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Since the “Immigration Ban” Executive Order took effect early last year, there has been an onslaught of news stories, articles, and podcasts that paint a really defensive “western” picture of people who live in the countries affected by the ban and what they have to offer our country.
Sure, conversations about immigration reform and national security are really important. And sure, there are serious threats that we face as a country that force us to implement policies that protect us. But talking about what we stand to gain through these “protective” measures only tells half the story — we also need to stop and consider what we risk losing by limiting people’s access to the United States.
Unfortunately, media coverage has done little to balance those scales. Stereotypes generalizing the experiences of residents living in “banned” countries often go unchecked and end up misshaping the way we view people around the world. In the spirit of our mission to “break stereotypes one story at a time”, Wogrammer challenges these misconceptions by elevating the real voices of women engineers who live and work in the countries affected by the ban.
Each woman we’ve highlighted here has transcended difficult circumstances and discovered ways to learn, to create, and to give back to their communities. We hope that by sharing their stories, we put the power of defining back where it belongs: in the voices of the women themselves.