CGRS Congratulates Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, Presents Roadmap for the Next Administration

This morning news broke that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have prevailed in the 2020 presidential election. The Center for Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS) now looks to the next four years with renewed hope and determination. Our leading asylum experts and litigators are ready to work with the new administration to deliver on campaign promises and restore access to protection for people seeking refuge in the United States.

Communities around the country turned out in record numbers this year to reject the racist fearmongering that has characterized Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, voting to end his administration’s unrelenting, years-long assault on immigrant and refugee rights. The people have delivered a mandate for Biden and Harris to do right by our communities on day one – by reversing every last Trump policy that has placed asylum seekers in harm’s way and trapped immigrant families in terrifying limbo.

“These next few weeks will be critical, as the president-elect and his team begin setting priorities for their first term,” CGRS Legal Director Blaine Bookey said today. “CGRS has prepared a roadmap for the next administration to forge a new path and build an asylum system that offers protection, not punishment, to the courageous people who turn to our country for safe haven. We are ready to help make this vision a reality.”

We anticipate that the coming months, however, will bring new and urgent challenges, with the Trump administration hastening to do as much damage as possible before leaving office. We expect several dangerous, anti-asylum regulations to be published and rushed into effect before January 20. It will be imperative that the next administration act swiftly to rescind these rules and put an end to the myriad policies that have gutted our asylum system and destroyed thousands of lives.

“It’s time to turn the page on the inhumanity of the Trump era and reimagine systems that deliver true justice for asylum seekers, address the root causes of forced migration, and offer permanent relief for the millions of immigrant families who call this country home,” CGRS Director Karen Musalo said today. “My colleagues and I are ready to roll up our sleeves and work alongside fellow advocates, organizers, and allies to build a better future for all.”