LGBTQ Clergy Members Denounce President Donald Trump’s Muslim Ban

WASHINGTON, DC, February 1, 2017—The National Religious Leadership Roundtable (NRLR) is releasing the following statement in response to President Donald Trump’s recent executive action banning Muslims from entering the United States. The NRLR is an interfaith network of leaders of LGBTQ-affirming religious, spiritual and justice-seeking organizations, convened by the National LGBTQ Task Force. LGBTQ Muslims helped found the NRLR in 1998 and continue to lead critical conversations on the intersections of Islamophobia, homophobia, and racism in the current political discourse.

“On January 27, President Trump signed an executive order that targets seven countries with populations that are predominantly Muslim and predominantly people of African descent. Our faith and philosophical traditions compel us to protest the injustice of this executive order.

“We stand in bold solidarity with the Muslim community and categorically reject any attempt to misrepresent Islam.

“Freedom of expression has been a hallmark of the American experience–our nation formed from the search for religious freedom and tolerance. Today, that foundational American principle is under siege with the sudden implementation of a ban on refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants. While this restrictive immigration order has been cloaked in the mantle of ‘national security,’ the focus on these particular majority-Muslim nations reveals its true intent is to ban people, especially people of color, whose religious beliefs are different from those in power to create such a ban.

“Our traditions call us to provide radical welcome and hospitality. In fact, we are moved to draw closer to those who experience alienation and rejection. Under no circumstances will we sanction policies that turn away those fleeing violence or those seeking connection to family, friends, and opportunity, especially when those policies use religion as the basis.

“The National Religious Leadership Roundtable urges government leaders to refrain from using religion as a vetting tool. We unite to denounce bigotry in all forms and to amplify the voices of people of faith, spirit, and moral courage who refuse to be silent in the face of wrongdoing. We embody a bold and vocal witness to the power of love and the work of justice.”

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CONTACT:
Jorge Amaro
Media and Public Relations Director
213-842-7564
jamaro@thetaskforce.org