Ten days into his term in office, President Donald J. Trump pushed out a controversial executive order banning immigrants from seven middle-eastern countries: Iran, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen.   

While a federal appeals panel has since frozen the ban, Trump has threatened to take the issue to court for American safety and the ban could still be upheld by the Supreme Court.

Many people from these countries are concerned about not being able to leave to visit family without being blocked from coming back and even entering the US with the proper documents. Many major companies and businesses are not in agreement with this ban.

“I think [Trump’s ban] shows a value that I believe to be very un-American,” English teacher Sonya Shpilyuk said. “I think it says, here is a group of people we are scared of, so we are just not going to let them [into the country].”

“For one, I feel it is unfair because it is targeting one religion rather than people just in the Middle East,” junior Je’nan Hayes said. “You shouldn’t just try to ban one group of people as a whole. You should try to understand them and Trump is not doing that at all.” 

“People are protesting about it because they know it is wrong, but nothing’s really happening to change it,” Hayes added. While this executive order is against immigration, Trump admits to using it to indirectly lower the rates of terrorism.

Along with creating this executive order, Trump fired his acting Attorney General Sally Yates on January 31 due to refusing to defend the executive order. “I think these bans should be instituted legally, through a democratic process,” senior Adil Shoja said. “But he is just writing an executive order and a lot of people are against it, so that’s why I’m against it.” 

The ban “also says that we are going to go against this belief that we have had in our country,” Shpilyuk added. “That [belief is that] our country is open to all immigrants–open to take in people who have no where else to go–and [Trump’s ban] goes against that ideal.”