Earlier this week, the US Supreme Court granted the Trump administration permission to partially implement the controversial travel and refugee ban.
The Supreme Court order only exempted those who they said had a "bona fide relationship" with people or organizations in the US. Following the order, the Trump administration set new guidelines to define what constitutes a "close" family relationship: a parent, spouse, child, adult son or daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, or sibling in the US.
That meant the travel ban would apply to grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, and other extended family members. The administration initially said fiancés would not be considered close family members but reversed the decision late on Thursday before the ban went into effect.
Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses if you have a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the U.S. #MuslimBan
The travel ban puts a 90-day halt on travel from six Muslim-majority nations — Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. As the ban went into effect Thursday night, Muslims inside and outside the US have been expressing their anger.
Many people are pointing out how ridiculous it is that their grandparents are considered a threat.
#GrandparentsNotTerrorists No to the #MuslimBan
Does my Iranian grandmother on the left look dangerous to you? Supreme Court action re #MuslimBan is ridiculous… https://t.co/okeCoQuJc1
Some addressed President Trump directly on Twitter.
Hey @realDonaldTrump, does my grandpa look dangerous to you? #GrandparentsNotTerrorists
This is my lovely grandma. @realDonaldTrump does she look like a terrorist to you? #GrandparentsNotTerrorists
If the US is afraid of refugees like my 90 year old grandmother who is living in a camp, than I don't even know what to say.#Muslimban
Say hello to my 87-year-old Iranian grandmother, who is now banned from coming to the United States #MuslimBan
Revised #travelban will #keepamericasafe frm my 97yo #Iranian grandma &her radical belief that all meals need a gla… https://t.co/bJ36Xx2SBd
This is my grandmother. This is who @realDonaldTrump and @marcorubio are keeping out of the United States… https://t.co/Cye2aNvsbw
Is this the face of terror? #grandparentsnotterrorists
Following the outrage over the definition of a "close" family relationship, the state of Hawaii on Thursday filed an emergency motion asking a federal judge to determine whether the Trump administration had interpreted the Supreme Court's decision too narrowly.
In a court filing, Hawaii said the US government had misinterpreted the Supreme Court by banning people who ~actually~ have a close family relationship with US citizens.