Donald Trump faces major tech company backlash over travel ban
In last few months, current president of The United States of America, Donald Trump have been flashing through the headlines. He did not gain popularity just for his victory in the elections, but also is famous for controversies over his statements and decisions. One amongst them, the latest one in the news these days is "immigration ban" which suspends entry into the United States, as immigrants and non-immigrants, of people from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen for 90 days from the date of the order. The countries were not named in that order, but the names were provided by the administration later on.
It did not just offend religions or countries, but tech companies in the USA are also facing a hard time following the declaration of this ban. Over 100 tech companies are standing in opposition of the ban and also fighting for the 90 days expanded period.
Let's have a quick look into the matter and opinions of these companies first. After the declaration many tech companies have raised their voices against the decision. Big fishes amongst these include Pinterest, twitter, apple, Facebook, Microsoft, google, etc. Companies in the Silicon Valley, who have always kept their hands off politics are seemingly concerned with the ban issue and are ready to fight hard against it. These companies have not only showed their concerns they have also filed "amicus brief" in the court. It's a legal document which can be filed by non-litigants with a strong interest in the subject matter. This helps the court in concluding the matter by providing additional information over the matter.
Some points in this document state about the 50 years old principles that govern the immigration system of the united states and how deflecting from these principles negatively affected the tech companies. In their defence, these companies mentioned about the difficulty faced by them in recruiting new employees to fill their vacancies. They not only lost a loyal, hard-working, talented employee, but the new hiring process have also cost a toll on their expenses.
Though tech companies are facing troubles and have openly opposed this ban, the businessman president, Donald Trump on the other hand has not yet stated anything against these companies. He rather said that the ban is not evoked for a particular religion, but it's more of a safety ban. He, as a leader, shows his concern for his people and country and that being the motive behind this decision. Although many people are disappointed with this decision, including presidents of countries across the globe, Donald Trump says immigration ban was a correct decision and is not budging from it. Also, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt are exempted from the ban.
President also says that the refugees banned from the mentioned countries are a source of terror in the US. In his defence, he also mentioned about Obama administration identifying them as the same.
The ban is only for refugees and people are asked to leave the nation for an expanded period of 90 days, Trump adds that these people will get access to the nation after this period. He places safety of his nation above religion while speaking of the issue. He also voices his concern and empathy with people in Syria and says that they will support them the way they have been doing after the security measures taken for the nation. Canadian president on the other hand invites refugees in their country for staying and working. There is massive chaos and unrest due to the uncertainty of the fate of hundreds of people. Whether the immigrants be patient enough to wait for the fate of this order or not, there is a strong negative sentiment in the country and it's just a matter of time before the consequences of this order start reflecting on the economy.
Apart from tech companies, other sectors of the nation are also affected equally. Companies like Chobani, a yogurt company and Levi Strauss and Co., a jeans company have also made to the list. These companies have strong ties with immigrants. Where Chobani employees 300 refugees, both of these are founded by immigrants themselves to start with.
In the ongoing matter, these companies are not the only ones facing trouble, people like Hameed Khalid Darweesh are going through a tough time too. He has helped US militants at every point starting from being an interpreter in 2003 while dealing with Iraq to dragging the wounded soldiers after a war. Such people who deserve a reward were detained on the airport by immigration officials. It was only after American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a case on behalf of him and another one, the court gave its decision in favour of immigrants and granted a temporary stay to only those with a valid visa. With such great examples in the community, how difficult is it for the mankind to understand that the enemies are not Muslims or Christians, the real enemy is EXTREMISM.
Some people also believe that this immigration ban might evoke ISIS for unexpected terror attacks and may lead to terrible results. At this moment of chaos, it's not completely illogical to think in that direction. Safety is an important issue for the leader and his decisions for the same deserves respect, but is it justified to take away a person's only source of living just because his faith for a particular religion doesn't match yours. Caste, creed, religion, boundaries are all created by humans, but we are so drowned in these earthly affairs that we forget humanity is above all religions. If one terrorist is spreading words in the name of Islam, whole community cannot be declared wrong. Their teachings are no different from ours, and barring them from entering a region based on the fact that they belong to a particular faith has no grounds for justification.
Just reminding all of you of the lines said by John Kennedy "Let us not seek the republican answer or the democratic answer, but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past, let us accept our own responsibility for the future."