FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 5, 2025 | Washington, DC

ANAR RESPONDS TO TRAVEL BAN

ANAR joined advocates and Members of Congress today in affirming our opposition to the Trump administration’s newest iteration of its Travel Ban.Nearly four years after the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan, tens of thousands of Afghans, both in the United States and abroad, continue to remain in limbo and awaiting family reunification. The administration’s June 4, 2025 Travel Ban, which includes Afghan nationals, adds another layer to the betrayals that they have faced from the US government.

Just a few weeks ago, on the same day that the administration welcomed white South Africans as refugees, it terminated temporary protected status for over 10,000 Afghans. At that time, Secretary of Homeland Security Noem stated that country conditions in Afghanistan were safe and stable. Last night, the presidential memo explaining the reasoning for the travel ban described the Taliban government as a terrorist organization which could not comply with so-called safety and vetting concerns.

This inconsistency is no mistake. It makes clear what we know—that the administration’s policies are rooted in exclusion and white supremacy, not in any real concern for safety or security. The stated exceptions, including for certain immediate relatives and for Special Immigrant Visas, do not make up for the blanket elimination of pathways for the majority nor the anxiety and uncertainty caused by “proclamations” such as these.

In the hours since the announcement of the list of countries on this proclamation, we have received an influx of requests from students fearing deportation, individuals who have been waiting for family reunification since 2021, and countless others. Our community members, like all those impacted by this ban, have faced nothing but delays and loss of protections since January. This administration seeks to leave our communities in fear and unstable separated from their loved ones.

And despite the administration’s actions leaving many refugee and immigrant-serving organizations under-resourced, we will continue to work alongside all those impacted as they navigate pathways to permanent safety. We call on our allies to invest in the same, and for members of Congress to pressure this administration to fulfill its obligations. We have expected this since January, and advocates are ready to respond as we were in 2017.

On the eve of Eid, our communities deserve to live with safety and dignity, and without the burdens of family separation, indefinite limbo, and countless barriers, whether through this Travel Ban, detention, deportation, or the countless other exclusionary and racist immigration policies targeting Muslim, Black, and all immigrant communities.

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Project ANAR is an Afghan community immigration justice organization formed and led by Afghan American women immigration lawyers and organizers, that focuses on legal services, community education, and advocacy and engagement. Project ANAR’s objectives include obtaining permanent status for Afghans in the U.S., advocating for the expansion of pathways for those seeking refuge, and seeking an end to the systems that displace our communities. Project ANAR works primarily in the Bay Area, California and in Northern Virginia, and also engages in national level advocacy and legal services work.