More Than 200 Members of the Tech Community Sign Open Letter Opposing Trump Travel BanMore and more people are speaking out.

ByNina Zipkin

Bloomberg | Getty Images
U.S. President Donald Trump.

More than 200 investors and startups today added their names toan open letteropposing President Donald Trump's recent executive order that restricted travel to the U.S. by citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries and suspended refugee admissions.

The list of signatures includes big name venture firms like Accel and Bessemer Venture Partners, accelerators such as 500 Startups and General Assembly and startups such as Casper and Flywheel. The letter was spearheaded by Evan Engstrom, executive director of Engine -- which describes itself as a "policy, advocacy, and research organization supporting startups as an engine for economic growth -- and Bobby Franklin, the CEO and president of the Washington, D.C.-based National Venture Capital Association (NVCA).

Related:97 Tech Companies Including Apple and Google File Brief Against Trump Travel Ban

In the open letter, Engstrom and Franklin write, "Limits on the movement immigrants -- including lawful visa holders -- into the U.S. based on their nationality or religion not only seed fear and uncertainty for our friends, families, and co-workers, but are also antithetical to American values and sends the message that the U.S. is no longer open for innovation. Every individual turned away or dissuaded from making America his or her home represents a potential employee or entrepreneur who will no longer be able to contribute to the success of companies in America."

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco at 6:00 p.m. ET today willhearfrom lawyers from Washington state and Minnesota, who are arguing to halt the order, and the Justice Department, who are arguing to reinstate it. However, while that legal fight is brewing, it seems that there are more executive orders related to immigration in the ether.

Related:40 Reactions (and Counting) to Trump's Travel Ban From Richard Branson to Sheryl Sandberg

Drafts oftwo orders, "Executive Order on Protecting Taxpayer Resources by Ensuring Our Immigration Laws Promote Accountability and Responsibility" and "Executive Order on Protecting American Jobs and Workers by Strengthening the Integrity of Foreign Worker Visa Programs," were acquired byThe Washington Postat the end of January.

The first would seek to deny any immigrant from entering the country that would receive public assistance. The second would seek to withdraw parole programs and work visas.

Read the full text of the letter below.

Wavy Line
Nina Zipkin

Entrepreneur Staff

Staff Writer. Covers leadership, media, technology and culture.

Nina Zipkin is a staff writer at Entrepreneur.com. She frequently covers leadership, media, tech, startups, culture and workplace trends.

Editor's Pick

Related Topics

Data & Recovery

Get 1TB of Cloud Storage for Life for $119.97 With This Back-to-School Sale

This 1TB Cloud Storage Solution Is Only $119.97 for Back to School

Money & Finance

Want to Become a Millionaire? Follow Warren Buffett's 4 Rules.

企业家是不能过度指狗万官方望太多a company exit for their eventual 'win.' Do this instead.

Business News

Netflix is Hiring an AI-Focused Role—and the Starting Salary is up to $900,000

The streaming giant is looking for a leader in its machine learning department.

Leadership

This Common Leadership Habit Will Harm Your Credibility. Are You Guilty of It?

As leaders, we're always looking for ways to build credibility among peers and employees. But this easy-to-make mistake can ruin it in an instant.

Business News

McDonald's Is Launching a Spinoff Restaurant Chain Based on a Beloved, Blast-From-the-Past Mascot

该公司看到很多成功的另一种形式er mascot, Grimace, in June.

Growing a Business

We're Now Finding Out The Damaging Results of The Mandated Return to Office — And It's Worse Than We Thought.

Companies knew the mandated return to the office would cause some attrition, however, they were not prepared for the serious problems that would present.