Travel ban leaves Muslim community, refugees confused and fearful

The white walls of Talal Dakkak’s apartment are mostly bare, but that’s what happens when you come to America with only suitcases and a stroller.

Last April, he and his wife couldn’t bring many mementos from their house in Bahrain or his hometown of Aleppo, Syria, a place he describes as the most “dangerous city in the world.” Dakkak will likely never see that home again, since he opposes the Syrian regime and is on its wanted list.

The Glen Burnie apartment with the white walls is becoming a home.

“When I came here I started crying, literally, when I saw my kids at home,” he said. “For the first time I felt safe, that we had a home. And now, after 10 months of feeling secure, I’m turning back to the first square. Again. I’m insecure. I’m afraid. What’s going to happen?

“This guy has four years to play with our lives.”

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Jan. 27 banning refugee resettlement into the U.S. for 120 days and indefinitely banning Syrian refugees from coming into the country. The executive order bans entry for citizens on immigrant or non-immigrant visas from seven Muslim-majority nations — Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen — for 90 days.

The travel ban has led to confusion and fear in the local Muslim community. Refugees, such as Dakkak, are struggling with feeling welcomed in Anne Arundel County while knowing their relatives are barred.

“It’s just making people’s lives miserable,” Dakkak said.

‘People are scared, people are very scared’

Last year, 2,118 refugees resettled in Maryland, said James Sunday, director of World Relief Anne Arundel. Afghanistan, Syria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo were the top three countries where the refugees came from.

World Relief Anne Arundel works with volunteers and churches to help resettle refugees. Sunday said many of the refugees he works with are nervous about the future.

“They all believed that America was this very welcoming place, but now there still wondering if that’s the case,” he said.

Rudwan Abu-rumman, president of Anne Arundel Muslim Council, said many people in the Muslim community are confused and nervous about Trump’s “unpredictability.” He’s received more than 50 emails from people unsure of what to do following the ban.

He’s been writing to local representatives, but also advising Muslims of all citizenship statuses to be wary of traveling.

“Don’t leave America if you don’t have to,” Abu-rumman said. “People are scared, people are very scared.”

Trump said the ban comes out of national security concerns, where potential terrorists could come into the U.S. The Trump administration has said it’s figuring out how to strengthen vetting procedures. The White House has since said green card holders from the seven countries will not need to a waiver before coming to the U.S.

On Friday, a federal judge in Seattle temporarily blocked the order from being enforced throughout the country. U.S. District Judge James Robart’s ruling has granted a nationwide order halting enforcement of both the visa and refugee provisions of the order.

The White House called the ruling “outrageous” and plans to seek an emergency halt to the judge’s order. Since the ruling is temporary, the order is on hold until the government and opposition make full arguments or until the administration wins a stay.

The State Department announced Saturday that previously banned travelers with valid visas will be able to enter the U.S. The Department of Homeland Security said it will no longer force airlines to block those foreigners with visas from boarding planes.

Not since 9/11 has anyone been killed in the U.S. by either an immigrant or the child of an immigrant from any of the countries listed in the three-month ban, The New York Times reported. Most of the killings were committed by native-born residents and some of the attacks involving the Islamic State were conducted by Muslims born in the U.S.

“Give me one person who was Syrian?” Dakkak asked.

Coming to America

Ramya Kdisaat’s home in Syria had only two rooms — for her family of six.

Kdisaat, her husband Nader and their four children fled the war-torn country in 2013 and lived in a Jordan refugee camp for several years. They came to the U.S. in September.

They live in a comfortable home in the county. Kdisaat’s two boys fight over who won the Xbox game. Her two girls play with American Girl dolls. She and her husband feel safe and grateful that their children finally have access to quality health care and good schools.

The couple recently paid their first month’s rent — a milestone. Kdisaat hoped her sister’s family and Nader’s brother would join them in Maryland. The family had left their jobs in Syria and were ready to move.

But they’re not sure if they can.

Kdisaat said through a translator she and her family were deeply sad and disappointed about the president’s executive order. She hopes the ban will be permanently lifted and her family can come to America “and begin a new life with new hope and forget everything that they faced during the war in Syria.”

Dakkak hopes the same for his sister-in-law. He’s reached out to a lawyer about bringing his wife’s sister from Aleppo to America. His sister-in-law is deaf, which has presented challenges for earning refugee status. It took Dakkak’s family about a year to gather the paperwork to come to the U.S. He works as an engineer for the same company he worked for in Bahrain.

Dakkak and his wife last saw her sister five years ago, when the couple married in Aleppo. She’s never met his children and is living in Lebanon with a relative.

She had an interview with the U.S. embassy in Lebanon on Friday, with the hopes she can start the refugee process again. Still, the family’s dreams of reuniting remain in limbo.

Given Trump’s policy shift, Dakkak fears the administration will impose even tougher immigration policies that could end his family’s chances of obtaining a green card for permanent U.S. residency. He plans to submit the paperwork for a green card this spring.

“How do I know that if it’s approved, some law is going to say if you’re a refugee you can not apply for citizenship. You can’t be an American,” he said.

“That’s destroying me.”