For Immediate Release
May 11, 2023
Contact: Alicia Vargas, 213-653-1442, avargas@immdef.org
Los Angeles, CA – Less than 48 hours before the use of Title 42 to expel migrants is set to end, the Biden Administration has finalized regulations that would put asylum protections out of reach for thousands of individuals and families seeking protection. ImmDef responded to the announcement with the following statement:
“For three years Title 42 has denied people access to protection and, as it ends, the administration has chosen to enact sweeping, illegal and damning changes to our asylum system. The asylum ban is aimed at the most vulnerable among us. It is heaping cruelty on those with the least privilege, those most in need of our help. The asylum ban is a travesty of justice and reflects the moral basement the Biden administration has fallen into,” said Immigrant Defenders Law Center’s Executive Director Lindsay Toczylowski.
“After three years of turning away people in need of safety back to danger in Mexico or their countries of origin, the cruelty will continue despite the end of Title 42. Expedited removal and the new asylum ban do away with any sense of fairness. Instead of giving asylum seekers a chance to make their case, the new rule makes them jump through so many hoops that make it virtually impossible to obtain protection,” said Margaret Cargioli, Directing Attorney of Policy and Advocacy at ImmDef.
“The Biden administration’s new asylum restrictions and the expanded use of expedited removal are an afront to the dignity of people in need of protection and a blow to the integrity of our asylum process. Deterrence-first is a failed immigration policy. Instead of pulling the rug out from those who have been waiting at the border, it's high time this administration started to focus on building an orderly process that welcomes those fleeing persecution,” said Alvaro M. Huerta, ImmDef’s Director of Litigation and Advocacy.
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