our country and our culture would be very much impoverished.
Here are a few people of Syrian background who would not have contributed to America as they have:
Paula Abdul musician/dancer
F.Murray Abraham Oscar-winning actor
Michael Ansara Actor
Mitch Daniels former Governor of IN
Teri Hatcher actress
Alan Jabbour famous folklorist and scholar at Library of Congress
Steve Jobs — founder of Apple Computers
Jerry Seinfeld — comedian/actor
Vic Tabyack — actor who won two Emmies on TV show Alice
People tend to forget that those of Syrian background are of a variety of religious backgrounds: Jewish, various strands of Christianity, different strands of Islam
National origin should NEVER be a bar to entrance to the US.
Our history is already tarnished with the Chinese Exclusion Act and the Gentlemen’s Agreement that barred further immigration from Japan.
Our immigration policy in the past was distorted by the National Origins Act enacted after WWI in an attempt to keep the Northern European roots of this country dominant, although some who have insisted upon such an approach (Pat Buchanan for example) tend to forget how much discrimination there was against those of their own (in his case, Irish) ethnic background.
Not that reason matters when people are being roiled up by stoking of unjustified fears for personal or political gain by those doing the stoking.
Just saying.