After news broke that an all-girl Afghani robotics team had been denied entry into the United States at the end of June, public outcry swelled -- and apparently, President Donald Trump listened.
According to Politico, Trump intervened to grant the robotics teams visas after hearing about the situation. The girls' robot was allowed to compete in the U.S., but they had planned on watching it via Skype if their visa requests had been denied for a third time.
“We could not be prouder of this delegation of young women who are also scientists," national security adviser Dina Powell said in a statement about the granted visas. "They represent the best of the Afghan people and embody the promise that their aspirations can be fulfilled. They are future leaders of Afghanistan and strong ambassadors for their country."
After learning about the girls' story (and likely the outcry about it), Trump reportedly spoke with the NSC to see what they could about letting them in. The NSC, in turn, spoke with Homeland Security, and they jointly decided to let the girls in on a "parole" system that allows entry for 10 days without an official visa.
The Afghani robotics team will now be able to attend the FIRST Global Challenge robotics competition this weekend.
