Juneau’s Human Rights Commission convened a special meeting to respond to President Donald Trump’s executive orders that suspended the nation’s refugee program and effectively caused more than 700 visa holders from seven predominately Muslim countries to be denied entry or detained at airports upon arrival.
Three commissioners with input from several community members at the Tuesday meeting drafted the statement.
“The President’s Order on Immigration violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We uphold the right of all to seek and enjoy asylum from persecution. We hope that this is not the first step toward restricting human rights in our diverse country. We encourage all members of our community to respect and uphold the human rights of all people.”
Members of the commission said they were “deeply concerned” that the Department of Homeland Security has detained people at airports merely on the basis of religion.
The Juneau Human Rights Commission was created in the early 1990s. Its function has changed over the years but now acts primarily in an advisory role to the Juneau Assembly.
