Immigrant rights group responds to ruling on ‘remain in Mexico’ policy

Immigrant rights activists are responding to a ruling on June 30, which upheld the Biden administration’s attempt to end the Trump-era “remain in Mexico” immigration policy. The policy, also called the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), was blocked by a lower court. The Supreme Court rejected that ruling, allowing Biden to stop forcing migrants and asylum seekers to wait on the other side of the border.

Christine Nuemann-Ortiz, executive director of Voces de la Frontera Action called the policy “cruel, barbaric and shameful.” The policy essentially barred South and Central American migrants and asylum seekers from crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. As a result, many migrants were relegated to living in squalid and dangerous conditions as they remained in limbo waiting for their cases to be processed. Nuemann-Ortiz praised the Court’s decision as “a reminder of the need to repeal similar Trump-era policies like Title 42 that are still in place, and expose immigrants seeking asylum to continued violence by cartels, family separation, and in the extreme case, death, as occurred in the recent case of the tragic death of at least 51 migrants in San Antonio.”

The migrants were found abandoned in a tractor trailer, as Texas was hit with a blistering heatwave. Over a dozen survivors, including children, were taken to the hospital where they were treated for heat stroke and heat exhaustion. “Our country has a responsibility to both live up to our ideals as a nation that welcomes immigrants and assume responsibility for the legacy of U.S. foregin policy that has contributed to forced migration from Latin America, Africa and Asia,” said Nuemann-Ortiz.

She added, “We call on Democrats in office or running for office to condemn all deadly and racist anti-asylum policies, including Title 42, and advocate for reestablishing a path that ensures all people are humanely welcomed at our borders, safely and with dignity. We must close a dark chapter of the Trump era and re-establish our compliance with international and national human rights laws.”