In another setback to President Donald Trump's travel ban, grandparents and other close family members were exempted in Federal Court.
A Federal Judge in Hawaii ruled that the travel ban restricting U.S. entry to travelers from six predominantly Muslim countries and refugees cannot prevent grandparents and other relatives from traveling to the U.S.
Now, people from the countries included in the ban can apply for a U.S. visa if they have a grandparent, grandchild, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, cousin, brother-in-law or sister-in-law in the US before the 90-day ban expires during late September.
Judge Derrick Watson of the Federal District Court in Hawaii also ruled that refugees with ties to a resettlement agency did have a "relationship" with the U.S. and, therefore, they are allowed to enter the country.
The countries affected include Iran, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen and Somalia.
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the administration could put its travel ban into effect, limiting travel for foreign nationals of the six predominantly Muslim countries. To gain visas into the U.S., travelers from the six countries would have to prove a "bona fide" relationship in the U.S. However, the court did not specify what that relationship status constituted.
[READMORE]READ MORE: Trump Travel Ban Takes Effect[/READMORE]
In his ruling, Watson wrote the following:
"What is clear from the Supreme Court's decision is that this Court's analysis is to be guided by consideration of whether foreign nationals have a requisite 'connection' or 'tie' to this country," said Watson.
"Common sense, for instance, dictates that close family members be defined to include grandparents. Indeed, grandparents are the epitome of close family members. The Government's definition excludes them. That simply cannot be," Watson added.
In the matter of refugees, Watson noted that relationships with resettlement agencies meet one of the cornerstones of the Supreme Courts decision.
"An assurance from a United States refugee resettlement agency, in fact, meets each of the Supreme Court's touchstones: it is formal, it is a documented contract, it is binding, it triggers responsibilities and obligations, including compensation, it is issued specific to an individual refugee only when that refugee has been approved for entry by the Department of Homeland Security, and it is issued in the ordinary course, and historically has been for decades. Bona fide does not get any more bona fide than that," he explained in his ruling.
The State Department had already determined that this ruling would include spouses, parents, parents-in-law, children, sons- and daughters-in-law and siblings of those already in the United States.
Now, should the administration decide, the ruling can be appealed to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
The ban on grandparents has raised eyebrows around the country, and a social media campaign has gone viral. An Instagram account focuses specifically on photos of grandchildren with their grandparents and the topic was featured in Time magazine. Trending hashtags on the topics, #BannedGrandmas and #GrandparentsNotTerrorists, inspired people to tell their stories as well.
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