February 22, 2023
On Tuesday, the Biden Administration proposed a new rule that make it virtually impossible for immigrants to seek asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border. The plan would deny protection to any U.S. asylum-seekers if they have not first applied for asylum in a different country passed through along their journey.
Megan Turngren, director of legal programs at Ayuda, made the following statement:
“The Biden Administration’s new rule will cut off a critical path to safety for those most vulnerable and have disastrous consequences for people fleeing danger and violence. Not only is this proposed rule immoral, but it is also in opposition to establish law in the United States.
“Immigrants have a legal right to seek asylum in the United States under international and U.S. law. When Biden was elected, he promised to undo Trump-era immigration policies. With this proposed rule, we see the Administration doubling down and further extending these inhuman policies. The number of broken promises to immigrants is deplorable.
“Even if this rule is eventually struck down in the courts, how many lives will be irreparably harmed in the interim? The Administration must immediately reverse course.”
Ayuda previously opposed the idea of this so-called “Transit Ban” in a joint letter sent by 292 organizations on January 18, 2023. Read the letter here.
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