State of Washington, et al v. Donald J. Trump, et al

Filing 91

Submitted (ECF) Amicus brief for review and filed Motion to become amicus curiae. Submitted by American Immigration Council, National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, Human Rights First, KIND (Kids in Need of Defense), and Tahirih Justice Center. Date of service: 02/06/2017. [10304762] [17-35105]--[COURT UPDATE: Attached exhibits (originally submitted in entry [92]), resent notice. 02/07/2017 by LA] (Mincer, Jonathan) [Entered: 02/06/2017 11:59 PM]

EXHIBIT I

Honorable James L. Robart
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT SEATTLE

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Juweiya Abdiaziz ALI; A.F.A., a minor; Reema Case No.: 2: 17-cv-00 135-JLR
Khaled DAHMAN; G.E., a minor; Ahmed
Mohammed Ahmed ALI; E.A., a minor; on
behalf of themselves as individuals and on
DECLARATION OF MOHAMED BARRE
behalf of others similarly situated,
OMAR
IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS
Plaintiffs-Petitioners,
v.

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Donald TRUMP, President of the United States
of America; U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE;
Tom SHANNON, Acting Secretary of State;
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY; John F. KELLY, Secretary of
Homeland Security; U.S. CITIZENSHIP AND
IMMIGRATION SERVICES; Lori
SCIALABBA, Acting Director of USCIS;
OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL
INTELLIGENCE; Michael DEMPSEY, Acting
Director of National Intelligence,

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Defendants-Respondents.
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DECLARATION OF
MOHAMEDBARREOMAR
Case No. 2: 17-cv-00 135-JLR

NORTHWEST IMMIGRANT RIGHTS PROJECT

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6 15 Second Ave., Ste. 400
Sean Ie. WA 98104
206-957-86 11

I, MOHAMED BARRE OMAR, declare under penalty of perjury as follows:
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I am a United States citizen. I live in Tukwila, Washington. I own a small grocery store i

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Seattle, Washington, and I am an instructional assistant for Seattle Public Schools.
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I was born in Somalia. I came to the United States as a refugee when I was 61 years old

from Kenya. I became a U.S. Citizen on March 13,2012 in Seattle, Washington.
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My biological son is Ahmed Mohamed Barre. He was born on October 5, 1992 in

Mombasa, Kenya. He is a citizen of Somalia by birth, because my wife and I were refugees. He
and his mother moved to Ethiopia shortly after he was born. His mother died in Kenya on April

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20, 2012. He grew up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and has not left it since moving there. He has

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never physically been in Somalia.

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her and then went to Ethiopia to visit him. After visiting him, I decided to apply to bring him to

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the United States to live with me. He is my only child that does not live in the United States.

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preference classification for the case is 201 B INA Minor Child of USC. The petition was

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approved and transferred to the National Visa Center in 2015. My son was interviewed for an

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immigrant visa at the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on January 23, 2017 at 07:45AM.

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His case was approved and his immigrant visa was issued on January 25, 2017.

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purchase a plane ticket to the U.S. The executive order was issued before he could buy a ticket.

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I last saw Ahmed in 2012, before his mother died. She had been in Kenya, so I visited

I filed my Form 1-130, Petition for Alien Relative, for him on October 25,2012. The

Upon receipt of his immigrant visa, we had planned to have him pack up and then

He has attempted to buy a ticket, but no airline will sell one to him because they do not want to
take the risk that the U.S. will not allow him to immigrate despite the issuance of a valid
immigrant visa.

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My son has never lived in Somalia, has no experience with his country of citizenship, and

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does not know how to navigate the risks of living there. It is unsafe and impossible for him to
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live in Somalia.
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DECLARATION OF
MOHAMEDBARREOMAR
Case No.2: 17-cv-00 135-JLR

N ORTHW EST IMM IG RA NT RIGHTS PROJECT

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6 15 Second Ave., Ste. 400
Seattle. WA 981 04
206-957-8611

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My son cannot return to Kenya. The Kenyan government is actively refusing entry for

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Somalian citizens and is refusing to take additional refugees. He no longer holds refugee status
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in Kenya.
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I fear for my son's safety in Ethiopia due to the state of emergency related to protests and

violence in Addis Ababa and throughout Oromia. My son has little opportunity in Ethiopia,
because he is not a citizen there, and is present only at the permission of the government.
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I fear that my son's immigrant visa will expire before he the travel ban in the executive

order is lifted for citizens of Somalia. I would then lose his priority date of October 23, 2012,

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which allows him to be the immediate relative, minor child of a U.S. Citizen for visa preference

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purposes under the Child Status Protection Act. I would be required to file a new petition for

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him as the adult child of a U.S. Citizen, family-sponsored first preference category, which has a

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current priority date of January l , 2011. It would most likely take over six years before he woul

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be able to obtain a new immigrant visa to the United States, which would mean he would be ove

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the age of 30 by the time he arrived. That delay would directly interfere with his ability to attend

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a school in the United States and build a career. It would have a permanent, negative impact on

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his earning abilities and his ability to marry and grow a family. It is not reasonable nor rational

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to prevent my son, who is a Somalian citizen only as a result of his being born to refugee parents

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in Kenya, from coming to the U.S.

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since the last time I visited Ethiopia. My son lives over 8,000 miles from me. His time zone is

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It is too expensive for me to travel to Ethiopia regularly. It has been nearly five years

11 hours ahead of mine. When I go to bed, he is waking up; when he is going to bed, I am
waking up. It is difficult for us to talk on the phone because of the time difference, but we try to
make time for each other every week. I have to send him money to support in Ethiopia, because
he does not have a job. It is an enormous financial and emotional hardship to my son, myself,

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and my family for him to live in Ethiopia while everyone else lives in the United States.
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DECLARATION OF
MOHAMEDBARREOMAR
Case No.2: 17-cv-00135-JLR

N ORT HWEST IMMIGRANT RIGHTS PROJECT

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615 Second Ave., Ste. 400
Sean1e, WA 98104
206-957-8611

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I want to bring my whole family together by having all of us live in the United States.

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My son is the only person left outside of the United States. I want him to be able to go to a good
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university, to have a career, and to be able to live the American Dream. Moments before Janu
27, 2017, I believed that dream was a reality and that we would be reunited. Now, because of
the executive order, I no longer know if that dream is possible.
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Please reunite my family by allowing my son to come to the United States as quickly as

possible.

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I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States that the foregoing i
true and correct to the best of my information, knowledge, belief.

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Executed on this 1st day ofFebruary, 2017, in Seattle, Washington.

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h ed B
mar
14839 Military Rd S, # 108
Tukwila, WA 98168
[phone]

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DECLARATION OF
MOHAM EDBARREOMAR
Case No.2: 17-cv-00135-JLR

N ORTHW EST IMMIGRANT RIGHTS PROJECT

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615 Second Ave., Ste. 400
Seattle, WA 981 04
206-957-8611