Friend –

As we witness the onboarding of a new presidential administration, it's hard not to reflect on the four preceding years that were defined by a xenophobic and racist president.

Within a week of former-President Trump taking office, he converted his hate-filled campaign promises into public policy, signing an Executive Order, known as the Muslim Ban, that excluded Muslims from entering the United States. For four years, we tracked his administration's relentless assaults and recorded the legal challenges in our Muslim Ban Timeline.

By the end of Trump's presidency, the policy barred the entry of millions of people to this country, targeting people from Muslim-majority and African countries. As a result, people have been unable to celebrate life events or mourn the loss of loved ones, many were denied life-saving health care treatment, and prevented from pursuing educational and career opportunities.

But on January 20, President Biden's first day in office, he signed an Executive Order repealing this horrific policy. We celebrate his administration's swift action – the result of the advocacy, drive, and resilience of impacted communities. And we're thrilled to add the final slide to our timeline.

Let's remember: The fight for immigrants’ rights does not end from one administration to the next. This is just one victory in a much larger fight to undo the injustices of the immigration system and replace it with one that honors the dignity and humanity of all immigrants, without exception.

As the Muslim and African bans make clear, there is far too much room in our legal system for abuses of power against immigrants – particularly Black and Brown immigrants. For this reason, we remain committed to the work necessary to dismantle the system of power that causes chaos and despair among immigrant communities.

Click below if you want to learn more about how this malicious and now defunct policy unfolded:

Track every twist and turn of the Muslim and African Bans with our interactive timeline.

Thank you for your partnership in this fight.

Onward,

Vasudha Talla
Pronouns: She, her, hers
Immigrants' Rights Director, ACLU of Northern California