It is ironic to keep xenophobia a norm in a land of immigrants.  Although favoring some immigrants more than others, the United State’s borders have always been open to those fleeing war and prosecution.  The first restrictions on immigration were to limit the ‘undesirables’ based on nationality, race, and religion.  But later, these policies shifted the focus on accepting skilled immigrants regardless of their nationality.  The president has the responsibility to protect the United States against foreign terrorists, but by doing so should not violate the rights of the citizens of its country. Trump’s executive orders were used to promote dangerous rhetoric of pre-WW II restrictions on foreign visitors in the name of national security.  These policies were eventually revoked with harmful consequences to our foreign relations, economy, and  national security.  I propose a broader visa/immigration scrutiny for all terrorist prone nations (including the ones where the president operates business in,  with no exceptions),  to ensure the first amendment rights of people is protected.

            Americans and people in general have always been afraid of the unfamiliar.   Given the name of aliens these foreigners are met with distrust from the public.  Xenophobia the fear and distrust of that which is perceived to be foreign or strange is nothing new. The greeks who invented the word use this word to refer ‘others’ or ‘barbarians’.  Unfamiliar ethnic groups have had a particular mixed reaction when reaching the shores of America. In not so distant history, the blacks were forcefully brought to America only to be enslaved and treated as less than humans. Today we don’t have to force cheap laborers or migrants to come into the U.S. The economic opportunities and our freedom of expression are attractive to migrants from all over the world.

            The main port of entry at the turn of the century was Ellis Island in New York. Next to the processing center lies a french monument known as the Statue of Liberty that welcomed immigrants arriving from abroad.  At the base of the monument lies the quote, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”  The reality however is that the fear of foreigners has always prohibited or severely restricted immigration from various areas of the world.

            Massive immigration in America needed an immigration laws and the first such law was passed in 1975. This law is known as the Page Act of 1875, its goal was to prohibit the entry of immigrants that were considered “undesirable”.  These ‘undesirables’ were mostly from Asia and set to combat the cheap Chinese labor and Chinese prostitution found among a small subset of foreigners coming from these countries.  Later Eastern European Jews, Slavs, and Italians were heavily restricted in the Emergency Quota Act followed by the Immigration Act of 1924.  Jewish refugees fleeing Nazi Germany were barred from entry into the United States.  Mexicans during the Great Depression were forcefully deported.  Donald Trump’s executive orders bring back bad memories for many Americans. For New York Times, KAREN KOREMATSU wrote an article   ‘When Lies Overruled Rights’ in which she compares Trump's “Muslim Ban” with the executive order 9066 signed by the President Franklin Roosevelt against Japanese Americans. Trump’s Muslim Ban could maybe ‘fly’ in the old America but today this is seen as a natural progression of ‘undesirables’ that the American government has been banning for the last two centuries.

            The modern immigration policies of the United States were developed with the passing of the  Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965.  The modernization equalized immigration policies and abolished the system of national-origin quotas.  The focus of immigration was tied to immigrants skills and family relationships rather than country of origin.  "No person shall receive any preference or priority or be discriminated against in the issuance of an immigrant visa because of the person's race, sex, nationality, place of birth, or place of residence."  Non-European countries that were previously severely restricted began immigrating in ever increasing numbers.  Refugees were given preference to entering the United States.  In summation, the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, reversed previous xenophobic fears of foreigners from nationalities and religions.

 The President of the United States of America is in charge of safeguarding the United States from alien visitors and immigrants.  Title 8 of the United States Code states:

"Whenever the President finds that the entry of any aliens or of any class of aliens into the United States would be detrimental to the interests of the United States, he may by proclamation, and for such period as he shall deem necessary, suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens as immigrants or nonimmigrants, or impose on the entry of aliens any restrictions he may deem to be appropriate".

This safeguarding has been enacted by various presidents.  The Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015 signed by President Obama required nationals visiting from four countries (Iraq, Syria, Iran, and Sudan) or who had visited those countries to obtain visas.  Other countries (Libya, Yemen, and Somalia) were added later.  President Trump once elected attempted to modify the precedent set by Obama by further restricting entry of individuals in the name of safeguarding America.       

