After Muslim ban, Bridgeport man’s family stuck in a ‘gray area’

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Hani Amrani’s 3-year-old son Abraham on the day he was going to the airport. He and his mother were stopped from coming to the U.S. | Provided photo

A week after President Donald Trump’s immigration ban preventing citizens from seven majority-Muslim countries and refugees from entering the U.S., many questions remain unanswered.

But if 32-year-old Bridgeport resident and U.S. citizen Hani Amrani could ask President Donald Trump one question, he knows what it would be.

“How would you feel if they took your 3-year-old son away from you?” Amrani said. “I really want to ask him this question.”

Amrani, a gas station manager, got a call last Saturday from his wife, Shaikhah Humaisan; she was at Abu Dabi UAE International Airport and wasn’t being allowed to board an Etihad Airlines plane to the U.S. with their son because of Trump’s week-old immigration executive order.

He didn’t believe his wife, thinking she was joking. After all, Abu Dhabi is in the United Arab Emirates, which is not one of the seven countries on the list. Humaisan is originally from Yemen – one of the seven countries listed in the executive order – but has lived in the United Arab Emirates for more than 15 years.

Then he heard his son crying.

Hani Amrani’s son, Abraham Amrani, 3, the day he was going to the airport. Provided Photo.

Hani Amrani’s son, Abraham Amrani, 3, the day he was going to the airport. Provided Photo.

After two years of paperwork, medical exams and background check interviews, his wife had been granted an IR1 resident visa in December — almost a month before Trump’s executive order was signed.

Michael R. Jarecki, vice chairman of the American Immigration Lawyers Association’s Chicago Chapter, said although Amrani’s wife had been approved for a residential visa last year, she isn’t a legal, permanent resident yet because she hasn’t set foot in the United States.

“She’s in a gray area,” Jarecki said. “She should be eligible to come into the United States just like the refugees who have been given exceptions.”

Jarecki advises immigrants in the same circumstances as Amrani’s wife to consult an attorney and get in contact with immigration organizations that could help them file a lawsuit. Additionally, even those immigrants not included in the ban who are traveling to and from the U.S. should seek legal counsel.

All the time and money — about $5,000 — Amrani spent to reunite with his family means nothing now, he said.

“I got the house ready with son’s toys, I got a day off work,” he said. “I was ready to pick them up. I did all they asked for. I went by the book, by the law. I did nothing wrong.”

Hani Amrani, with BP gas on 76th and State, is separated from his wife and son due to the recent executive order signed by President Trump.<br>They are in the United Arab Emirates. | Leslie Adkins/For the Sun-Times

Hani Amrani, with BP gas on 76th and State, is separated from his wife and son due to the recent executive order signed by President Trump.
They are in the United Arab Emirates. | Leslie Adkins/For the Sun-Times

He was planning on taking his wife and child to Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida, as their welcome gift to the U.S.

For Amrani, the mere thought of his wife and young son being terrorists, the main target of the ban according to Trump, is ridiculous.

“My wife doesn’t even have a parking ticket,” he said.

After waiting two years to see his wife and child, Amrani says he’s willing to do whatever it takes, including filing a lawsuit.

“My main goal was to be with my family the legal way. I can’t believe what happened, especially if you go by the law.”

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