Washington, D.C. – Following an eleventh hour request to keep Title 42 in place, the Supreme Court issued a stay that temporarily delays the termination of the asylum-blocking policy, which was ordered by a lower court to take place by December 21st.
In response, the Biden administration urged the Supreme Court to deny the request, saying the expulsions of migrants under Title 42 cannot be justified as a means of protecting public health. However, the administration urged SCOTUS to keep Title 42 in place for several days if the high court rules in their favor. Advocates have expressed concern as they’ve watched the Biden administration consider new measures to replace Title 42 that would further restrict access to asylum and cause harm to vulnerable migrants seeking safety.
As the Supreme Court considers the request to keep Title 42 in place and the Biden administration continues to address urgent humanitarian needs at the border, faith groups of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition (IIC) urge the administration to move forward with the termination of Title 42 and ensure that it is not replaced with other cruel, anti-asylum deterrence policies. Congress and the Biden administration must work together with border communities and nonprofit organizations to ensure they have the resources and support they need to welcome asylum-seeking migrants with dignity, and to create an asylum system that honors migrants’ legal and human right to seek protection in the United States.
IIC member organizations issued the following statements:
“Title 42 is a demonstration of policymaking at its cruelest. Any policy that fails to recognize the Light in every individual and treat all of humanity as equals, and that bars the right to seek asylum, is a policy we must immediately abandon,” said Bridget Moix, General Secretary of the Friends Committee on National Legislation. “Our policies and practices should be guided by one essential calling: Love thy neighbor, no exceptions. Security for all is attainable when we uphold our commonality as people, families, and communities—when we craft sensible and effective policies and services that support human movement between countries for safety, peace, and restoration. Welcome, wraparound services, employment and housing options, and legal representation should be the U.S. government’s default response for those fleeing persecution—not exclusive policies that compound atrocities and trauma.”
“Title 42 is a heartless way to control the U.S. border and goes against international human rights protections and diminishes human dignity,” said Rev. Mary Katherine Morn, President, Unitarian Universalist Service Committee. “People are migrating and pursuing their own self-determination in the face of climate injustice, protracted violence, and displacement from their homes. Communities across the United States have shown our government what sanctuary for people seeking safety looks like, by welcoming them into their homes, and by accompanying them on the journey to protect their legal rights. Our communities will be stronger if our democracy can seek to support migrant rights and immigration reform.”
“The time for Title 42 to come to an end is long overdue,” said Joan Rosenhauer, Executive Director of Jesuit Refugee Service/USA. “A public health policy initiated in response to the COVID-19 pandemic is not a solution to addressing the needs of migrants and asylum seekers. We urge the Biden Administration to continue its efforts to terminate this harmful policy and to work with partners to ensure that those seeking safety and protection are afforded their right to do so.”
“For over two years, our government has denied the humanity of migrants who come to the U.S. border to exercise their legally protected right to seek asylum,” said Kristin Kumpf, Director of Human Migration and Mobility for American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) and co-chair of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition’s Asylum Working Group. “As people of faith and conscience, we are outraged that Title 42 and other anti-asylum measures are causing trauma for thousands of families and individuals, who instead of being welcomed are pushed back into dangerous conditions. We call on the Biden Administration to ensure the end of Title 42, not institute any additional anti-asylum deterrence policies, and instead create real pathways to restore asylum and protect migrants seeking safety and a better life.”
“To continue Title 42 is just another way of kicking the proverbial can down the road when what we need is the Biden Administration to establish a proactive response to the very legal right to seek asylum,” said Susan Krehbiel, Presbyterian Church U.S.A. Associate for Migration Accompaniment Ministries. “We ask President Biden to say no to rejecting asylum seekers and to instead reject any policies that inflict further harm on all who are seeking safety at our nation’s borders. It is more than time to reverse the hateful and harmful policies of the past 6 years. On this winter solstice, we ask President Biden to shine a light that illuminates the humanity of each man, woman, and child huddled in the dark shadows of our border. A light that shines the way forward for the restoration of the U.S. asylum system. Mutual aid groups and people of faith are teaching us a better way, through their selfless acts of compassion and justice. Together, we can be a beacon of welcome.”
“Title 42 has been a stain on American immigration policy for far too long,” said Barbara Weinstein, Director of the Reform Jewish Movement’s Commission on Social Action. “It’s time to end this unjust and unwise policy that perpetuates our broken asylum system, harming individuals and families pursuing their legal right to seek safety in the U.S. We need a just, secure, and compassionate immigration system—not an unpredictable patchwork of laws and policies. Time and again, the Jewish people have experienced the consequences of harsh policies and indifference to the suffering of the world’s most vulnerable people. It is this history that inspires us to strongly urge Congress and the Biden administration to end Title 42, welcome asylum seekers with dignity and respect, and create a just and humane asylum system.”
“Seeking asylum is a fundamental, protected human right,” said Rabbi Jill Jacobs, CEO of T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights. “We have a moral obligation to welcome asylum seekers with a dignified, just, transparent, and timely system to gain legal entry into the United States. As demonstrated to rabbis on our recent trip with HIAS to witness firsthand the realities at the border, continuation of Title 42 will only lead to further human rights abuses and mistreatment of refugees. Recent calls to continue Title 42 seek to perpetuate racist dog-whistles and sow further confusion at the border. Advocates around the country are ready to accept asylum seekers and refugees with open arms once Title 42 is terminated.”
