A win for the American public and our Constitution

Washington, DC – The following is a statement from Johnathan Smith, legal director of Muslim Advocates, regarding tonight’s ruling by the 9th U.S. District Court of Appeals. Johnathan’s full biography is available here. For booking, please contact Scott Simpson at [email protected] or Nicky Vogt at [email protected].

“Tonight, the three-judge panel 9th U.S. District Court of Appeals made the sensible decision to uphold our Constitution and U.S. Judge Derrick Watson’s July ruling, which lifted the #GrandmaBan and paved the way for our country to, once again, open our doors to refugees.

“As the decision reads, the administration ‘cherry picked’ legal definitions and legislation to create a definition that fit Trump’s campaign promises and needs – a ‘need’ to create an unlawful Muslim ban.

“Further, the Judges found that, due to the government’s narrow interpretation of the Supreme Court ruling, ‘Refugees remain in vulnerable limbo’ and are ‘gravely imperiled.’ For the past two months, the government has unjustly turned away refugees. This must be remedied immediately.

“While we applaud this ruling and celebration of our nation’s guaranteed rights and liberties, our fight must continue. President Trump’s discriminatory ban is still harming American Muslims, refugees, and American families. This administration has shown a clear and consistent commitment to isolating and stigmatizing the Muslim community.  

We urge the Supreme Court to take notice of how court after court after court has acknowledged the Administration’s overreach.

Religious freedom is a core founding principle of our Constitution and our nation. As such, we remain dutifully committed and united with our partners to doing all we can to protect the rights of all to live free from unlawful discrimination and exclusion.”

 

Muslim Advocates is a national legal advocacy and educational organization that works on the frontlines of civil rights to guarantee freedom and justice for Americans of all faiths.

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