apart and destroying their plans to continue or rebuild their lives.
In New York, two Iraqi refugees, Hameed Khalid Darweesh and Haider Sameer Abdulkhaleq Alshawi, were detained overnight at John F. Kennedy International Airport. Both of these men worked with the US military and contractors in Iraq.
Their lives were threatened as a result. According to the legal complaint filed on behalf of the two men, Darweesh had his home raided by militia-affiliated police, while two of his coworkers were killed “as soon as they arrived at work”; he had to move twice during his time working with the US for his safety.
Alshawi’s brother-in-law (who worked with Alshawi) was killed by an IED placed on a family car. These horrible events were the direct result of helping the United States. And America turned its back on them in return. (Darweesh was released from detention Saturday afternoon , though it’s not yet clear whether he’ll be allowed to stay in the US.)
These men are just two examples of many that began to come into focus within a day of the order’s signing. A Syrian refugee family was scheduled to fly to Cleveland from a Turkish refugee camp on Tuesday, only to have their travel — and their plan to rebuild their lives scrapped.
An Iranian genomics researcher tweeted Saturday morning that she was excited to start her new job in a Boston lab, but hadn’t been allowed to get on the plane. These are just the examples we know of. We do not know the full extent to which this policy is already wrecking lives. But we do know that it will continue to do real damage.
The term “Muslim ban” has been a political football for over a year. To some supporters and opponents alike, it was just campaign rhetoric — something to be taken figuratively, not literally. It was a stand-in for fears of Trump’s base, a way to communicate with them at an emotional level.
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