ACLU Supporter –

Asylum seekers are literally running for their lives, often traveling across vast stretches of land and water with nothing but the clothes on their backs and the hope that they'll one day reach safety.

We just filed a lawsuit on behalf of asylum seekers who are now in even more danger due to the Trump administration's so-called "safe third country" policy. Under this new policy, the government is deporting individuals and families who come to the U.S. seeking safety from persecution, without even hearing their claims.

The administration's claim is that it's deporting people to "safe third countries" where refugees can live in safety and have full and fair access to real asylum protections. But these places aren't safe at all. They include places like Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras – countries plagued by epidemic violence, instability, and ill-equipped asylum systems. Many people are fleeing from these same countries.

Under this policy, the government will often deport an asylum seeker to a country right next door to their country of origin – even though the same gangs and cartels may operate in both places, and even though it's easy for persecutors to travel between these countries.

One of the plaintiffs we represent is a gay man fleeing MS-13 violence in El Salvador. U.S. border authorities turned him away and sent him to Guatemala. There, our client fears that MS-13 will be able to track him down, and that living his life openly as a gay man will get him killed.

This administration's attacks on our asylum system have been relentless, leaving millions of desperate people without safe haven. Fighting for immigrants' rights in this political climate can be daunting, but with the help of supporters like you, we can defeat these cruel, anti-immigrant policies.

Thanks for supporting our fight,

Omar Jadwat
Director of the ACLU Immigrants' Rights Project