I want to apologize. To my students who are new immigrants from countries on Trump’s list of banned peoples. To my students from Somalia and Iraq, Iran and Sudan. To those who came here as refugees from Bosnia, most of them Muslim, and also from Myanmar, also Muslims. I want to apologize to all of my Muslim students. And to my Nepali students who were forced to leave Bhutan because of their ethnicity and because they are Hindus. The Muslim ban affects them too, because it says that even here in America, you can be persecuted for your religion or your ethnicity, and that even your status here as legal residents does not protect you.
These students—with their elegant head scarves, kangas, and long skirts, with their many languages, their musical accents, their dedication to learning and deep listening—are an essential part of our community and the Muslim ban...
