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Blocking the right to seek asylum from many migrants and making detention mandatory "would break the border," one official said. Another warned, "It would be completely counterproductive." The latter official said detention centers would quickly fill, preventing agencies from apprehending newly arriving migrants. Negotiators also are considering including the ability for Customs and Border Protection to expel migrants before they get asylum screenings, similar to pandemic-era Title 42. As Ainsley and Tsirkin note, "Border crossing numbers soared under Title 42 in part because Mexico could not take back the large numbers of migrants being returned." Our take: It’s good that Democrats and Republicans are talking. They should work together on making the border more orderly, secure and humane. But these potential provisions are concerning on all three fronts. We need more resources for border and asylum processing so that people with and without valid claims will know quickly. And we need to provide legal alternatives for people who otherwise would come to the border and request asylum in the first place. Welcome to Thursday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s strategic communications VP, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Clara Villatoro, Isabella Miller and Katie Lutz. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. BACKLOGS — The recent increase in border crossings is affecting people whose cases already are stalled in immigration backlogs, reports Alex Valdez of KOLD News 13. Upward of 2 million cases are pending in immigration courts, compared with more than 600,000 pending cases in 2020. A temporary policy to waive in-person interviews for certain visa applicants is designed to help address the backlog — and is set to expire in a week. As for solutions, longtime immigration attorney Siovhan Sheridan-Ayala notes that Congress could help with funding to remedy USCIS staffing shortages. REAL SOLUTIONS — Update immigration and asylum laws. Increase funding for immigration court judges. Improve sightlines along the Rio Grande by tackling invasive carrizo cane and salt cedar plants. These are just three recommendations Dennis E. Nixon, Chairman of the International Bank of Commerce, sent Texas officials this year, Jorge A. Vela reports in the Laredo Morning Times. "All of these suggestions come at a cost well below that of building walls, which only act to destroy private property, farms, ranches and homesteads, not to mention our valued relationship with Mexico: our ally and partner," Nixon said. RISK TO WORKERS — The recent death of an H-2A visa holder has raised concerns among advocates in North Carolina about worker exploitation, report Claudia Rivera Cotto and Grace Vitaglione of the Carolina Public Press. Most workers with H-2A visas rely on their employers for food, shelter and transportation. "You may be disincentivized from reporting something happening at work because of that power dynamic," said Caitlin Ryland, an attorney at the Farmworker Unit of Legal Aid of NC. Proposed federal regulations could help. SUPPORT GROUPS — For migrants including those who have made the journey to Chicago, the emotional and mental toll of leaving home can be great, reports Kristen Schorsch of WBEZ Chicago. Informal support groups have been popping up around the city as mental health professionals and volunteers offer spaces for migrants to connect and share their experiences. Besides building community, these support groups are trying to prevent the most extreme outcomes of traumas and to help migrants feel less isolated, Schorsch notes. Thanks for reading, Dan |
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