Humanitarian Protection
Attorney General Rescinds Two Trump Decisions, Restoring Protection to Many Asylum Seekers
Attorney General Merrick Garland announced on June 16 that he is restoring a vital lifeline to survivors of gender-based violence, gang violence, and violence on account of family relationships. Garland issued two decisions overruling Trump-era Attorneys General Jeff Sessions and William Barr’s rulings disqualify many such individuals from asylum in… Read More
Biden’s Commitment to Refugees in Question After Flip-Flopping on Admissions Cap
Throughout his presidential campaign and after the election, Joe Biden repeatedly condemned President Trump’s decision to slash the U.S. refugee admissions level to its lowest in history. He promised to raise the number of refugees admitted to 125,000 a year. But on April 16, President Biden instead signed a… Read More
How the Biden Administration Is Responding to Unaccompanied Children, Families, and Adults at the Border
Only days after President Biden took office, some people were already declaring that the border was in a state of crisis. But recently released U.S. Customs and Border Protection statistics reveal that the truth is more complicated. The Biden administration is dealing with two very different phenomena at the… Read More
Biden Administration Unveils Plan to Process Asylum Seekers Subject to the Migrant Protection Protocols
The Trump administration sent over 70,000 people who came to the U.S border seeking asylum back to Mexico to wait for court hearings. This so-called “Migrant Protection Protocols” (“MPP”) program placed people in serious danger and made it nearly impossible for anyone to win protection. Court hearings under MPP… Read More
Biden Administration Ends ‘Safe Third Country’ Agreements
For more than 40 years, the law has guaranteed any person who is physically present in the United States a right to seek asylum. In 2019 the Trump administration attempted to effectively eliminate that law by signing so-called “Asylum Cooperative Agreements” (ACAs) with Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. On… Read More
Why Biden Must Dismantle the Migrant Protection Protocols Now
January 29, 2021 marks the two-year anniversary of the Trump administration’s so-called “Migrant Protection Protocols” (MPP), informally known as “Remain in Mexico.” Asylum seekers and advocates are using the occasion to call for an end to the program, which has prevented thousands of people from accessing a meaningful opportunity… Read More
‘Death to Asylum’ Rule Halted in the Last Days of the Trump Administration
A federal judge in California blocked a sweeping “death to asylum” rule on January 8, just three days before the rule was scheduled to take effect. The asylum rule is just one of many regulations attempting to limit access to asylum, but one of the Trump administration’s most expansive. Read More
Court Blocks One of Trump’s Final Efforts to Keep Out Refugees
The Trump administration’s latest effort to prevent refugee resettlement in the United States was halted after a federal court ruled that the president’s order allowing state and localities to refuse to take in refugees is illegal. The January 8 ruling puts a stop to one of President… Read More
How Biden Can Restore Humanitarian Protection at the Border
This article is part of the Moving Forward on Immigration series that explores the future of immigration in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election. The United States has long been a place of refuge for those seeking protection. At least one million people have arrived at our southern border… Read More
Asylum Is In Danger After Court Upholds Rushed Screening Process at the Border
The Trump administration secretly implemented one of its most horrific attacks on America’s long tradition of asylum—holding asylum seekers in U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody during their initial asylum interview. The “Prompt Asylum Claim Review” and “Humanitarian Asylum Review Process,” (“PACR/HARP”) put in place in October 2019,… Read More
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