On Friday, the Supreme Court said it will expedite the review of the Biden administration’s efforts to end the Trump-era Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), a.k.a. "Remain in Mexico," report Robert Barnes and Nick Miroff of The Washington Post. Justices will hear the case in April, the last month for oral arguments this term. 

In the case of Biden vs. Texas, lower courts have mandated continuation of MPP "despite determinations by the politically accountable Executive Branch that MPP is not the best tool for deterring unlawful migration; that MPP exposes migrants to unacceptable risks; and that MPP detracts from the Executive’s foreign-relations efforts to manage regional migration," wrote Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar in her court filing. 

Meanwhile, U.S. Customs and Border Protection released data showing that migrant encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border declined in January — the first month-to-month decline since September, per Rick Jervis of USA Today. 

Welcome to Tuesday’s edition of Noorani’s Notes. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected].  

NO GUARANTEE — Thousands of Haitian migrants came to the U.S. last year in hopes of seeking asylum under a new administration. But after the expulsion of asylum seekers in Del Rio, Texas, in September and continued difficulties accessing the U.S. asylum system, Haitians like Nixon Pilorge and his family plan to seek refuge in Canada, reports David C. Adams of Univision. "It’s very difficult to get papers. We need lawyers and we don’t have money," Pilorge said after entering the U.S. with his wife and baby in December and spending 10 days in immigration detention. "My friends say its better in Canada, they help you with food and housing there." So, he and his family plan to journey by bus next week to get to the country. Pilorge knows his family isn’t guaranteed asylum, but says the uncertainty is better than feeling unsafe in Mexico or Haiti. Meanwhile in U.S. immigration courts, "woefully understaffed and often undertrained" judges are struggling to tackle the growing backlog of more than 1.6 million cases, Alexandra Villarreal reports for The Guardian.  

AFGHAN EFFORTS — On Saturday, the Biden administration officially relocated all remaining Afghan evacuees from a military base in New Jersey, marking the completion of the first phase in the monthslong resettlement process, reports Camilo Montoya-Galvez of CBS News. Still, an estimated 60,000 Afghan allies who have worked with the U.S. military and applied for Special Immigrant Visas (SIVs) are still stuck in Afghanistan, write Ryan C. Crocker, former U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan and Iraq, and Philip M. Caruso, chairman of the nonprofit No One Left Behind, in an op-ed for The New York Times. "To remedy this, Congress should overhaul the current S.I.V. process and pass an improved, permanent immigration program that swiftly and efficiently resettles those who apply for it."   

On local Afghan welcome:  

• In partnership with Lutheran Family Services, the Holy Cross Retreat Center in New Mexico is helping resettle Afghan refugees and welcome asylum seekers from all over the world. "It’s not just praying for the poor and making donations..." said Father Tom Smith, O.F.M. Conv., the center’s director. "It’s about making them feel welcome. Not just ‘here’s your room and here’s your key.’" (J.D. Long-García, America Magazine - The Jesuit Review) 
• San Diego County resident Barbara Cummings, a volunteer with the "Helping El Cajon Refugees" Facebook Group, held a shoe donation drive on Sunday for Afghan families temporarily living in hotels. (Heather Hope, CBS News 8) 
• Des Moines Area Community College is donating 50 laptops to Afghan families resettled in Central Iowa. (KCCI 8 News) 

UKRAINE — As the threat of war increases by the hour in Ukraine, the region is readying itself for a massive increase of refugees, The Guardian’s Shaun Walker and Lorenzo Tondo report. Poland’s deputy interior minister, Maciej Wąsik, told Polish radio, "We have to be prepared for a wave of up to a million people." While the country is reportedly preparing to accommodate as many Ukrainian refugees as possible, remember that when Belarus created a political and humanitarian crisis by forcing refugees from the Middle East across the Polish border last year, Poland’s leadership was much less welcoming. In this case, Poland "is already home to 2 million Ukrainians." Saying the quiet part out loud, Wąsik described Ukrainians as "real refugees" in need of help. 

BLACK HISTORY MONTH — The stories and histories of Black immigrants must continue to be a part of the national and religious conversation on immigration reform, writes Paola Fuentes Gleghorn of Sojourners. Gleghorn details how the creation of the diversity visa and Temporary Protected Status impacted Black migration to the U.S. and makes the case for immigration reform as an issue of racial justice. "We need to look to the many Christians and people of faith in our immigrant communities, Black churches, and ally communities who cite their faith and relationships as their primary motivators to work to dismantle systems of oppression and white supremacy," while also working towards a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, Gleghorn writes. 

Thanks for reading, 

Ali