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A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact:

Vanessa Parra, media@aiusa.org

Biden Administration Ends Title 42, But People Seeking Safety Need More

Responding to today's announcement on the termination of Title 42 Expulsions, Amy Fischer, Americas Advocacy Director at Amnesty International USA said:

WASHINGTON

Responding to today's announcement on the termination of Title 42 Expulsions, Amy Fischer, Americas Advocacy Director at Amnesty International USA said:

"Today's announcement is an important step forward to restore the U.S. government's respect for the human right to seek asylum in the United States, but the delay in implementation means that people will continue to be expelled until May 23rd. We are grateful this unlawful and unnecessary policy, which was callously carried out by both the Trump and Biden Administrations, will finally and rightfully be repealed. This termination marks a victory for asylum-seekers and their allies, particularly the Black, Brown, and Indigenous people who have been most affected by Title 42 expulsions and have been lifting their voices in unison to protest the policy."

"Over one million people were expelled or deported under Title 42. These people were either removed back to Mexico where they were subject to violent attacks including rape, kidnapping, and assault, or were sent back to the very danger and persecution they fled from in their home countries. This egregious policy forcibly returned over tens of thousands of Haitians to a humanitarian crisis in Haiti. Title 42 flights to Haiti continued almost every day even after the brutal treatment by border agents of Haitian families in Del Rio was broadcasted around the world."

"Communities around the country and at the border are waiting with open arms to provide welcome to immigrants and asylum-seekers. The Biden Administration has had plenty of time to establish COVID-19 mitigation efforts, and the delayed implementation fails to address the urgency of providing protection for those seeking safety. We continue to call on the Biden Administration to fully and immediately restore access to asylum at the border and ensure that immigrants and asylum-seekers have access to community-based programs and legal services to navigate the system instead of being placed in detention or under surveillance. The Biden Administration must stop turning a blind eye to Black migrants in need of protection; it can start by finally designating Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Cameroon, Ethiopia, and other majority Black countries in crisis and by halting all deportations to Haiti.

Amnesty International is a global movement of millions of people demanding human rights for all people - no matter who they are or where they are. We are the world's largest grassroots human rights organization.

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