BALTIMORE (November 17, 2017) —The NAACP joined with partners to file amicus curiae briefs in two federal appellate courts challenging the latest version of President Donald Trump’s discriminatory executive order banning travelers from several predominantly Muslim countries from entering the United States, more commonly known as the “Muslim ban.”
“This executive order, like its predecessors, should be struck down as violating the guarantee of equal protection under our Constitution,” said Bradford Berry, NAACP General Counsel. “Just like the old Jim Crow laws, the executive order attempts to mask the discriminatory intent leading to its creation, but the President’s campaign promises make abundantly clear that the intent here is to discriminate against individuals based on religious and ethnic identity,” added Berry.
The amicus brief explains the destructive effect of the executive order on the fabric of American society and argues that the order represents a violation of the Equal Protection Clause in the U.S. Constitution.
While the courts determine the constitutionality of the Muslim ban, some aspects of the ban are scheduled to go into effect immediately.
Joining the NAACP in submitting the legal briefs are Advocates for Youth, Center for Reproductive Rights, Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, Mississippi Center for Justice, National Center for Lesbian Rights, National Urban League, People for the American Way Foundation, Southern Coalition for Social Justice, and Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs.
