“We call on Congress today to rise to the challenge of putting country before politics and to protect the rights of all people living in the United States by defending the Constitution,” the joint letter read, “and by rejecting the ‘total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States,’ from forever being enshrined in history books as the official policy of the United States.”
The 15 organizations are calling on Congress to “fulfill their duties and immediately pass legislation to rescind the unconstitutional Muslim ban and make absolutely clear that such attempts to target Muslims, or anyone on the basis of national origin, are unlawful.
The coalition of organizations includes: ACCESS, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Amnesty International USA, Arab American Institute (AAI), Asian Americans Advancing Justice (AAAJ), Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Iranian American Bar Association (IABA), Muslim Advocates, Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), National Immigration Law Center (NILC), NIAC Action, National Network for Arab American Communities (NNAAC), Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA), and South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT).
The petition was delivered to the offices of Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT), Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA). With the House of Representatives out of session this week, the petition will be mailed to House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). Today also marks the day that the September 24 presidential proclamation, commonly known as Muslim Ban 3.0, was set to go into effect before a federal judge temporarily blocked its implementation yesterday.