Washington, DC – To move forward after years of non-stop, xenophobic rhetoric and inhumane immigration policies, the Interfaith Immigration Coalition says the U.S. government must repeal and strengthen; heal and transform.
Elissa Diaz, Policy and Advocacy Manager at Church World Service and Co-Chair of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC), said: “The Biden Administration must repeal Trump Administration policies like Migration Protection Protocols (MPP) that dehumanize migrants and, in many cases, have led to their deaths. It must then strengthen our refugee, asylum, and immigration processes, making them more just, logical, and humane than ever before.”
Added Peniel Ibe, Policy Engagement Coordinator at the American Friends Service Committee and Co-Chair of the IIC: “Biden Administration policies must heal the traumas our government created–to the extent possible–by reuniting families separated through border policies, deportations, and xenophobic bans. We also need Congress to transform U.S. immigration laws, building a new paradigm that removes the white supremacy embedded in our immigration laws; welcomes people from all religions, races, and national origins; and chooses communion and love over coercion and control.”
In two weeks, the Biden Administration has already taken several actions to reverse harmful Trump Administration policies, but there is so much more to be done. Following are quotes from IIC leaders reflecting on two years of MPP. For more on the IIC’s policy priorities, see “Interfaith Framework for Welcoming and Supporting Migrants, Refugees, Immigrants, and Asylum Seekers.”
“I have witnessed first-hand the human tragedy of the Remain in Mexico policy. The stories of raped women, murdered men, exploited fathers, heartbroken mothers, and separated families are common among asylum seekers stranded in the border towns of northern Mexico. It is more than a humanitarian crisis; it is a picture of constant despair and hopelessness,” said Elket Rodriguez, Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy and Missions Specialist for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. “We applaud the Biden administration’s decision to suspend new enrollments in the Migrant Protection Protocols. Still, our country has a moral imperative to allow those asylum seekers enrolled in the program to enter our territory. After months living in constant trauma and uncertainty, this is the least we can do as a country to heal the wounds we have caused in the lives of many asylum seekers.”
Margaret Conley, Director of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Justice Team, added: “The Sisters of Mercy of the Americas commend the Biden administration for suspending the cruel and inhumane Migration Protection Protocols (MPP), also known as Remain in Mexico. While this move will end the practice of forcing asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico while their asylum claims move through the courts, much more needs to be done. Tens of thousands of migrants are still living in dangerous Mexican border towns where they face horrific conditions including violence, sexual assault, hunger, and disease. The administration needs to move quickly so that these women, men and children can be united with family members or sponsors as they await their court dates. Remain in Mexico is an affront to human dignity and must be completely terminated quickly.”
“The right of every person to seek asylum from persecution should be a given;” said Rev. Mary Katherine Morn, President and CEO of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. “Yet over the past years we’ve seen this human right stripped from people at our borders, forcing thousands to wait in deadly conditions in the midst of a pandemic. It is past time for the shameful Remain in Mexico protocols, Title 42 expulsions, and related policies to end. The Biden Administration’s steps so far have set the right tone, but they have failed to result in real change for families and individuals stranded in Mexico. So long as the Title 42 blockade on asylum remains in effect, measures to pause or rescind other policies will have little effect. Our government can and should do better, restoring the ability of all people to seek protection at our borders, in accordance with U.S. and international law.”
“The Trump administration’s cruel attempt to dismantle asylum as we know it – in violation of U.S. and international law, no less – will be felt for years to come. Despite our nation’s capacity to welcome them safely and humanely, children and families have instead been exposed to grave risks of violence, kidnapping, torture, and sexual assault,” said Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president and CEO of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service. “We stand ready to work with all stakeholders to offer newcomers a warm welcome and a firm footing, as generations of kind-hearted Americans have done before us.”
“Restricting access to the United States fails us a nation. President Biden rightly recognizes America’s duty to welcome asylum seekers and migrants. It is right and just that one of his first acts as president has been to reopen the United States and to suspend the Trump Administration’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ debacle. Countries have a moral responsibility; America has a moral responsibility. Borders are man-made, but a person’s human dignity is God-given,” said Lawrence E. Couch, director of the National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd.
Anna Gallagher, executive director of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. said: “I am deeply thankful to the attorneys, religious workers, and other humanitarians who labor day and night to care for our brothers and sisters seeking asylum at the U.S./Mexico border. They have been courageous where the U.S. government failed, with few resources. In two years of MPP, thousands of lives have been irreversibly damaged. Men and women have been kidnapped and murdered while waiting for protection in the United States. Women have been sexually assaulted. Babies have been born in squalid camps. Families have been separated. While it is important that the new administration stopped enrolling people in MPP, the entire program must be eliminated. Our country is smart, capable and strong. We can and must implement an asylum system that is fair and just, that saves lives and respects and upholds the dignity of the most vulnerable.”
“Over the last two years, we’ve seen the U.S. system of asylum dismantled and opportunities to seek safety in the U.S. diminished. Our faith and Catholic Social Teaching call us to support efforts to repeal this damage and to create opportunities to seek safety and security in our country, welcoming and protecting our most vulnerable neighbors,” said Joan Rosenhauer, Executive Director, Jesuit Refugee Service/USA.
Sister Marie Lucey, Associate Director of Franciscan Action Network, added: “The inhumane Migration Protection Protocols (MPP), more aptly known as Remain in Mexico policy, ignores the God-given human dignity of migrants and their lawful right to petition for asylum at the U.S. border. For these reasons, FAN deplores the policy and strongly encourages the Biden Administration to permanently end MPP and enact an asylum system that is just and compassionate.”
“We are remembering those who have lost lives and those who continue to languish in refugee camps at our Southern border; the ongoing mental and physical anguish faced by thousands; the legal rights and protections being denied to those with humanitarian needs; the innocent children being robbed of their fundamental right to education; and the endless resilience and spirit of migrants on this deeply disheartening 2nd Anniversary of the Remain in Mexico policy,” said Hillary Kipnis, Senior Policy Advisor for Bridges Faith Initiative. “President Biden’s promise to end MPP brings us all a renewed outlook of hope, and we look forward to the official termination of MPP and brighter days ahead, when MPP individuals are brought to safety and human dignity, not ‘deterrence.’ is how we approach asylum at the border.”
Said Sister Simone Campbell, SSS, Executive Director of NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice: “From the moment it was announced, the Remain in Mexico policy has been a national sin. Too many of our sisters and brothers have been condemned to lead a life of squalor at our border, simply for seeking asylum from persecution in their home countries. This sinful policy is in direct contradiction to Catholic teaching and international law. Our immigration system must respect human dignity, as well as the right to seek asylum. By eliminating the Remain in Mexico policy, President Biden would begin to restore our nation’s commitment to moral principles.”
The Interfaith Immigration Coalition is made up of over 55 national, faith-based organizations brought together across many theological traditions with a common call to seek just policies that lift up the God-given dignity of every individual. In partnership, we work to protect the rights, dignity, and safety of all refugees and migrants.
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