pew research center.

I still remember the day that my family and I became American citizens. We emigrated from Iran and had wound our way through this country's arcane immigration system for 14 years. We were finally ready after filling out countless forms, enduring endless waits in INS offices, and taking the citizenship exam. We got into our brand-new Toyota and drove to a small courthouse in Danville, Illinois, where we raised our right hands and were sworn in. Just months later, I was so excited to get my navy-blue-covered passport in the mail.

I felt like we had finally made it. I felt like maybe we were free and equal. Yet more than 20 years later, all of that feels like a farce. Because of the poisonous effects of Donald Trump, our newest American demagogue, I am about to become a second-class citizen when I travel abroad. After Trump first proposed a ban on Muslims traveling to the U.S., his fellow Republican, House Speaker Paul Ryan, condemned the plan. Yet that very same day, Speaker Ryan's own US House passed a bill that would restrict my travel - as well as Syrian-, Iraqi- and Sudanese-Americans by eliminating a visa waiver program.