The Muslim-Americans Trump Would've Kept Out

According to Republican front-runner Donald Trump, the Muslims are coming (which, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, he considers to be a bad thing). And so, in his newest ploy to keep just about anyone and everyone out of the country, Trump has concocted his latest anti-Muslim plan, broadcast Monday evening via his official campaign website. Brace yourself.

Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on. ... Without looking at the various polling data, it is obvious to anybody the hatred is beyond comprehension. Where this hatred comes from and why we will have to determine. Until we are able to determine and understand this problem and the dangerous threat it poses, our country cannot be the victims of horrendous attacks by people that believe only in Jihad, and have no sense of reason or respect for human life.

This is Trump's latest move in a campaign that has been built almost entirely on the promises of removing and keeping people out of the country. And with his numbers having recently fallen in an Iowa poll in favor of candidate Ted Cruz, the time was apparently ripe to lay into another minority group. According to The New York Times, his poll numbers have risen each time he's criticized Muslims.

Aside from the in-your-face racism (in addition to the ironic talks of "hatred" he litters throughout his proposal), Trump is just flat-out incorrect. Countless Muslim-Americans have left a more lasting and positive impact on American society than Trump ever will, between his faltering businesses, reality television gigs, and being a mere blip in the political radar.

Though there's no way to adequately summarize all of the amazing contributions Muslim-American immigrants have made to the U.S. throughout the years, here is a quick look at just a few that have created a lasting, positive impact.

Zainab Salbi

Salbi is a Muslim-American immigrant originally hailing from Baghdad, Iraq. After moving to the U.S. at the age of 19, she began humanitarian work that particularly focused on the plight of women. Her nonprofit organization, Women for Women International, focuses on giving female survivors of war both the moral support and practical skills they need after experiencing trauma. She has been honored by former President Bill Clinton for her work.

Fazlur Rahman Khan

Without this next immigrant, it's very likely that Trump's shining beacon to himself, Trump Tower, would not exist at all. Khan, a Muslim-American immigrant from Dhaka, in current-day Bangladesh, is credited with creating an innovative structural system used to build skyscrapers. Heralded as one of the most important architects and designers of the 20th century, he built the 108-story Willis Tower in Chicago, neighbor to the Trump International Hotel and Tower.

It's also worth mentioning that Khan came to the U.S. on a Fulbright scholarship, one of the most prestigious international exchange programs in the world and one who has seen over 50 of its recipients receive Nobel Prizes. These are the kind of people Trump's ban would keep out.

Shirin Neshat

Neshat, a visual artist originally from Qazvin, Iran, works in photography and film to discuss intersections of the political, social, and psychological lives of Muslim women. After moving to the U.S. to study art in college, it wasn't until she made a return trip home to Iran that her work began to take on its noted political spin. This set her on the path to tell the stories of Muslim women. Consequently, her art has been praised as being a lens through which Muslim women have gained a stronger political voice. Neshat's art has been recognized worldwide, and in 2010 she was named The Huffington Post's Artist of the Decade.

If Trump had his way, none of these people would have been allowed into the country in the first place — and who knows how many other great minds and souls Trump would turn away if given the chance. There is no policy more anti-American than that.