Today, the Trump administration released a new proposed rule that would ban those seeking asylum due to “public health concerns.” We at the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program are deeply troubled by this latest attempt to deny asylum seekers their right to seek safety in the United States.
The proposed rule aims to block asylum in multiple ways, including barring asylum-seekers who have contracted COVID-19 while waiting for a hearing, which is especially troubling considering the dire health conditions in detention centers.
Instead of addressing the severity of the COVID-19 crisis, the United States government is using the pandemic to flout its human rights obligations. We encourage our students, alumni, and supporters to submit a comment to stop this proposed rule from taking effect.