The policy is slated to end just a week from today, on Dec. 21. 

In their legal filing, the states argue that if the appeals court denies their request, it should issue a seven-day suspension of the ruling that struck down the policy, which could allow them to request the Supreme Court’s involvement.  

“The states’ emergency request is the latest twist in an intensifying legal and political battle over the fate of Title 42, which was first invoked at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic by Trump administration officials who argued the measure was necessary to contain the spread of the virus along U.S. borders,” notes Montoya-Galvez. 

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas talked about the pending end of Title 42 yesterday during his visit to El Paso, Texas, reports Lauren Villagran of the El Paso Times, with video by Omar Ornelas. “We’re mindful ... of the fact that we have to coordinate with our partners, not just the nonprofit organizations with which we work very closely, not just cities along the border like El Paso, but also our international partners. So we’re moving as quickly as we can,” Mayorkas said. 

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 Dynahlee Padilla-Vasquez, Clara Villatoro and Katie Lutz. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. 

And if you like what you’re reading, please support our end-of-year campaign here. Thank you! 

VENEZUELA CONTEXT — A historic economic and political crisis — not U.S. immigration policies — is leading Venezuelans to leave their home country en masse, Ricardo Hausmann, founder and director of Harvard’s Growth Lab, tells Stuart Anderson of Forbes. “The economy went into a tailspin because the government tried to control society by taking away economic rights,” said Hausmann. “[M]any people decided that under those conditions, it was not possible to dream, to plan, to invest, to do things in Venezuela, and people started to leave.” More than 7.1 million refugees and migrants have left, of whom more than 80% currently reside in Latin America, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. To help, the U.S. should do more to welcome Venezuelans, many of whom would gladly work, Hausmann says. That in turn would help address our labor shortages and economy. 

‘CHRISTIAN WELCOME’ — After asylum seekers began arriving unexpectedly in New York City in August, the United Methodist Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew and a network of faith groups coordinated a response to help, reports Linda Bloom of UM News. They started by creating a shelter in the church for five men: “In a matter of four hours, we had a functioning sanctuary space,” said the Rev. Lea Matthews, the church’s associate pastor. Ongoing efforts include partnerships with local church partners such as West Side Campaign Against Hunger, which provides backpacks and food donations, and Venezuelans and Immigrants Aid, to provide migrants with information, assistance and connections. “There are new arrivals in almost every community,” added the Rev. K Karpen, senior pastor at St. Paul and St. Andrew. “They need to feel a Christian welcome.” 

RIGHT THIS WRONG — “Why would a country recruit my family, educate and invest in me and my sister, only to make us leave?” asks Merry Joseph, a “documented Dreamer” and medical student in Utah, in a Salt Lake Tribune op-ed. “Our parents have dedicated their careers to helping American companies and communities thrive. Their children — budding doctors like me — should be able to do the same.” Joseph is one of the estimated 200,000 children of legal immigrants who are at risk of losing legal status upon turning 21. As a member of Improve the Dream, she and other documented Dreamers are pushing for Congress to right this wrong with legislation this year. 

AFGHAN ADJUSTMENT ACT — A big thank-you to Sens. Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire) for newly co-sponsoring the Afghan Adjustment Act. In an op-ed for The Tennessean, civilian volunteer Kami Rice, co-founder of AlliedShepherd.org, writes that we must keep our promises to Afghan allies by passing the bill. “The act follows the model of standard bipartisan adjustment of status legislation passed after U.S. wartime withdrawals from Vietnam and Iraq,” she writes. “ … Our Afghan allies and the volunteers who continue the emotionally draining, around-the-clock work of assisting them need fellow Tennesseans to remind our senators to represent our Tennessee values — love for America, our veterans and our new neighbors — by supporting the Afghan Adjustment Act.”  

DYING WISH DENIED — Our hearts go out to the family of 74-year-old Robert Barkat, who died from lung cancer in Yeadon, Pennsylvania, this week. Barkat’s dying wish was to see his son once more, but the State Department refused to let his son, Joarlais Robert from Pakistan, enter the country, reports Jeff Gammage of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Joarlais repeatedly had sought permission to try and see his father since October. “If someone requests approval to visit the United States, the government assumes that the person intends to try to stay permanently,” Gammage notes. “It’s a shame that the U.S. immigration system, which is squarely rooted in the notion of family unity and family reunion, was unable to find a way to permit Joarlais to see his father,” added Philadelphia immigration attorney Alex Isbell, who voluntarily worked on this case. 

Thanks for reading, 

Dan 

P.S. Early in the pandemic, a Los Angeles-based organization called MAMA “stepped in to help immigrant-run businesses stay afloat.” Today it has transformed from its Drive-By Kitchen program to catering and more, per Jean Trinh of Eater.