Arab, Muslim millennial media influencers react to Trump #MuslimBan
Photo: People protest Donald Trump's travel ban from Muslim majority countries at the International terminal at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) in Los Angeles, California, U.S., January 28, 2017. REUTERS/Patrick T. Fallon
Yesterday, thousands gathered in front of the international terminals of airports across the United States to protest President Trump’s executive order to restrict travel from seven Muslim-majority countries. Today, even more protests are planned for international terminals across the nation, as passengers with valid visas from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen are being detained by airport authorities.
While thousands of people protest at American airports, others have also taken to social media to share their reactions to President Trump’s immigration order under the hashtags #NoBanNoWall and #MuslimBan, including Arab and Muslim media influencers.
Ahmed Shihab-Eldin, Emmy-nominated journalist and correspondent for VICE on HBO, shared a video on Instagram that captured the frustration of millions of American Muslims with the current administration. The clip of President Trump during a CNN interview from March last year, quoted him saying “Islam Hates Us” and Shihab-Eldin’s caption reads:
On his Twitter account, Ayman Mohyedin, an Egyptian-American journalist based in Los Angeles for NBC News, condemned the travel ban and emphasized its punitive nature when he tweeted:
If you're looking for another term to describe extreme vetting of Muslim refugees & immigrants, some would say collective punishment is apt
— Ayman Mohyeldin (@AymanM) January 28, 2017
While the President’s travel ban has stirred up a lot of anger, it has also generated several unexpected displays of unity from fellow American citizens. On Friday, Laila Alawa, CEO and Founder of The Tempest, a media company that shares the stories of diverse millennial women, pinned a CNN Tech article to her Twitter account with the title “When Laila Alawa is harassed on Twitter, this Trump voter comes to her rescue.” The article shares the story of Alawa’s Twitter ally Troy Pflum, a 49-year-old Lutheran man living in Wisconsin, who defends the 25-year-old Syrian immigrant against Twitter trolls. The tweet that accompanied the article reads:
That moment when your friendship w/ Trump voter + loyal ally @wissportsfan is covered by @saraashleyo of @cnntech:https://t.co/eYMhxib7vQ
— Laila Alawa (@lulainlife) January 28, 2017
Hend Amry, Libyan-American “Queen of Muslim Twitter” with 127k followers, also shared her pride with the solidarity that Americans have been showing fellow Muslims and refugees in the aftermath of the travel ban when she tweeted:
I went to sleep as outrage over the #MuslimBan was picking up, woke up to airport demos & a wave of engaged immigration lawyers. #tears
— Hend Amry (@LibyaLiberty) January 29, 2017
Globally, Arab and Muslim millennials were also eager to share on social media their disapproval with President Trump’s new executive orders on immigration. Chaker Khazaal, a Palestinian-Canadian writer, reporter, journalist, speaker, and Huffington Post contributor, condemned Trump’s “national security agenda” in a comment on Twitter that reads:
A rhetoric of hate and fear doesn't serve national security; it actually endangers it in every possible way. #MuslimBan #RefugeeBan
— Chaker Khazaal (@ChakerKhazaal) January 28, 2017
Ola Al Fares, a Jordanian journalist who works at MBC channels and is the second most-followed Jordanian woman on Twitter after Queen Rania with 2.95 million followers on Twitter and 3.2 million on Instagram, voiced the fear of many Arab and Muslim Americans about the future implications of President Trump’s immigration ban, when she posed the following rhetorical question on Twitter in Arabic:
بعد قرارات ترامب بشأن حظر السفر الذي يشمل حاملي بطاقات الإقامة،هل سنصحوا على قرار سحب الجنسيات الامريكية من ذوي الأصول العربية المسلمة!
— Ola Al Fares (@OlaAlfares) January 28, 2017
After Trump ordered a travel ban, which also impacts green card holders, are we going to awake to another order that withdraws U.S. citizenship from people of Arab Muslim descent!
Maher Zain, popular Swedish R&B singer, songwriter and music producer of Lebanese origin shared his disappointment with America’s increasingly discriminatory views of Muslims, immigrants and refugees when he praised the “ethical leadership” of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who today said that Canada welcomes refugees and U.S.-bound passengers who are turned away:
This is what true moral and ethical leadership is all about.#Canada #Trudeau #Refugees #NoBanNoWall https://t.co/iH7PjcZ9Z6
— Maher Zain (@MaherZain) January 29, 2017
Iman Ben Chaibah, CEO of Dubai-based Sail Publishing and Emirati social influencer, addressed all the people who undermined the power of the American presidency when she tweeted:
I would like to have an eye to eye to everyone who said oh US can elect anyone as president, it's an honorary position with no power..
— Iman Ben Chaibah (@ImanBenChaibah) January 29, 2017
Ben Chaibah later followed this remark with another tweet posing a simple question that many Americans and global citizens, who might be affected by President Trump’s future executive orders and policy agendas, want the answer to:
When will he be impeached? Cause this is crazy and it's just the first week!
— Iman Ben Chaibah (@ImanBenChaibah) January 29, 2017
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Soukaina Rachidi