Travelers who sued the Trump administration in a class action lawsuit after they were blocked from entering the United States due to Donald Trump’s initial Muslim ban despite having valid visas have won the right to reapply for visas, following a court settlement reached with the federal government:
“Although the government dragged its feet for far too long, it has finally agreed to do the right thing and provide those excluded under the first Muslim ban with proper notice of their right to come to the United States. While this closes one chapter in our challenge to Trump’s efforts to institute his unconstitutional ban, we continue our legal fight against Muslim ban 2.0 at the Supreme Court in October,” Lee Gelernt, the deputy director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project, said in a statement announcing the settlement.
Under the settlement, “the federal government agreed to contact those barred entry in the first 24 hours of the ban to inform them of their right to reapply for visas and to give those people a list of organizations that provide pro bono legal aid, per the ACLU.” Letters will be written in English, Farsi and Arabic, according to the settlement.
Lead plaintiff Hameed Darweesh said that “it means a lot to me to be in America. The United States is a great country because of its people. I'm glad that the lawsuit is over. Me and my family are safe; my kids go to school; we can now live a normal life. I suffered back home, but I have my rights now. I'm a human."