The Biden administration unveiled a blanket policy on Thursday to turn away Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans who cross the US-Mexico border illegally – a move that immigrant rights groups have condemned as dangerous and punitive.
The new policy offers legal entry to the U.S. under humanitarian parole for up to 30,000 migrants and asylum seekers each month from Nicaragua, Haiti, Cuba and Venezuela, the four countries that drive it. increase clearly in illegal immigration over the last few months. Applicants, who can apply by phone, must have a US sponsor and undergo a vetting process.
However, the White House also announced it will use Title 42, which President Donald Trump used to deport migrants during the COVID-19 pandemic, to deport people from the country who try to cross the border illegally instead of going through the application process. . Those who cross illegally into Panama or Mexico are automatically disqualified from the parole program. Migrants from Venezuela have been turned away under the same policy since October.
Immigrant rights advocates are horrified by the move, which they say will deny safety to those in dire need.
“The Biden administration must take steps to restore asylum laws at ports of entry, not duplicate the cruel and counterproductive policies of Trump’s playbook,” Eleanor Acer, senior director for refugee protection at Human Rights First, said in a statement.
“Every day that these policies are implemented, people seeking protection will be deported to suffer horrific abuse,” Acer said. “This subversion of human rights and refugee law is a stain on the record of President Biden and his administration that will cause irreparable harm to humanity, human rights, and refugee protection systems around the world.”
News of the White House’s new carrot-and-stick approach comes after a steady increase in migrants at the US-Mexico border. NBC News reported in December that Customs and Border Protection average arrests 7,500 to 8,000 migrants per day.
“Seeking safety is considered a privilege for a select few, and the Biden administration’s choice of who can and cannot access protection proves this.”
– Mary Miller Flowers of the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights
Biden administration officials described the new policy as a way to encourage legal entry into the US
“Individuals without a legal basis to remain in the United States will be deported or removed,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said. “People who are offered safe, orderly, and legal passage to the United States are more likely to risk their lives traveling thousands of miles in the hands of ruthless smugglers, only to arrive at our southern border and face the legal consequences of illegal entry. . “
Since the beginning of his presidency, Biden has faced intense criticism on the border from both Republicans and immigrant advocacy groups. Republicans have long argued that the administration has been ineffective on border security, while progressive groups have criticized the White House for continuing to use Title 42 and the long delays in overhauling the immigration system.
“President Biden’s announcement today is a far cry from the commitment he made on his first day to fight for racial justice, immigrant rights, and family protections,” Mary Miller Flowers, senior policy analyst at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, said in a statement.
“The right to asylum should not depend on your flight from danger or your finances,” Flowers said. “However, for too long, seeking safety has been considered a privilege for a select few, and the Biden administration’s choice of who can and cannot access protection proves this.”
Biden will travel to El Paso, Texas, this weekend – his first trip to the southern border as president – before heading to Mexico City to meet with North American leaders on Monday.
Immigrant rights advocates are calling on Biden to repeal Title 42 entirely rather than implement a policy to deny asylum seekers.
“Instead of working hand in hand with service providers directly at the border, Biden is instead repackaging the failed Trump-era asylum idea,” said Karen Tumlin, founder and director of the Justice Action Center, an immigrant rights organization. statement. “This is not only disappointing, but it conflicts with what the American people want for our country.”