Brooklyn, N.Y. – Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke released the following statement on Donald Trump’s executive order barring entry to the United States for the predominantly Muslims nationals of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.

The order halts most refugee admissions for at least four months except for people who are religious minorities in their nation of origin, effectively preventing many refugees from the Syrian Civil War – the majority of whom are Muslim – from entering the United States.

“In the best of our traditions, the United States has welcomed people from around the world who wanted to come here to pursue the American Dream. Such people include many of the families I am honored to represent in Brooklyn, where my parents settled in 1955 from the Nation of Jamaica to continue their education.  My father became an engineer with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. My mother became an early childhood education administrator, and was ultimately elected to the New York City Council.

“There are unfortunately periods in our history when the United States has departed from that proud tradition, as when Japanese Americans were forced into internment camps during the Second World War and when strict limits were placed on immigration from Eastern and Southern Europe in 1924 based on irrational fears about Catholic and Jewish influence on American culture.

“We cannot as a nation allow xenophobia to undermine our principles or racism to determine our policies. There are more than three million Muslim Americans living here today. These are the same individuals who have volunteered for service in the Armed Forces. These same individuals are our neighbors and friends. I will never accept this attack on Muslim families as the policy of the United States. I will resist, and I call on my colleagues in Congress and people of good faith across the United States to join me in resistance to this act of hate.”

Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke, a member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, the Committee on Ethics and the Committee on Small Business in the House of Representatives, proudly represents Brownsville, Crown Heights, East Flatbush, Flatbush, Gerritsen Beach, Madison, Midwood, Park Slope, Flatlands, Prospect Heights, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Sheepshead Bay, and Windsor Terrace.