Forward to a friend:
[link removed]
Dear Friend,
At the end of March, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced the end of the Title 42 ban on migrants and asylum seekers on May 23. The Department of Human Services has prepared a 17-page plan for dealing with the increased number of migrants after May 23. Nonetheless, Republicans and a few Democrats propose legislation to continue the Title 42 ban. Such action violates U.S. and international law. One such bill has been proposed by Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) and Senator James Lankford (R-OK). LINK: [link removed]
Call your Senators. Call your Congressional Representative. Tell them that Title 42 must end. Ask them to vote against any bill to extend Title 42 past May 23rd. LINKS: [link removed] ; [link removed]
U.S. law says migrants may apply for asylum at the border or inside the United States, regardless of how they entered:
8 U.S. Code 1158 (a)(1) "Any alien who is physically present in the United States or who arrives in the United States (whether or not at a designated port of arrival and including an alien who is brought to the United States after having been interdicted in international or United States waters), irrespective of such alien's status, may apply for asylum ... LINK: [link removed]
International law includes non-refoulement: LINK: [link removed]
"Under international human rights law, the principle of non-refoulement guarantees that no one should be returned to a country where they would face torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and other irreparable harm. This principle applies to all migrants at all times, irrespective of migration status."
Call your Senators. Call your Congressional Representative. Tell them that Title 42 must end. Ask them to vote against any bill to extend Title 42 past May 23rd. LINKS: [link removed] ; [link removed]
History
The Title 42 ban is a Trump-era policy forbidding asylum seekers and other migrants from entering the United States. Until now, the Biden administration has continued this policy. The stated purpose of the policy is protection of public health. The actual purpose, now acknowledged by almost everyone, is stopping immigration.
In March 2020, the Trump administration coerced the CDC into enacting this "public health" ban on asylum seekers and other migrants, based on the COVID pandemic. It is called the "Title 42" ban because it relies on public health authority under Title 42 of the U.S. Code, rather than on immigration law. The Trump administration put the Title 42 ban in place even though public health experts at the CDC and elsewhere said such a ban was not needed and was not helpful in combating the COVID pandemic.
The Border Patrol has used this ban to expel migrants who cross the border. Those who are expelled face hunger, homelessness, and violent attacks in Mexico. Since President Biden took office, there have been at least 9,866 reports of violent attacks--including rape, kidnapping, and assault-- against people blocked from requesting protection at the U.S.-Mexico border and/or expelled to Mexico under Title 42, as tracked by Human Rights First. LINK: [link removed]
Title 42 has had a disproportionate impact on black and brown immigrants. Recently, Ukrainians arriving at the border have been granted exceptions to Title 42, while Hondurans, Haitians, and others continue to be barred.
What Will Happen at the Border
Once the ban is lifted, many migrants will approach the border, asking for asylum. Others will cross the border without authorization and then ask for asylum. U.S. law clearly authorizes both kinds of applications: either at the border, or from inside the United States. U.S. law allows application for asylum from inside the United States, regardless of whether the asylum seeker entered with authorization.
No one knows how many migrants and asylum seekers will enter. The Department of Human Services (DHS) has plans for 6,000 (low) or 12,000 (high) or 18,000 (very high) entrants per day during the first days or weeks after May 23. DHS has prepared a 17-page plan for dealing with the increased number of migrants after May 23. LINK: [link removed]
The initial high number of entries will decrease after those who have been waiting for months or years have been processed.
Suggested message:
Messaging works best if you use your own words. This is just a suggested outline to get you started.
"Hello. My name is [YOUR NAME] and I live in [YOUR STATE AND CITY.]
"I am calling to demand that you block any vote to extend Title 42 past May 23rd as proposed by the Biden administration.
"As doctors and public health experts have made clear, immigration is not a source of pandemic spread.Title 42 has never been about public health, but rather to turn away asylum seekers and expose them to dangerous physical violence and exploitation."
Call your Senators. Call your Congressional Representative. Tell them that Title 42 must end. Ask them to vote against any bill to extend Title 42 past May 23rd. LINKS: [link removed] ; [link removed]
In solidarity,
Veena Iyer
ILCM Executive Director
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