Judge Jon S. Tigar’s ruling doesn't take effect immediately. The federal government has 14 days to appeal, with the policy staying in place in the meantime.  

The administration’s approach disqualifies most people from applying for asylum if they crossed into the U.S. without either securing an appointment at an official port of entry or proving that they sought asylum in another country along the way. Immigrant advocacy groups sued the administration on the basis that the policy violated the right of foreigners to request asylum once they reach U.S. soil, regardless of how they entered the country.  

In his decision, Tigar wrote, "The court concludes that the rule is contrary to law because it presumes ineligible for asylum noncitizens who enter between ports of entry, using a manner of entry that Congress expressly intended should not affect access to asylum." 

Since the policy took effect on May 12, the number of migrants apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border has plummeted. The Biden administration has argued that the policy is crucial in its efforts to curb unlawful crossings. But as Jordan and Sullivan note, the policy isn’t the only factor in the decline.  

Welcome to Wednesday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Karime Puga, Clara Villatoro, Christian Blair and Ashling Lee. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. 

FEMALE MIGRANTS’ ARRESTS — Texas has begun jailing migrant women after facing sex discrimination lawsuits for targeting only men under the state’s border security crackdown, writes Jolie McCullough of The Texas Tribune. Troopers were initially instructed to turn women and families over to U.S. Border Patrol. But now, Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesperson Amanda Hernandez said officials had cleared out one building in a facility to house up to 200 women. By Tuesday, 25 migrant women were in detention. 

HIGH RISK — Mexican authorities rescued 378 migrants abandoned by smugglers inside locked trailer boxes last week, reports Julian Resendiz of Border Report. Mexico’s National Institute of Migration reported two separate incidents in Veracruz, involving migrants from Guatemala, Honduras, Ecuador and Bangladesh. Meanwhile, Martin Coronado of EFE zooms in on the story of a couple who, along with their newborn baby, were kidnapped in Ciudad Juarez.  

SMALL TOWNS — "Immigrants could save our small towns," Houston Chronicle columnist Joe Holley writes, reflecting on the decline of such towns in Texas. Inspired by Mexican cafes run by multigenerational immigrant families that often thrive in these towns, Holley notes that welcoming newcomers willing to settle in struggling rural areas offers incentives for businesses, agriculture and community revitalization. He points to Utah and Iowa as examples of states implementing initiatives to welcome immigrants.   

‘OPPORTUNITY TO SHINE’ — Cyrus Jaffery, who came from Afghanistan as a refugee, faced numerous professional rejections until he was finally given a chance. Now he’s doing the same for others, Deborah Jian Lee writes in Fast Company. Jaffery is now the founding CEO of CJ Insurance Group in Omaha, Nebraska, and employs people with nontraditional backgrounds. "I see myself every day in the people that are moving here from Afghanistan," Jaffery said. "[T]hey’re going to become me. We just need to give people the opportunity to shine." 

Thanks for reading, 

Dan