The mayors of more than 60 U.S. cities have sent an open letter to Congress urging it not to turn its backs on refugees who want to start new lives in the United States, particularly those from Syria.

Mayors of such major cities as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, Boston and Baltimore signed the letter in response to the anti-Muslim backlash that followed the deadly terror attack on Paris.

“Our nation has always been a beacon of hope for those seeking peace and protection from persecution,” the letter from the U.S. Conference of Mayors said. “We urge you to take no action that will jeopardize this rich and proud heritage.”

The mayors wrote that lawmakers must not take any action keeping Syrian refugees from entering the U.S. after they complete what the mayors described as the “most rigorous screening and security vetting of any category of traveler to the United States.”

Anti-Muslim backlash

Islamic State claimed responsibility for the coordinated multiple terrorist attacks on Paris on November 13, killing 130 people and wounding more than 350. French investigators said some of the gunmen might have taken advantage of Europe’s refugee crisis and chaos to slip into the country unnoticed.

This created a fierce anti-Muslim, anti-refugee backlash across the United States that has been seen in town hall meetings, social media and Congress, as well as from several presidential candidates.

The governors of 31 states, including some where the cities whose mayors signed the letter are located, asked that resettlement of Syrian refugees in the United States be halted.

The Republican-led House passed a bill putting more restrictions on Syrian and Iraqi refugees. President Barack Obama has said he will veto the measure if it also is passed by the Senate.

Obama welcomes refugees

Obama has promised to open the door to 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next year. On Saturday, during a visit to Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Muslim majority Malaysia, Obama watched a group of Muslim schoolchildren drawing pictures and doing their math assignments. He said they were “indistinguishable” from American children.

“The notion that somehow we should be fearful of them, that our politics would somehow leave them to turn our sights away from their plight, is not representative of the best of who we are,” Obama said.

Trump and Republicans

But if Republican candidate Donald Trump becomes the next U.S. president, Muslims in America could come under much closer scrutiny.

Trump said he wants “certain mosques” to be put under surveillance and said some could be shut down.

When a reporter for NBC News asked the Republican front-runner if, as president, all Muslins would have to register in a nationwide database, Trump said, “I would certainly implement it, absolutely.”  

He has tried to back away from his response, saying a database was not his idea but something a reporter brought up. He has since said only that Syrians now arriving in the country should register.

Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson agrees with Trump that mosques “where there’s a lot of radicalization” need extra surveillance.

Several other Republican candidates have criticized the idea of registering Muslims as un-American, but also believe the U.S. must realistically deal with the challenge posed by terrorism and the global refugee crisis.

The top Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton, has called for more airstrikes and military action against Islamic State. But she says she would not close the U.S. border to refugees, saying that is exactly what the extremists want the U.S. to do.
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