including lawful permanent residents, based on “vague, subjective and unenforceable” criteria, such as whether a person holds “hostile attitudes toward its citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles…”
CAIR plans to analyze these orders, their potential impact and CAIR’s planned responses during the Jan. 23rd webinar.
