The Washington Post recently reported on the United States' denial of visas to
the Afghan "FIRST Global" robotics team
(https://www.WashingtonPost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/07/02/afghanistans-all-girl-robotics-team-wont-be-allowed-to-come-the-u-s/).
This stupid and counterproductive decision transforms what could have been a
global opinion coup for the United States into yet another piece of evidence
that the American narrative of liberty and freedom does not apply to the
Muslim-majority countries that the United States has invaded.  Americans should
be empowering the people of Afghanistan, especially the youth of Afghanistan,
and especially the girls of Afghanistan who till so recently had been entirely
excluded from education.  I urge you to press the Department of State to
enunciate its reasons for this denial, and more broadly, to formulate an
explicit policy to encourage approval of visa applications for intellectual
and cultural exchange with the youth of such countries.