(6/5/2025, Seattle, WA)— The Washington state chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-WA) today joined CAIR National in strongly condemning President Trump’s newly expanded travel ban, which targets 19 predominantly Muslim and African countries and imposes vague ideological screening on immigrants.
On June 4, President Trump signed a new proclamation titled, “Restricting the Entry of Foreign Nationals to Protect the United States From Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats.
The expanded ban fully suspends immigration and nonimmigrant visas for citizens of Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen who do not already have legal status in the United States and who do not fall into any of the other exceptions and exemptions mentioned in the proclamation.
The ban imposes partial restrictions on Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
CAIR-WA’s Executive Director Imraan Siddiqi said, in a statement: “Since Trump announced his first candidacy in 2015, he has always set his sights on marginalizing Muslims both at home and abroad. We have seen Muslims—especially those who are visibly Muslim or outspoken—disproportionately targeted by First Amendment restrictions since the onset of this new term. Now, this new travel ban has a disproportionate impact on individuals from Muslim majority countries and the continent of Africa. We condemn these bans in the strongest terms and call on the court system to overturn these draconian rulings.”
CAIR-WA’s Legal Director Hannah Vickner Hough said, in a statement: “While it includes exceptions, this is another outright Muslim and African ban from Trump. In his proclamation, the president referenced Islam, and most of the fully banned countries are Muslim-majority countries. Furthermore, the ban was announced over Eid al-Adha, while many Muslims are out of the country on hajj, an annual pilgrimage to Mecca which Muslims are expected to complete at least once in their lives.”
Washington’s Muslim population is extremely diverse, including families and individuals from countries directly targeted by this policy—such as Somalia, Sudan, Iran, and Afghanistan. Many are students, healthcare professionals, engineers, and small business owners who contribute daily to the economic and social fabric of our state. This ban threatens to isolate them from loved ones, disrupt academic and professional aspirations, and deepen a climate of fear and exclusion. At a time when Washington has worked to build an inclusive society, including recently officially recognizing Eid al-Adha for the first time, this federal policy is an affront to those values.
CAIR-WA advises impacted community members to:
- Consult an immigration attorney to understand how this proclamation may affect your legal status.
- If you are from a listed country and do not have permanent status, we advise against international travel for the time being.
- Secure and store all legal documents including passports, visas, green cards, and work authorizations.
- Review CAIR-WA’s community alerts and know your rights information at knowyourrightswa.com
- Report any incidents of discrimination or abuse to CAIR-WA at cairwa.org/gethelp.