ILAP Condemns Biden Asylum Ban, Calls for a Just and Humane Asylum System
From the Southern Border to Maine, we can and must #WelcomeWithDignity
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 27, 2023
CONTACT: Lisa Parisio, lparisio@ilapmaine.org
PORTLAND, ME – ILAP is in solidarity with all people forced to seek asylum and condemns the Biden administration’s latest plan to gut the asylum system, modeled on Trump-era proposals the courts already found illegal. Published on February 23 – with only a 30-day public comment period as opposed to the standard 60-day period – the rule would make people ineligible for asylum based on how they are forced to enter the U.S. and their travel through third countries. The effect will be deadly, lead to more families ripped apart, and is in clear violation of U.S. and international law and principles.
Sue Roche, ILAP’s Executive Director said: “The Biden administration’s asylum proposal is divorced from reality on many levels, including the administration’s false claim that it would be safe or possible for people to seek asylum in some of the countries they are forced to travel through on their journey to the U.S. This rule will needlessly force already vulnerable people into even more disastrous situations, deny them their rights, and cost them their lives. Our energy and resources should be focused on building a just, humane, and welcoming asylum system which upholds the law and human rights – the administration must not move forward with this cruel and counterproductive rule.”
As the Biden administration plans to block access to life-saving asylum for Black and Brown people on the southern border, Biden applauded Poland’s welcoming of mostly white asylum seekers from Ukraine. ILAP calls out and condemns the racism made abundantly clear by this hypocrisy. All people in need of humanitarian protection should be welcomed.
Lisa Parisio, ILAP’s Senior Policy and Outreach Attorney said: “Part of the Biden administration’s justification for proposing an end to asylum is the ‘burden’ on states. As a state-level organization working every day to serve and support asylum seekers in our communities while facing severe resource limitations, let us be clear – we will not be used as an excuse for this inhumane, political proposal. The taxpayer dollars that will inevitably be spent by the administration defending this proposal in court should be invested in Maine and other welcoming communities. With pragmatic policy that focuses on protecting and investing in people instead of turning them away, this administration could support states in welcoming with dignity, so that all of our communities can thrive.”
###