Supreme Court Travel Ban Ruling: How Do We Respond?
Today the Supreme Court has issued a ruling upholding President Trump’s travel ban on people from several Muslim-majority countries.
As peacemakers, we are deeply disturbed by the anti-Muslim sentiment that has surrounded this travel ban and the ways that prejudice and discrimination have increased in our nation’s rhetoric.
As Christians we stand with our Muslim sisters and brothers against violence and discrimination. Therefore, we are concerned about the repercussions that this ruling may have and the anti-Muslim rhetoric it may encourage. Likewise, we are deeply concerned about the pain, anger, and sense of disenfranchisement this decision may cause for Muslims within the United States and around the world, along with the probability of further divisions and conflict as a result.
We understand that the ban was ostensibly made for the sake of national security. But we believe this ban plays into the hands of extremists who claim that the West, and especially America, is at war with Islam.
We believe the President’s Muslim Travel Ban is unethical and un-American. We reject exclusionary policies that discriminate on the basis of religion, race, culture, or country of origin. We will continue to stand alongside our Muslim and refugee neighbors to work for a country that upholds its own highest ideals.
In response, we will redouble our efforts to build peace between Christians and Muslims; to get to know one another in the context of genuine, honest relationships; and suspend judgments about those we disagree with based solely on media or third-party accounts.
Animosity (against anyone, on any side of this conversation) will not help to bring peace but only fan the flames of vitriol and division. So as we respond, let us do so in love and with an aim toward reconciliation. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."
