Muslim students fear deportation, incarceration under a Trump presidency

'They [Trump administration] could keep us right here and put us all [Muslims] in the same place and make us suffer'

No policy of Donald Trump’s has been as immediately harmful as his proposal to ban Muslims from entering the United States.

But more directly, the presumptive Republican nominee’s plank has also affected the lives of numerous Muslim students, thereby effectively aggravating their concerns about an 'America-under-Trump'.

Multiple reports of shootings at mosques, harassment incidents at cafes and bullying in schools ― all directed at American Muslims -- feature daily in the news.



In light of this, a group of Muslim students at the Mastery Shoemaker Charter School in Philadelphia were asked: "How many believe that if Trump were elected president, they would end up having to leave the country, either voluntarily or forcefully?" More than half of the room raised a hand.

A student named Husnaa, who had been sitting quietly in her chair, spoke up, “I see it differently, because I think about Japanese internment camps,” she responded, her words measured and precise. “They could keep us right here and put us all in the same place and make us suffer. I see that as a lot more plausible than shipping us out into the ocean. Round up all the Muslims, start with where,” she trails off a bit. “I don’t like to think about that.”



Malik Thompson, 16, also shared his concerns, “I fear he [Donald Trump] is going to send us back to Muslim countries outside the US.”

These concerns are not unique to Philadelphia’s young Muslim community but are shared across the country. According to a report published by Southern Poverty Law Center, more than two-thirds of teachers observed that their Muslim and immigrant students were worried about what could happen to them and their families after the November election.

There are roughly 3.3 million Muslims in the United States ― about one per cent of the US population ― and all members of the community fear the ominous 'unknown', haunted by the prospect of a Trump presidency.

Donald Trump's Muslim policies are adding genuine fears on top of the occasional bigotry they confront in their daily lives.



“I know my parents have a lot of immigration problems, so if Trump does become elected I know they’re probably going to be...Well, my dad for example is probably going to be deported if that ever, if he ever becomes president,” said a student named Yagouba who attends Academy at Palumbo. “If he does become president, there are going to be those people who are going to be pushing legislation that can hurt my family and tons of other families out there.”

This article originally appeared on Huffington Post.