On Friday the 27th of January, President Donald Trump shocked the world by signing an executive order to ban citizens and, it transpired, dual citizens of seven majority-Muslim countries from entering the USA. Cambridge students told Varsity how his order had affected them and their friends and family.

One student told Varsity about the experiences of his father returning from America : “He was singled out for his Muslim name before being put in an interrogation room for three hours.”

“This senseless humiliation is frequently faced in US customs by those who ‘look’ or ‘sound’ Muslim. In light of the recent executive order dubbed by opponents as a ‘Muslim ban’, it appears things are already far worse.”

Trump’s policy threatens to affect them personally: “This executive order will also affect members of this university who seek to travel to the US for research purposes. I am within this contingent, holding UK-Syrian dual citizenship myself, and as such, my summer research trip to the US is likely to be cancelled.”

They also spoke to Varsity about the broader political implications of the migration ban. “We have seen a rise in polarising statements from far right politicians throughout Europe, which have many concerned. They no doubt see success across the pond as a resounding encouragement to up the ante and rile their populist base further with anti-minority sentiment.”

“Unfortunately, far fouler people are also celebrating Trump’s executive order, with Daesh (often mistakenly referred to as IS) and other extremist groups describing it as proof that ‘the US is at war with Islam.’ The executive order plays into their narrative, enticing radicalised individuals and adding more fuel to the fire.”

“We must always remember who will suffer most from all of this. While I am denied the privilege to a summer away at a US university, I fear that if the current course of action continues, some of the most vulnerable people across the world will find themselves escaping terrorism, torture and death in their home countries, to find themselves faced with vilification and mistreatment rather than the compassion and support that they deserve.”

Shad Hoshyar, a student at Pembroke, told Varsity that despite the campaign rhetoric, he had not believed that Trump would be able to implement his migration ban.

He said that a friend of his had attempted to fly to the USA from Kurdistan with his family, including his father, who has worked for the US government. However, they were prevented from boarding an aeroplane to New York as a result of the executive order, and were forced to return to Kurdistan.

An American student told Varsity how they felt the ban reflected upon their nation: “As an American citizen I am appalled by the travel ban as it is clearly contrary to American values.”

“I used to work in a shoe store near Washington, D.C. that had a lot of foreign clients, some of which that I became friends with. One the countries affected is Libya and I remember how much fun I had with some people visiting from Libya - they could not have been more generous and kind.”

“This is a trivial example but the point is that by not allowing people from certain nationalities to enter the country we are further isolating ourselves from the outside world. Americans would benefit from interacting and trying to understand people from these countries.”

“I am affected on a personal level also as next year I will drop French and replace it with Farsi. I really wanted to travel to Iran for my year abroad and now it’s looking like this won’t be possible. As I want to travel so I can understand other countries and cultures in order to help people come together, it’s unfortunate I won’t be able to learn about Iran first hand.”