Roughly 125 students gathered in the Popp Martin Student Union Rotunda around noon, Thursday, Feb. 9, to protest President Trump’s Jan. 27 executive order temporarily barring Syrian refugees and suspending refugee admissions from seven Muslim-majority countries.
Several UNC Charlotte students voiced their concerns about the executive order and shared stories about how this action would affect them, their families and other U.S. residents with green cards.
Alireza Bafandeh, president of the Iranian Student Organization, in an interview with WSOC, said there are 93 Iranian students directly impacted by the ban. He said many of them have single entry visas who can't see their wives or children.
"This is the start of a lot of action, a lot of push for peace and equality on this campus," UNC Charlotte sophomore Lauren Coke said.
Thursday’s rally was orderly with a number of students holding signs of protest, including “Build Bridges, Not Walls” and “One Race, Human Race.”