San Diego City Council Votes 8-1 to Stand on the Right Side of History
Mustafa Dib, community organizer, addresses San Diego City Council
This past Tuesday, Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans (PANA) will join the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties, Pillars of the Community and 28 other immigrant and refugee rights organizations to ask the City Council to sign onto an amicus curiae by the City of Chicago in support of the state of Washington in the lawsuit challenging the Muslim ban executive order, State of Washington v. Trump.
Last week, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals delivered a unanimous victory to the state of Washington, finding that there was little reason to believe that the executive order was drafted in the interest of public safety. Although it remains to be seen whether the Trump Administration will take this case to the Supreme Court, or, as rumored, draft an executive order with similar exclusions of people seeking refuge, in San Diego hundreds filled city council chambers to strongly urge council members vote the right way and ensure America’s Finest City stands on the right side of history.
The following is a statement was made by Ramla Sahid, executive director of the Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans:
“Americans are standing up and fighting back. We are fighting for our families and for our nation’s soul. The spontaneous rallies at the nation’s airports, the quick legal action by our litigators, the phone calls that have shut down the Capitol switchboard, the participation of so many constituents at town hall meetings and the chorus of condemnation – all following the massive Women’s Marches, the largest demonstrations in the nation’s history -- shows that we won’t stop until 45 is stopped.”
“You either stand with our most vulnerable families and say that they belong in San Diego, where many of us have had children and have raised our children, or you label them as foreign enemies.”
Mustafa Dib, a Syrian refugee and a community organizer at PANA said: “We ask you to take the steps necessary to ensure that our city creates spaces in which all residents feel safe. We must honor our nation’s longstanding, Constitutionally-rooted tradition of protecting individual rights and freedom.”
Here are a few good links to look:
- KPBS: San Diego City Council Supports Lawsuit Against Trump Travel Ban
- San Diego Union Tribune: San Diego to fight Trump's refugee travel ban
- 10 News:San Diego to help resist Trump's travel ban