With SCOTUS Ruling Certified, Biden Must Swiftly End Remain in Mexico

Today the U.S. Supreme Court certified its decision in Biden v. Texas, which affirmed that the Biden administration has the legal authority to end the Remain in Mexico policy. The Court has sent the decision back to the Fifth Circuit, which should now vacate the lower court injunction that forced the administration to restart the program in December 2021. In the meantime, the Biden administration should immediately stop returning people seeking asylum to Mexico. Officials should instead coordinate with shelters and nongovernmental and international organizations on both sides of the border to ensure all people who have been forced to wait in danger in Mexico have a meaningful opportunity to pursue their asylum claims safely, within the United States.

“With the Supreme Court’s ruling certified, there is no excuse for the Biden administration to continue dragging its feet,” Kate Jastram, Director of Policy & Advocacy at the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS), said today. “It is time for the administration to live up to its promises, restart our asylum system, and begin to redress the profound harm this policy has inflicted.”

Since its inception in 2019, the Remain in Mexico policy has forced tens of thousands of people seeking asylum to await their U.S. court dates in some of the most dangerous cities in the world, where many have experienced brutal violence. The policy is a mockery of due process, making it nearly impossible for people even to talk to a lawyer for help with their case. Under the previous administration, fewer than one percent of people returned to Mexico were granted protection. Ending this travesty was a day one promise by President Biden, whose administration has rightfully acknowledged Remain in Mexico’s “unjustifiable human costs.” Yet last Friday troubling reports emerged that some administration officials are wavering in this commitment. CGRS urges the administration to take the win and put an end to this deadly policy, once and for all.