Duke University supports NY lawsuit against Trump immigration order

Duke University has taken a stand against President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration, this time in court.

Duke joined 16 other universities in filing a brief Monday opposing Trump’s order and supporting a lawsuit by the attorney general of New York. Other universities that signed on to the amicus brief in federal court in New York were: Brown, Carnegie Mellon, University of Chicago, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Emory, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northwestern, University of Pennsylvania, Princeton, Stanford, Vanderbilt and Yale.

The brief says Trump’s order, which halted all refugees and immigration from seven mainly Muslim countries, creates a hardship for the universities’ international students, faculty and scholars.

Each university has “a global mission,” and “derives immeasurable benefit” from contributions of international faculty and students, the brief said. “Because (the universities) seek to educate future leaders from nearly every continent, attract the world’s best scholars, faculty and students, and work across international borders, they rely on the ability to welcome international students, faculty and scholars into their communities,” it said.

Ten percent of Duke’s undergraduates, and 47 percent of graduate students, are international, according to the brief.

The brief further said that safety concerns could be accomplished in a way that’s “consistent with the values America has always stood for, including the free flow of ideas and people across border and the welcoming of immigrants to our universities.”

Trump’s executive order prompted large protests at airports and a flurry of lawsuits. Last week, a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals refused to reinstate the travel ban as court cases proceed.

A Duke graduate and policy adviser to Trump, Stephen Miller, is said to have played a key role in the executive order. Miller appeared on Sunday TV politics talk shows to defend Trump and the order. He said the administration is considering a number of options, including a new executive action, seeking a stay from the U.S. Supreme Court or other legal avenues.

This story was originally published February 13, 2017 at 2:09 PM with the headline "Duke University supports NY lawsuit against Trump immigration order."