Interfaith leaders in Raleigh denounce travel ban
RALEIGH, North Carolina -- The Carolina Jews for Justice Rabbis and the Interfaith Leaders from Islamic and Christian Faiths held a news conference at Temple Beth Or in Raleigh Monday morning, denouncing President Trump's travel ban.
"The Jewish community of North Carolina welcomes refugees and immigrants," said Rabbi Lucy Dinner, Senior Rabbi at Temple Beth Or.
Other religious leaders who participated included Imam Abdullah Antepli, Rabbi Steven Sager and Dr. Ellen Davis, of Duke Divinity School.
Leaders discussed their opposition to President Trump's travel ban, which has sparked protests nationwide.
The executive order temporarily bars people from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the U.S.
"The travel ban also doesn't get to the root of the problems that it says that it is targeting," Rabbi Dinner said. "If we look at where terrorists have come from in the United States of America in the last 10 years, none have come from any of the seven countries named."
In a statement, the Trump administration has said, "This is not about religion--this is about terror and keeping our country safe."
However on Friday, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order halting the travel ban.
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Still, Imam Antepli, Chief Representative of Muslim Affairs at Duke University, says it's important for people of different faiths to continue uniting against the travel ban.
"If you think anti-Muslim bigotry is only related to Muslims, that homophobia is only related to our LGBTQ brothers, anti-Semitism is only related to Jews or racism is only affecting African-Americans, this is only the same evil, the same cancer manifesting itself in different forms and shapes," Imam Antepli said. "To me this is one fight."
"To me this is one fight, one moral fight that people of faith, people of no faith with conscious, people of morality and ethics," Antepli added. "We should unite and have an organized, moral voice and fight against this."
The news conference was followed by the third annual "Interfaith Day of Learning," themed "Love Your God, Love Your Neighbor, Love Yourself."
