Donald Trump's attack on Muslim immigrants have taken our diverse Britain by shock. After last week's huge gathering by women, demonstrating against the US President (even in Antartica), more than 1.5 million outraged Britons have now signed a petition, that was launched on 29 January, asking to cancel his upcoming State visit in summer. The petition says the “embarrassment to Her Majesty the Queen” would be unacceptable.
Crossing 100,000 signatures, the visit will now be debated in Parliament after senior MPs from almost all parties have joined people calling for it to be cancelled. Demonstrators across the country marched and gathered with placards, including 10,000 people outside the Downing Street on Monday evening, demanding this State visit to be called off.
Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, who is a proud Brit-Muslim himself, writing in the Evening Standard said, “..We must now rescind the offer of a full state visit for President Trump - until this ban is lifted.
“I don’t believe the people of London will support rolling out the red carpet until this happens. Great friends must warn each other when they are making a mistake.”
Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader, reportedly said Mr Trump’s state visit should be called off until he cancels the 90-day ban on citizens from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia or Yemen entering the US.
He said: "Is it really right to endorse somebody who has used this awful misogynistic language throughout the election campaign, awful attacks on Muslims, and then of course this absurd idea of building a wall between themselves and their nearest neighbour?"
He added: "I think we should make it very clear we are extremely upset about it, and I think it would be totally wrong for him to be coming here while that situation is going on. I think he has to be challenged on this.”
Sir Mo Farah, British long-distance runner who lives in the US reportedly said, “It’s deeply troubling that I will have to tell my children that Daddy might not be able to come home – to explain why the President has introduced a policy that comes from a place of ignorance and prejudice.”
Nonetheless, a Downing Street source told the BBC that cancelling the trip would be "populist gesture" and "undo everything" achieved by the Prime Minister Theresa May during her trip to the US last week. Buckingham Palace refused to comment.
Diplomats have already begun preparations for the visit, that is apparently meant to reinvigorate the transatlantic special relationship, after Theresa May handed over the invitation from the Queen to President Trump on last Friday. Discussions are also underway about the President playing a round of golf on the private nine-hole course at Balmoral while the Queen looks on..
Brexit vs Donald Trump
An analysis of the Parliamentary petition showed around a quarter of the names were from London. Over 6,000 people - one in 20 residents - backed it in Jeremy Corbyn’s Islington North constituency, according to the parliamentary website. Almost 7,000 in Diane Abbott’s consituency backed it. The Economist in an article comparing Brexit and Donald Trump pointed out that proportions of petition signatories are highest in cosmopolitan and heavily Remain-voting (In voters in Brexit) cities like Brighton, Bristol and Cambridge, all with unusually large populations of university-educated, white-collar residents. And they are lowest in older, post-industrial, pro-Brexit bastions where skills are relatively low: for example Wolverhampton, Redcar and Doncaster.
What Asian parliamentarians and community leaders have to say?
Lord Bhikhu Parekh, speaking to Asian Voice said, “Britain has always tended to bow to the Americans, often against its own better judgement. In inviting Trump the Prime Minister reflected this attitude, reinforced by her feeling that this would get her a better trade deal with the Americans. It is paradoxical that Britain rebels against the EU control only to fall a willing prey to the American. The decision was hasty and ill-conceived and shows desperation. The invitation cannot be withdrawn but it can be scaled down and give British people ample opportunity to express their feelings of anger.”
Lord Navnit Dholakia said, “The public anger is well understood now that the government has indicated that it would ignore a huge petition calling for the invitation to be withdrawn. It is unbelievable that the we are ignoring millions of ordinary British people and their revulsion that Donald Trump will receive the red carpet treatment.
“There is still a long period to go and the protests would not die down.There is a danger that the underlying issues will simmer for a long time at the expense of community cohesion we have developed over the years. The issue is not simply about British citizens who are unlikely to be affected. It is about the core values we hold of offering shelter to those who are persecuted. We cannot allow them to remain in a limbo.
“The damage of this visit will take a long time to repair.”