“During this holy season of Advent, as we remember how the Holy Family had to flee for their safety, we call on policymakers to open their hearts to our siblings at the border whose human dignity is being denied,” said Mary J. Novak, Executive Director of NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice. “Since it was first enacted by the Trump administration, NETWORK has opposed Title 42 as fundamentally immoral and a violation of international law. Catholic Social Justice teaches us to uphold the dignity of every person and love our neighbor without distinction. The Supreme Court’s temporary stay of Title 42’s termination is disappointing, as every day the rule continues compounds the enormous suffering that Title 42 inflicts on migrants at the southern border. For many asylum seekers, especially Black immigrants, a delay means danger and death. We urge the Biden administration to end this inhumane policy as soon as possible and resist any additional measures—including expedited removals, new criteria for asylum, or increased militarization of the border—that impede the establishment of a humane and orderly process for families seeking safety.”
“We must remember that decisions made by the Supreme Court, the Administration, and Congress impact the lives of real people—thousands of migrants still waiting to receive asylum in this country,” said Sr. Marie Lucey, Associate Director of Franciscan Action Network. “We Franciscans see these men, women, and children as brothers and sisters seeking protection from violence, oppression, and dire poverty. Yes, there are challenges, but Title 42 is not the way to address them. Our government must create an effective, humane asylum process that honors the rights of migrants. Title 42 does not meet that criteria. Values proclaimed in this season of Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa should not be empty words but must be enfleshed in compassionate, just policies impacting our brothers and sisters.”
“Title 42 has for far too long been a stain on our nation’s history of welcome. It’s time to wash it clean and honor our promise of welcome,” said Meredith Owen, Director of Policy and Advocacy at Church World Service. “This policy was proven ineffective and discriminatory at the height of COVID; to continue it would not only permanently scar our asylum processes, it would undermine our obligations—in both the legal and moral senses—for years to come. President Biden needs to act with courage, he needs to end this terrible policy.”
“To extend Title 42 is to extend the pain and suffering for thousands of refugee families who just want an opportunity to exercise their human right to seek asylum and prove that they are worthy of protection from persecution in the United States. We must not forget that Jesus and his family were refugees themselves,” said Elket Rodríguez, Field Personnel and Team Leader of the Advocacy Team for Immigrants and Refugees for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. “Title 42 does not deter migrants, alter the migrant flow, or change the conditions they are fleeing. On the contrary, it benefits criminal organizations that continue to profit from the expulsion of vulnerable men, women, and children who just want to find safety. We ask President Biden to oppose any effort to extend this policy and to work to provide the resources necessary to properly welcome asylum seekers and fairly process their claims.”
“Under the guise of public health, Title 42 has prevented tens of thousands of people fleeing violence and persecution from exercising their lawful and human rights of applying for asylum. The impacts of this policy are horrifying; families separated, people fleeing life-or-death situations sent back to the situations they fled, and lives lost,” said Kristyn Peck, CEO, Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area (LSSNCA). “Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area (LSSNCA) along with impacted families have advocated for and are ready for the end of this policy. We must honor our country’s legacy of providing safe haven to those seeking safety and protection, and uphold the values espoused by the world’s religions which universally emphasize the importance of welcoming the stranger. We have witnessed the abundance of our community’s generosity and welcome of new neighbors and know they will continue welcoming with compassion and empathy with the end to this inhumane policy.”
“The lives of asylum seekers – men, women, children – must not be seen as pieces in some game. Are they in? Are they out? Is Title 42 extended or ended? The answer is that Title 42 must be terminated and we simultaneously must all do the real work of enacting solutions to create a viable asylum system while also offering support and resources to properly welcome and process all migrants. They have survived a treacherous journey of thousands of miles fleeing their home countries, which are increasingly inhospitable. We remind our sisters and brothers that we welcome all, grounded in the knowledge that each and every one of us is endowed with dignity given to us by God,” said Fran Eskin-Royer, Executive Director of the National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd.
“The uncertainty that the ongoing Title 42 litigation has spurred is tragic,” said Giovana Oaxaca, Program Director for Migration Policy, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. “With my recent visit to the southern border, I saw border communities coming together to meet the humanitarian needs of migrants, reminiscent of the message from the poem emblazoned on the Statue of Liberty. We are seeing high numbers of people waiting for the moment they can exercise their legal right to seek asylum, often without protection from the elements as the cold turns deadly. Title 42 is not an effective or justified policy, and the suffering of migrant children, families, and individuals underlines the need to call for its end, to restore compliance with U.S. law and principles by opening the ports of entry, to strengthen coordination and resources for local groups and communities preparing to welcome them, and to establish a humane migration policy seated in the values of compassion and fairness. As we prepare to receive family and guests in our homes with anticipation of the birth of Christ, may we reflect on those at our southern border yearning for the warmth of a safe place to call home.”
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. Follow us on Twitter @interfaithimm
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