Las Americas Opposes Biden Administration Campaign Against Asylum Seekers

EL PASO, TEXAS – Today, the Biden-Harris administration announced new regulations that would further extend its asylum ban policy announced in June. Under the new rules, officials can only lift the policy if the average migrant encounters are below 1,500 for 28 straight days, not just a week. In response, Jennifer Babaie, Director of Advocacy and Legal Services of Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center in El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juárez, Mexico and New Mexico, said:

“With this move, the Biden-Harris administration is officially closing the doors on refugees and families seeking safety in the U.S. We have ample evidence showing that toxic policies like this put vulnerable people directly in harm’s way. Since the asylum ban was first implemented in June, El Paso has seen an increase in migrant deaths along the border wall. This is because, with virtually no access to protection, individuals are now more frequently forced to undertake dangerous journeys through the desert in extreme heat.

“Let’s be clear: our asylum laws, still very much on the books, require our country to maintain pathways for families to seek safety. This is the most basic commitment level our government is required to follow. A decrease in families presenting themselves at our doorstep and an increase in migrant deaths should not be touted as a successful policy measure. We urge the Biden administration to reverse course, to stop violating our laws, and instead use every tool to expand effective pathways to protection, not gut them.”