Re: If Muslims are blocked by the U.S., should the IETF respond?

[Dave Cridland <[e-mail]>]

On 30 January 2017 at 10:50, Leif Johansson <[e-mail]> wrote:
>
>> See you all in beautiful Prague,
>>
>
> I agree with RB - lets just stop meeting in the US.
>
> US companies who still want to play will figure it out and
> will apply pressure accordingly.
>
> Feels like a no-brainer to me.
>

While I'm hugely sympathetic - my mother would probably be banned from
the US if Trump thought her country of birth had ever existed - the
logistics work both ways.

Holding meetings exclusively outside the US means that anyone living
in the US under a green card or similar may well not be able to return
from such a meeting.

I feel the appropriate response from the IETF is probably to consider
advancing virtual meeting and remote participation.

As for public statements, while I would not want the IETF to make any
political statement, I think it's entirely reasonable to note that
sudden impositions of travel bans for selected minorities do make
organization of global technical meetings much harder. The IETF can,
and should, make a statement specifically regarding Chicago, and
noting that some participants who have already paid may need to change
their plans. Such statements are not expressing any view on the
legitimacy of the current US position, merely its effect on the IETF.

Dave.