The Ending of Title 42 Is Long Overdue; We Must Ensure an Immediate Fair and Just Immigration Process

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Dena Craig, [email protected]g

WASHINGTON — Maya Wiley, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the lifting of Title 42 and the migrant expulsion policy originally adopted by the Trump administration to turn away people seeking asylum at the U.S. border:

“As asylum officers, secret service agents, and troops intercept the anticipated surge of migrants at the U.S. Southern border, we call on the Biden administration to live up to its promise of ensuring migrants and asylum seekers are treated humanely. Our organization welcomes the long overdue end of the unlawful and cruel Title 42 expulsion policy, but the administration must respond to this challenge by protecting the rights and dignity of traumatized migrants. The use of detention — in county jails, for-profit prisons, and federal facilities — is inappropriate and often produces significant harm to human beings entitled to our protection, while costing taxpayers billions of dollars annually.

“Black, Latino, and Indigenous migrants have been disproportionately harmed in the detention system riddled with abusive conditions. The proposed Biden administration policy to require asylum seekers to first apply for protection from another country before entry, or to require them to use the CBP One app that has apparently violated the human rights of Black asylum seekers, flies in the face of international human rights laws and our national values. The Biden administration should not delay and further restrict access to asylum. We are asking the Biden administration to keep its promise to build a fair and humane immigration system — and reject the urge to usher in new restrictive asylum rules.

“Asylum seekers view the United States as a beacon of hope, justice, and protection from violence and persecution. The lifting of Title 42 is an opportunity to create a more humane immigration system: one that commits to keeping families together in healthy environments — not detention — while ensuring people seeking safety have fair access to asylum.”

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 230 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.

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