Mohammed Al Zabidi celebrated in 2017 when he learned that he had been selected in the American green card lottery, which people randomly select from a large number of applicants. It was a chance to escape his war-torn homeland Yemen and pursue his dreams in the United States.
“I won! I won!” Al Zabidi cheers. He borrowed money to finance his trip, bought clothes for his new life in America and packed souvenirs for friends there. With no US embassy in Yemen, he undertook a grueling trip to Djibouti for his visa interview.
But there, after initially being approved, he ran out of luck: ‘CANCEL WITHOUT PREDICTION’, reads the daring, black, all-caps stamp on the unused visa in his passport with a travel ban from Trump administration on several Muslim majority countries. , including his, in place.
“My family put their hopes in me. … My mother cried; it made me the saddest, ”he said.
President Joe Biden’s repeal of the inauguration day ban brought a sigh of relief to citizens in the countries covered by the measure. But amid the celebrations, stories of dreams were broken, families separated, savings used up and milestones missed, from births to graduation ceremonies. And for some, there are concerns about whether their opportunities may disappear forever.
The lottery system requires that the winners be checked and that their visas are in hand by September 30 of the year in which they are selected, or they lose. Al Zabidi therefore leaves him wondering if he will ever go to the States to start working there and repay what he borrowed.
“Can we get our visas back? Can we be compensated? He said. “We do not know.”
Many of those whose lives have been sustained now have to seek questions about backlogs, fees paid and travel restrictions due to the pandemic. Advocates for immigration and the rights of Muslims in the US, says Biden’s decision, but also points to the work ahead to get lives back on track and return the legacy of the ban.
“The ban has advanced the story that Muslims, Africans and other color communities do not belong in America, that we are dangerous threats,” said Mary Bauer, legal director of Muslim Advocates. “Ending the ban was just the first step in changing the story. Next, the Biden administration must remove other administrative immigration barriers that prevent families from reuniting. ”
According to the US State Department, more than 40,000 visas were denied due to the ban. This included not only lottery winners, but also people trying to visit family, those who traveled for business or personal reasons, and students admitted to American universities.
Biden has commissioned a report to address a number of issues, including a proposal ensuring the reconsideration of applications for immigrant visas denied due to the ban. The proposal will discuss whether to reopen the application for rejected applications. He also asks for a plan to expedite the discussion of the applications.
Many affected by the ban are also being blocked by an April order by former President Donald Trump stopping the issuance of green cards to protect the U.S. labor market amid the pandemic.
California attorney Rafael Urena says Biden has not indicated whether he will lift it, and the end of the travel ban will mean little if he does not.
“Most of my clients have no reason to celebrate because they are still stuck,” Urena said.
These include Mania Darbani, whose 71-year-old mother in Iran was denied a tourist visa to visit her in Los Angeles. In recent days, she has been checked and told that she is still unable to go due to the pandemic order.
“I am so exhausted by this situation,” said Darbani, 36. “I want to ask President Biden to lift all travel bans and help us. Please, please, help us. ‘
Many people are worried about long waiting times for visas, said Manar Waheed, senior lawmaker and lawyer at the American Civil Liberties Union.
“There are embassies around the world closed because of COVID, so there’s the piece of it,” Waheed said. “But we’ve also seen so many parts of our immigration system get stuck and really put out by the Trump administration. So it’s about building these systems.”
What is known as the “Muslim ban” or the “travel ban”, was first introduced in 2017, and was subsequently re-enacted amid legal challenges, until a version was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018. It affected different categories of travelers and immigrants from Iran. , Somalia, Yemen, Syria and Libya, plus North Koreans and some Venezuelan government officials and their families. In 2020, immigration curbs were added that affected several other countries.
Trump and others defended it on national security grounds, arguing that it would make the U.S. safer from terrorism. Supporters of the policy reject the argument that it is rooted in anti-Muslim prejudice and say that it is aimed at protecting the country.
By reversing the ban, the new government says it would rather strengthen the exchange of information with other countries and implement a strict, individualized examination system for visa applicants.
It is not clear whether it will be too late for Anwar Alsaeedi, also from Yemen, who was hoping to offer his two children a better future. He was delighted in 2017 when he was selected for the “diversity visa” interview of the lottery, only to be disqualified due to the ban.
“Our country is embroiled in wars and crises and we have lost everything,” Alsaeedi said. “It’s a big dream to come to America.”
Some whose dreams were thwarted eventually sought elsewhere.
Moayed Kossa, a Syrian pharmacist university in the pharmacy who was hoping to start a cosmetics company with his last name, received a scholarship to study business administration in the US after his country’s civil war drove the family to Jordan to flee. A few days before he was to leave, the US Embassy in Amman summoned him and canceled his visa.
Eventually, he’s rather study in Italy, and he does not know if he will apply for a US visa again, even though his brother now lives there.
“It’s not always easy,” Kossa said, “to try to open a closed door.”
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Associated Press author Julie Watson in San Diego contributed to this report.
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Associated Press religious coverage receives support from the Lilly Endowment through The Conversation US. The AP is solely responsible for this content.