Title
Condemning the inhumane treatment of Haitian migrants at the border and urging the Biden administration to immediately suspend all deportations of Haitians, expedite the release of Haitian immigrants held in U.S. immigration facilities, uphold the right to seek asylum, and ensure a clean pathway to citizenship for essential workers, Dreamers, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders, and their families in all economic recovery legislation including through budget reconciliation.
Body
WHEREAS, Seeking asylum is legal; and
WHEREAS, The treatment of migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border has been inhumane and deplorable for decades; and
WHEREAS, Compounding crises in Haiti, including the aftermath of a presidential assasination, a catastrophic earthquake, and internecine violence, have resulted in dangerous conditions for people who deserve political stability and investments to repair and restore the infrastructure and economy of a neighboring nation; and
WHEREAS, Haiti is still in the process of recovering from a 2010 earthquake, which displaced over a million individuals and caused widespread infrastructure damage to countless roads and buildings and closed hospitals and ports; and
WHEREAS, In recent weeks, over 14,000 Haitians seeking asylum took shelter at the Del Rio encampment along the U.S.-Mexico border. The Biden administration has since expelled all migrants from the encampment, deporting over 2,000 Haitians and moving many more into detention centers for processing. UNICEF estimates that over two-thirds of deported Haitian migrants are women and children, including newborn babies; and
WHEREAS, Horrifying images of mounted Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agents whipping and assaulting Haitian migrants attempting to join the Del Rio encampment have circulated through the media, demonstrating the violent and abusive practices of CBP which have escalated through successive administrations; and
WEHREAS, Human Rights First has catalogued ...
Click here for full text