A federal judge in New York has issued an emergency order temporarily barring the U.S. from deporting people from nations subject to President Donald Trump's travel ban.
U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly issued the order Saturday evening after lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union filed a court petition on behalf of people from seven predominantly Muslim nations who were detained at airports across the country as the ban took effect.
Cheers broke out in a crowd of demonstrators outside a Brooklyn courthouse as the decision, effective nationwide, was announced. The order barred U.S. border agents from removing anyone who arrived in the U.S. with a valid visa from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen.
It also covered anyone with an approved refugee application.
It was unclear how quickly the order might affect people in detention.
A protest is being organized for Sunday in downtown Dayton, outside the offices of U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, (R-Dayton), in response to President Donald Trump's crackdown on refugees and citizens from seven majority-Muslim countries.
Trump's executive order includes a 90-day ban on travel to the U.S. by citizens of Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen. The U.S. refugee program was suspended for 120-days, The Associated Press reports.
Trump's order imposed the most aggressive ban on Syrians, indefinitely blocking entry to the U.S. by anyone from that country, including those fleeing civil war.
That includes legal permanent residents — green card holders — and visa-holders from those seven countries who are out of the United States.
"Many of us have students and colleagues who will be prevented from visiting their family members, in some cases their children, because of Trump's executive order banning travel for H-1B visa holders. And turning our backs against those refugee families in need, including young children, is simply wrong. Please join me in standing against the ban," Dayton-protest organizer Rebecca Potter said in a statement posted to Facebook.
The Stop the Ban on Refugees and H-1B Travel protest will be held Sunday, Jan. 29 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., at 120 W. 3rd St, Dayton, OH 45402-1815. For more information, visit the event's Facebook page.
