Following a mass shooting in Orlando, the deaths of two young black men at the hands of police officers in Louisiana and Minnesota, and the killing of five police officers in Dallas over the past few weeks, several countries have urged their citizens to proceed with caution if they're visiting the United States. First, after a man from the United Arab Emirates who was in Ohio for medical treatment was falsely accused of being a terrorist because he was speaking Arabic on the phone, the U.A.E. cautioned its citizens to avoid traditional dress abroad "to ensure their safety."
Now, the U.A.E. has been joined by Bahrain and the Bahamas, both of whom issued travel warnings over the weekend. On Twitter, Bahrain's embassy in Washington, D.C. wrote, "Please be cautious of protests or crowded areas occurring around the US," and listed emergency contact numbers for the embassy. The government of the Bahamas issued a statement as well: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration has taken note of the recent tensions in some American cities over shootings of young black males by police officers. We wish to advise all Bahamians traveling to the US but especially to the affected cities to exercise appropriate caution generally."
Two U.S. states in particular have faced scrutiny. Both Mississippi and North Carolina recently passed anti-LGBT legislation that resulted in a U.K. travel alert warning gay Britons traveling to the United States to exercise caution. "The U.S. is an extremely diverse society and attitudes towards LGBT people differ hugely across the country," the British Foreign Office said in a statement issued in April. "LGBT travelers may be affected by legislation passed recently in the states of North Carolina and Mississippi. Before traveling please read our general travel advice for the LGBT community." That general advice included suggestions about keeping physical affection to a minimum in public and being cautious in more rural areas.
Meanwhile, the United States has issued 13 travel warnings and alerts in the past month for countries including Yemen, Haiti, Kenya, Laos, and Bangladesh.
