The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the controversial “travel ban” on nationals of seven countries elicited a quick response by UMBC’s administration.

In a 5-to-4 decision split along ideological lines, the Supreme Court determined that President Trump’s Presidential Proclamation 9645 did not violate U.S. law. The executive action, signed into law last year, restricts entry into the United States from seven countries to varying degrees. The affected countries are Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen; Chad, which was on the original list, had its travel ban lifted prior to the Supreme Court decision.

The travel ban was originally challenged by the state of Hawaii and other individuals, who asserted that the latest ban’s limits on travel were tainted by anti-Muslim animus and were not justified by national security concerns alone. Five of the seven affected countries are majority-Muslim; however, the restrictions on North Korea and Venezuela were not objected to. The move follows legal challenges to President Trump’s previous two travel bans, which had solely targeted Muslim-majority countries.

Not long after the Supreme Court finalized their decision, David Di Maria, the Associate Vice Provost for International Education, sent out an email to the UMBC community with updates and commentary on the decision.

The email, which noted that the decision “allows for indefinite restrictions on entry of nationals from designated countries,” reiterated UMBC’s commitment to “inclusive excellence” and “global engagement,” adding, “As affirmed by the University System of Maryland, we will continue to recruit, welcome, and support students, faculty, staff, visiting scholars, and researchers of all national backgrounds.”

Chief Justice John Glover Roberts Jr., who delivered the majority opinion on the case, acknowledged President Trump’s contentious comments on his desire to instate a “Muslim ban,” including his previous statements that called for a “total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on.”

Nevertheless, Chief Justice Roberts also said that “the issue… is not whether to denounce the statements… it is instead the significance of those statements in reviewing a Presidential directive.” He added, “The text says nothing about religion… [there is no sufficient evidence to] support an inference of religious hostility, given that the policy covers just 8% of the world’s Muslim population and is limited to countries that were previously designated by Congress or prior administrations as posing national security risks,” concluding that the White House showed a “sufficient national security justification.”

As Di Maria mentioned in his email, however, many higher education leaders disagreed with the Supreme Court’s judgment, reflecting the divisive nature of the issue at hand. It was also noted that while the Supreme Court had affirmed the legality of the President’s executive action, it did not rule on whether the policy is wise.

Information on the travel ban’s specific provisions can be accessed by reading the Presidential Proclamation, as well as UMBC’s International Education Services website.

Community Engagement Assistant

Job Description

The Community Engagement Assistant functions as a critical member of the Education and Community Engagement Department. This position is an exciting addition to the Education and CE staff and is responsible for coordinating, liaising, facilitating, and working on Everyman Theatre’s Community Engagement project, events, and initiatives.

The election of Donald Trump as the President of the United States has been one of the most contentious topics in the past five years. Proponents and opponents of President Trump have been holding protests and demonstrations across the United States in a wave similar to the Civil Rights movement.

However, none resemble historical marches quite like those held by the alt-right. As defined by Merriam-Webster, members of the alt-right “reject mainstream conservative politics and espouse extremist beliefs and policies typically centered on ideas of white nationalism.”

The alt-right is a distinct group from conservatives and Republicans. Scott Buchan, sophomore political science major and president of UMBC College Republicans, acknowledged that there are not many truly Republican protests. “UMBC College Republicans talks directly to constituents at events, and door knocking,” Buchan explained, adding, “I think that protesting is a lower priority to Republicans and that Republicans would be more likely to contact representatives, go to town halls or events, or speak with their vote.”

In contrast, the “Unite the Right” rally held in Charlottesville, Virginia in August of 2017, during which one counter-protester was killed, resembled nothing less than a Ku Klux Klan rally from the 1960s. Marchers, predominantly white and male, carried torches and shouted nationalist chants while traveling through the city.

Unite the Right participants carried Nazi and Confederate flags and held posters advocating for white supremacy. Traditional conservatives tend to focus on taxation and national spending. As possible topics for signs at a Republican protest, Buchan highlighted “[the importance for] America to keep her national sovereignty” and the need to “reduce spending to get the national debt under control.”

During the Civil Rights movement, white supremacist rallies were used to strike fear in the hearts of black people and discourage them from fighting for their rights. Contrasted with liberal marches like the Women’s March in January of 2017, which was very politically motivated, the Unite the Right rally was held only to incite fear.

However, in the age of social media, this technique backfires more than it causes panic. Many of the people photographed at the rally were quickly found on Facebook and Twitter. Doxxing, the act of publishing private information such as the name and address of a person, has become one of the biggest counter-activities that those who oppose the alt-right engage in.

In some cases, the doxxed person faces no retribution. In other cases, the person is fired from their job or ostracized from their family for their beliefs. While this result may seem harsh, consider the fact that the person in question was marching to end the rights of an entire group of people just for being different than them.

The “White Civil Rights Rally” planned for Aug. 11 and 12 in Washington, D.C. will likely end up the same way. The white nationalists who march will be vastly outnumbered by counter-protesters and their message of fear will not spread.

While free speech is protected by the Constitution, the only provisions are in reference to Congress making laws “abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.” The first amendment does not say that other citizens cannot take issue with a person’s stance, particularly if the stance is hateful. White nationalist rallies and protests feel encouraged by the United States’ current administration, but so do rallies and protests by liberals and leftists.

Description

In this webinar, we will be going over the timeline for the Adobe Enterprise Renewal for 2018-2019 along with new Adobe Sign options available to MEEC institutions.

In this competitive Higher Education landscape, using Adobe Sign and digital workflows can buy you back 30%-50% of your daily routine and allow you to focus your efforts on the reason you were hired – To interact with your internal and external colleagues more efficiently and allow yourself more time for critical thinking and to solve the real problems and challenges within your organization.

Please attend a webinar hosted by Adobe to see how Adobe Sign can improve efficiencies within your workgroup environment.

Presenters

Tom Bernetich, Digital Practice Lead, Adobe Document Cloud