New York, NY, November 20, 2015 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today reacted to Donald Trump’s suggestion that the United States would implement a database system for tracking Muslims if he were elected president. The League also voiced concern at recent comments by Senator Ted Cruz proposing that the country admit only Christian refugees, and remarks by Ben Carson comparing Syrian refugees to rabid dogs.
ADL issued the following statement:
Donald Trump's suggestion that we use a database to track Muslims is deeply troubling and reminiscent of darker days in American history when others were singled out for scapegoating. No American should be singled-out by security officials on the basis of immutable characteristics, such as religion. Such a proposal is not only inimical to our cherished civil liberties, but it also wildly misses the goal of finding a rational balance between civil liberties and the security measures necessary to protect those liberties.
It is also regrettable that some prominent candidates, including Ted Cruz and Ben Carson, have also made remarks crossing the line into scapegoating Syrian refugees. When leading presidential candidates compare Syrian refugees to “rabid dogs,” or call for the creation of a database of Muslims, or recommend a ban on all Muslims entering the United States, they are playing to our basest instincts.
We are better as a nation than what we have shown, and today we call on Americans to reject hatemongering and xenophobia. What we have been hearing is unacceptable. Yes, we can and must protect ourselves, but we must do so without sacrificing our fundamental principles of freedom and liberty.
As a 501c3 organization, ADL does not support or oppose any candidate for elective office.