CPC STATEMENT ON THE FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION EXPANSION OF THE TRAVEL BAN

***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***

Date: February 6th, 2020

Press Contacts: Carlyn Cowen, Chief Policy and Public Affairs Officer (ccowen@cpc-nyc.org | 919-637-6866)

New York, NY-- The Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC) condemns the Federal Administration’s recent decision to expand the travel ban to include Nigeria, Myanmar, Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan and Tanzania, all countries with significant Muslim populations.

The expansion of the travel ban echoes a long history of racist laws in the United States that use national security as a justification for the exclusion and punishment of immigrant communities. From the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act and World War II’s internment of Japanese Americans to today’s separation of children and parents at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facilities and the public charge ruling, it is clear that racism, white supremacy, and xenophobia continue to underlie Federal policies that obstruct the rights of all immigrants. 

CPC remains committed to resisting this Administration’s attempts of excluding and discriminating against communities of color. We urge all local agencies to continue upholding sanctuary city status, and we stand with Asian American, Latinx, Muslim, and other immigrant communities in denouncing the Administration’s travel ban and other anti-immigrant policies.

Join us in amplifying and supporting the work of local immigrant groups and resisting discriminatory practices such as the travel ban or additional barriers to family-based sponsorship, diversity visas, asylum, DACA, and TPS.

• Consider witnessing immigration court hearings or accompanying someone headed to court. Volunteering to accompany an individual headed to immigration court provides much-needed peace of mind and moral support. Witnessing immigration hearings also holds judges and court system accountable to due process. Judges are more likely to act fairly when they know members of the public are watching.
  Click here for more information from the New Sanctuary Coalition.

• Continue to keep pressure on your local representative and make your voice heard with our call script below:
  • ​First, enter your zip code to look up your representatives here: https://house.gov/representatives/find/
  • Call script: Hello! My name is and I’m calling from [City]. I’m calling today to tell [Representative] to pass clean immigration reform through the DREAM Act without compromising on important pathways like DACA, TPS, asylum, diversity visas, and family reunification. I ask that [Representative] vote to permanently protect immigrants from deportation and oppose compromises like the family ban, more ICE agents, and the border wall.

About CPC
The Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC) is the nation's largest Asian American social services organization. Founded in 1965, CPC aims to promote the social and economic empowerment of Chinese American, immigrant, and low-income communities of New York City.

華人策劃協會(華策會)是全美國最大的亞裔美國人及太平洋島民社區服務機構.成立於1965年,華策會專門為紐約市的華裔美國人,移民,和低收入民眾提供金融權力和社區服務.