Asylum

Trump’s New Asylum Policy

Asylum seekers, especially from Central America’s Northern Triangle which consists of individuals from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, are traveling to the United States in search of a new home but are being detained. These individuals are fleeing severe gang violence, government corruption, and cartel violence in hopes of finding safety for themselves and their family members. Despite making the dangerous journey from their home countries without external assistance, these individuals are being told to wait months before having an asylum consideration trail in Mexico due to a new Trump administration policy called the Migrant Protection Protocols (M.P.P.). The M.P.P. requires asylum seekers to remain in Mexico for the duration of their legal proceedings, which can last several months. While in Mexico these individuals live in makeshift camps that are unprotected and with slumlike conditions. This new shift in the treatment of asylum seekers has placed these individuals in grave danger as there is no protection from the threats they were fleeing in the first place. This policy has to change as it is attacking the core moral purpose of the United States asylum process.

This is a political policy that has a direct impact on the people of the U.S. As immigrants look to the U.S. as a beacon of acceptance and safety, the Trump administration is destroying this promise and eroding the moral integrity of this nation. Therefore, I choose to write a letter to Bloomberg a presidential candidate that is basing his running on grounds of morality and social change. It is my hope that engaging Bloomberg will put a spotlight in the presidential race for others to see the immorality of the M.P.P.. The second genre I chose is an op-ed in regards to this issue as it will voice my concerns and share these ideas with like-minded individuals.  I would like to submit my article to the New York Times as a contributing voice against Trump’s policy.

 

Dear Bloomberg,

The United States is known as a country made up of a patchwork of immigrants. It is one of this country’s greatest strengths, as immigrants have contributed to the prosperity and growth seen in the U.S. today. In addition to being a beacon of diversity, the U.S. has been a leader in granting asylum to people from all over the world as they flee from the dangers and prosecution of their homelands. With this in mind, the current administration’s stance on asylum seekers is alarming specifically when it comes to applicants from the southern border.  

Recently, you announced your decision to run for the presidency under the Democratic ticket for the 2020 election, as a champion for morality and social justice. As a counterpoint to immorality, I want to focus your attention on Trump’s current asylum policy called the Migrant Protection Protocols (M.P.P.) colloquially known as “Remain in Mexico.” The M.P.P. requires asylum seekers from Central America’s Northern Triangle to remain in Mexico for the duration of their legal proceedings, which can last for many months. These people who have escaped from El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala due to life-threatening circumstances have been met with this new policy that forces them to wait in Mexican border towns without protection while their paperwork processes. 

Many of these vulnerable individuals are placed in towns like Ciudad Juárez, one of the most dangerous cities in the world to await their asylum hearings. Their lives are in constant danger as these towns are filled with kidnappers, thieves, and criminals who take advantage of asylum seekers’ vulnerability. Another one of the changes made is the metering of asylum seekers which strictly limits the number of individuals who can even apply for asylum. The fact that Trump’s policy significantly decreases the number of applications has created a bottleneck in the initial process.

This policy is the result of extremely biased views from the Trump administration. This nation is built by immigrants and should continue to be a beacon of hope for those who seek refuge. I urge you to campaign against Trump’s policy towards asylum seekers. Fight against this inhumane policy and work with those that are fighting to repeal it. 

Sincerely,

Ihn Lee

 

 

Op-ed: Immoral Asylum Policy

By Ihn Lee

Dec. 2, 2019

Immigration Today

Is the Migrant Protection Protocols (M.P.P.) more commonly known as “Remain in Mexico” really the best policy? Should Trump really have a wall, that will cost billions of dollars of taxpayer’s money, “to prevent illegal immigration, drug and human trafficking, and acts of terrorism” as stated by Trump? Professor Michael Dear’s opinion differs from Trump’s in the sense that the wall will not resolve these problems because many illegal immigrants already in the U.S. do not engage in criminal activity and truth be told, drug cartels can will function and deliver their goods with or without a wall. Erecting a wall on the border makes sense if Trump wants to keep asylum seekers in Mexico.  

El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala the Deadliest Countries World-wide

Asylum seekers, especially from Central America’s Northern Triangle which consists of individuals from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, are traveling to the United States in search of a new home but are being detained. Authors of  a New York Times article, Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Elisabeth Malkin note that asylum seekers from the Northern Triangle are at record highs with “about 150,000 Salvadorans [becoming] refugees or [seeking] asylum in recent years.” El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala are the deadliest countries in the world. Honduras has the highest murder rate in the world, El Salvador is 5th, and Guatemala is 6th , according to worldatlas.com. 

