Lawmakers With Georgia's Africa Caucus Urge Trump Administration To Rethink Expanded Travel Ban

By Maya Homan, Georgia Recorder

July 10, 2025

The Trump administration is preparing to expand travel restrictions to 36 additional countries — primarily those in Africa and the Caribbean — in a move purportedly aimed at boosting national security. According to a memo issued to U.S. diplomats and obtained by the Washington Post, the countries selected have a 60-day deadline to conform with certain requirements set by the State Department.

Travel bans were a defining feature of Trump’s first presidential term, when he issued executive orders blocking residents of several Muslim-majority countries from entering the U.S. So far in his second term, he has issued an executive order fully or partially restricting travellers from 19 countries. Travel restrictions on the 36 additional countries could go into effect as soon as August, NPR reported.

But imposing travel restrictions amid the ongoing FIFA World Cup — which is holding eight matches in Atlanta this year — has prompted pushback from Georgia’s Africa legislative caucus, which criticized the U.S.’s response in the face of ongoing humanitarian crises in many of the countries on the list. The caucus also argued that implementing the ban will cause Georgia to miss out on the economic benefits of hosting an international sporting event.

Of the 36 countries that are being considered for travel restrictions, 25 are located in Africa, and an additional four are in the Caribbean. However, Tammy Bruce, a spokesperson for the U. S. Department of State, refuted claims that the majority of non-white countries were being targeted for travel bans.

“The geoposition — the actual location of a country — is not a factor, or what continent that country is on,” Bruce told reporters during a June press briefing. “These are about very specific aspects about whether or not the United States feels it can trust the information we rely on those countries for to determine whether or not they’ll get a visa.”

State Rep. El-Mahdi Holly, a Stockbridge Democrat and co-chair of the Georgia Africa Legislative Caucus, argued that imposing more travel restrictions could damage diplomatic relationships and send the wrong message about America’s values as a country.

Immigrants from African and Caribbean countries “are valuable as entrepreneurs, educators, health care and service industry workers, tech pioneers, legal minds and medical minds, pastors, aggregate and agricultural professionals, who all play a very integral part in shaping our nation’s economy,” Holly said.

“When we allow a blanket, broad-brushed characterization of labeling them as criminals or as threats, we undermine the time-honored principles of justice and fairness upon which our nation stands,” he said.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio. (Photo by John McDonnell/Getty Images)

The caucus said it sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, asking him not to implement the ban. Caucus members also urged Georgia residents to contact Georgia’s senators, Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, to speak out against additional travel restrictions.

“Let’s remember what democracy stands for: Freedom of movement, exchange of ideas, culture and opportunity,” said state Rep. Segun Adeyina, a Grayson Democrat and member of Georgia’s Africa Legislative Caucus. “This ban undermines those values. It sends a message that Black nations and Black people aren’t welcome in the United States of America. We reject this message. We stand for fairness, for families, for commerce and for democracy, and we call on this administration to do the same.”

The countries that are being considered for a travel ban are Angola; Antigua and Barbuda; Benin; Bhutan; Burkina Faso; Cabo Verde; Cambodia; Cameroon; Democratic Republic of Congo; Djibouti; Dominica; Ethiopia; Egypt; Gabon; Gambia; Ghana; Ivory Coast; Kyrgyzstan; Liberia; Malawi; Mauritania; Niger; Nigeria; Saint Kitts and Nevis; Saint Lucia; Sao Tome and Principe; Senegal; South Sudan; Syria; Tanzania; Tonga; Tuvalu; Uganda; Vanuatu; Zambia; and Zimbabwe.

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