Press Release

AFT’s Weingarten on New Travel Restrictions from the Trump Administration

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Contact:

AFT Media Affairs
202/879-4458
press@aft.org

WASHINGTON—The Trump administration announced new travel restrictions late Sunday night, an expansion of the earlier travel ban to now include travel from North Korea and by government officials from Venezuela. Statement by AFT President Randi Weingarten on the new travel restrictions:

“Regardless of what the White House calls its latest ban, these new travel restrictions are still anti-Muslim, still anti-refugee and still antithetical to American values.

“Donald Trump promised a ‘total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States’ during the presidential campaign. As president, he has gone through contortions to make that happen, only to be thwarted repeatedly by a higher authority—the United States Constitution.

“As the granddaughter of immigrants, I know that the United States shines a beacon of hope across the globe. Our country has much to offer immigrants, and they, in turn, offer much to our country. I stand with the countless Americans who believe that opportunity is to be extended, not extinguished.” 

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The AFT represents 1.7 million pre-K through 12th-grade teachers; paraprofessionals and other school-related personnel; higher education faculty and professional staff; federal, state and local government employees; nurses and healthcare workers; and early childhood educators.