ACLU, others resume legal battles and ask Biden administrator to end Article 42 ban on asylum seekers

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other advocacy organizations are resuming their legal battle for president Joe Biden According to the Associated Press, the Article 42 ban on asylum-seeking families is ended.

The Biden administration uses emergency powers to stop the spread of the coronavirus, banning most asylum seekers, including many families and almost all single adults, except for unaccompanied children. Title 42 authority is named after the Public Health Act of 1944.

Now that the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups have concluded settlement negotiations with the government, the lawsuit will be heard by the U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan in Washington.

Neela Chakravartula, executive lawyer of the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies, said: “We are deeply disappointed that the Biden administration has given up its commitment to fair and humane treatment to families seeking safety, leaving us no choice. , The litigation can only be resumed.” ACLU’s attorney Lee Gelernt said: “The seven months waiting for the Biden administration to end Article 42 is enough.”

For more reports from the Associated Press, please see below:

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other groups are resuming a legal battle to get President Joe Biden’s government to end Article 42 of asylum-seeking families. In this photo, Biden boarded Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC on July 30, 2021.
Mandel Yan/AFP via Getty Images

Since late March, the American Civil Liberties Union has been working with border advocates to submit the names of particularly vulnerable immigrants trapped in Mexico to U.S. authorities, allowing them to seek asylum in the United States. Gelernt said the exemption will continue for another week.

The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The collapse reflects the growing tension between immigration advocates and the government regarding the use of Article 42 powers and the government’s decision last week to resume fast deportation flights for families to Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.

Last week, the International Rescue Committee stated that they would end efforts to help the government save asylum seekers from pandemic-related bans. These groups have been working in parallel with the American Civil Liberties Union to identify particularly vulnerable immigrants stranded in Mexico.