President Biden’s Asylum Ban Shuts the Door on Families and Children, Returns Countless People to Danger

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Wednesday, May 10, 2023 

Media Contact: media@theyoungcenter.org 

Washington D.C.— Today, the Biden administration released its plans to ramp up increased measures to bar access to asylum along the southern border, including a dangerous new asylum ban, as replacements to Title 42.  The finalized asylum ban rule, which is set to go into effect when Title 42 ends tomorrow, would prevent many children, families, and adults from being able to seek asylum in the U.S. based on their manner of entry or transit through other countries. It would also expand fast-tracked deportations, force people --including families with children-- to request appointments to be able to seek protection at ports of entry by using a failed, biased and glitchy mobile app, and punish people seeking safety with a five-year banishment from the U.S. and potential criminal prosecution if they try to re-enter. 

Mary Miller Flowers, Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, said: 

“People should have the legal right to seek asylum at our borders, no matter how they arrived or if they managed to secure an appointment in advance. President Biden’s asylum ban will end that right, including for children and families. As we’ve seen before, transit bans return children to known danger and will force many families to separate to give their kids a shot at protection. The end of Title 42 tomorrow should represent an opportunity for the administration to chart a new, fair course for immigration policy that safely welcomes asylum seekers and supports both border and receiving communities. Instead, the new ban will expand upon and worsen the devastation we witnessed under Title 42. Our position is unwavering: all people must have access to fair immigration processes that prioritize the safety people seeking protection." 

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The Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights is a non-profit organization that protects and advances the rights and best interests of immigrant children and advocates for an immigration system that treats children as children first. For press inquiries, please contact Anabel Mendoza at media@theyoungcenter.org