He’s creating a wall no one dares to cross. President Donald Trump is staying true to his words. All that he had vowed for during the election is slowly coming true. And the world is reacting angrily. And it is only getting worse.
The US tech industry, substantially staffed with immigrants, was thrown into a tizzy after President Donald Trump issued executive orders temporarily barring refugees from seven Muslim-majority countries entering the US.
Although India does not feature, there’s a certain undertone of anti-Muslim sentiment that’s restraining Muslims in the city on making travel plans. How are city-based Muslims taking to this ban? How open are they about sending their kids to the US for further studies now? We find out.
Bengaluru-based Anees Ahmed, founder and President of Mistral Solution states, “I have faced discrimination and profiling many times at US airports, despite having made over 50 business trips to the USA, and having even lived there for a few years. I think, it’s only going to increase now where officers can act how they want, knowing that they are doing their duty. The tech industry has been a major beneficiary of earlier immigration and even refugees. Over 50 per cent of tech start-ups or tech CEO’s are immigrants or people who moved to USA.”
Although Indian Muslims don’t have to worry at this stage, there’s a feeling of discontentment in the community. Entrepreneur Nishi Rahman shares, “The Muslims in the city don’t want to attempt to travel to the US at the moment, unless necessary, because they don’t know what awaits them at immigration when they arrive there. Social media is full of stories from people who have travelled and suffered. There was a time when I thought US was a country with many opportunities for even a middle class working person but not anymore — with Trump’s new rulings. As for sending my son for further studies to the US at the moment, it’s the last option on my list.” Entrepreneur Zubair Ahmed agrees, saying, “Half of my mom’s side of the family is in US. Most are in constant fear as they don’t know what’s going to happen next. If Trump does not want immigrants or refugees from other countries, is he going to bring the troops back from other countries, as well? Why should it be just one sided?”
Expressing his angst fashion choreographer Faheem adds, “Donald Trump is doing what he promised during his election campaign and it is infuriating. Is he trying to get the whole world to confirm to his anti-Muslim ideologies? He’s making all of us look bad. I’m a Kashmiri Muslim. I will never go to the US or let my relatives, my kids or my friends travel to the US.”
