Earlier this year, President Trump issued a travel ban on travelers from Muslim countries. However, Judges from several states blocked the travel ban from going into effect. Now, Trump’s travel ban is back into effect.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday allowed a scaled-back version of President Trump’s travel ban to go into effect. The travel ban would affect people from six Muslim countries (Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen) from entering the United States for 90 days and would go into effect in as little as 72 hours. The U.S. Supreme Court states that the travel ban would not be enforced against someone who has a credible claim of a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States as provided in the following excerpt from the U.S. Supreme Court decision below:
“In practical terms, this means that §2(c) may not be enforced against foreign nationals who have a credible claim of a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States. All other foreign nationals are subject to the provisions of EO–2.”
The decision of the U.S. Supreme Court has however been met with criticism. Opponents of the travel ban are concerned with what constitutes as a “bona fide relationship”. Would it require a blood relation? A lack of a clearly defined relationship would bar from entry people from the six countries and refugees with no such ties and cause chaos at the airports.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated that it will discuss the court’s action with the Justice and State departments and said it would implement the ban “professionally, with clear and sufficient public notice, particularly to potentially affected travelers, and in coordination with partners in the travel industry.”
