A lengthy new executive rule from the Trump administration which will make it “exceedingly difficult” for migrants to seek asylum in the U.S. is slated to go into effect on June 15, report Priscilla Alvarez and Geneva Sands for CNN.

“Under one proposed change, an individual's asylum claim could face greater scrutiny if the person traveled through at least one country while on the way to the U.S. but didn't seek refuge there. … The proposed regulation also says that living unlawfully in the U.S. for more than a year prior to filing for asylum would be considered a ‘significant adverse factor,’ despite exceptions that currently exist.”

For Axios, Rebecca Falconer breaks down the details and reveals a jaw-dropper: “Applicant claims of being under threat from terrorists, gangs or ‘rogue’ government officials would be rejected.”

Welcome to Thursday’s edition of Noorani’s Notes. Have a story you’d like us to include? Email me at [email protected].

TURNED AWAY – Migrant children are being turned away from the U.S. border and sent back to their home countries following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s open-ended order to expel unlawful immigrants, reports Lauren Villagran for the El Paso Times. “In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the Trump administration has expelled 2,175 unaccompanied minors since March, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The expulsions include at least one 10-year-old boy who was returned to his native Guatemala, according to records reviewed by the El Paso Times.” In a similar case reported by Dara Lind in ProPublica, “Advocacy organizations have sued the Trump administration to stop a 16-year-old boy from being summarily sent back to Honduras after he crossed into the U.S. last week to join his father. It’s the first challenge to the Trump administration’s policy of mass expulsions of border-crossers…”

ILLEGAL – Federal Judge Jed Rakoff yesterday declared it illegal for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to continue arrests in New York courthouses, reports Adiel Kaplan in NBC News. “It is one thing for the state courts to try to deal with the impediments brought on by a pandemic and quite another for them to have to grapple with disruptions and intimidations artificially imposed by an agency of the federal government in violation of long-standing privileges and fundamental principles of federalism and of separation of powers,” wrote the judge in his decision.

CHRISTIAN DUTY – Christians have a role to play in helping the immigrants and refugees who are suffering disproportionately from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, writes World Relief President Scott Arbeiter in an op-ed for Christianity Today. “[M]any are unemployed, lacking health care, and often ineligible for government relief programs. … If you’re a Christian; if you have a paycheck coming in or food on your table or an hour to spare, you are needed. Now is an urgent moment for the church to step up, to stand with immigrant brothers and sisters in Christ and as a witness to those outside of the church.”

UNWANTED JOBS – New research finds that a majority of Americans believe immigrants are mostly working in jobs that U.S. citizens don’t want, report Jens Manuel Krogstad, Mark Hugo Lopez and Jeffrey S. Passel at Pew Research Center. “Americans generally agree that immigrants – whether undocumented or living legally in the country – mostly do not work in jobs that U.S. citizens want, with a majority saying so across racial and ethnic groups and among both political parties.” Around two-thirds (66%) of Republicans say undocumented immigrants fill jobs U.S. citizens do not want. An important detail: The survey was conducted between April 29 and May 5, well into the COVID-19 pandemic.

PASTORS – With calls for racial justice coming from across the nation, the experience of Black immigrants are being amplified in the immigration conversation. Voice of America’s Elizabeth Lee reports on the experiences of Black immigrant pastors in Southern California, including Joy Magala, an Episcopal priest and immigrant from Uganda who worries about the safety of her three sons. “Each one of us needs to look deep in ourselves and see if there be any racism in our lives…any discrimination of any kind,” she told Lee. “Our job as human beings is to start that work and do the best that we can in our places of work and our communities to bring about change.”

JUSTICE – For this week’s episode of “Only in America,” I talked to Dr. Walter Strickland of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary about how a history of systemic racism has affected Black Americans, as well as the role of the church in advocating for racial and immigrant justice. Dr. Strickland, who is the seminary’s Assistant Professor of Systematic and Contextual Theology, shared meaningful insights about race and immigration in America, and how we can have robust conversations about pursuing justice.

Thanks for reading,

Ali