Olga Galicia and her family at a makeshift camp for migrants in Tijuana, Mexico (Emilio Espejel/AP)
The Supreme Court requires the Biden Administration to maintain the Trump-era “remain in Mexico” policy, forcing asylum seekers to stay outside the US.
In a 6-3 decision, the Court’s unsigned order refused to overturn the ruling of a Federal judge in Texas. The majority claimed the Administration had acted arbitrarily and capriciously in revoking the policy, formally labelled the Migrant Protection Protocols.
Justices Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan dissented from the order.
Since early 2019, tens of thousands of migrants have waited for immigration hearings in unsanitary camps in Mexico. Tents are exposed to bad weather, and there are widespread reports of sexual assault, kidnapping, and torture.
Texas and Missouri officials sued over President Biden’s suspension and then revocation of the program. The states said they were injured by having to provide services such as drivers’ licenses to immigrants.
On August 13, Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of the US District Court for northern Texas ruled that asylum seekers must be returned to Mexico whenever a state government lacked resources.
Last year the Supreme Court, hearing an emergency appeal from the Trump Administration, revived the program after a federal appeals court blocked it.
Omar Jadwat of the American Civil Liberties Union said after Tuesday’s order:
The government must take all steps available to fully end this illegal program, including by reterminating it with a fuller explanation.
What it must not do is use this decision as cover for abandoning its commitment to restore a fair asylum system.
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