Seema Malhotra MP told AV, “The 'Muslim Ban' goes against all the best traditions of the United States. Fortunately, one of those is the rule of law and the world will be looking to the American legal system upholding American rights and those of non-Americans travelling there in good faith. The invitation for a state visit by Theresa May at this time sends out an entirely wrong signal. We should be clear that Britain stands for human rights and that we abhor this attack on them. I will do everything in my power to press that message home in Parliament and elsewhere.”
Lord Popat said, “It is very sad to see the drastic measures that Trump’s new administration has taken to address security and immigration issues. I hope that these are temporary measures, as the United States is a country that is built and has prospered on inward immigration. To date, the US has been renowned for opening its doors to anyone who wishes to make a better life for themselves, so it is a great shame for the US to enact such a policy.
“However, these measures should not come as a surprise to anyone, as they were very much a part of the election manifesto which Trump was elected by with a significant public mandate. Whilst, we may not agree with President Trump, the United States is and always has been a key ally to the UK and it is important that we continue to work with them as reiterated by Mrs May last week.”
Virendra Sharma MP told AV, “Donald Trump is behaving like a dictator. His actions are racist and threaten the American ideals of liberty, opportunity and equality. It is shocking that Theresa May could stand alongside President Trump and not criticise his racist ban on Muslims entering the US. This is why I wrote to her saying, I want to raise with you in the strongest possible terms the deafening silence of you as Prime Minister and the whole of Her Majesty’s Government on President Trump’s immoral, racist and truly un-American immigration policy. While I understand the need to remain on good terms with the American President I do not think it does our reputation around the globe any good to be seen as silent accomplices. I know there has been some clarification from the Government on British citizens visiting the US, but any blanket travel ban is a shameful. I hope that you will use your greatly visible position on the world stage to emphatically renounce the newest round of offensive behaviour by President Trump.
“I am proud that Britain appears to be speaking with one voice and renouncing the divisive politics of President Trump.”
Mohammed Shafiq, Chief Executive of the Ramadhan Foundation said: "The Ramadhan Foundation condemns in the strongest terms the #Muslimban introduced by President Donald Trump. This Executive Order has given succour to terrorists like ISIS and Al Qaeda. His racist policies will create a thousand more terrorists around the world; and he will personally be libel for this... "We will not be intimidated by his racism and xenophobia, we take comfort from the way people of all backgrounds, and faiths are standing up against him. "I support the withdrawal of the official invitation for a state visit by Donald Trump to the United Kingdom and we must make clear his racism is not welcome in our diverse society. "ISIS, Al Qaeda, Al Shabaab and others have spent years saying there is a clash of civilisation between the Muslim world and the West and now Donald Trump has given them a massive propaganda tool with his executive order. "The battle against terrorism will be more difficult as a result of Donald Trump's executive order but we are determined to stand up against his racism and xenophobia"
British Muslims 'terrified' by the rise of Donald Trump
MP from Birmingham, Shabana Mahmood has warned that British Muslims are “terrified” by the rise of Donald Trump.
She spoke out as MPs debated President Trump’s order banning people from seven countries from coming to the US.
She reportedly said: “As a British Muslim, Mr Speaker, I can tell you on my own behalf, and my family, friends and my community, people feel terrified.
"They feel that this is a portent of what is to come and they fear what there is to come.
"We live in an age of supremacists.
"There are supremacists on the rise all around the world, whether they are the Muslim supremacists of ISIL, or whether they are the white supremacists that think they've got their life's dream with the new administration in the White House.
"Supremacists on the rise everywhere.
"And we have a duty in this age of supremacists and their success to call them out, to stand up to them and to say 'not on our watch'.
"To provide the comfort and security to all of our minority communities that we will not let them down, we will not stand by, we will stand up and be counted."
During the US election campaign, Mr Trump called for “a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States”. However, he insist that the policy he has now introduced is not a ban on Muslims.
Ms Mahmood disagreed, telling MPs: “This is a Muslim ban ... it is so important that we send a clear message and that we call it exactly what it is.”
