CUYAHOGA FALLS: Over the past week, President Donald Trump’s executive orders to halt refugee immigration has prompted nationwide talk about Muslims.
For Isam Zaiem, the co-founder of the Cleveland chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the attention is a challenge — but it’s also an opportunity.
“The Muslim community can lead the country in cleaning the mess that we are having here,” Zaiem said. “It is an opportunity for the Muslims now to take the lead … it is now a chance for us to stand up and defend everybody’s right.”
CAIR, along with the Islamic Society of Akron and Kent (ISAK), hosted a forum at ISAK’s mosque in Cuyahoga Falls on Friday night to inform the community about Trump’s latest executive orders, answer questions and outline a call to action.
A diverse crowd of about 150 people showed up to the forum, including 15-year-old Amira Al-Maflehi of Cuyahoga Falls.
Amira, whose dad is Muslim, said she and her sister experience harassment just from wearing their hijabs, facing everything from verbal innuendoes to physical bullying.
“You have to get to know a person before you say you hate them,” Amira said. “People need to realize that we’re all human beings and we’re all equal.”
David Leopold, a nationally recognized immigration attorney, was the keynote speaker.
Leopold said Trump’s campaign had three main pillars: building a wall to block Mexican immigrants, deporting immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally and deporting Muslims.
“In my view, it’s a blueprint for mass deportations,” Leopold said.
He discussed two of Trump’s executive orders that relate to immigrants.
One order is meant for “enhancing public safety,” which expands immigration enforcement priorities beyond what President Barack Obama set, he said.
The other order, which has been called the “Muslim ban,” temporarily suspends travel from seven Muslim-majority countries into the nation. That order has since been put on hold by a federal appeals court.
Julia Shearson, executive director of CAIR Cleveland, cited a list of 15 signs she said Robert Reich, labor secretary under President Bill Clinton, warned a tyrant would do.
Shearson paralleled each sign with Trump’s actions, from warning of massive voter fraud and condemning the media to threatening mass deportations and appointing family members to administrative positions.
“This is only the first part of what I think could be potentially even worse for our country, and that’s extreme vetting,” Shearson said.
Leopold, who has worked with immigrants since the 1990s, said the future is uncertain.
“I’ve never been in a situation where the administration is taking a sledgehammer to the Statue of Liberty,” he said.
He suggested immigrants speak to a lawyer before they travel. He also encouraged registering to vote and using social networking to spread awareness.
Finally, he encouraged everyone to learn their rights as immigrants, documented or not.
“Every one of you can make a difference,” Leopold said. “This is the test of a generation.”
Theresa Cottom can be reached at 330-996-3216 or tcottom@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter @Theresa_Cottom .