(WASHINGTON, D.C., 4/22/19) – Today a coalition of 127 national and state African, Arab, Iranian, Middle Eastern, Muslim and South Asian American communities; interfaith partners; and civil, education, human and immigrant rights allies, issued a joint letter to all national political parties requesting that they include repealing the Muslim Ban and reversing the all-time-low cap on the annual number of refugees admitted into the United States as signature issues in their 2020 party platforms.
The joint statement is in advance of the 2020 national party conventions held by the Democratic, Republican, Green, and Libertarian Parties. During these conventions each political party updates their party platform, which embodies the principles and strategic goals of the party for the next four years.
www.tinyurl.com/2020PlatformLetter
In the joint letter, the coalition said:
“We the undersigned organizational representatives of the African, Arab, Iranian, Middle Eastern, Muslim and South Asian American communities; interfaith partners; and civil, education, human and immigrant rights allies, call on all national political parties to include repealing the Muslim Ban and reversing the all-time-low cap on the annual number of refugees admitted into the United States as signature issues in their 2020 party platforms.
“Our country aspires to be a place where people can worship freely, exchange and explore new ideas, start businesses, and remain safe and secure with their families – to be a beacon of hope to those “yearning to breathe free,” as inscribed on the Statue of Liberty. The Muslim Ban and cuts to refugee admissions contravene these ideals. They have torn mothers from their children, kept people from lifesaving medical treatments, deprived Americans of access to scholarship and voices we have the right to hear, and denied a safe harbor to refugees fleeing global conflicts – including those in which our nation is an active combatant.
“The 2020 election provides every political party with a renewed opportunity to publicly assess whether its message and platform are aligned with our nation’s guiding values. We call on you to affirm our fundamental principles of religious freedom and an open society by committing to repeal the Muslim Ban and reverse the record-low cap on refugee admissions in your 2020 party platforms. We are not seeking a nominal increase in refugee caps, or a substitute for the Muslim Ban in the form of comparable vetting programs that rely on religious or ethnic profiling. Rather, in committing to rescind these policies, we ask for a strong statement that the United States welcomes people of all nationalities, ethnicities, and creeds.
“Several resolutions and bills have already been introduced in Congress to overturn the Muslim Ban and address gaps in our nation’s legal framework that permitted its authorization. Though these proposals have substantial support, they are unlikely to become law in short order.
“That is why we are collectively calling on our nation’s political parties to elevate these critical issues in their 2020 party platforms. The next political convention cycle presents our nation with the best opportunity to move forward in repealing the Muslim Ban and cap on refugees. Please make repealing the Muslim Ban and increasing the refugee cap a central element of your party’s 2020 platform.”
CAIR is America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
La misión de CAIR es mejorar la comprensión del Islam, fomentar el diálogo, proteger las libertades civiles, capacitar a los musulmanes estadounidenses, y construir coaliciones que promuevan la justicia y la comprensión mutua.
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CONTACT: CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR Strategic Communications Manager Arsalan Bukhari, 206-931-3655, abukhari@cair.com.
* Letter co-signers include the following national and state groups:
National Organizations
Action Center on Race and the Economy
African Communities Together
Alianza Americas
American
Arab Forum
American Friends Service Committee
American Muslim Empowerment Network (AMEN)
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC)
Asian Americans Advancing Justice
Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law
CODEPINK
Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)
Defending Rights & Dissent
Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund
Embodied Solidarity
Emgage Action
Food Empowerment Project
Foreign Policy for America
Franciscan Action Network
Franciscan Sisters of the Poor – U.S.
Freedom for Immigrants
Friends Committee on National Legislation
Hip Hop Caucus
ICNA Council for Social Justice (ICNA CSJ)
Institute for Policy Studies, New Internationalism Project
International Center for Rights and Justice
International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP)
Islamic Scholarship Fund
Islamophobia Studies Center
J Street
Jetpac
Jewish Voice for Peace
Just Foreign Policy
Justice For All
Justice, Peace & Integrity of Creation, Order of St. Francis
Million Hoodies Movement for Justice
MoveOn
MPower Action
Muslim Advocates
Muslim American Society-PACE
Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC)
NAACP
NAFSA: Association of International Educators
National Council of Jewish Women
National Immigration Law Center
National Iranian American Council
National Network for Arab American Communities
National Religious Campaign Against Torture
NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice
Oil Change U.S.A.
Only Through US
Our Three Winners Foundation (OTWF)
Peace Action
Poligon Education Fund
Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive Hindus
Secular Franciscan Order – USA
Secure Justice
Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities
Sisters of St. Francis of the Providence of God
Southern Poverty Law Center
STAND: The Student-Led Movement to End Mass Atrocities
The Revolutionary Love Project
The United Methodist Church – General Board of Church and Society
The Yemen Peace Project
T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights
Truman National Security Project
United We Dream Action
Veterans For Peace
Voices for Progress
Wheaton Franciscans, General Office for Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation
Win Without War
Yemeni Alliance Committee
Yemeni American Merchants Association (YAMA)
State Organizations
Adhikaar, New York
Amal Law Group, LLC, Illinois
Baltimore Palestine Solidarity, Maryland
CAIR-Austin, Texas
CAIR-California, California
CAIR-Cincinnati, Ohio
CAIR-Florida, Florida
CAIR-Georgia, Georgia
CAIR-Houston, Texas
CAIR-Massachusetts, Massachusetts
CAIR-New Jersey, New Jersey
CAIR-Ohio, Cleveland Chapter, Ohio
CAIR-Oregon, Oregon
CAIR-Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
California Sanctuary Campaign, California
Central American Resource Center in Los Angeles
Central Valley Immigrant Integration Collaborative (CVIIC), California
Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County, Inc. (CAB), California
East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, California
Equality California, California
Faith in Texas, Texas
Family Action Network Movement, Florida
Greater Cleveland Immigrant Support Network, Ohio
Greater New York Labor Religion Coalition, New York
Jewish Voice for Peace-NYC, New York
Law Office of Aliya Karmali, California
Minnesotans Against Islamophobia, Minnesota
Muslim Alliance of Indiana, Indiana
Muslim Foundation inv, New Jersey
New Jersey Muslim Lawyers Association (NJMLA), New Jersey
New York Muslim United for Civic Engagement, New York
NJMVP, New Jersey
Northern California Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, California
Old First Church, Middletown, New Jersey
Pangea Legal Services, California
Pars Equality Center, California
Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans, California
People Acting in Community Together (PACT), California
Puentes – Immigrant Legal and Community Resources, California
San Francisco Peninsula People Power, California
SIREN (Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network), California
Sisters of Saint Francis JPIC Commissioners, Colorado
Sisters of St Francis Justice, Peace & Integrity of Creation Commission, Colorado
Sisters of St. Francis Justice Peace & Integrity for Creation Committee O’Donnell, OSF, Pennsylvania
Southeast Queens Muslim Collective Inc., New York
Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, New York
Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, Tennessee
The Interfaith Center of New York, New York
The Monmouth Center for World Religions and Ethical Thought, New Jersey
The Sacramento Family Unity Education Legal Network, California
Tri-State Franciscan Solidarity Table, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky
Unite Oregon, Oregon
United Muslims of America, California
WE RISE SF/ Labor Center for Immigrant Justice, California
Westchester Coalition Against Islamophobia, New York