            Throughout his campaign Donald Trump had been proposing a policy of xenophobia against Muslims, Mexicans, Chinese, and other groups considered as ‘undesirables’ in the current racial attitudes of America. The Washington Post reported: “After the San Bernardino shooting in December 2015, Trump called for “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.”  Trump's "Contract with the American Voter" pledged to suspend immigration from "terror-prone regions". 

            On January 27, 2017 President Donald Trump signed an executive order Executive Order 13769 titled Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States. The order invoking Title 8 of the United States Code to prevent terrorism lowered the number of refugees admitted, suspended the entry of Syrian refugees, and suspended entry into various countries that targeted Muslim-majority countries.  The seven countries (out of which many terrorists who attacked 9/11 were from) were not included, such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, or other terrorist prone countries where the Trump Organization has conducted business. 

The executive order was ultimately revoked due to the glaring errors in the provision. In the beginning early confusion about the orders in regards to dual-citizens and green-card holders provoked outrage amongst the general U.S. population.  On January 27, the Department of Homeland Security sent out a guidance to airlines stated "lawful permanent residents are not included and may continue to travel to the USA."  The very next day the Department of Homeland Security's Acting Press Secretary Gillian Christensen was quoted in an email to Reuters that the order barred green-card holders from the affected countries.  Clarification was later made to allow green-card holders on a case-by-case waiver and later no longer would needed. Ultimately several lawsuits were filed in various courts (i.e.    Washington v. Trump, Aziz v. Trump) that ruled the executive order was likely to discriminate against Muslims.  This is in violation of Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 limiting discrimination based on religion

"No person shall receive any preference or priority or be discriminated against in the issuance of an immigrant visa because of the person's race, sex, nationality, place of birth, or place of residence"  - Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965

as well the Establishment Clause limiting discrimination based on religion.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…  - Establishment Clause

Ultimately the executive order was revoked and  new one was established.  Executive Order 13780, titled Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States was signed by the president on March 6th 2017 replacing EO 13769.  EO 13780 exempted permanent residents, current visa holders, and the suspension of Syrian refugees.  On March 15th, nine days later it was revoked by United States District Judge Derrick Watson, in Hawaii vs. Trump as violating the Establishment Clause since it was a “Muslim ban,” based upon statements of officials from the executive department.

            The effect on the economy and view of the international community on the United States was truly remarkable.  American tech companies such as Google, Amazon, and Microsoft who hire H-1b computer scientist are already feeling the effect with the loss of their workforce by moving offices to more immigrant friendly countries such as Canada.  The U.S. tourism industry has been feeling a “Trump Slump” with foreign tourism down by 6.8% or roughly $185 million in lost revenue do to the immigration suspension.  Our main allies (Britain, France, Canada, Australia, Germany) condemned the ban, 1,000 career U.S. diplomats signed a “dissent cable” disagreeing with the order, and religious leaders voiced descent.  FTO such as ISIS celebrated the orders allowing the anti-Western fervor to increase in the Islamic World.  Trump’s rhetoric is having dangerous consequences for the internal stability of the United States as well as its influence in the international arena.   

            Contemporary immigration is a hot button topic in today’s America. Xenophobic sentiment has always been present in the America but is now more prominent than ever. Modern immigration policies that were set in place after the World War II invoke various rights to non-persecution by religion or ethnicity. Donald Trump was elected on the issue of removing perceived ‘terrorist threats’ from Muslims in war-torn countries that have little economic interest to American companies.  Any policy issued by this current administration that seeks to mitigate the threat of foreign terrorists from entering into the United States, must do so arbitrarily. To fulfill Donald Trump's campaign promise to America, an extensive background check should be done on asylum seekers and visa applications from the countries the State Department classifies as ‘State Sponsors of Terrorism,’ as well as places where Foreign Terrorist Organizations as reported by the State Department operate.  This newer executive order would call for more scrutiny in non-Muslim majority countries such as the Philippines, Greece, or Chechnya where terrorist groups operate. The most recent news on the “Muslim Ban” is no longer ‘searchable’ on the Trump’s campaign website at all. Since coming into an office, the President Trump has signed various executive orders that upon revision did not turned into laws, because in democratic America no one, and not even the president is above the rule of law.