ACLU Comment on Obama Rescinding Muslim and Arab Special Registration System
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration announced today that it will rescind the special registration system for Muslim and Arab immigrants known as NSEERS.
The dormant National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS) could have been reactivated by President-elect Donald Trump to fulfill his promise to target Muslim immigrants for “extreme vetting.”
Joanne Lin, ACLU senior legislative counsel, had the following statement:
“NSEERS was a completely failed counter-terrorism tool and massive profiling program that didn’t yield a single terrorism conviction in nearly a decade. The ACLU applauds the Obama administration for terminating NSEERS for good. With this action, the U.S. is on the right path to protect Muslim and Arab immigrants from discrimination.”
The NSEERS registration system was put in place by President George W. Bush in the aftermath of 9/11. President Obama discontinued NSEERS in 2011 but left the regulatory framework in place.
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