The End of Remain in Mexico is a Critical Step Towards Restoring the Right to Asylum
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, August 9, 2022
Media Contact: media@theyoungcenter.org
Washington D.C.— On Monday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced it will end the Trump-era Remain in Mexico policy which, for years, denied thousands of people—including over 21,000 children—their legal right to seek asylum in the United States. The announcement follows the U.S. Supreme Court’s June ruling upholding the Biden administration’s authority to end the policy. Effective immediately, DHS will no longer enroll individuals into Remain in Mexico and those currently in the program will be allowed to pursue their asylum cases in the United States.
Gladis Molina Alt, Executive Director of the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, said:
“For years, the Young Center sounded the alarm about the devastating harms Remain in Mexico has inflicted on tens of thousands of immigrant children and their families and all people seeking asylum at our southern border. Yesterday, the Biden administration took a critical first step to restoring the right to asylum that was decimated by the prior administration, but it can’t let up now. From the moment the program began, our Child Advocates fought for the best interests of children who were subjected to Remain in Mexico and later entered the U.S. as “unaccompanied” children because the policy forced their families to separate. When the fight over the policy moved to the courts, we led a coalition of immigrant and children’s rights organizations in filing an amicus brief that put the specific harm caused by the program to children front and center before federal courts. It’s time the Biden administration keeps all families together and ensures that all impacted children and adults have a legitimate opportunity to safely seek asylum in the United States.”
Jane Liu, Senior Litigation Attorney for the Young Center, observed:
“The Biden administration’s move to terminate Remain in Mexico is the result of a long, hard-fought battle to ensure all immigrants are welcomed with humane policies as they exercise their right to seek protection. Under Remain in Mexico, we saw firsthand how parents were forced to make the unimaginable decision to send their child to the U.S. without them in the hopes that their child would be allowed to seek safety and protection even if they were forced to stay in Mexico. Some parents went weeks without hearing any news about their children after being separated. Ending the cruelties of Remain in Mexico are long overdue. Now the administration must ensure that families cruelly ripped apart by this policy are quickly and safely reunited and that no other family is ever forced to separate. Right now, Title 42—another Trump-era policy— continues to separate families and deny people their right to seek asylum. The Biden administration must use every tool at its disposal to end Title 42, ensure children seeking protection are treated as children first, and guarantee that no one is subjected to harmful immigration policies that deny their right to seek safety.”
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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