This influx was due to severe violence where in 2017 “there were 10.8 homicides a day in El Salvador.” The number of murders in the U.S. for the same year were 47.4 homicides a day, according to an FBI report. In comparison with the U.S. population which is 51 times bigger and landmass which is 467 times larger than El Salvador, El Salvador’s daily average was extremely high. Asylum seekers who came to the U.S. border were so desperate as they left behind their homes in search of safety because their government could not protect them from gangs, robberies, kidnapping, raped, tortured, and killed for ransom. Unfortunately, these migrants were forced to stay in Mexico which was no better than what these asylum seekers left behind as Mexico has experienced a rise in the murder rate last year with 35,964 killed and a continued uptick this year.

 Asylum seekers have risked their lives to arrive to the U.S. Southern borders in search of a reprieve to be sent back and told to remain in Mexico; however, asylum seekers who were forced to stay in Mexico live in Mexican border towns that are extremely dangerous. These migrants have been subject to kidnappings, discrimination, prejudice, and poverty. In addition, to this deterrent, the Trump administration enacted metering as noted by a CBS article by Kate Smith that discussed the shift in for Customs and Border Patrol officers who have processed on average 20 individuals a day in Jan 2019 instead of the 100 individuals a day in that was the past standard. Due to this shift, many migrants have lost hope, get frustrated  and return home.  

Morality in the United States Asylum Process

The M.P.P. requires asylum seekers to remain in Mexico for the duration of their legal proceedings, which can last several months. One of the reasons why so many asylum seekers are staying at the border for a longer time is the higher denial rate of asylum grants by immigration judges. The denial rate increased from 42.0%, in 2012 during the Obama administration, to 65%, in 2018 during Trump administration, according to a TRAC report. Asylum seekers are therefore forced to wait at the borders towns forming makeshift camps that lack proper sanitation or protection, and as a result, the most vulnerable population, children suffering the most. Kevin Sieff from Washington Post focused his article on the impact this policy has on children. Many fall ill, and their parents lack the ability to acquire the proper medical intervention. As a result, parents have sent their children over the border alone in hopes that their children are found by CBP (Customs and Border Protection) officers because of the fact that unaccompanied minors are not affected by M.P.P. This policy has not only broken these asylum seekers’ hope but it has also destroyed their families.   

Despite this very bleak situation, there are ways that we can help those who wait in Mexico for asylum. As there are not many lawyers available in these border towns, we can encourage bar associations to mobilize and volunteer their services to asylum seekers who can greatly benefit from legal aid. We, everyday citizens can show our support by writing letters to Congress for an asylum policy repeal. We can donate items such as clothing or dry goods to organizations that are working with asylum seeking families at border towns. In other words, there is hope for our country to still be a beacon of light for those who seek refuge in her towns. We cannot forget that this nation is built by immigrants.

 

 

Bibliography

“Asylum Decisions and Denials Jump in 2018.” Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, 29 Nov. 2018, https://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/539/. Accessed 1 Dec 2019.

Harrup, Anthony. Mexico’s Murder Rate Hit Record High in 2018. The Wall Street Journal, 25 Jul, 2019. https://www.wsj.com/articles/mexicos-murder-rate-hit-record-high-in-2018-11564079972. Accessed 1 Dec 2019.

Kanno-Youngs, Zolan and Elisabeth Malkin. U.S. Agreement With El Salvador Seeks to Divert Asylum Seekers. The New York Times, 20 Sep. 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/20/us/politics/us-asylum-el-salvador.html. Accessed 1 Dec 2019.

Smith, Kate. The country’s busiest border crossing will allow 20 people to claim asylum a day. They used to take up to 100. CBS News, 25 Jan, 2019. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tijuana-port-of-entry-san-ysidro-allows-20-immigrants-claim-asylum-immigration-advocates-2019-01-25/. Accessed 1 Dec 2019.

Sieff, Kevin. In squalid Mexico tent city, asylum seekers are growing so desperate they’re sending their children over the border alone. The Washington Post, 22 Nov, 2019. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/in-squalid-mexico-tent-city-asylum-seekers-are-growing-so-desperate-theyre-sending-their-children-over-the-border-alone/2019/11/22/9e5044ec-0c92-11ea-8054-289aef6e38a3_story.html. Accessed 1 Dec 2019.