TAMPA, Fla. — Families across the Tampa Bay Area are navigating the impacts of a newly signed travel ban.
“To remove that lifeline from them, it’s just heartbreaking, I think,” said Kathleen Jeanty. “I’m hoping that the administration will reconsider and really think about the impact on human lives that this will have.”
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Jeanty owns That’s Wat’Sub in Tampa. She was born in Haiti and still has family and friends in the country.
Haiti is among a list of countries facing travel restrictions.
“It’s sad to see this happening because a lot of the countries on this travel ban that are being targeted it’s for folks who are fleeing in search of a better life,” said Jeanty.
President Donald Trump signed a proclamation this week, citing national security concerns.
While there are some exceptions, it fully restricts and limits the entry of nationals from 12 countries, including Haiti and Iran.
“To be honest, I started crying. Like again?” said Damineh Oveisi.
Oveisi was born and raised in Iran, with family and friends still there.
She said that for Iranian people, getting a visa was always difficult.
“Now with this travel ban, I don’t know when I can see them again,” Oveisi said. “They can’t come here. I can’t go back home. Home is not safe for me unfortunately, and they can never come here to see me, so how can I see my family? How can I ever hold them again?”
As emotions run high, there’s worry over what happens next.
“We’re just hoping that someday, our country will be free, and our people will have freedom like other countries,” said Oveisi.
“At the end of the day, what do we all want?” said Jeanty. “We just all want an opportunity to live a decent life and be able to take care of ourselves and take care of our families.”
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